The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education announced on September 9, 2025, that the ‘Shared Property Management Plan for the Establishment of the (tentative name) Seongjin School’ passed the Education Committee of the Seoul Metropolitan Council. This resolution reflects the long-standing desires of students requiring special education and their parents.
With the resolution by the Education Committee, the preliminary administrative procedures for establishing Seongjin School have overcome a significant milestone, with a plenary vote scheduled for the 12th. The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education plans to commence detailed design and construction following the plenary vote.
Seongjin School will be established on the site of the closed Seongsu High School in Seongdong-gu, with a target opening date of March 2029. It will be constructed with a total of 22 classes (including 2 kindergarten classes, 6 elementary school classes, 6 middle school classes, 6 high school classes, and 2 specialty classes). This aims to alleviate the inconvenience of long-distance commuting for students needing special education and to achieve a balanced regional placement of special schools for students with physical disabilities, thereby improving educational conditions.
The community has consistently shown interest in utilizing the site of the closed Seongsu High School. Out of a total area of 13,800㎡, 8,000㎡ will be used for Seongjin School, while the remaining 5,800㎡ will be utilized for community facilities like sports centers and libraries.
Additionally, the southern side of the Seongsu High School site is set to undergo a residential redevelopment project, the Seongsu Strategy Maintenance Area, which plans to move in more than 9,400 households, further heightening interest in the site’s usage.
Local representative Hwang Chul-kyu (People Power Party, Seongdong 4) has proposed the dual establishment of both special and general schools as a multifaceted use plan for the Seongsu High School site. The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education plans to proceed with a feasibility study to assess the necessity of new establishments in conjunction with policies for fostering appropriately sized schools, considering the population growth and educational demand.
The Seoul Metropolitan Council intends to actively discuss plans for creating community-connected facilities following the resolution to establish Seongjin School. Seoul Metropolitan Council Chairman Choi Ho-jung and Education Committee Chairman Park Sang-hyuk expressed their commitment to incorporating residents’ opinions sufficiently during the process.
Education Superintendent Jung Geun-sik expressed gratitude to the Education Committee members for their consensus on the need to establish the special school, stating, “I ask for the Seoul Metropolitan Council’s support in the upcoming plenary session to ensure students receive education without discrimination. We will continue to work closely with the education office, city council, and local community to actively review the necessary facilities for future education.”