A public school to help the children of North Korean defectors adjust to life in South Korea has opened just south of Seoul.

Hangyeore Junior and Senior High School began classes Thursday in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province, after holding a launching ceremony Wednesday for the school and its inaugural 22-member student body.

Providing room and board for all of its students, the school will raise the number of classes to six by opening a class each school year and admitting students from Hanawon, a shelter for defectors.