First int'l school in Incheon's free economic zone to open next month

INCHEON, Aug. 12 (Yonhap) -- With the first international school set to open in a
free economic zone in the western port city of Incheon next month, public
interest is growing over plans to establish four other such schools in the zone.
Chadwick International School, which has a capacity of accommodating up to 2,080
elementary, middle and high school students, is located in the Songdo buiness
district of the economic zone.
It admitted about 280 students, including Koreans with no experience of living
abroad, in the first year.
Four more international schools -- another in the Songdo district and three in
other business districts -- will open in the Incheon Free Economic Zone (IFEZ) in
the coming years.
In 2003, the government designated about 209 square kilometers of land in Incheon
as IFEZ to transform it into a Northeast Asian hub of business, R&D, logistics
and tourism by 2020. The first phase of building infrastructure for the zone was
completed last year.
The construction of a school in the Cheongna district is scheduled to begin this
month for completion by August of next year.
The school funded by a local private school foundation can accommodate 1,440
students, including foreigners and Koreans with more than three years of
experience in overseas stays.
It is uncertain whether two schools to be established in Yeongjong district,
where Incheon International Airport is located, and the second international
school in Songdo will admit Koreans with no experience of overseas residence, or
not.
Of the two schools in Yeongjong, one is scheduled to open in September 2012 if
construction begins next year as scheduled with the rest expected to open between
2013 and 2014.
The second international school in Songdo will likely open between 2012 and 2013.
The schools are experiencing difficulty in luring foreign investors due to the
enormous initial investment required, city officials said.
"International schools are essential infrastructure for the settlement of foreign
residents and the attraction of foreign investment in the economic free zone," an
official with the IFEZ Authority under the control of the Incheon Metropolitan
City. "However, we need an aggressive budgetary support from the government for
the establishment and management of international schools since the initial cost
of building the schools is big but difficult to restore."
sshim@yna.co.kr
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