Professors protest college restructuring plan

By Na Jeong-ju

About 20 professors at Kangwon National University (KNU) have tendered their resignations in protest of the government’s designation of the school as one of the five “substandard” state-run colleges, school officials said Thursday.

The action represents a growing backlash among schools over the Education Ministry’s ongoing college restructuring plan, which is tied to its tuition-cut drive.

The ministry has listed 43 private colleges as well as five state-run universities ― Kangwon, Chungbuk, Gangneung-Wonju and Kunsan national universities, and Busan National University of Education ― to cut state subsidies. Some of the schools have criticized the ministry for using unfair evaluation standards.

“All professors handling the school’s administrative affairs have offered to resign to President Kwon Young-joong,” a KNU spokesman said. “They told Kwon that they were discouraged by the government’s labeling of KNU as a non-viable school despite the unique role it has played for regional development.”

The school plans to hold an emergency meeting of professors early next week to discuss countermeasures. If possible, they will call in Education Minister Lee Ju-ho to protest what they called the government’s “reckless” push for restructuring, the spokesman said.

The blacklisted schools will be forced to streamline as well as face financial restrictions. Lee has vowed to expel the worst ones that fail to meet the ministry’s requirements for reform.

The ministry called for the need to weed out underperforming schools, saying student enrollments at colleges may decrease by 40 percent in a decade from the current levels.

Among other reformative measures, it plans to introduce a merit-based wage system for professors, abolish the direct election system for presidents of state-run colleges and initiate various competition-oriented programs at schools. It is also seeking to shut down poorly-managed universities and oust corrupt managers.

On Tuesday, a professors’ group urged Minister Lee to disband a ministry panel spearheading the restructuring drive, threatening to launch a campaign to oust him.

It alleged that the committee is not qualified to rate colleges because it is mainly composed of professors tied to private enterprises and those from private colleges, saying its assessment criteria are biased and unfair.

A day later, Myungshin University, a family-owned four-year school in Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, filed a suit against the ministry to demand withdrawal of its decision last month to close the school. The ministry revoked its license after sanctioning its former and incumbent owners for embezzling school funds, mismanagement and other wrongdoings.