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AHEAD Ukraine
(Advancing Hybrid Education and Development in Ukraine)
OUR MISSION: to rebuild and enrich Ukraine by providing its students, teachers, librarians, and scientists with enhanced access to global educational resources.
AHEAD Ukraine is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation based in Austin, TX (EIN: 92-3516084).

How we support education
in Ukraine
Equipment
for destroyed and damaged schools and higher ed institutions
Academic support
from American professors and teachers for Ukrainian educators and students
Books
for children in Ukraine and Ukrainian refugees in the USA
OUR IMPACT
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Total children impacted:
1,213
511
English language books delivered to Ukrainian schools and libraries
100
university students received free access to educational software
463
school kids and university students are using new tech equipment and furniture
35
academics have partnered to build partnership between Ukraine and the USA
Grateful recipients of your donations
Hryhorii Skovoroda University in Pereiaslav
"Now students who had no devices can get shared access to project work, online learning, and research. Every effort will be to the benefit of rebuilding Ukraine better and stronger, even now, while the war still lasts".
Kremenchuk library
"Thank you for this support. Our little readers now have access to English literature, which is of great help in our national campaign of improving English skills and Eurointegration. Growing our book fund is impossible during the war without donors' support".
Pokrovske library
"Our town is a new home to many internally displaced Ukrianians who came seeking shelter from the active war zone. These books and tablets were generously donated by the American community and will be super useful for our young readers".
Kharkiv library
"The war forces little Ukrainians to hide in bomb shelters, leave their homes, and separate them from friends and relatives. We, adults, try to give children joy in spite of everything, to give them a decent education. We are very glad to have support! The whole world is together with Ukraine! We are grateful to everyone!"
Mykhailivka-Rubezhivka Lyceum
"450 students of our school are now able to access interactive modern resources using the equipment we received from AHEAD Ukraine. Thank you!"
Kharkiv Montessori school
"Now we don't have to squeeze in or move tables to the shelter and back while the syrens are howling. We thank every contributor! For us this gift is a symbol of support and faith in the future, no matter how hard it is".
Hryhorii Skovoroda University in Pereiaslav
"Now students who had no devices can get shared access to project work, online learning, and research. Every effort will be to the benefit of rebuilding Ukraine better and stronger, even now, while the war still lasts".
Kremenchuk library
"Thank you for this support. Our little readers now have access to English literature, which is of great help in our national campaign of improving English skills and Eurointegration. Growing our book fund is impossible during the war without donors' support".
Pokrovske library
"Our town is a new home to many internally displaced Ukrianians who came seeking shelter from the active war zone. These books and tablets were generously donated by the American community and will be super useful for our young readers".
Kharkiv library
"The war forces little Ukrainians to hide in bomb shelters, leave their homes, and separate them from friends and relatives. We, adults, try to give children joy in spite of everything, to give them a decent education. We are very glad to have support! The whole world is together with Ukraine! We are grateful to everyone!"
Mykhailivka-Rubezhivka Lyceum
"450 students of our school are now able to access interactive modern resources using the equipment we received from AHEAD Ukraine. Thank you!"
Kharkiv Montessori school
"Now we don't have to squeeze in or move tables to the shelter and back while the syrens are howling. We thank every contributor! For us this gift is a symbol of support and faith in the future, no matter how hard it is".
Meet the team
AHEAD Ukraine is a 100% volunteer-led organization
Darya Ledesma
Founder,
Strategy & Program Management
Darya is a speaker and a co-organizer of rallies and events of the Ukrainian community in Austin, TX. She was born and raised in Zaporizhzhia and since 2011 has been living in the USA. Since day one of the unprovoked full-scale russian invasion of Ukraine, Darya has been rallying support for Ukraine among Americans and fighting russian propaganda by spreading the truth about Ukraine and Ukrainian history at different forums and settings.
Polina Shabarova
Founder, PR & Marketing
Polina is a linguist, content creator, and a psychology student. She has over 15 years of experience as a teacher and private language school founder and manager. Born in Ukrainian Sevastopol, she left for Kyiv after the annexation of Crimea and then moved to Texas through a diversity visa program. Her parents, brother, and extended family live in Ukraine. Now Polina's helping with various non-profit initiatives in the Ukrainian Austin community.
Ania Safko
Founder, Growth & Fundraising
Ania was born in Odesa, Ukraine. Her family was displaced during the annexation of Crimea in 2014, and she has lived in the U.S., working in technology ever since. She works at Mozilla Firefox, helping advance the vision of free and open internet. Ania teaches photography at the Texas State and volunteers for various causes, sharing her love for Ukrainian culture, art, and the natural world with fellow Texans.
Olivia Kapatia
Founder, Operations & Logistics
Olivia grew up in Kremenchuk, Ukraine, studied and worked in Kyiv until the full-scale war started in February 2022. Being an accounting and reporting professional Olivia always was active in the social life of her country. She is particularly passionate about preserving national architectural heritage and developing local tourism. Now Olivia is putting maximum efforts to help Ukrainian kids to have education and childhood despite the horrors of war.
Dr. Michael Pyrcz
Founder, Academic Engagement & Collaboration
Michael is Canadian born with Ukrainian roots. He is a Professor at The University of Texas at Austin, teaching geostatistics, machine learning, and spatial data analytics. He is an active supporter of Ukrainian community, and a tireless volunteer educator, committed to open-education and open-source content development, sharing knowledge with students and colleagues internationally, including Ukraine.
Anthony Triola
Advisor
Anthony is a US Army veteran, retired after almost 25 years of active duty. He took part in three combat tours, and his military honors include the Legion of Merit and two Bronze Stars. Now Anthony is a lecturer at Senior University of Georgetown, Texas, and a volunteer in American Red Cross. He is a dedicated supporter of Ukrainian community and their multiple charitable initiatives.
Natalia Karabelska
Volunteer, Project Management
Born in Sevastopol, Ukraine, Natalya spent most of her academic and professional experience in Kyiv before leaving for Norway and Canada to pursue a double Masters degree. Natalya is an experienced product and project manager with over a decade of experience in telecom and consumer goods industries and diverse academic background. Before joining AHEAD Ukraine Natalya was the Head of Product at a humanitarian relief NGO helping Ukrainians find safety.
Mykyta Sukhotovskyi
Volunteer, Designer
Mykyta is a designer, born in Sevastopol, Ukraine. He has been living in Kyiv since the russian occupation of Crimea. He is working remotely for an intrenational company, studying for his Bachelor's degree at a university, and volunteering for various projects in support of Ukraine during the war. His other passions and skills are drawing, photography, and skateboarding.
Help Ukrainian education recover so that the youth can rebuild the country
Stories of the war
1 The Pie News
2 NBC News
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A Ukrainian schoolboy falls into coma2
The doctors are sure that the cause of coma was constant anxiety. For six months the boy saw rockets, heard shelling, and phosphorous bombs falling, and his anxiety rose to dangerous levels.2
'Overgrown'¹
When the WWII was over, our grandparents had to study together with much younger children, earning themselves the name ‘pererostki,’ or ‘overgrown.’
“I think it will be like my grandma,” said Maria Varenikova, a journalist living in Kyiv with her son Nazar, 11.
“Something will have to be figured out in Ukraine, given that for years children don’t have an education because of COVID, and now war.”¹
"I can't abandon them"¹
“[For my students in hot zones] all I can do is call and ask: ‘Are you alive? How did the night go? This is your exam question, just tell me something, whatever comes into your head,’” said Scherbakova.
“Of course, I can’t give them good marks. But I can’t abandon them.”¹
The most difficult thing
Zoia Honcharova, a math teacher from Chernihiv says that the lack of electricity and internet is a challenge for her, but said that the most difficult thing was “to look at children's eyes… and not to shed tears.”2
Numbers
"Ukrainian children were already starved of live interaction due to pandemic restrictions. Now, with only online teaching, plus the interrupted routines and safety restructions of war, they are becoming increasingly stressed and withdrawn".
- Politico¹
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2,730
educational institutions severely damaged4
415
schools completely destroyed4
5+ mln
Ukrainian kids affected by disrupted education3
1,300
Ukrainian schools being russified by Russia on captured territories¹
Slide 1 of 6
What Ukrainian educators say
We've surveyed teachers, professors, and other educators from Ukraine to get their statements of needs and a vision of the future of education in Ukraine.
We must eliminate all the soviet obsolete methods in education. Instead, we need to implement interactive IT platforms, simulation learning, and augmented reality. Today it’s almost criminal to be teaching students without digitalization. We have to prepare the youth that will effectively build the new Ukraine.
Assistant Professor, Hryhorii Skovoroda University in Pereiaslav
Tetiana K., Ph.D. in Economics
Psychological support and training needed for educators and students. Support, development, analysis, diagnostics, correction, consulting.
English Language Teacher, Kyiv public School #32
Marianna C.
We need to build collaboration between teachers in Ukraine and their foreign colleagues: training, internships, exchange programs, working on scientific projects, and academic papers.
Associate Professor, Kyiv National Economics University
Iryna M.
Ukraine schools need help with equipment, communication with foreign specialists, teacher training. We dream about a touch panel for studying with 150 languages and a sensory room. We only have 1 laptop and 2 ipads at schools. We dream of creating an IT classroom.
Founder at Svit Dytyny Montessori school, Kharkiv
Violetta K.
Reformation of Ministry of Education is needed. More foreign specialists who would join to support and develop education and science.
Associate Professor, Vadym Hetman University
Roksolana N.
Students' training with an opportunity to receive a certificate from a foreign college or university.
Associate Professor of the Economics and Entrepreneurship Department
Kateryna B.
“There is no pause button. It is not an option to simply postpone children’s education and come back to it once other priorities have been addressed, without risking the future of an entire generation,”3
- Afshan Khan, UNICEF Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia
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Frequently asked questions
Create different pricing options so different audiences can find a perfect fit for their needs
Is AHEAD Ukraine a 501(c)(3) organization?
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How can a Ukrainian school or educator submit a request?
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AHEAD Ukraine
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Contacts
contact@aheadukraine.org
Our email address
AHEAD Ukraine is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation based in Austin, TX (EIN: 92-3516084)