The 2025 New Year Ceremony and New Year's Greeting were held at 11 AM on January 2 in the university's main auditorium. This year's ceremony was held in a simplified form, with certain segments omitted, in observance of the national mourning period for the victims of the Jeju Air tragedy. The faculty and staff attending the ceremony wore black ribbon-shaped memorial badges distributed by the university headquarters and held a moment of silence to honor the victims.

In his New Year’s address, Korea Aerospace University (KAU) President Hurr Hee-young vowed, “For the sake of change, our university has been running tirelessly. In the new year, we will continue to forge ahead on the path we have been pursuing, aiming to realize the immense potential unique to the Korea Aerospace University.” He further remarked, “With the understanding and cooperation of our faculty, staff, students, alumni, and foundation, we achieved several remarkable accomplishments last year,” and highlighted the following achievements: the completion of a five-year educational infrastructure expansion project, the expansion of major R&D contracts based on industry-academic collaboration, the establishment of the School of Global Aviation Studies, the training of MRO personnel through the Aviation Technical Training Institute, an increase the university’s financial scale by over 20%, and the achievement of an S-rating in the Ministry of Education’s University Innovation Support Project performance evaluation.

The key projects for the 2025 academic year were also outlined, including establishing various promotional strategies to enhance the university’s undervalued reputation, such as promoting the Vision 2030 plan to be developed this year, successfully implementing the Self-Directed Major Program and Dream Design College (DDC), which will commence in the 2025 academic year, advancing student welfare projects, such as remodeling the Student u n i o n building and actively supporting DDC programs, expanding internationalization efforts, including increasing the number of majors in the School of Global Aviation Studies to four in the first semester and launching new international education programs in the second semester, and preparing for the Regional Innovation System & Education (RISE) initiative, which will begin in the 2025 academic year.

President Hurr Hee-young specifically urged faculty members to actively participate in the RISE initiative and join efforts to engage in government-supported projects. He concluded his New Year’s address by stating, “Korea Aerospace University’s journey of innovation and creative destruction will continue in the new year. With sustained efforts, we will achieve even better results than last year.” Following the ceremony, free tteokguk (rice cake soup) was served to all faculty and staff members at the student cafeteria.

☞ View the President’s New Year Message