Reprofiling, reorganisation, liquidation of secondary schools by military administrations of localities
- Dec 19, 2025
- 5 min read
«Are the concerns of heads of military administration regarding the possibility of closing general secondary education institutions justified? The relevant legislation is explained below»
Experts from the Swiss-Ukrainian ‘Decentralisation for Improved Democratic Education’ (DECIDE) Project regularly provide counselling to representatives of communities on specialised secondary education reform. During these consultations, the question often arises as to whether the founder of the network of general secondary education institutions should review, reprofile, reorganise, or even liquidate these institutions. Decisions to liquidate educational institutions are always sensitive, and the military administrations of localities have the most fears, hesitations, and doubts about such decisions. Therefore, the article below will discuss whether the military administrations of localities have the right to approve decisions on the liquidation of general secondary schools and what the legal prerequisites for this should be.
Pursuant to the Law of Ukraine ‘On the Legal Regime of Martial Law’, temporary state bodies, including military administrations of localities, may be set up in territories where martial law has been imposed. The decision to set up military administrations is made by the President of Ukraine.
Reference Military administrations of localities are set up in the territories of communities where village, settlement, and city councils and/or their executive bodies, and/or village, settlement, and city mayors do not exercise the powers given to them by the Constitution and laws of Ukraine, as well as in other cases provided for by this Law. |
Military administrations of localities are headed by heads who are appointed and removed from office by the President of Ukraine.
In the event of a military administration being set up in a locality, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine may, upon the recommendation of the President of Ukraine, decide that this shall apply during the period of martial law and for 30 days after its termination or cancellation:
the head of the military administration, in particular, exercises the powers of the village, settlement, or city council, its executive committee, and the village, settlement, or city mayor (hereinafter referred to as the head);
the office of the village, settlement, or city council and its executive committee, other executive bodies, utility companies, institutions, and organisations of the relevant community are subordinate to the head of the relevant military administration.
Reference Should a military administration be set up in a locality, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine will swiftly adopt a resolution authorising the heads of such administrations to exercise the powers of the relevant council, its executive committee, and council head. |
Thus, what actually happens when a military administration of a locality is set up within a community and the head of the military administration, in compliance with a resolution of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, exercises the powers of the relevant council, its executive committee, and the relevant council head?
In such cases, there is a situation where all decisions falling within the powers of the council its executive committee, and its head, in compliance with the Law of Ukraine ‘On Local Self-Government in Ukraine’ and other legislation, including the Laws of Ukraine ‘On Education’ and ‘On Complete General Secondary Education’, are made solely by the head of the relevant military administration of the locality, in compliance with all procedures necessary for making a particular decision.
In other words, if a decision needs to be made on the reprofiling, reorganising, or even liquidation of a general secondary education institution in a community where a military administration has been set up, it will be made by the head of the military administration. After all, the head of the military administration acquires founder status when receiving all the powers of the council in compliance with the relevant Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine resolution.
When making such decisions, heads of military administrations should bear in mind the requirements with which they must comply:
reorganisation, reprofiling, or liquidation of a general secondary education institution in a rural area is permitted only after public discussion of the founder’s draft decision, which shall be made public at least one year before the relevant decision is taken (Paragraph 2 of Part 2 of the Law of Ukraine ‘On Complete General Secondary Education’);
general rules for public discussion are set out in the Procedure for Public Consultation on the Formation and Implementation of State Policy, approved by Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 996 of 3 November 2010.
Nota bene The order of the military administration (its explanatory part) on the reprofiling, reorganisation or liquidation of a general secondary education institution, in addition to references to the Laws of Ukraine ‘On Local Self-Government in Ukraine’, ‘On Education’ and ‘On Complete General Secondary Education’, must include references to: – the relevant Decree of the President of Ukraine, under which the military administration of the locality was set up; – the relevant Decree of the President of Ukraine on the appointment of the head of the military administration of the locality; – the resolution of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, under which the head of the military administration, in particular, exercises the powers of the village, settlement, city council, its executive committee, village, settlement, city mayor. These regulatory legal acts are the acts that confirm the powers of the head of the military administration to actually act on behalf of the local council, in other words, to act as the founder of the relevant general secondary education institution for the period, in particular, of martial law, and, accordingly, to take all actions provided for by law in relation to it. |
In summary:
if the question arises as to whether the head of the military administration of a locality may issue orders on the reprofiling, reorganisation, or liquidation of a general secondary education institution, the answer is ‘YES’ if a resolution of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has been issued in this regard, according to which the head exercises the powers of the council, its executive committee, and council head;
whether the procedure for reprofiling, reorganising, or liquidating an educational institution differs if it is carried out by the military administration of a locality from that carried out by local councils – ‘NO’ it does not differ, the same rules apply as those provided for in the Law of Ukraine ‘On Education’ and the Law of Ukraine ‘On Complete General Secondary Education’;
regarding the procedure for public discussion of the draft order of the head of the military administration of the locality on the reprofiling, reorganisation, or liquidation of a general secondary school, it is the same for both military administrations and local councils.
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