Jeonbuk National University (JBNU) has officially launched a faculty union. The branch of the National Professors' Union of Public Universities (hereinafter the NPUU) at JBNU held its inaugural general meeting on January 20 and began official activities, the branch said on the 2nd.

The NPUU JBNU branch began preparations for its establishment around April last year, centered on the JBNU Faculty Council. After about nine months of discussions and procedures, it officially launched on that day. With this, JBNU became the NPUU's 17th branch nationwide, and it has secured an institutional foundation for protecting the rights and interests of faculty at national universities and for strengthening the public mission of universities.

The inaugural general meeting was attended by 17 JBNU-affiliated union members, as well as Choi In‑cheol, Chair of the NPUU (Department of English Education, Kyungpook National University); Lee Jun‑woo, Vice Chair (Department of Management and Accounting, Hanbat National University); and Jung Ki‑ryong, Secretary‑General (Department of Mathematics Education, Kyungpook National University), among others, who congratulated the launch of the JBNU branch.

Professor Cheon Seong‑geun (Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, JBNU) was elected as the inaugural branch chair, and Professor Shin Hyuk‑jin (Department of Music, College of Arts, JBNU) was elected as auditor. Their term is two years, through January 19, 2028.

Through the founding declaration adopted that day, the NPUU JBNU branch formally pledged ▲to defend faculty labor rights ▲to pursue democratic university governance ▲to strengthen the public mission of national and public universities ▲and to foster solidarity with professors at national and public universities nationwide.

In his inaugural remarks, Branch Chair Cheon Seong‑geun said, "We will do our utmost to build a university where the rights of faculty as workers are respected," and "We will strengthen channels for communication and consultation so that faculty voices are substantively reflected in major university decision‑making processes."

He added, "While we will clearly uphold principles in protecting academic and educational autonomy and the university's public mission, we will prioritize rational dialogue and solidarity over confrontation," and emphasized, "The participation and solidarity of each member are the branch’s greatest strength."