School's out for good, but repurposing plans are getting held back
Published: 16 May. 2025, 14:34
Updated: 18 May. 2025, 19:56
Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI
![The gate to Gosan Elementary School in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi, is seen battered and worn away on May 14. [JOONGANG ILBO]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/05/18/094b9293-5573-4491-8221-c907c3cbca38.jpg)
The gate to Gosan Elementary School in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi, is seen battered and worn away on May 14. [JOONGANG ILBO]
What happens to schools with no students? It turns out that even the government can't figure that out.
As school closures rise across Korea due to a declining student population, concerns grow over abandoned campuses, prompting calls for proactive plans to repurpose such sites as community facilities before they fall into disuse.
Take, for example, the recently shuttered Gosan Elementary in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi: On Wednesday, inside the firmly shut iron gate stands a two-story school building with patches of blue paint peeling off. The artificial turf field, completed in 2011, was littered with plastic bags and water bottles instead of the laughter of children.
At the school gate, a warning sign read: “Educational Environment Protection Zone: Facilities that emit pollutants or pose a hazard near schools are restricted.” But just five meters (16 feet) away, beside the fence, about 30 used cooking oil containers were left in a pile. Dozens of dried cigarette butts were discarded in paper cups.
Gosan Elementary School, which opened in 1946, was closed last year due to declining student enrollment. In 1973, the school had 804 students, or 13 classes. Fifty years later, the number dropped to 40 with just one class.
With the school-age population decreasing, the number of school closures is rising nationwide, becoming a headache for local communities. Although regional offices under city and provincial education departments are seeking ways to lease or repurpose closed schools, progress has been slow. Voices are growing louder for effective solutions to utilize these closed schools.
“It breaks my heart not hearing kids playing anymore,” said Jo Yun-gyeong, 52, who has run a supermarket near Gosan Elementary for 25 years. “After the school closed, I had to clear out the snack shelves I kept for the kids and switch to running a knitting studio.”
![A warning notice is put up near Gosan Elementary School in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi, on May 14. [JOONGANG ILBO]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/05/18/c2aac284-9132-4c4b-82bf-4106f0176556.jpg)
A warning notice is put up near Gosan Elementary School in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi, on May 14. [JOONGANG ILBO]
“The community is just hoping something new will come into the closed school,” said local resident Lee Jeong-gu. “It’s frustrating not being allowed access even a year after it closed.”
Other regions are facing similar issues of neglect with closed schools. Marisan Elementary School in Ganghwa, Incheon, which closed in 1999, was used as a cultural arts center starting in 2000. However, since its lease ended in 2023, the facility remains unused.
“We’re planning to repurpose it as a space for culture, arts, and sports, but currently we’re in a legal dispute with the previous tenant,” said an official from the Incheon Southern Education Office.
As of March this year, there were 4,008 closed schools nationwide — an increase of 53 from 3,955 in March last year, according to the Ministry of Education on Thursday. In Gyeonggi alone, the number of closed schools increased from 183 to 193, showing the highest increase at 5.5 percent nationwide.
The next highest were Busan at 4.2 percent, North Jeolla at 3 percent, South Chungcheong at 2.9 percent and Gangwon at 1.5 percent. The number of unused closed schools also rose from 367 last March to 376 this March. Of the 1,368 closed schools owned by city and provincial education offices, 27.5 percent remain unused.
![The inside of a shop near Gosan Elementary School in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi, where the shop owner had to change the business from a supermarket to a knitting studio after closure of the school [JOONGANG ILBO]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/05/18/886e565f-b945-4ed3-b2d5-d7350d3e30ea.jpg)
The inside of a shop near Gosan Elementary School in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi, where the shop owner had to change the business from a supermarket to a knitting studio after closure of the school [JOONGANG ILBO]
Some closed schools have been transformed into community spaces. Seoul Hwayang Elementary School in Gwangjin District, which closed in 2023 due to declining student numbers, is now used as a parking lot and recreational area.
When visited in March, the schoolyard at Hwayang Elementary was lively with residents walking dogs or chatting in small groups. In an area with many multifamily homes and limited parking, the 16 newly opened parking spaces have helped alleviate parking woes.
For Kim Seong-ja, 80, who has lived near Hwayang Elementary for 50 years, the closed schoolyard has become a rehabilitation space.
“I need to walk at least 30 minutes daily for knee rehab,” she said. “I used to be afraid of getting hit by scooters on the sidewalk-less alleyways, but now I can walk freely without worry.”
![Tents are seen ripped and torn near Mari Mountain Elementary School in Ganghwa, Incheon [JOONGANG ILBO]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/05/18/4bfe55be-9d6b-4e67-a69f-ea47577683d1.jpg)
Tents are seen ripped and torn near Mari Mountain Elementary School in Ganghwa, Incheon [JOONGANG ILBO]
“Through these daily walks, I’ve become close to other elderly women in the neighborhood,” Kim added. “The closed school has become our ‘community room.’”
As school closures steadily increase, experts argue that plans to repurpose these spaces should be developed even before they close.
“With the continuing decline in school-age children, school closures will likely increase rapidly,” said Park Nam-ki, a professor of pedagogy at Gwangju National University of Education. “Preparations should begin while closure discussions are ongoing, through a committee involving education offices and local governments.”
“We need strategies to maximize the use of land left by school closures,” said Lee Hee-chung, a professor of urban engineering at the University of Seoul. “It should be recycled in ways that deliver the greatest benefit to the most people, whether as dormitories or multipurpose cultural spaces.”
![A local resident walks on the grounds of Seoul Hwayang Elementary School in Gwangjin District, which closed in 2023. [JOONGANG ILBO]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/05/18/d76ea726-6702-4898-8db9-ad9728db13f1.jpg)
A local resident walks on the grounds of Seoul Hwayang Elementary School in Gwangjin District, which closed in 2023. [JOONGANG ILBO]
Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY PARK JONG-SUH [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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