- Commemoration Monument Is Set Up on the Former Yeongdo Campus in Busan March 07, 2023
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Yonsei continued their education independently despite the Korean War and contributed to the local community
[Photo 1. Former Yeongdo Temporary Campus of Yonhi University]
On February 28, Yonsei University in Seoul, Korea, held the "Unveiling Ceremony of the former Yonsei University Yeongdo Campus Site Monument" at Busan Healthcare High School in Yeongdo, Busan.
Some major Yonsei officials, including President Seoung Hwan Suh and Senior Vice President Dong Hoon Kim, as well as personnel of the Yeongdo District Office and Busan Healthcare High School, participated in this event. They held a commemoration ceremony at the Busan Healthcare High School auditorium, held the unveiling ceremony of the monument, and planted a commemoration tree in the garden on the high school campus. A commemorative plaque was also presented to a gukbap restaurant in Yeongdo, which Yonsei faculty and students enjoyed during the Busan era.
The formerly Yonhi University, also known as Chosun Christian University, which was a predecessor of Yonsei back then, was closed repeatedly due to the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, and inevitably evacuated from Seoul in January 1951. At that time, the Wartime Associate University was opened in Busan, Gwangju, Jeonju, Daejeon, Cheongju, and Daegu under the Ministry of Education's policy, but Yonhi resumed university education independently in October 1951 by building five tents on the hill behind Namhang Elementary School with the school's help.
[Photo 2. Former Yeongdo Temporary Campus of Yonhi University] In 1952, Yonhi purchased 2,793㎡ barley fields and rented municipal land at the site of the current Busan Healthcare High School, and built temporary school buildings with wood and tents supported by the United Nations Civil Assistance Command. Yonhi returned to Seoul in 1953 as the armistice agreement was signed, but left the campus as a branch for students in Busan. Concrete school buildings were completed in 1955 with the support of the 8th United States Army Busan Base Command also. The Busan branch campus was maintained even after Yonhi and Severance merged in 1957 to become Yonsei University, but in 1959, the branch campus was abolished according to the government's policy, so Yonsei established the Pusan Yonsei Vocational Junior College.
In 1964, Yonsei established the nation's first four-year College of Domestic Science (currently College of Human Ecology) in place of the junior college, and the campus lasted until the college was completely relocated to Seoul in March 1966. Since then, the Yeongdo Campus has been serving as a foundation of Busan's educational institutions, including the former Hansung Women's Vocational Junior College (currently Kyungsung University) and the current Busan Healthcare High School.
[Photo 3. Monument Unveiling Ceremony]
The monument set up on the campus of Busan Healthcare High School is engraved with the motto of Yonsei, "Truth will make you free." An official at the Office of Library and Cultural Services of Yonsei University, which led the construction of the monument, said, "We built the Yeongdo Campus monument to shed light on the proud history of Yonsei, that the university was maintained through special efforts by the university, government, and local community despite the war, and also that we had contributed to fostering talent in the local community by continuing the branch campus, junior college, and the College of Domestic Science after the ceasefire."
"Yonhi found a site here with difficulty and opened a tent campus independently to realize the spirit of Yonsei that does not yield to any difficulties," President Suh evaluated the historical significance in his commemorative speech, "The history of Yonsei in Busan for 15 years was long and also colorful. I believe this tearful history will be a powerful comfort for all of us to overcome even today's difficulties." -
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