Jeonbuk National University (JBNU) has established a social enterprise to operate after-school programs for elementary, middle, and high school students.

JBNU was selected as a social enterprise for after-school programs overseen by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, established Keunsaram Academy Co., Ltd., and announced that, with two years of financial support from the ministry, it will cooperate with the Jeonbuk Provincial Office of Education to improve the quality of after-school programs at schools across the province.

Keunsaram Academy Co., Ltd. is a social enterprise that pursues social objectives by providing social services or employment to disadvantaged groups. It was established with the aims of restoring normal school education, promoting social integration considerate of marginalized groups, and harmonizing public interest and revenue through reasonable profit generation.

Accordingly, JBNU will receive 150 million won this year and 120 million won next year from the ministry, and will also receive support from Jeonbuk Province for personnel and other expenses to offer a variety of after-school classes in formats such as hands-on activities and field learning.

As JBNU carries out after-school programs at schools throughout Jeonbuk, College of Education faculty are expected to develop creative and differentiated after-school programs and secure excellent instructors, which should significantly raise the quality of education.

In particular, an educational system serving diverse local groups will be operated, and it is expected to reduce private education costs, provide demand-driven education through communication with parents, and offer jobs and social services to vulnerable groups.

Professor Gyu-seong Cho, chair of the Keunsaram Academy Co., Ltd. Promotion Committee for after-school programs, said, 'We will strive to introduce high-quality education into after-school programs by sharing the talents of JBNU's outstanding personnel and strengthening their expertise, thereby elevating JBNU's status as a regional hub university and building cooperative relationships that engage with the education field.'