VivaCell-MTS, COAF team up for rural school renovation

VivaCell-MTS, COAF team up for rural school renovation

PanARMENIAN.Net - With the assistance of VivaCell-MTS and the Children of Armenia Fund (COAF), the elementary wing of Arteni community school in Aragatsotn province of Armenia reopened after a capital repair.

VivaCell-MTS provided AMD 7 mln for the establishment of a technology classroom, Creativity Lab, to be used by all students. COAF renovated the rest of the classrooms and installed a tooth brushing station, Brushadrome.

The Creativity Lab features a smart board, modern computers, as well as mobile furniture adaptable for working individually, in small or large groups. The Lab provides a multifunctional environment fit for classes, training sessions, lectures, reading, discussions, projects and games, performances and fun.

This is the second Creativity Lab established as part of COAF-VivaCell-MTS partnership, the first one being launched in September 2013 in the Sardarapat community located in the Armavir region.

“By providing a village school with innovative tools encouraging creativity, we want to help them reveal and develop skills and knowledge. We have to grow up knowledgeable generation, and in this regard it’s very important to ensure that there is no gap between rural and urban schools,” VivaCell-MTS General Manager Ralph Yirikian said.

“The concept of Creativity Labs was first introduced in Armenia by COAF and has been widely acclaimed as a cutting-edge means of providing an optimal learning and creative environment. Given the need in Arteni, we decided to build on this cooperation with our partner VivaCell-MTS and renovate the Elementary School wing. This was made possible through the generous donation of long-standing COAF benefactors Mr. & Mrs. Noubar and Anna Afeyan. The newly opened Creativity Lab and Elementary School wing will provide contemporary educational opportunities to the younger generation,” Anush Yedigaryan, COAF Executive Director added.

The Arteni School is COAF’s seventh rural school and eighteenth building to have undergone capital renovation since 2004. Starting today, close to 100 elementary schoolchildren and 15 primary school teachers will enjoy safe and nurturing classroom conditions and benefit from a learning environment equipped with bright classrooms, indoor lavatories and running water, a central heating system and a brushadrome.

The Children of Armenia Fund (COAF) is a non-profit, non-governmental organization that uses community-led approaches to reduce rural poverty, with a particular focus on children. Since the inception of its programs in 2004, COAF has funded and implemented education, health, social, and economic development programs serving more than 27,000 people in rural villages of Armenia. Each person impacted represents one of the more than one billion people living in poverty, and the methods used in Armenia can be replicated in other communities, where children are most vulnerable.

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