Kharkiv opens its 10th underground school for up to 2,700 students
Children during a lesson in a new underground school in the Nemyshlyanskyi district of Kharkiv (Photo: Public Kharkiv/Mykyta Kuznetsov)
Kharkiv opened its 10th underground school on Sept. 1 in the city’s Nemyshlianskyi District, creating the first large underground learning space in an area where children previously had access only to a small metro school.
The facility is designed to serve up to 2,700 students, Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said at the opening, Suspilne Kharkiv reported.
The school covers more than 1,500 square meters, or about 16,100 square feet, and features interactive, themed classrooms, principal Valerii Kolesnyk said.
In addition to a standard elementary classroom, the facility includes an “ice cream classroom” and a “future leaders classroom” dedicated to the district’s largest businesses.
The school also has a large cafeteria area, a 100-seat assembly hall, a resource room and a computer lab. A sports area above the underground facility includes volleyball, basketball and soccer courts.
The learning space can accommodate 360 students per shift and will operate six days a week in three shifts.
First graders will attend in-person classes three times a week, while older students will attend twice a week. Specialized subjects will be supplemented with online learning.
First underground school co-funded by state budget
Terekhov said the project was the first underground school in Kharkiv to receive direct funding from the state budget.
Previous underground schools were financed exclusively by the city and with support from international partners.
“Children from 11 schools in this district will study here,” Terekhov said. “But I would like us to have at least three such schools in the Nemyshlianskyi District. The need exists, even though 10 underground schools have already been built.”
Demand for such facilities remains “enormous,” he said, adding that the city lacks sufficient resources to continue construction at the required pace.
Kharkiv has 4,600 fewer schoolchildren this year than last year, while first-grade enrollment has fallen by 600 students, Terekhov said.
Around 52-53% of Kharkiv students currently study in a blended format.
The city has 24 secure learning locations: 10 underground schools, seven metro schools and radiation shelters. Projects for two additional underground schools and a kindergarten are awaiting funding.
Across Ukraine, more than 8,000 schools — around 70% of the total — began the academic year with in-person classes on Sept. 1, the Education Ministry said. Another 11% are operating remotely.
In Kyiv, wartime conditions disrupted even traditional first-day ceremonies. At one school in the capital, first graders marked Sept. 1 inside a shelter because of an air-raid alert.
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