As urban teenagers increasingly seek rural study experiences, a small county in Gangwon Province is showing that local communities can offer educational opportunities on par with the country's biggest cities.
Young people in Cheorwon-gun now have access to nearly everything their big-city peers enjoy — with the added advantage of a richer natural learning environment and a stronger emphasis on life appreciation and character development that dense urban settings rarely provide.
While youths from other parts of Gangwon Province have traveled to Europe, Cheorwon's students are heading to North America. Thirty young people from Cheorwon, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, have departed for the eastern United States, including New Jersey, as part of an initiative to strengthen the global competencies of local youth.
The "2026 Cheorwon-gun Youth Global Cultural Experience" program set off on Friday and runs through July 31 — a 13-night, 15-day itinerary covering education, international exchange, culture, humanities, geology and visits to prestigious universities in the eastern United States.
Participants will enroll in an ESL program at New Jersey's Christian Academy (NJUCA), attending English classes and completing group missions with local peers to build practical communication skills and collaborative abilities.
The group will also visit world-renowned institutions including Columbia University, Princeton University, Harvard University, MIT and Yale University to experience global academic environments firsthand. Meetings with Korean students enrolled at each university, along with a special lecture by Hwang Jeong-hyeon, a professor and Cheorwon native, are also planned to help participants explore career paths and broaden their international outlook.
Cheorwon-gun has consistently run overseas English camps for high school students since 2018. This year, the county is operating a domestic English camp for 100 elementary school students and an international English camp in Queensland, Australia, for 40 middle school students, continuing to expand its age-tailored global education programs.
"I hope this global cultural experience gives our young people a valuable opportunity to understand diverse cultures and nurture their dreams on a world stage," Cheorwon County Chief Kim Dong-il said. "We will continue to expand our support for global education to develop the talented people of the future."
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