On January 15, 11:00 am, the ribbon-cutting ceremony of a newly renovated public school will take place in the village Kveshi, located near the Administrative Boundary Line. CDA Elizabeth Rood, Governor Giorgi Khojevanishvili, Minister of Education, Science, Culture, and Sport Mikheil Chkhenkeli, Mayor Representative Konstantine Tavzarashvili, Metropolitan Andria Gvazava of Gori and Ateni and School Principal Lela Bibiluri will participate in the ceremony and address the public.
The Kveshi Public School is a kilometer away from the Administrative Boundary Line, and the population in this area faces various social and economic challenges due to the ongoing so-called “border” demarcation process begun by Russian troops after the 2008 armed conflict. The school is a three-story building that serves around 200 students from two neighboring villages, consisting of over 800 households.
US EUCOM’s Humanitarian Assistance Program provided funding in the amount of $880,000 through the United States Department of Defense Overseas Humanitarian, Disaster, and Civic Aid (OHDACA) appropriation for a complete renovation of Kveshi Public School. The purpose of this project was to improve the learning as well as the sanitary/hygiene conditions of the approximately two hundred students enrolled in the school. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) conducted the renovations. The Kveshi School Renovation project provides for a complete renovation of the three-story school, including new interiors (walls, windows, doors, and flooring), reconstructed stairwells, new roofing, a new insulated building façade, new restrooms, new domestic water and wastewater systems, a new heating system, and new electrical work. The project also includes a perimeter fence and improved storm water management.
The project is the best example of how collaboration between the U.S. and Georgian governments can lead to lasting positive results – particularly in the field of education.