School of Performing Arts

This is a collaboration piece of Ben K. and Carmen C.

School of Performing Arts, Seoul (SOPA) is by far, the most popular and well-known performing arts high-school in Korea. This school is known for their famous alumni in the K-Pop industry: Sehun of EXO, Mark of NCT, Lee Hyeri of Girls’ Day are few of the most well-known idols. However, SOPA has recently been involved with a lot of controversy due to a recent video produced and published by its senior students.

The YouTube video is called Who is the Sinner (click here for the video), posted by students under the major of acting. This video is a song about student victims who received unfair treatment and suffered disadvantages in high school. It was inspired by a Korean musical called “Who is the Sinner” about the war between Japan and South Korea.

Claims made by these students include:

• Forcing female students to perform explicit content wearing clothes that expose nudity in private festivals and concerts. They were also sexually harassed by the principal, who ordered them to “hug and have body contact” with military soldiers after performances. When students refused to perform, they received severe punishment and often were mistreated in school through ways such as unfair grading. Instead of practicing actual skills, the girls were forced to practice “sexy” facial expressions and how to wink/flirt with the audience. They performed solely with the purpose of pleasing the audience, who were often times the military soldiers and those with authority in Korea. These students were also threatened to keep their mouths shut.

• Students had to pay for their own trips to perform in other countries. As a performing arts school, students were invited to perform in countries like Japan and China. Transportation and hotel fees were not covered by the school, and high school students had to pay for themselves. This is unusual, as organizations that invite students to perform will often donate huge amounts of money to the school. It was later revealed that performance fees were directly transferred to the principal’s private bank accounts. In a festival in Japan, SOPA received approximately 60,000 RMB, which the principle used for himself and his family.

• For punishing students who report these incidents as defamation. Students who have publicly reported unfair treatment on social media have been threatened and punished multiple times for insulting the school and its name.

Not long after the video was published from the students of SOPA, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (SMOE) conducted an inspection on the school. When the SMOE finished their investigation, they noticed 18 issues regarding the school. They also advised that SOPA should “dismiss” the principal and head of administrations. However, SMOE’s proposal was denied as the director of the school foundation’s board is related to the principal. On February 21, parents filed a petition to the South Korean government and gained over 200,000 signatures. Soon after, the principal and head of administration were forcefully dismissed from their positions.

The SOPA employment of teachers and faculty was a major issue that played a big part in the corruption of the school. Through investigation, the SMOE discovered that some teachers and faculty members are relatives of the principal and head of administration. For instance, in 2018, the school employed four new teachers; one is the principal’s child, and the other three are the principal’s family or acquaintances. Moreover, the SMOE also tracked down that funds gathered by the principal were used for personal purposes.

Additionally, the SMOE discovered that the school is in poor condition and staff members are using school property for their own entertainment reasons. Staff members are able to use the garden on the school roof for reasons such as barbecue parties. Furthermore, practice rooms in the school campus are not properly ventilated and are covered in mold. As SOPA is a private school, students’ tuitions are three times more expensive than regular high schools: this raised questions to what the school is spending the money on.

There was also an assembly where all the students of SOPA gathered in order to receive an explanation from the principal. In a video secretly taken by a student, the principal makes up excuses for his irrational behaviors. He said that he forced female students to have body contact with military soldiers because “[he] thought that [they] liked it.” When students brought up the topic of forcing them to perform sexual choreographies, he simply stated that “[he doesn’t] remember.”

In the same video, the principal states that he had gathered everyone so that he could apologize to them. However, he refuses to admit claims made by students and does not apologize directly. The only “sorry” made by the principal was: “if I did happen to force you all into doing such inappropriate things, I am sorry. But I simply cannot recall.”

In many Korean schools, it is very common that the school board will hire teachers and staff members of their own family or close friends. As a result of hiring relatives and close friends, controversies and debates on unfair treatment will occur around school communities. Comment down below on your thoughts!