Editorial photo #12558948 Human Interest
Gonjiam Middle School Leads National Mentoring Initiative For Migrant Youth As Demand Rises In Multicultural Cities
Luiza Zoirovna Sakhabutdinova, a mentor from Uzbekistan, teaches a mentoring class for about 15 students of foreign or multicultural backgrounds at Gonjiam Middle School in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, on July 16, 2025. Luiza, who comes to South Korea on a scholarship and has lived in the country for 17 years, works in the field of English and cultural education. The class is part of a Ministry of Justice mentoring program for migrant-background youth, launched in 2024 as a pilot project with 39 mentors from 21 countries. The program targets classrooms located in municipalities that are both members of the Council of Multicultural Cities and have high immigrant populations. Due to high student satisfaction, the initiative expands in 2025 to two semesters with 20 double-period sessions each, compared to ten single-period sessions in 2024. (Photo by Chris Jung/NurPhoto)
