Key areas of our project work: psychology, innovation, and education.
Unlike our educational programs, which focus on developing competencies and are typically funded by participants, our educational projects aim to address humanitarian challenges by engaging a wide range of supporters, including companies, foundations, and individual donors.
Russia’s war has caused significant demographic, psychological, and economic damage to the Ukrainian people. In the coming years, Ukraine will need a large number of professionals, including engineers, developers, urban planners, managers, psychologists, doctors, educators, and more. Unfortunately, there are serious challenges that stand in the way.
To meet the urgent challanges for skilled professionals to rebuild Ukraine, we face the following obstacles:
While our educational programs are accessible to professionals looking to improve their competencies and skills (in psychology, innovative management solutions, or other areas), our educational projects focus on solving humanitarian problems.
We specifically support motivated youth who aspire to higher education but face challenges in preparing for admission or live in circumstances requiring additional support. These include:
Our educational projects include supporting vulnerable groups (children of veterans, internally displaced persons, children from low-income families, etc.) in preparing for higher education, developing specialized programs for diaspora children, and more. For example:
Consider the following projects you are welcome to support now:
Join us in making a difference. Write to us to receive more details. We will gladly answer your questions. Let us make a significant difference together.
In December 2024, the Ukrainian School of Elites joined the EdTech Ukraine Association, marking a significant step in advancing our EdTech & innovative projects. (Pictured above: Natalia Lymonova, head of the Association, with a representative from the European EdTech Association.)
In addition to our educational programs, which focus on professional skill development and are typically funded by participants, we design and execute impactful projects. Unlike programs, these projects tackle specific social challenges and are supported by partners, grant organizations, and donors. Each project has clear goals, defined timelines, and delivers measurable social impact.
Our mission of growing competent and responsible leaders places a strong emphasis on building competencies in technology. In terms of projects, EdTech is among our priorities. Here is why.
According to Osvitoria, 73% of Ukrainian teens feel anxiety and fear about the future, yet 86% of young people still see their future in Ukraine. 13% of Ukraine’s educational infrastructure has been destroyed or damaged since the war began, with educational losses estimated at $5.5 billion.
Considering these trends and uncertainties, EdTech plays a pivotal role in rebuilding Ukraine’s education.
Consider the following projects you are welcome to support now:
Join us in making a difference. Write to us to receive more details. We will gladly answer your questions. Let us make a significant difference together.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, nearly 7 million Ukrainians have been forced to leave their homes, seeking refuge abroad. Many lost everything—their homes destroyed or left behind in occupied territories. Mothers fled with their children, doing whatever it took to ensure their safety.
By September 2024, over 335,000 Ukrainian students living abroad continued their education through Ukrainian schools, often while juggling local school systems in their host countries. However, a shocking 250,000 students have fallen out of the Ukrainian education system entirely.
The countries hosting the largest numbers of Ukrainian refugees include Poland (1.5 million), Germany (1 million), Czechia (500,000), Italy (400,000), and Spain (300,000). These nations have opened their doors, but the challenges are immense, especially for young learners.
No country can provide sufficient teachers to ensure 500,000 Ukrainian children abroad have access to quality Ukrainian language education.
Without learning their native language, literacy levels plummet, affecting students’ ability to think critically and maintain cultural connections.
Students who dream of returning to Ukraine for higher education face an uphill battle since Ukrainian language proficiency is required for university entrance, professional communication, and civic participation.
Our project will provide 100 motivated Ukrainian high school students living abroad with the resources, support, and preparation they need to succeed. These students are determined to return to Ukraine, pursue higher education, and contribute to their country’s future.
With your help, these students will:
Master the Ukrainian language.
Achieve high scores on the mandatory Ukrainian language section of the National Multi-Subject Test (NMT).
Secure admission to their dream universities in Ukraine.
In return, Ukraine will gain a new generation of motivated, skilled professionals—young leaders who have already gained invaluable international and cross-cultural experiences while living abroad. Equipped with higher education and specialized skills, they will help rebuild and transform Ukraine.
We can’t help every displaced student, but we can make a meaningful difference for 100 motivated young people who are ready to take the next step. These students will go on to shape Ukraine’s future, applying what they’ve learned both abroad and at home.
The program will last nine months, with a total cost of 4.5 million UAH (approximately €103,000). The breakdown is simple. Preparing one student costs 6,000 UAH (€138) per month or 54,000 UAH (€1,242) for the entire nine-month program.
For 100 students:
Monthly cost: 6,000 UAH x 100 students = 600,000 UAH (€13,800)
Total for 9 months: 54,000 UAH x 100 students = 5.4 million UAH (€124,200)
You can support this project with any amount. Every contribution brings us closer to giving these students a future in Ukraine.
The cost to prepare one student for nine months is 6,000 UAH per month or 54,000 UAH (€1,242) for the full program. Sponsor one student, five students, or even more. Together, we can help these young people return home, build meaningful lives, and contribute to rebuilding Ukraine.
Your support means the world to these students—and to Ukraine’s future. Let’s make it happen.
On November 9, 2024, Yurii Safonov, President of the NGO Ukrainian School of Elites, and Marichka Pohorilko, Grant Program Manager at the Razom Foundation (“Together for Ukraine”), discussed the prospects of Ukraine’s humanitarian sector in 2025 and potential collaboration opportunities.
One of the key insights focused on redefining the concept of “leadership development.” Here are three distinct lenses through which leadership is usually viewed.
Since Ukraine regained independence from the USSR in the 1990s, “leadership development” has been associated with academic programs, knowledge, and awareness. This approach emphasized gaining information about leadership — understanding what it is, how a leader differs from a follower, and the characteristics and personality traits required. But does awareness alone create a leader?
“Our goal is not to just inform but to transform” — this is the approach to leadership we promote at the Ukrainian School of Elites.
Obviously, knowledge about leadership is not enough. A holistic approach is needed. Leadership involves more than just knowledge; it requires character — a mature person. Psychological, moral, and even spiritual maturity is key, ensuring actions align with words.
In the early 21st century, this holistic approach is gaining relevance in Ukraine. Interestingly, one often-overlooked aspect of leadership is physical health and wellness. Many who associate themselves with leadership lack this essential component, which is now recognized as critical.
Today, Marichka Pohorilko from the Razom Foundation highlighted another perspective. We sensed it intuitively, but now it was finally voiced directly.
Razom Foundation places special emphasis on the local leadership. It advocates for investing resources in a targeted way to address specific local issues, rather than just spreading “information about leadership.” This is particularly valuable for communities with limited resources for the development of children and youth.
In rural areas, young people form initiative groups to develop their own community improvement projects in areas where they can make an immediate impact. This includes creating sports facilities in places that have never had them, playgrounds, and development centers, etc. — all grassroots initiatives led by local leaders.
After participating in mentoring programs, these teams present their projects in a “pitching” session (a term borrowed from the investment sector, where startups showcase projects for funding; in our humanitarian context, it involves securing funding for nonprofit initiatives aimed at positive community change). The most promising projects receive funding.
The amounts involved are small, even symbolic (for instance, 100,000-200,000 UAH). However, the goal is not the “amount” but the formation of the new generation of leaders who succeed with their projects locally.
Through this approach, the Razom Foundation not only shapes leadership skills among youth (planning, teamwork, budgeting, implementation, monitoring, reporting, transparency, accountability, etc.) but also builds faith and fonfidence in the new generation’s ability to effect positive change in their communities.
Thus, November 9, 2024, marked a “rethink leadership” day for the leadership, partners, and volunteers of the Ukrainian School of Elites.
We deeply appreciate everyone who has supported our mission, whether through financial contributions, professional expertise, or the generous gift of time and energy as volunteers.
See more details about the Board, partners, and volunteers here.
Who Should Take This Course
Course Instructor
Olha Dmytrenko
Olha Dmytrenko specializes in Schema Therapy. She completed her training in Emotion-Focused Therapy at the Ukrainian Institute of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in 2023 and holds a degree in Psychology from RIU in Rivne (2022). She is also a graduate of UETS, with certifications in “Psychological and Corrective Work with Children and Adolescents” (2019) and “Psychological Counseling” (2016).
Currently, Olha is studying ACT at the CBT Academy with Oksana Marstyniak-Dorosh. Based in Kyiv, she provides therapeutic support through the Ukrainian School of Elite for those affected by the Russian war.
Психологиня за напрямком Schema Therapy. Закінчила Український інститут когнітивно-поведінкової терапії (2023) за напрямком “Емоційно-фокусована терапія”. Вищу психологічну освіту здобула у РІУ м. Рівне (2022). Випускниця УЄТС за напрямками “Психологічна та психокорекційна робота з дітьми та підлітками” (2019) та “Психологічне консультування” (2016).
Нині вивчає АСТ у Академії КПТ з Оксаною Марциняк-Дорош. Ольга киянка, в Українській школі еліт проводить психотерапевничні зустрічі для постраждалих від російської війни.
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