Seven colleges in Gangwon Province gathered to share results from the past year under RISE, the region's university support initiative for local innovation.
The forum also served as a platform to coordinate a joint response to the transition to ANCHOR, a new regional talent-development framework set to take full effect in 2026.
According to Gangwon Province, the Gangwon Community College RISE Project Council and the Gangwon RISE Center co-hosted a joint outcomes forum Tuesday at Antigua Hall of St. John's Hotel in Gangneung.
Held under the slogan "A Sturdy Anchor to Fix Gangwon's Future — ANCHOR!", the forum drew about 100 participants. They included representatives from seven community colleges in the province — Gangneung Yeongdong University, Gangwon State University, Segyeong University, Songgok University, Songho University, Korea Golf Science and Technology University and Hallym Polytechnic University — as well as officials from Gangwon Province, industry and related organizations.
Each college presented achievements and community contributions across areas including industry-academia cooperation, locally tailored talent development, local entrepreneurship, lifelong vocational education and solutions to regional challenges.
The name ANCHOR reflects a shared commitment by the region and its colleges to build a foundation where locally nurtured talent can settle in Gangwon and continue to grow.
Participants agreed that Gangwon's higher vocational education model must be further developed through locally rooted talent development, industry-aligned education and a collaborative ecosystem among local governments, industry, universities and research institutions.
Gangwon Province said it would provide policy support to foster close cooperation between community colleges and local industries and to position universities as a central driver of regional innovation.
Choe Jong-gyun, president of Gangwon State University, said the colleges face rapid and sweeping changes, including a shrinking school-age population, the threat of regional depopulation, the spread of AI technology and shifts in industrial structure. "The newly launched ANCHOR framework is both a new foundation for universities and communities to grow together and an important turning point in preparing for the future," he said.
The Gangwon Community College ANCHOR Project Council said it would explore cooperative measures to help the seven colleges overcome shared challenges through mutual growth rather than competition, and work to build a virtuous cycle in which universities, communities and businesses grow together and talent takes root in Gangwon.
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