Newshot 董明珠 Responds for the First Time to GREE Technical School Controversy: Running the School Isn't for Profit, 100 Million Yuan Subsidized Annually
IT Home, November 13 — 董明珠, principal of Zhuhai GREE Technical School and chairman of GREE Electric Appliances, appeared yesterday on CCTV Finance's "Dialogue" program, responding for the first time to outside controversy over GREE running a technical school.
Addressing the claim that "running the school is about making money," 董明珠 stated clearly that GREE must invest 100 million yuan in subsidies each year to ensure high-quality operation of the school, and that the original purpose of running it is to cultivate skilled talent, not to make a profit.
董明珠 summed up the goal of education as "not a diploma," but giving children a professional skill so they "can stand on their own and live with dignity." She further explained that such a skill is "not merely so-called 'turning screws'" — skilled talent likewise has diverse career paths.
Enrollment data from GREE Technical School corroborates market recognition of this path. The school received enrollment qualification in August 2026 upon approval by the Zhuhai Human Resources and Social Security Bureau; it originally planned to enroll 300 students for its first cohort, received more than 8,000 applications, and ultimately expanded the quota to 600. It enrolls current and former junior high school graduates nationwide aged 15 to 18, with tuition ranging from 9,000 to 15,000 yuan per year.
In terms of training focus, the school's first batch offers nine majors, including refrigeration equipment operation and maintenance, mold manufacturing, intelligent equipment operation and maintenance, mechatronics technology, and electrical automation equipment installation and maintenance, exploring a model of "entering the company upon entering the school, being job-ready upon graduation."
In the "first lesson of the semester" on October 19, 董明珠 told freshmen that students from technical schools are "no weaker than people with university diplomas," and that what GREE needs is technical talent who "understand technology and understand marketing."
IT Home note: The school is located in 珠海市香洲区香山路 3200 号, covering about 191,000 square meters, with a building area of about 124,000 square meters.
董明珠 also said that the first cohort of 600 is far from enough to support GREE's sustainable development, and that in the future the school will enroll and train talent in different majors according to the company's needs.
- "GREE Technical School's First Lesson of the Semester: Principal 董明珠 Says Dating Is Banned, and Supermarkets That Rip Off Students Are Not Allowed to Open"
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