Ten Ukrainian students will be given full scholarships to attend Brookes Westshore School in Colwood as boarding students for the upcoming school year.
The students will complete their high school education at Brookes and be supported to attend university, with the ultimate goal of helping them safely return to Ukraine to help the rebuilding process in their country.
Brookes Westshore, an International Baccalaureate world school, is offering the scholarships in partnership with the Ukrainian Global University, an organization set up to help displaced Ukrainian students find opportunities for education.
“For us, it was an easy decision,” Jerry Salvador, Brookes Westshore head of school, said in a statement. “We have strong organizational connections to Ukraine, and wanted to do whatever we can to mitigate the impact on the lives of young Ukrainians.”
The school has done work in Ukraine before. In 2018 Brookes partnered with local educators and entrepreneurs to build an art school campus in the heart of Kyiv. Construction was completed in late 2021 and was due to open for students in September 2022 but Russia’s invasion disrupted those plans.
“These children have been through unimaginably difficult times,” Salvador added. “But we believe that this partnership will provide a group of displaced children a lifeline to a more normal existence. We feel we are ready to take on this challenge and support these children as they adjust to their new lives.”
The goal is for the 10 students to start their education at Brookes Westshore in September.
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