Educators of the South Matter:
A Regional Forum in Odesa

In cooperation with the Department of Education and Science of the Odesa Regional State Administration, the first day of the forum was dedicated to Education Workers’ Day. The central focus was an honest and open dialogue about the daily work of educators during the war, professional workload, emotional exhaustion, advocacy for educators’ rights, and concrete solutions that can strengthen the education community.

The official opening was led by Oleksandr LONCHAK, Director of the Department of Education and Science of the Odesa Regional State Administration. He shared his impressions from visits to communities across the region and highlighted how challenging the work of educators remains amid air-raid alerts, shelling, and constant security threats.

The key message of his speech was simple: “It is not only children who need support — educators need it too. Fatigue, anxiety, or simply wanting to spend some time in silence after a difficult working day are natural reactions of a person working under constant stress”.

Hryhorii DIDENKO, Head of the Odesa Regional Council, spoke about the unique mission of Ukrainian teachers during the full-scale war. Educators continue teaching even when lessons are interrupted by air-raid alerts and classes have to move to shelters.

“The role of a teacher today goes far beyond transmitting knowledge: teachers help children retain the ability to dream, make friends, remain curious about the world, and plan for the future”.

Anton SHALYHAILO, Deputy Head of the Odesa Regional State Administration, also joined the greetings to educators.

“The daily work of educators is enormously important for the entire region. Today, the resilience of the education system depends on the very people who keep it functioning despite the challenges of war”, he emphasized.

Bohdan FERENS, Founder of NGO “Progressive and Strong”, focused on the need to support those who support others every day. According to him, it is important not only to expect results from educators but also to help them preserve their professional capacity, motivation, and sense of purpose.

Bohdan FERENS also spoke about the joint work of NGO “Progressive and Strong” and UNICEF aimed at supporting educators and thanked the defenders of Ukraine whose service enables the education community to continue its work.

“Supporting those who support others every day is one of our most important tasks today”.

As part of the event, representatives of the authorities presented educators with honorary awards for their achievements and significant contribution to the development of education. The dedication of education professionals in today’s realities is a powerful example of genuine professionalism and the ability to overcome the most difficult challenges.

From Educators’ Needs to Real Change

Following the opening ceremony, the conversation moved from words to results. Liudmyla KORNUTA, Yevheniia SHELEST, and Kostiantyn PALSHKOV presented the outcomes of cooperation between NGO “Progressive and Strong” and UNICEF within the project “Strengthening Teaching and Learning Processes in the Southern Regions of Ukraine”.

The title of the session — “From educators’ needs to real change” — accurately captured its essence.

Yevheniia SHELEST presented the results of a study of the needs of educators in southern Ukraine.

“Behind every figure are real stories of teachers, their experiences, and the challenges they face every day”, she emphasized.

Among the key needs identified were practical professional development, inclusion, working with children who have experienced war-related trauma, psychosocial support, digital literacy, conflict management, and addressing learning losses.

Educators need not certificates for the sake of certificates, but knowledge and tools that they can apply in the classroom as early as the next day.

Liudmyla KORNUTA spoke about the team’s work directly within local communities. Face-to-face communication with educators on the ground helped the team understand what lay behind the research data.

“Educators need not only professional knowledge but also an opportunity to talk through difficult situations and receive support in dealing with conflicts, trauma, and professional exhaustion”, Liudmyla emphasized.

Throughout the project, educators had access to training sessions, supervision, and individual consultations. One of the important outcomes of this work was the establishment of eight Teacher Support Centres in the Odesa, Mykolaiv, and Kherson regions.

Kostiantyn PALSHKOV focused on communication.

“It is important for us to talk about educators and the results of our joint work in a way that allows these stories to be heard. The personal stories of young people can also become part of a broader conversation about education, opportunities, and the future”, he noted.

Another important area of the project was youth support. Around 300 teenagers from southern Ukraine participated in youth camps, where learning was combined with practical activities, creativity, and informal communication in a safe environment.

Thus, the presentation answered an important question: What happens after educators’ needs are heard? Research turns into support programmes, learning into practical tools, and partnership into new opportunities for educators and communities.

What do educators in the South live with?

The forum then moved to a panel discussion titled “What do educators in the South live with?”, moderated by Bohdan FERENS, Founder of NGO “Progressive and Strong”.

The discussion began with Andreia SUARZ, a member of the UNICEF education team working with the Odesa, Mykolaiv, and Kherson regions, and Anatolii IHNATOVYCH, Head of Education Programmes at the UNICEF Ukraine Odesa Regional Office.

Andreia explained in accessible terms how humanitarian priorities are determined. The process begins with a multisectoral household-level needs assessment. The data is then compared with a range of indicators — from household income to community capacity — and coordinated across the sectors of education, child protection, healthcare, sanitation, and hygiene.

As a result, support for a particular community depends not only on educational needs but also on the broader situation, available resources, donor priorities, and the capacities of partners.

“UNICEF does not make decisions independently. This process needs to be as open as possible and take into account the voice of every teacher and every child. If you feel that you have not been heard, tell us”, Andreia addressed the audience.

The questions from the audience were highly specific.

Veronika RAICHEVA, a geography teacher at Vasylivka Hub Lyceum in Bolhrad district, asked how a community located far from Odesa could join support programmes.

Olena HRABOVENKO, Principal of Dachne Lyceum No. 1, shared that teachers at her school had already completed training at a Teacher Support Centre and asked whether such a centre could be established in her community.

“The experience of these trainings shows that they are highly beneficial for teachers. And it is not only about supporting educators, but also about the approaches and methods that we then bring into our work with children. So, by supporting teachers, we are also supporting children”, Ms. HRABOVENKO emphasized.

The response to these questions led to a concrete proposal. Andreia suggested jointly developing clear criteria for opening new centres so that communities could understand the basis for such decisions.

“It is important that we all understand the criteria for opening new centres. This will make it easier for you to understand what our decisions are based on”, she explained.

Anatolii IHNATOVYCH supported the idea:
“Let us work together over these two days and develop, in working groups and on a single sheet of paper, the criteria for selecting communities where new centres should be opened. And let us discuss together what those criteria should be”.

Educators working on the front line

Tetiana DEMYDENKO, Head of the Department for General Secondary Education Institutions and Inclusive Education at the Department of Education and Science of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration, shared a story that brought silence to the room.

In 2022, fifteen students of Novopetrivka Special School — children with intellectual disabilities — were taken to Crimea by the occupying forces. They were rescued from further deportation and transferred to Georgia, where they spent almost four years. Today, all of them have returned to Ukraine, live in family-based care arrangements, and continue their education.

Ms. DEMYDENKO also spoke about principals of regional educational institutions who have effectively been working without holidays for five years.

“We have enough challenges today, but I sincerely believe that we will all have enough strength to overcome them. We simply have no other choice”, she concluded.

The realities of a frontline community were described by Oksana ZABAVA, Head of the Education Department of the Snihurivka City Council in Mykolaiv region.

The community is located 30 kilometres from the front line, and in 2022 most of its settlements were under occupation for nine months. After liberation, schools were left without roofs and windows, and everything from computer equipment to kitchen utensils had been taken away.

The institutions were restored, but this year attacks by FPV drones have intensified. The community made decisions about the format of education collectively: parents were surveyed, and together with the military administration, children were distributed between blended and remote learning.

“The biggest challenge is not windows or roofs, but the professionalism of educators and their emotional resilience. Many teachers left and never returned, while those who did return truly need to be protected. A school is not an entertainment venue or a catering facility; first and foremost, it must provide education. Without education, there is no community”, Ms. ZABAVA emphasized.

Bohdan FERENS picked up on this point. In his view, the familiar term “educational services” can sometimes diminish the value of educators’ work, because education is far more valuable than any service.

Viktoriia ROHOVA, Head of the Education Department of the Vysokopillia community in northern Kherson region, spoke about underground schools, hot meals served in shelters, and the reconstruction of destroyed educational institutions.

Due to the war, the number of educational institutions in the community has been reduced by half. Yet school leaders returned immediately after liberation and saved whatever remained — from buses trapped under rubble to chairs and interactive whiteboards.

The Teacher Support Centre established in the community also works with neighbouring communities. Ms. ROHOVA described how the team travelled to a community despite warnings not to go there because of drone attacks. Part of the journey was made by school bus, and the rest on foot. The training itself took place in the shelter of a destroyed educational institution.

“You know, our educators’ eyes have started to shine again. They saw that they can improve their qualifications without even leaving their institution. We will live, we will develop, we will work, and we will show that Kherson region is alive and that we cannot be defeated!” she said to applause from the audience.

Professional burnout and the need for support

Professional burnout was discussed by Antonina SHTURBA, Deputy Principal for Academic Affairs at Balta Pedagogical Professional College.

After almost 20 years in education, she has come to understand that burnout is not caused by a lack of professionalism among teachers. There are many factors: war, constant workload, and personal circumstances. College students completing teaching practice most often identify working with parents as one of the most difficult aspects of the profession.

The Teacher Support Centre has become a space of support for educators from Balta and neighbouring cities, with teachers even travelling there by bus.

“People have missed those conversations, those dialogues that need to happen among educators. We feel that we are not alone; we have a professional community. And when we support one another, we can definitely support the student who enters our classroom”, Ms. SHTURBA shared.

The discussion also addressed vocational education and the labour market. Iryna HRYHORIEVA, a representative of the Odesa Centre for Vocational and Technical Education of the State Employment Service, drew attention to the outflow of skilled workers abroad and the need to rapidly train and retrain people.

Blackouts provided a vivid example: the institution was among the first to begin training specialists capable of installing and configuring solar power systems.

Illia LUCHYNSKYI, a history teacher and winner of the Teacher of the Year 2026 competition, presented his vision of the teaching profession. He spoke about educators’ professional rights, the need for legal support, academic freedom, civic education, and critical thinking.

“My dream is for teachers in Ukraine, as in France, not to know the name of the Minister of Education. That is when we will truly have academic freedom”, Illia said.

He concluded by quoting his favourite writer, Oksana Zabuzhko: we cannot calculate the consequences of our actions in advance, but each of our small actions contains a seed of future worlds saved.

The competition for attention

An unexpected turn in the discussion came from Anatolii IHNATOVYCH. He addressed the school and university students in the audience and asked how many of them used TikTok, identifying a challenge that had not yet been mentioned: the competition for attention.

UNICEF plans to further expand its digital learning programmes, making young people’s voices particularly important.

The young people responded confidently. One student noted that participating in events like this was a sign of growing up. Another added:
“A teacher’s own interest in their work is more important than practical experience. If a teacher explains things in a boring way, children will be bored regardless of how many years of experience the teacher has”.

The final point of the panel was made by Yana DEMYDENKO, a mother of two who had previously worked at a school herself. She honestly admitted that working with children is easier today than working with parents.

“My child is the best, but she is the best for me at home. At school, all children are equal in the teacher’s eyes, and the teacher wants to give each of them equal attention. That is why we need to work not only with educators, but first and foremost with parents”, Ms. DEMYDENKO said.

Bohdan FERENS summarized the panel with several key conclusions:
“The level of exhaustion is extraordinary, and we need to address it. Psychosocial and emotional support is crucial. Circumstances differ dramatically from one community to another, and we need to take this into account in a targeted way. Communication is everything — between parents, educators, and children. And progressive teachers are the best motivation for learning and a safeguard against excessive gadget use”, the moderator emphasized.

World Café: Breaking down communication barriers

The topic of communication naturally continued in the next format — the World Café “How Can We Overcome Barriers and Interact? Educators × Future Teachers × Parents”.

Participants worked in three areas.

Yuliia SHMALENKO moderated the discussion on communication between teachers, parents, and young educators.

Olha MATERYNSKA led the discussion on communication between parents and educators.

Anastasiia DANYLKOVA focused on communication between young teachers and their more experienced colleagues.

Across three rounds, each group identified the main barriers, heard the perspectives of the other parties, and developed joint solutions and first steps towards implementing them.

Parents spoke about age and generational gaps, personal ambitions, authoritarian approaches, different parenting styles, and ineffective communication. Participants also mentioned conflicts in parent chats and the social isolation of internally displaced people.

One way to overcome these barriers was identified as joint activities that allow people to get to know one another better and build partnerships.

“Parents spoke very honestly about their own share of responsibility — about ambitions, authoritarianism, and different views on parenting. Joint activities where parents, children, and educators can get to know one another better became a solution that we can start implementing as early as tomorrow”, summarized Olha MATERYNSKA.

Educators identified their own barriers: expectations of constant availability and 24/7 communication, different views on teaching methods, an inability to listen to one another, and shifting responsibility for upbringing.

Among the proposed solutions were transparent communication rules, professional boundaries, and shared responsibility among all participants in the educational process.

“Educators clearly articulated their need for transparent communication rules and professional boundaries. A teacher cannot be available 24/7. This is not about unwillingness to communicate, but about preserving the resources needed for children. At the same time, responsibility for upbringing must be shared”, noted Yuliia SHMALENKO.

Young educators and future teachers spoke about ageism, bias, stereotypes, and generational differences. At the same time, an important point emerged: responsibility lies on both sides.

Experienced educators can also create barriers through authoritarianism, reluctance to delegate, or undervaluing younger colleagues.

The key solutions identified were mutual respect, professional ethics, willingness to listen to one another, and the search for common ground.

“The most valuable thing was that young educators not only spoke about stereotypes directed at them, but also acknowledged that both sides contribute to building barriers. When an experienced colleague is willing to delegate and a young colleague is willing to listen, a space for genuine cooperation emerges”, shared Anastasiia DANYLKOVA.

Effective communication and tolerance towards one another became the common thread running through the entire World Café.

Participants recognized that barriers often arise not from a lack of willingness to cooperate, but from different expectations, experiences, and communication styles. Looking at a situation from the other person’s perspective is already half the journey towards a shared solution.

“Effective communication begins with a tolerant attitude towards one another. When we listen not only to ourselves but also to the other side, barriers become points of connection”, concluded Yuliia SHMALENKO.

From experience to strategy: The second day of the forum

The second day of the forum became a space for strategic work for the Teacher Support Centres.

Just one year earlier, the participants had been future trainers who were only planning the work of the centres and preparing to take their first steps. Today, they have already delivered their own training sessions for educators, developed support practices, and gained real-world experience.

This was the starting point for the strategic session “Preserve — Strengthen — Scale”.

The Centre teams analysed the results and challenges of their work, including psychosocial support for students and teachers. Participants identified which practices had already proven their value and should be preserved, what needed to be strengthened, and which initiatives had the potential to be scaled up.

The best evidence of what should be preserved came from educators themselves.

“People who came to us would say: ‘Let’s do more. Please organize something else. We will definitely come back.’ People came to us by bus from neighbouring cities”, said Antonina SHTURBA, describing the work of her Centre.

A psychosocial support trainer who worked with educators at the Centres shared during the open microphone session:
“We set timers for 30 or 40 minutes, but people did not want to leave us and came back with other groups. Especially now, during this difficult time of war, psychosocial support is simply something people need. I hope this programme will continue, because there is a real demand for it”.

Particular attention was paid to planning future activities and developing partnerships with educational institutions, communities, and other organizations.

The sustainability of the Centres depends not only on individual teams but also on the network that creates new opportunities for educators.

As Bohdan FERENS emphasized the previous day:
“The successful launch and operation of our Centres motivates other communities — both community leaders and educators themselves — because they see that these Centres can strengthen both teachers and learners at the local level”.

Almost all teams also spoke about their own capacity and well-being. Participants highlighted the need for retreats — spaces for recovery, resetting, and professional communication.

To continue supporting others, it is important to have an opportunity to restore one’s own energy and spend time together as a team.

The session concluded with planning the next steps and priorities for further work.

Tetiana DEMYDENKO also supported this need:
“Such retreats are extremely important for teachers today. Extremely important!”

From dialogue to real change

The two-day forum became a space not only for discussing challenges but also for finding shared solutions.

Participants heard the real needs of educators in southern Ukraine, discovered strong practices, identified areas for growth, and reaffirmed an important principle: change begins with dialogue, support, and the willingness to act together.

We believe that educators truly matter.

And our task is not only to hear their needs, but to work together to turn those needs into real change.