Hungary to Help Renovate Flood-Affected ‘School of Tomorrow’
On July 27, at Radisson Blu Iveria, an agreement of financial assistance was signed between the Hungarian government and ‘School of Tomorrow,’ whose building was totally destroyed by the flood in June 2015. The school is currently functioning in a temporary building. To mark the occasion, His Excellency Mr. Peter Szijjarto, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, paid a special visit to Tbilisi.
“Today is an important day,” Davit Narmania, Tbilisi Mayor stated. “I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, the Ambassador of Hungary and all the personnel who have taken part in this rehabilitation agreement in which Tbilisi City Hall is also taking part. We thank the Georgian Ministry of Education, our Embassy in Hungary, the Red Cross, and all those who have contributed.”
Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Georgia, Giorgi Sharvashidze, also thanked the Hungarian side for its commitment to the contribution. “For two years, we have been running exchange programs with universities in Hungary. This will intensify not only educational but also economical connections within the years to come. Scientific contacts will also grow as, in April, Georgia joined the European mega-project ‘Horizon 2020.’”
Minister Szijjarto spoke of the deep shock of the Hungarian people when they witnessed the devastation of the flood, which received wide coverage in foreign media. “We hope that the School of Tomorrow, which saw the destruction of its building last year, thankfully with no lives lost, will be able to resume function in a renovated building by the end of next year. We decided to provide Tbilisi with the modest financial support of 50,000 Euros out of which 2/3 went to the International Red Cross and 1/3 went to the reconstruction of School of Tomorrow.”
The first diplomat of Hungary added that the school’s mission is to train the best citizens for Georgia. “It is in the interest of Georgia to be able to keep the best brains in order to make a contribution to the development of the country. How is Hungary supporting this process? Fifty Georgian university students have been provided with full state scholarships in Hungary for one year. We hope that soon the students of School of Tomorrow will get the same opportunity and after a year, will return from Hungary and use their knowledge for Georgia’s development. We consider Georgia a strategic partner in the Caucasian region, a guarantor of stability. You can count on our continued support in this respect.”
The agreement was signed between Minister Szijjarto and Ryan Arner, Director of the School of Tomorrow. Reportedly, the school will have a renovated building by the end of 2017, which will be located near Lisi Lake.
Established in 1992, the School of Tomorrow has been eagerly involved in boosting the general education level in Georgia. The school’s main aim is to tailor learning processes to each of their student’s needs and help them to develop and thrive individually. The institution’s learning agenda is specifically adjusted so that the involvement of the teacher is minimal and the students’ creative juices are allowed to flow to the maximum possible. Following years of continuously educating highly successful graduates, the School of Tomorrow received international accreditation just a month before the June 13 disaster struck.
Maka Lomadze