Olena Zelenska's foundation joins the creation of six new Superheroes schools in Ukraine in 2024
Olena Zelenska's foundation joins the creation of six new Superheroes schools in
Ukraine in 2024
11.04.2024
The new facilities will be located in hospitals in Vinnytsia, Kryvyi Rih, Rivne, Lviv, Odesa and
Poltava.
Superheroes Schools are modern educational facilities for children who spend long periods in hospital.
There are currently 11 such schools in Ukraine. In 2023, more than 10,000 children were studying in all
the centres and
almost 80,000 lessons were taught. More than a third of the lessons were held live in the regions
closest to the front
line - Dnipro, Kharkiv and Mykolaiv.
The first Superhero School was opened in Kyiv back in 2016, at the initiative of the NGO Small Heart
with Art. In 2021,
the schools came under the patronage of the First Lady.
"Superheroes, brave and courageous, study in these schools. Overcoming illnesses, these children often
spend months in
hospital. Some for years. Our job as adults is to help them not lose the time they would have spent
learning if they
were healthy. It is crucial that children have access to education in all circumstances and understand
that they are not
alone in their fight against the disease,'
says the First Lady, founder of the Foundation, Olena
Zelenska.
Thanks to the First Lady's support, the 'Superheroes school' received state support in 2022 and began to
operate fully
as a state institution.
Since 2024, the Olena Zelenska Foundation has also been involved in the creation of new Superheroes
Schools.
"The Foundation's participation in the Superheroes School project is at the intersection of two of our
areas of activity
- health care and education. We are grateful to every international partner who continues to support
Ukraine and gives
us the opportunity to improve the quality of life of our children during the war,"
said Nina Gorbacheva,
Director of the
Foundation.
Like all children, superheroes in hospital have the right to education. For them, education is not just
an opportunity
to acquire knowledge. Daily classes with experienced teachers and psychologists allow them to take their
minds off the
gruelling treatment and continue to develop and discover the world, even within the walls of the
hospital.
"We have to bring back childhood and interest in learning every day, even in hospital. We have to teach
them to dream
without limits and to overcome their fears. At the same time, our goal is to have a modern, ergonomic
educational space
in every Ukrainian hospital and to provide access to quality education for every little patient. The
Superheroes School
is not just a project, it is a large team of teachers, educators, psychologists, doctors and parents. We
are grateful
for the support and we are very happy that the circle of friends for our children is growing,' -
says
Natalia Zhylinska,
director of the Superheroes School.