Rhee Geun-bae, president of Jeonnam National University, holds the largest assets among leaders of Korea's national universities, a new analysis shows. Some experts argue that presidents and vice presidents of private universities should also be required to disclose their wealth, given the public role these institutions play.
The Korean Institute for Higher Education Policy analyzed asset disclosures of 71 presidents and vice presidents from 33 national universities, published in the official gazette by the Government Ethics Committee. Rhee's assets totaled 12.6 billion won ($8.9 million), ranking first among all 71 officials surveyed Wednesday.
Rhee, an orthopedic surgeon who graduated from Jeonnam National University's medical school, holds 8.5 billion won in bank deposits and 3.4 billion won in stocks. His residential property is valued at approximately 600 million won.
Kwon Gye-cheol, vice president of Chungnam National University, ranked second with declared assets of 9.8 billion won. Kwon, also a medical school graduate from Chungnam National University, saw his wealth increase by more than 2 billion won over the past year.
Rounding out the top five were Lee Jon-hwa, vice president of Jeonbuk National University (6.8 billion won); Park Byung-chun, president of Jeonju National University of Education (5.5 billion won); and Kang Seung-jun, vice president of Seoul National University of Science and Technology (4.8 billion won).
Among presidents only, the ranking after Rhee and Park was: Kwon Jin-hoe of Gyeongsang National University (4.4 billion won), Lim Kyung-ho of Kongju National University (4.1 billion won), Choi Jae-won of Pusan National University (3.9 billion won), Yoo Hong-lim of Seoul National University (3.8 billion won), Oh Yong-jun of Hanbat National University (3.8 billion won), and Kim Dong-hwan of Seoul National University of Science and Technology (3.8 billion won).
The wealth distribution among national university leaders showed 22 officials, or 31.0%, held assets between 1 billion and 2 billion won. Those with 2 billion to 3 billion won numbered 15, accounting for 21.1%, followed by 13 officials with 3 billion to 4 billion won at 18.3%.
"The Public Service Ethics Act excludes private university presidents from asset disclosure requirements because they are not considered public officials," the Korean Institute for Higher Education Policy said. "However, private universities account for more than 80% of higher education, playing a significant role in public education. The status and position of private university board chairs and presidents are no different from those of national university presidents."
The institute added: "Above all, private university assets are public property formed through founders' contributions, taxpayer money, and student tuition fees. Therefore, private university board chairs and presidents should be subject to asset disclosure requirements just like their national university counterparts."