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NIGHTINGALES SCHOOL
How it all began
In 1996 when the HIV/AIDS children started their schooling with Nightingales, a child from the town came to ask whether she could also join the school, as her family could not afford to send her to state school. After a week there were 10 children asking to be admitted to these classes.
It became apparent that these were not the only children who were unable to benefit from a state education. A class was set up for these children giving them the opportunity to learn to read and write. The aim of this first class and of the school was to give the less privileged children in Cernavoda a chance of breaking out of the poverty trap into which they were born.
Summer 2004
In June 2004 the first 8 children graduated from the school and after taking the Romanian equivalent of GCSE's, five continued on to the state secondary education system, with two reaching graduation. One of these is now working overseas, the other works locally as a shop assistant - something that would not have been possible had they not received an education.
Two more children have also transferred from the school into one of state schools in town after displaying they have the ability to be able to cope academically with the state system.
Each of these children receive sponsorship of stationery and clothes that will allow them to attend school everyday, a cost their families cannot afford. This is a great achievement for the pupils and for the school, the children entering back into the system that rejected them for so many years, they can begin to design their own future.
Presently - 2010
The Nightingales school has 2 classes with 18 pupils. The school is split into two different sections, there are 18 special needs children and 30 who wish to study the state curriculum. The children are able to work at a rate which suits them and which is usually slower and more focused than within the state education but have to take exams each year to pass from one class to the next.
The education department has recently decided that it will no longer accept children from the Nightingales School so the 30 normal needs pupils are not currently receiving an education from us. We are fighting hard against their decision, which does not appear to have any apparent basis, and hope to be able to report a positive outcome to you later on in 2010.
Previously, our school worked closely with the local education department who supplied all the teachers and provided the pupils with food each day, and when there were funds available once a year the charity took the children on a week's holiday to Mamaia on the Black Sea . For the majority this was the only time of the year they left Cernavoda. We hope to be back in this position by the end of 2010.
The Future
The charity has seen that over the last few years more and more children are now able to enter into the state system so the school is having far fewer children entering into the first class. But there are a growing number of pupils who are entering from class one and up, children who have failed the school year twice and therefore are inelegible to enter back into state school. The children in many cases suffer from slight learning disabilities. With the small class sizes of the school these children can receive the individual attention they need to continue their education.
Nightingales would dearly like to continue to provide the service for families who cannot afford to send their children to school and we will keep plugging away at the Romanian Education authorities to make this happen.
With the School currently running at half of capacity - ie for special needs pupils only - the running costs are a mere £3,000 per annum. This covers, books, pens, paper, heating, water and the occasional day trip for educational purposes.
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