Lee Seon-geun (Korean이선근; May 11, 1905 – January 9, 1983) was a South Korean politician. He served as the 4th Minister of Education of the Republic of Korea.

Lee Seon-geun
이선근
4th Minister of Education of the Republic of Korea
In office
April 21, 1954 – June 7, 1956
Vice PresidentHam Tae-young
Personal details
BornMay 11, 1905
Kaesong, Gyeonggi Province, Korean Empire
DiedJanuary 9, 1983
Incheon, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea
Political partyIndependent

Biography

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Born in Kaesong, Gyeonggi Province, into a wealthy family. After graduating from Ssangbin Uisuk and graduating from the Whimoon High School in 1922, he went on to study in Japan the following year. He entered the Department of Western History at Waseda University.[1][unreliable source?]

In February 1950, he became Director of the Ministry of National Defense, and served as Minister of Education from April 21, 1954, to June 7, 1956 .[2]

While serving as Minister of Education, he actively intervened in the 1956 presidential and vice-presidential election fraud and was sued by the Democratic Party. Ultimately, on June 5, 1956, the National Assembly passed a no-confidence motion against him and forced him to resign in disgrace.

He served as a professor at Dong-A University in 1956, the president of Sungkyunkwan University in 1957, the president of the Korea Commerce Association (renamed as the Korean Veterans Association) from November 26, 1959, to May 3, 1960, and a professor at the Kyunghee University in 1962, when the Park Chung Hee regime came into power. Afterwards, he actively praised the Yushin Constitution while serving as the president of the Yeungnam University in 1969, the president of the Dongguk University in 1974, the president of the Korean Educational Association in 1976, and the first director of the Institute of Spiritual Culture in 1978.[3][4][5]

References

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  1. ^ "만주서 일본군 군량미 지원한 '유신' 나팔수". OhmyNews (in Korean). 2004-08-01. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  2. ^ "공화국(1대~6대) 문교부 장관". unn.co.kr (in Korean). 2005. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  3. ^ "오픈아카이브:민주화운동 일지". 61.252.208.159 (in Korean). Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  4. ^ Ham Chungbeom (2018). "Lee Seon-geun's Life History, Periodic Discourse, and History Recognition: Focusing on the 1950s". Dongbuga Yeoksa Nonchong. null (61): 345–373. doi:10.23037/DYN.2018..61.009.
  5. ^ "동국대학총장에 이선근박사선임". 매일경제 (in Korean). 1974-07-17. Retrieved 2023-10-13.