For 35 years the inhabitants of the Arevadasht village have been dreaming about having a new school. Today that dream is a reality. Until September 2018, the schoolchildren of the community were studying at a half-ruined wooden building that had previously served as army barracks. The school has not had a bulding since its foundation, and during the Soviet years the wooden barracks served as a school since 1981.
“Some members of the Armenian Educational Foundation visited the school and decided that it was impossible to renovate the dilapidated building, so decision was made to build a new one,” said Hermine Pakhanians, president of the AEF. The newly built school was provided with the necessary supplies, chess tables, computers, a canteen, a library, and an open air playground.
Neshan Peroomian, who was in charge of the construction, mentions that there were many difficulties during construction, but ultimately they were resolved, including the issues regarding water and electricity connections.
”This is my volunteer work. I am in charge of the AEF’s school renovation project in Armenia. So far, we have renovated 185 schools, 5 of which were built anew, including the one in Arevadasht. 120 out of 185 schools were renovated or built in Armenia, 5 in Javakhk and 60 in Artsakh.”
Accorrding to Nazik Babayan, the school principal, currently 64 children are enrolled in the school, but taking into account the number of kindergarten students, the number is expected to rise to 70 students next year.
”There are grades 1 to 12 in the school, and the conditions are incomparably improved: new building, new furniture, new computers. Our studentss have been dreaming about studying at a school with these facilities,” she adds.
The opening ceremony was attented by AEF members and sponsors of the new school building. Gagik Mirijanyan, governor of the Armavir region was also present. He addressed the sponsors expressing his gratitude. ”Armenians have proven to have a zeal for building, and a passion for education,” he added. He wished a bright future for the school, sunny like the weather was, the day the school opened.
The Armenian Educational Foundation’s past experience shows that when new schools are built in villages, the problem of migration is also partially resolved.