At the end of September, experts from the education area of the Polaris Programme took another step in building a modern educational network and implementing upper secondary school reform. On 29–30 September, Memorandums of Cooperation were signed with the Teofipol hromada in Khmelnytskyi oblast and the Sarny hromada in Rivne oblast. These agreements marked a new stage of partnership, within which local authorities, educators, students and parents, together with programme experts, are working to find the best solutions for developing the school network and creating quality learning conditions.
Teofipol Hromada: Readiness For Change And Search For Solutions
On 29–30 September, programme experts worked with the education department, community leadership, teachers, parents and students of the Teofipol hromada in Khmelnytskyi oblast. Particular attention was given to analysing the current state of the school network and discussing the challenges related to establishing an academic lyceum.
During the visit, the experts met with the Head of the Teofipol hromada, Mykhailo Tenenev, his deputy Valentyna Babak, and the Head of the Department of Education, Youth and Sports, Liudmyla Storozhuk-Tymoshyk. The participants discussed the steps already taken to optimise the school network, its strengths and weaknesses, as well as further directions for reforming the sector. Special focus was placed on the prospect of creating an academic lyceum and the challenges that may arise during the implementation of upper secondary school reform.
Oleh Fasolia, Team Lead of the Education on the Local and Regional Levels area of the Polaris Programme, noted:
“The hromada has developed a modern project for the construction of a new academic lyceum, which is already under expert review. But children need quality and modern education today, which is why the support of Polaris experts should become a guarantee of change and success.”
Liudmyla Storozhuk-Tymoshyk, Head of the Department of Education, Youth and Sports of the Teofipol hromada, stressed:
“Workshops with students revealed an insufficient level of career guidance: ninth-graders have diverse requests for study profiles, while eleventh-graders feel that current conditions do not always match their plans for future professions. In October we will organise similar dialogue platforms in all lyceums of the hromada.”
Artem Horobets, an education expert with the Polaris Programme, added:
“A focus group with the hromada head, his deputy, and heads of the education and finance departments showed the local leadership’s readiness to continue transforming the school network. The key priorities are the quality of educational services, meeting the needs of senior students, demographic realities and the financial capacity of the hromada. Meetings with 9th and 11th graders and teachers once again confirmed that effective communication is the key to understanding the essence of reforms and recognising new opportunities.”
Sarny Hromada: Cooperation For The Future
On 30 September, programme experts visited the Sarny hromada in Rivne oblast. The visit began with the signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation between the Polaris Programme and the Sarny City Council. The document opens a new page of collaboration aimed at modernising the school network and implementing upper secondary school reform.
Viacheslav Dolid, an education expert with the Polaris Programme, emphasised:
“Every conversation about education is a conversation about innovation, the future, and community development. No war or crisis should stop a child’s desire to learn about the world. It is important that every child, regardless of where they live, has access to quality education, feels the support of their community, and believes in their own tomorrow. Sarny is one of those hromadas. For me, it is an example that even in difficult conditions, new educational opportunities can be created.”
The Polaris Programme will continue supporting hromadas in finding solutions to build a modern and effective education system focused on the needs of the child and the development of the community.
