A story about a tie and a child who refused to be lost

Today at the Vocational High School in the village of Gradnitsa was not just another official visit. Yes, there was a regional governor in the hall, there was a program, there was a tie – the one that usually stands as a symbol of the institution, of distance, of the “official”. But today it seemed to tell a different story.

A story about change.

Just a year ago, this school was on the brink – with few students, with a lack of motivation, with a sense of an inevitable end. Today, these same children have filled the school building, dreaming, celebrating their holidays together – Bulgarian, Roma, Turkish, protecting each other, welcoming guests in folk costumes, with confidence, with smiles and most of all – with a sense of belonging. This does not happen with an order, nor with a signature. It happens with support, with a director who is a visionary. This happens when something inside a child ignites. When someone sees their potential.

Ivana is one of these children.

After participating in the Leadership Academy of the Amalipe Center, she didn’t just change – she started changing others too. With her example, with her words, with the belief that school makes sense. Sometimes we think that in order to change a community, we need a lot of resources, strategies and time. But the truth is that sometimes you need to reach a child – truly, deeply – and show them that they can.

Two years ago, everyone thought that Ivana would not finish school – she would drop out, get married, go abroad and never come back. Ivana stayed at school. She returned from abroad because there was already a community here. And she became a symbol of change in the school. She is the new ombudsman of the school and today the Regional Governor of Gabrovo Region met with her.

They talked…

about the school, about the interests of the students, about the different paths…

And then the Regional Governor decided to give the Ombudsman one of his most precious possessions: his favorite tie. He took it off impulsively and said: “With this tie I took on the position of regional governor and it really brought me a lot of luck and success. I hope it brings the same to you.” He asked about the school. “Even now we can call ourselves a school,” Ivana replied. This is not just our achievement. The Amalipe organization started working with us, first they believed in us, then the director, the teachers … and so on – from Amalipe to the regional governor …”

Today this was visible everywhere – in the eyes of the children, in the way they stood, in the confidence with which they spoke. And perhaps that is precisely why the regional governor’s tie did not stand as a symbol of distance, but as a sign that institutions can also approach when there is something for them to see and believe in.

Gradnitsa today is not just a “school that has survived”. It is an example of what happens when someone believes in the children – and then they start to believe in each other.

Author: Todor Vankov

The campaign for the election of student ombudsmen is implemented within the network of the Amalipe Center “Mission Excelent” within the framework of the GLAS project with the support of the Swiss-Bulgarian Cooperation Program, Mechanism for Civic Engagement and Transparency (MGAP) 2024-2029. The views and opinions expressed are entirely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the governments of Switzerland and Bulgaria.