The Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine met with associations of local self-government entities to plan the Academic Lyceum Network

On April 18, 2024, a working meeting on the reform of specialized secondary education was held at the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. The DECIDE Swiss-Ukrainian Project: Decentralisation for the Development of Democratic Education provided support for the event.

Public talks on the reform of specialised secondary education are planned for May. These talks will include meetings between experts from the DECIDE Project and officials of the Ukrainian Ministry of Education and Science and regional education managers.

Territorial community association education leaders and experts expressed their willingness to engage in local reform communication. Planning the Academic Lyceum Network is one of the most difficult and socially sensitive issues and requires public consensus, understanding of the need for change and coordination with territorial communities.

«As the Project, we work closely with territorial communities, so it is fundamental for us to involve associations that represent their interests in cooperation on this, of course, socially sensitive and very important reform», — Valentyna Poltorak, Project Manager at DECIDE said.

Under the legislation, by September 1 of this year, plans for networks of specialized secondary education institutions should be formed. According to the legislation, territorial communities must be included in the formation and agreement of these Networks. We observe a call for open communication in communities and recognise that reform cannot be planned solely in government offices. It is necessary to involve as many experts and education managers as possible.

The Ministry of Education and Science took the initiative to visit the regions to communicate the goals of the reform and discuss policies for its implementation. We have a lot of work ahead of us, and we are grateful that local self-government bodies and associations have expressed their support in this process and their readiness to join such meetings in the regions.