ISTANBUL — The Hrant Dink School of Istanbul educates the children of families from the Republic of Armenia who emigrated to Istanbul to make a living. Many of the students are from needy families but still are able to get an Armenian education in this unique school. The Tekeyan Cultural Association of the United States and Canada raised aid for the school in 2021 and thanks to a generous anonymous donor matched every contribution. The cochair of the school’s board of volunteers, Talar Hisarlı Horozoğlu, has released a report on how the school has used the $30,000 it was sent.
Due to the pandemic in 2021, the school’s classes were sometimes in person and sometimes online. She said the school administration was not able to make school renovations last year because of the recurrence of the pandemic, but said, “we have started to buy slowly the needs of the school with your kind donation.”
First of all, measures were taken to ensure a safe kitchen environment. The oven and stovetop, which had been used for about 17 years, were replaced with new ones, and kitchen equipment needs were provided.
Apart from this, a laptop was purchased for the school principal and her assistant and a smart board for the school.
As the school was closed for over one year due to the pandemic, and it’s located in the basement of a church, the physical condition of the school deteriorated because of the lack of air and humidity. Therefore at the beginning of the 2022 academic year, the entire school was repainted. The cause for the humidity was investigated, the necessary insulation was added and the electrical system was improved. All this was done to allow children to receive education in a healthier environment.
The remaining deficiencies (like camera, screen, camera foot, doorbell, speaker, etc.) were also fixed in the autumn of 2022.
She added, “We still have $13,410 remaining [from the donation] which we reserved to make a computer room with 10 computers. Before preparing a computer room, it is necessary to provide a good ventilation system.”
Since the room was humid, something that can damage electronic equipment, it was suggested that before the purchase of computers, the room be renovated.
Fortunately, one a local philanthropist paid for the school’s ventilation system. The work will be completed in 4-6 weeks, as the school’s electrical system also needs to be improved to take on this additional load. The computer room is planned to be ready for use at the latest at the end of this February.
She conclude, “The Hrant Dink School’s students, educational staff, parents and the school’s volunteer administrators, are grateful to the Tekeyan Cultural Association for supporting our project, for helping us to make up for the deficiencies of our school and improve its physical conditions.”
The Armenian Mirror-Spectator
