Before I get started, I wish to remain anonymous. I
was an Academic Director at one of their campus' and I
need to reveal some truths about this school to either
warn or prepare people of what they are in for if they
choose to go to this school. Please do mention
anything to implicate me.
First, there is a campus in Hwa Jong (?Àå) next to
Ilsan (ÀÏ»ê). There were three women from Canada that
went there to teach under the guidence of an agent
about 6 months ago. One of the girls was sent to the
Ilsan campus to work, which wasn't too but except for
the 20-30 minute bus ride to get there. The other two
girls were assigned to teach together in Hwa Jong.
When the girls first got there they were put in a
satisfactory apartment, but they didn't give them any
furnishing (bed, closet, TV, Cooking utinsils, etc.).
It took the school a few days to get them a fridge and
stove.
After the girst were dropped off, they were left on
their own to find everything (stores, Post Office,
even the school). One of the girls the first week got
really sick and couldn't even get out of bed. The
other girls had called the school to tell them and
seeking their help. The school told them that they
would send someone over in a little while to bring her
some medicine. Eight hours later, after the roomate
that went to the other school told the Academic
Director in her school, they finally arrived to help
her. When they got there, the first thing they said
was, "Wow, you really are sick . . ."
After about a month the school finally got the girls a
closet to hang up their clothes. This is just a few
of the experiences that they have encountered. Most
all of the campuses have a high turn over rate of both
Vice Principals, teachers, and Academic Directors.
Another incident that the girls have went through, is
now that it is getting hot they have been requesting
fans. The Ilsan campus did buy a new fan for the
woman that is teaching at their school, however the
other girls were given one ancient fan from the Vice
Principals storage that barely pushes the air.
The whole organization is run by a family. Brian is
supposed owner of the company and is helped by his
mother, older brother (ex-physician), and his sister.
From personal experience the sister (Hwa Jong Vice
Principal) is pure evil.
Most of the whole family treat their employees like
animals with no regaurd of people. Thier main
purposes is just to make money, they have no reguard
for real education. Brian is a person that has a
silver toungue and likes to keep control of
everything. He went to law school in California and
so he tried to use this and his power to intimidate
people. If you break through this and just speak
plain to him he will listen.
Personally speaking I am going through a dispute along
with another teacher concerning the severance pay.
They have tried to find any excuse to avoid paying the
bonus, which they can't find anything. The other
teacher was thinking of returning, but if they don't
pay the bonus he will go to another school.
In another situation they have continually tried to
get out of anything that they said that they would do.
A man moved over here with my family (wife and
daughter 2 yr. old). They were promised a place of
their own a job for both his wife among other
promises. When they got here they ended up having to
share a room with two other people.
After leaving and wanting to go to a completely
different company, they threatened them and said that
they would make sure that they would not even be able
to return to Korea. Not knowing the laws and what
they could and couldn't do they returned to finish
their sentence. However, by leaving they did find a
place of their own, but they had to pay for the
furnishings (bed, TV, fan, table, phone, etc).
However, they did not give his wife a job (part-time)
as promised. Eventhough she speaks fluent English
with very little accent, they told her without a
degree that they could not hire her. However, most of
the teachers that were there didn't have a degree.
There has been a history of foreigners just pick up
and leave and go back from where they came, because of
similar situations above. The "Family" doesn't
understand why people leave, they just think that the
people that leave are just bad people.
Oh, in the case that you quit or leave, they
immediately start telling everyone they were fired and
how bad a person that they were and how they didn't do
their job. One of the people that they had doing the
Visas and other legal stuff decided to quit because
she had enough of the backbiting and politics. After
she left, they told everyone that she was fired and
that she wasn't a good worker.
A couple had looked into the position of Vice
Principal and her hustband (New Zealander) a teacher
or Academic Director. They came one day to look at
the situation and talk with us all to see what they
were getting into. Brian (the owner) had called us up
to tell us that they were coming and spoke very highly
of them and acted excited. After, coming and seeing
for themselves, they had decided to go another route.
Immediately after the news, Brian had told us that
they were not very good people for the job anyway and
that he didn't want anyone with an accent working in
his schools anyway. (Which by the way he has a number
of people.)
One person they had told verbally that they were give
an end of the contract bonus, but when he sent an
email to them asking for them to tell the Vice
principal of the school to give the money, they
threatened to fire him and kick him out of the
country.
Anon 8/01