The first bell of the new school year rang at the Taras Shevchenko School of Ukrainian Studies at St. Vladimir Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in Parma, Ohio. This year, 334 students took their seats in the classrooms, including 34 first-graders.
For 102 years, the school has opened its doors to children of the Ukrainian diaspora. Their parents once sat at these same desks, and in some cases, so did their grandparents. Over time, the school has become an integral part of life for several generations of the Ukrainian community in the Cleveland area and a spiritual bridge to their ancestral homeland. Every Saturday, children from preschool through 11th grade attend classes in Ukrainian language and literature, history, geography, Ukrainian culture, and Christian ethics.
As tradition dictates, the new school year began with a communal prayer. At St. Vladimir Cathedral, pastor Father Mykhailo Hontaruk celebrated a Moleben and blessed the children for a successful year of learning.
The celebration then continued in the festively decorated school hall, where students performed the national anthems of Ukraine and the United States. School principal Halyna Yarema addressed the students, parents, and teachers with words of welcome and heartfelt wishes for a productive school year.
Those present observed a moment of silence in memory of the Ukrainian defenders who gave their lives for Ukraine’s freedom.
Special attention that day was given to the youngest participants in the celebration - the first-graders. Eleventh-grade students presented them with a symbolic key to knowledge, while the first-graders responded by reciting the school pledge and reading poems.
The first lessons in all grades were united by a common theme - “The Language of Dignity.” In the warm atmosphere of the school, through heartfelt conversations and engaging activities, the children experienced how their native language is more than just a school subject: it is our memory, our freedom, and our spiritual code, carefully preserved and passed down by Ukrainians from generation to generation, even far across the ocean.
Photos by the author
Author: Mariia Ilyk