KSE Foundation has continued work on the shelter at Prestige Vasylkiv Academic Lyceum in the Kyiv region. As a result, 970 schoolchildren were able to return to in-person learning on September 1.
The shelter was upgraded as part of the long-term MYRP resilience programme, funded by Education Cannot Wait (ECW), the UN global fund supporting education in emergencies and protracted crises. Since 2022, with support from donors, KSE Foundation has helped establish 121 shelters in schools and kindergartens across 15 regions of Ukraine.
“Together with ECW, we are upgrading shelters so that children can continue learning in person. This is a basic condition for returning to in-person education and maintaining stability in the educational process. We are continuing this project because we want to systematically support communities where the need for a safe educational environment is greatest. This allows children to continue their education while parents can continue working,” said Maryna Borysenko, Director of Programmes and Implementation at KSE Foundation.
“Prestige Lyceum is one of the largest educational centres in the community. The lyceum is located in an area where air raid alerts are frequent. In spring 2025, around 20 windows here were damaged as a result of a russian strike.
In 2023, KSE Foundation already supported the renovation of part of the lyceum’s shelter. This year, the work continued: an additional room was renovated to increase the shelter’s capacity and accommodate more schoolchildren.
As part of the project, the floor and ceiling were repaired, lighting was upgraded, ventilation was installed, the walls were repainted, and new soft benches were provided. Schoolchildren now use the shelter for classes and during air raid alerts, while outside school hours the space is also available to community members.
“The renovated shelter has significantly improved conditions for children. We are already holding classes there, and we plan to equip the space with additional educational facilities in the future. Most importantly, we can now continue learning in person, which gives children a greater sense of normality,” said Oksana Shahova, Director of Prestige Vasylkiv Academic Lyceum.
Today, the lyceum serves schoolchildren from Vasylkiv and the village of Velyka Buhaivka. Among them are 63 internally displaced children and 19 schoolchildren with special educational needs.
Since the beginning of the full-scale war, the lyceum has remained an active community hub and a place of support for Ukraine’s Defence Forces. Each year, schoolchildren, parents and teachers raise more than UAH 500,000 through charitable initiatives supporting the military.
Together with its partners, KSE Foundation continues to work to ensure that education in Ukraine remains a space for growth, resilience and future opportunities, even during the war.