Zespół Szkół Sportowych w Ustrzykach Dolnych
Poland
ZSS is situated in the same building as the elementary school, which combines school activities with a large number of students from all types of schools. We believe that helps the pupils to participate in sustainable and long-lasting processes of education. The school community includes 419 students and 69 teachers. Besides the basic curriculum, there are many opportunities for students` development, especially in sports: ski running, swimming, handball, volleyball, basketball, gymnastics, and athletics.
There is also an artistic offer: fine art activities, playing different instruments, choir, folk music band, pop music band, and dance band. There are also groups for the passionate: touristic group, volunteers group, eco group.
The school is prepared for all kinds of educational activities and programs. The school has lots of useful facilities: rooms equipped with multimedia supplies, 2 rooms devoted for IT education, a library, internet information center, gyms, and a student cantina. In the process of education, we pay special attention to values like tolerance and respect to others. We teach that healthy professional rivalry and sports competition have to be based on openness and acceptance of a multicultural world. We started to implement the program “Stop Racism”, which is promoted by UEFA during sports events. The program is focused on peace, understanding, and fair play without discrimination of any kind. The phenomenon of xenophobia is still present in the mentality of Ustrzyki society, including parents of our students. Despite a tragic history (repressions and resettlement) of the region, many locals do not accept the diversity and heterogeneity of the people. As a school community we always try to react for the issues of stigmatization, discrimination, exclusion, and dehumanization by determined objections expressed during school public events: academies, parent-teachers conferences.
However, this process requires consequential and wider implementation. We also encourage students to take a proactive and open minded approach to social and civil life. They are offered lots of mutual projects and collaboration with NGO`s, and business: Foundation of St. Mikolaj, Foundation im. drM. KANTONA, Bank PKO S.A, Foundation PGNIG Foundation Bieszczadzka, where they have a chance to experience multicultural dialog. The school organizes many public events for locals eg. Family Sport Day, Patron’s day, Grand’s parents day, where we also promote tolerance and respect. Some students take part in local social and civil life as members or volunteers of The Municipal Youth Council of Ustrzyki Dolne. Its mission is to empower young citizens living in this area, to increase their awareness about civil rights and duties and to raise their knowledge about how they can actively participate in the civil society. The school supports MYC in their mutual project a lot. The programme of common activities often includes: promotion of pluralism, anti-hate speech actions, anti-xenophobic behaviors. All project aims are focused on developing the youth hierarchy of values based on respect of human beings, dignity of person and tolerance. The school “Policy of Zero Tolerance for Discrimiation” has been approved and supported by the mayor of Ustrzyki Dolne and the municipality. The project “Saynophobia2021” will be supported by the town of Ustrzyki Dolne that will take formal patronage over its results and activities.
What are the activities and experience of the organisation in the areas relevant for this project? What are the skills and/or expertise of key persons involved in this project?
The students of ZSS have taken part in many international projects so far, where they had a chance to experience cultural diversity. We also arrange events for local society promoting the improvement of social dialog , democratic values, and respect of human rights. In 2019 E+ Project :“Opener” ( 2018-3-PL01-KA105-061419 ) YE – initiative of two youth groups from Poland and Spain. The main purpose of the project was to raise awareness among young people of benefits coming from youth exchanges and intercultural collaboration. The project promoted values like: tolerance, active citizenship, social integration by no formal method of education. The project Opener was prepared by youth one year before on youth exchange called Tale of Two Towns. (02/05/2018) in villages Villaseca and Villaluenga in Spain. The exchange emphasized the intercultural connection between youth despite of differences in the field of culture, religion, sex, and skin color. Students took an active part in the Bieszczady University of Self-government financed by the Rural Development
Program in 2019-2020. The main idea was to create space for new forms of education for different groups of society, including the youth. Students had a chance to learn how to lead constructive dialog with opponents. The key gained competencies included methods of solving conflicts.
Bodgan Zwarycz – the headmaster – has 25 years of experience as a teacher, in his areas of interest are methods of nonformal education, responsible for work coordination in the project. He implemented rules of the “stop racism” program in his school and promoted “fair play” values in all sports activities. He carried on many projects about tolerance and respect, especially in sport.
Magdalena Florkiewicz– project manager, 10 years of experience in the field of project management. Recently, she coordinated the Interreg PL-SK project ,, Wspólnie promujemy regionalne dziedzictwo “, – “we promote local heritage together” and project PL-BY-UA “SOS-ratunek” – center for international rescue interventions. She was an author of the project „WiFi4EU about new technologies in local societies. The facilitator of Erasmus + projects “OPENER”, strong organization skills , fluent in English – worked in London in an international team. She is a member of local association: Ustrzyckie Stowarzyszenie Kultury responsible for cultural dialog and tolerance.
Grażyna Majer – a school coordinator of the project, responsible for preparation and implementations of all activities with young people. She professionally supports students with their personal and professional development. She arranges and carries on local activities for young people. She has teacher and educator certification. She will also take care of the recruitment of the students, and work with them during the project She will be responsible for gaining the required outputs of the project.
Joanna Rajechel – an English teacher – responsible for spreading outputs of the projects among students of our and other schools. She is responsible for dissemination. As a linguist with an interest in teaching languages, and international projects she has significant experience in informing stakeholders and the society about the projects. She is in charge of social media and other channels of information.
Marta Głuszko – an English teacher – she will support with her language skills the other teachers responsible for project implementation. She also has specialization in marketing and finance. Marta will be in charge of contact with the school accountancy unit.
