KSE Foundation fundraises for rural school shelters with outdoor desk installations

As part of the "ZAKHYSTOK" initiative, the KSE Foundation has launched a fundraiser to equip shelters for educational institutions in rural areas. To highlight this campaign, the foundation has placed school desks outdoors.

What is the problem?

There are 3.5 million schoolchildren in Ukraine, with around 20%—approximately 600,000 children—currently learning online due to the war. Some students have been remote learners for four years because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the full-scale invasion. According to the PISA-2022 international education quality study, rural students will need nearly five years to catch up with their peers from urban areas in reading and mathematics.

The absence of proper shelters in schools forces many young Ukrainians to continue with remote learning. This situation not only limits their social interaction with peers and teachers but also negatively impacts their educational outcomes and psychological well-being.

What is the solution?

Develop your skills and build your future

"ZAHYSTOK: Safe Education" is an initiative launched by the charity fund KSE Foundation in 2022 to safeguard and educate children. To date, 91 shelters have been set up in 13 regions of Ukraine, enabling 35,000 schoolchildren and preschoolers to return to their classrooms. The new phase of the initiative aims to establish shelters in rural areas, allowing local students the opportunity to attend school in person.

For this purpose, ordinary school desks have been repurposed into special installations. The illustrations were created by Ukrainian artist Oles Derega. The foundation explains that writing on the desk is a traditional and recognizable way for students to express themselves and their needs. Therefore, to promote the shelters in educational institutions, they chose to use the same method: messages written on desks.

"Desks are placed outdoors to remind us that not all educational institutions have their own shelters. Schools cannot resume in-person classes until they provide children and teachers with reliable protection during air raid alerts," says Svitlana Denysenko, director of the KSE Foundation.

The hyphen in the word "Za-khyst-ok" in the illustrations is intentional. The KSE Foundation emphasizes that having a shelter is a crucial condition for helping children develop their skills and build their future.

How to support the initiative?

Everyone can support the initiative and help bring more schoolchildren back to their desks by:

• Donating through the program's landing page.
• Sharing information about the fundraiser.
• Posting a photo of the hand-painted desk on your social networks.

"We will equip protective shelters for students and move their desks there so they can return to their schools," says the director of the foundation.

For now, the desk manifestos will be displayed as art installations. One such installation is located at the Main Post Office of Ukrposhta, a major partner of the KSE Foundation. So far, the "Za-khyst-ok" campaign to equip shelters in rural schools has garnered support from Dragon Capital, Raiffeisen Bank, Staryi Lev Publishing House, and Ukrposhta.

Where will the funds go?

The cost to set up a shelter space for one child is $150. The foundation aims to raise $150,000 through the campaign.

"The fundraising for the 'Za-khyst-ok' initiative to equip shelters in rural schools and kindergartens will continue until we reach our goal—helping 1,000 preschoolers and schoolchildren in rural areas return to their desks and resume in-person learning," says Denysenko.

Currently, the KSE Foundation has about 250 applications for shelter equipment in village and town educational institutions. Priority is given to shelters in schools and kindergartens that have endured occupation and destruction, are near enemy borders or critical infrastructure, serve as the only educational institutions for surrounding villages, or are in areas with frequent air alarms. These are places where children spend a significant amount of their school day seeking safety during air raids, making the need for shelters particularly urgent.

"Personally, I firmly believe in education as a powerful social elevator. My own life journey and the success of those in my 'bubble' are a testament to the efforts we invested in acquiring knowledge. Today, I see that many partners, organizations, and philanthropists prioritize impact, often measured by the number of children who will gain access to in-person education. However, every child is valuable. Each represents a life path that we can illuminate together.

The current situation is such that schools with fewer than 250 students have very slim chances of receiving support from donors or state funds for shelter arrangements. We all know that rural schools tend to be small, and thus, children in villages are the most vulnerable and limited in the opportunities that education can provide," says the director of the foundation.

Does it really work?

To date, the KSE Foundation has equipped 91 shelters, each tailored to the specific needs of the educational institution. The variations include the number of students, staff members who need to be accommodated, and the size of the basement rooms converted into shelters.

"We do not aim to turn the shelter into a second home or an innovation center. Instead, we focus on creating comfortable and secure spaces where children can feel safe during air alarms," says Denysenko.

She adds that many school basements, while intended for safety, often lack conditions for a comfortable stay and can pose risks such as dampness, mold, faulty wiring, and poor ventilation.

To address these issues, the foundation's specialists emphasize thorough sanitation during renovations, install proper ventilation, and equip the shelters with bathrooms. They ensure bright lighting, install fire doors, and provide comfortable furniture, including soft benches and beanbag chairs.

Here is a selection of shelters after renovation, compared to their condition before the repairs.

Even more useful solutions!

A key feature of the "ZAKHYSTOK" program—both the overall project launched in 2022 and its new phase, Za-khyst-ok, which began on September 4—is the open application process. Any educational institution in need of a shelter can apply for one.

The application form is available on the foundation's website and is designed to be clear and simple.