Changwon National University president faces no-confidence landslide, but administration declares it failed

A no-confidence vote against Changwon National University President Park Min-won concluded with an overwhelming 67.74 percent in favor of removal — but the administration declared the motion defeated by invoking a procedural rule critics say has no basis in university bylaws, pushing the campus into open conflict.

According to the university and its faculty council, the vote was held June 22 and 23 among 385 full-time professors. A record 341 faculty members — 88.57 percent — cast ballots, of whom 231, or 67.74 percent, voted in favor of the no-confidence motion. Only 110 professors, or 32.26 percent, voted against it.

Changwon National University's bylaws contain no quorum requirement for a presidential no-confidence vote. Before the official announcement, the administration distributed a press release declaring the motion defeated, citing what it called a customary standard that major decisions require approval from two-thirds of all enrolled faculty. By folding the 44 professors who abstained into the denominator, the administration put the approval rate against the full faculty roster at 60 percent — below the threshold it had set.

The faculty council pushed back immediately. When no explicit bylaw exists, the council argued, the general legal principle of majority rule — a simple majority of those who voted — should apply as a matter of course. Faculty members pointed to precedents at other universities, including Pusan National University and Chungnam National University, where no-confidence motions were decided by a majority of voters, not of all enrolled faculty. Critics say the administration's method of treating abstentions as votes against the motion amounts to an arbitrary distortion.

At the heart of the dispute is Park's push to convert the university into a government-funded corporation — a legal restructuring that would give it greater administrative autonomy. The administration has cited the precedent of seven universities, including Seoul National University and Incheon National University, arguing the change is necessary for institutional survival. The faculty council counters that the administration is obscuring the real consequences of the move.

Faculty Council Chair Lee Jang-hee warned that the university should look closely at Incheon National University, which suffered severe fiscal strain after incorporation, rather than at Seoul National University, which has abundant resources. "Incorporation will eliminate the state's fiscal responsibility and destroy the university's public character," he said. There are also mounting allegations that Park is pushing the restructuring as a stepping stone for privatization that would entrench his long-term hold on the presidency.

The administration's conduct during the vote draws fire as well. Park issued a statement Wednesday emphasizing dialogue, but it emerged that the administration had simultaneously filed an injunction with a court to block publication of the results and had pressured the vote-tallying firm. The administration said the legal action was a defensive measure to prevent defamation and that it withdrew the injunction Wednesday morning in the interest of the broader good.

The faculty council plans to use the no-confidence result as leverage to intensify pressure on Park to resign voluntarily, bringing the standoff at Changwon National University to a critical juncture.