‘Bringing retired teachers’ experience into schools’: Seoul Educational Volunteer Support Center selected for Ministry of the Interior and Safety Minister’s Award

[Financial News] The SMOE Educational Volunteer Support Center, which has connected the experience of retired teachers and seniors with school education, has been selected to receive the Ministry of the Interior and Safety Minister’s Award as it marks its 10th anniversary. The center’s membership grew 86.2%, from 2,524 in 2023 to 4,699 in 2025, while the number of schools hosting educational volunteer activities rose 57.1% over the same period, from 273 to 429.
SMOE said on the 12th that its educational volunteer program, “Volunteer Together, Grow with Greater Value,” was selected to receive the Ministry of the Interior and Safety Minister’s Award in the education category at the 1st Korea Public Interest Activity Impact Awards. The ceremony is scheduled for the 14th.
Established in 2016, the center has connected the experience and expertise of retired teachers and seniors with the educational needs of schools. Its key areas of activity include foundational academic skills, support for students with dyslexia and multicultural students, reading, school libraries, and safety support at Neulbom Schools. It operates a professional educational volunteering system through education and training, activity monitoring, evaluation and feedback.
Educational volunteer activities totaled about 50,000 sessions and 200,000 hours in 2025. This year, the center is running 11 professional educational volunteer groups in response to the needs of schools.
SMOE plans to broaden participation in educational volunteering to mark the center’s 10th anniversary. It will continue existing volunteer work that draws on seniors’ experience and expertise, while expanding participation by students and families and connecting schools with the local community’s diverse human resources.
Geun-sik Chung, superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, said, “The past 10 years of the Educational Volunteer Support Center have shown that citizens’ experience and expertise can be valuable educational resources that support students’ learning and schools’ growth,” adding, “Taking this award as a new starting point, we will broaden participation to include students, families and the local community, and further strengthen the foundation for educational cooperation in Seoul that connects schools and people, generations and regions.”

[email protected] Kim Man-gi Reporter