ULSAN — Ulsan Girls' Commercial High School and Ulsan Beauty Arts High School are set to be reorganized into a single coeducational vocational high school in the urban center of Nam-gu by 2031.
The Ulsan Metropolitan Office of Education said on the 21st that it will pursue the merger of the two schools to respond to a declining school-age population and strengthen the competitiveness of vocational education, and that it will gather opinions from students, parents, faculty and residents.
Under the plan, the merged school will cut the combined enrollment capacity of the two schools to 10 classes from 16. The commerce program at Ulsan Girls' Commercial High School will be reduced to four classes, and the existing tourism department will be reorganized into a tourism and culinary arts department with two classes to reflect demand in new industries. The beauty arts department at Ulsan Beauty Arts High School, with four classes, will be fully incorporated into the merged school.
The school will switch to a coeducational system to broaden the range of program choices. To improve educational facilities, a new building will be constructed on the current athletic field of Ulsan Girls' Commercial High School, with completion and opening targeted for March 2031.
The merger is intended to overhaul Ulsan Girls' Commercial High School, which has struggled to fill its freshman classes, and to improve conditions for students at Ulsan Beauty Arts High School, who have faced long commutes because of the school's location on the city's outskirts. The plan also aims to strengthen hands-on vocational training by improving access to beauty industry businesses in the Nam-gu urban center.
The education office will accept comments on the proposal through the websites of the office and the two schools until 6 p.m. on Oct. 9. It plans to hold a public hearing in October to discuss the specific direction of the merger and curriculum changes with school officials and others.
"We will listen to the various views of the education community and pursue a forward-looking merger that raises the competitiveness of the two schools and provides students with better educational conditions," an official at the Ulsan Metropolitan Office of Education said.
