Solutions from Ukraine: first Ukrainian Educational Hub opens in US to preserve ties for over half a million war-displaced Ukrainians
The first Ukrainian Educational Hub has opened in the United States of America.
Rubryka reports this.
What is the problem?
Due to the war, over 500,000 Ukrainians have been compelled to migrate to the United States. As a result, it has become crucial to maintain their ties to Ukrainian culture, language, and education while living in a foreign country.
What is the solution?
The initiative to create the Network of Ukrainian Educational Hubs, as a quick and effective response to the departure of 8 million Ukrainians (mostly women with children), belongs to the Association of Innovative and Digital Education and the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. Currently, 70 such Hubs are successfully operating in the EU countries, the UK, the USA, Japan, and Ukraine.
"Preserving Ukraine's human capital is an important priority of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. Studying in the Ukrainian language component and the ability to transfer grades from educational institutions abroad allow children to maintain contact with Ukrainian culture and language and study in Ukrainian schools without a double load. An important aspect is cooperation with public organizations that support Ukrainian identity abroad," Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine Nadiia Kuzmychova said.
In the United States, Chicago has had the second-highest Ukrainian population after New York since 2022. As a result, a decision was made to establish the first Ukrainian Educational Hub in this city.
How does it work?
The Ukrainian Education Hub is located at the City College of Chicago at Wilbur Wright College Humboldt Park, 1645 N California Ave, Chicago, IL 60647, not far from the Ukrainian Village, a neighborhood traditionally home to a large Ukrainian community.
In the United States, the Ukrainian Education Hub is partnered with the National Association of Higher Education (NASH), representing over 70% of all American universities.
Colleen Toews, Founder and Director of NASH, says:
"This historic partnership between the US education system, government agencies, NASH, and the Association for Innovative and Digital Education is a significant contribution to preserving Ukraine's human capital. The activities of the Ukrainian Education Hub are key to bringing Ukrainians who have come to the United States together, and I hope that the Hub will provide such an opportunity for them."
The Association for Innovative and Digital Education will coordinate the Hub's activities, develop educational materials and content, attract certified trainers, provide its own 34 educational platforms for use by Hub participants, and implement a broad information campaign to attract as many Ukrainians as possible to use the opportunities provided by the Ukrainian Educational Hub in the USA.
"We want to thank everyone who helped open the Ukrainian Educational Hub, first online and now in person in the United States. First of all, the National Association of Higher Education, the US Secretary of Education (2009-2015) Arnie Duncan, and the Walder Foundation.
Currently, the Hub helps and educates both newly arrived Ukrainians and those who have been living in Chicago for some time. Educational activities and psychosocial support programs for children and adults are being successfully implemented, united by the concept of lifelong learning," says Mariia Bohuslav, executive director of the Association for Innovative and Digital Education and the Ukrainian Educational Hubs Network coordinator.
Representatives from the state of Illinois, Chicago City Hall, the Ukrainian diaspora, and the Hub's partners attended the opening of the Ukrainian Educational Hub in Chicago, demonstrating the importance of this event.
For reference:
Since February 2022, the network of Ukrainian Educational Hubs has provided services to more than 500,000 Ukrainians in different countries of the world and internally displaced persons. As such, Hubs also operate as Digital Educational Centers in Ukraine.
Already in 2025, it is planned to open the premises of the Ukrainian Educational Hub in other cities of the USA, where Ukrainians live en masse, in particular in New York.
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