From September 30 to October 05, 2024, under the financial support of the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine, the initiative groups of Pavlo Tychyna Uman State Pedagogical University and Jan Długosz University in Czestochowa implemented the Ukrainian-Polish Youth Exchange Project ‘Ukrainians in Czestochowa: Together for the Community...’. Jan Długosz University in Czestochowa is a long-standing and reliable partner of Pavlo Tychyna Uman State Pedagogical University. This cooperation contributed to the signing of a twinning agreement between Uman and Czestochowa in 2019.
This project initiative aims to bring Ukrainian and Polish youth closer together through the joint study and preservation of historical and cultural heritage, emphasising the importance of interethnic and multicultural relations. The project aims to foster and support active citizenship among Ukrainian and Polish youth and their participation in public life.
As part of the exchange programme, the participants visited the academic buildings of the Jan Długosz University in Czestochowa, where they attended the opening ceremony of the academic year. In addition, participants attended the city's Educational Centre, where they took part in a gastronomic workshop entitled ‘Ukrainian and Polish Cuisine: Uniqueness and Borrowings’. At this event, Ukrainian participants taught Polish youth how to cook traditional Ukrainian dishes, which made it possible to get to know Ukrainian culture and traditions better.
On 1 October, the participants met with representatives of the Czestochowa authorities, in particular, Vice President Łukasz Pabisz and Head of the Education Department Rafał Piotrowski. Thanks to the support of Rafał Piotrowski, the participants were able to visit schools No. 39 named after Maria Konopnicka, No. 41 named after Jan Matejko and kindergarten-school No. 5, where they met with Ukrainian children who were forced to leave their homes due to russian aggression. Ukrainian children make up about a third of the students in these institutions. The exchange participants took part in classes where they performed sports exercises, drew and wrote about the future of Ukraine together with children.
An unforgettable event was a tour of the Czestochowa Town Hall Museum led by Dr Juliusz Sętowski, which ended with a walking tour of Ukrainian places of memory in Czestochowa.
Also the project participants had the opportunity to visit the famous religious centre of Poland - the Sanctuary of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Jasna Góra. They were told about Ukrainian pilgrims and the history of the spiritual centre of Poland, Jasna Góra and the medieval castle - Olsztyn Fortress.
The Youth Exchange project ‘Ukrainians in Czestochowa: Together for Community...’ gave the participants new impressions, acquaintances and knowledge, promoting intercultural dialogue between Ukrainian and Polish youth.
The project was organised and implemented by Ihor Kryvosheya, PhD in History, Director of the Polish Cultural and Educational Centre, Professor, Acting Head of the Department of World History and Teaching Methods, and Liudmyla Dubovyk, Leading Specialist of the International Relations Department, with the financial support of the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine and the partnership of Jan Długosz University in Czestochowa.
