Children of war

To protect the rights of schoolchildren: ombudsmen will appear in Carpathian educational institutions

In recent years, in Ukraine, more and more attention is paid to the issue of children’s rights not only on paper, but also in real everyday life – at school, in the classroom, during a lesson or during a break. Protection of children’s rights is no longer perceived as the exclusive competence of adults – teachers, officials or parents. In a democratic society that focuses on participation and independence, children should become full participants in the processes that affect them. The new “School Ombudsman” project, which will be launched in the Ivano-Frankivsk region, is just such an attempt – to give students not only a voice, but also an opportunity to act.

As reported the representative of the Commissioner of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine for human rights in the region Vitaliy Verbovyi, the idea is to introduce the institute of an independent student representative in schools and lyceums. Its function is to protect the rights and freedoms of participants in the educational process, provide consultations, consider complaints and conflict situations, as well as establish interaction between students, teachers, administration and parents.

A school ombudsman is a student of the 9th grade of a gymnasium or 10-11th grade of a lyceum, who is elected from among the active student self-government. But, unlike traditional school heads or “school presidents”, the Ombudsman has a separate, autonomous mandate. Its activity is not subordinated to the school administration and does not depend on the preferences or instructions of teachers. It is in this independence, as the initiators note, that the meaning lies: the pupil-ombudsman has the right to act as a mediator in controversial situations, voice problems and seek changes.

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It is envisaged that students and their parents will be able to contact the School Ombudsman for help – personally or through special feedback channels. In difficult cases, he will be able to initiate a review of school rules, involve external human rights institutions, and in some cases — record violations in the interests of further response by state authorities.

According to Verbovoy, the project has several goals: to increase the level of legal literacy among schoolchildren, to teach young people to protect themselves and others in a legal way, as well as to make the environment in schools safer and more open to dialogue.

The initiative also corresponds to the new opportunities opened up by the Law of Ukraine “On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine Regarding People’s Power at the Level of Local Self-Government”, which entered into force on January 8, 2025. This law gave teenagers from the age of 14 the right to participate in public hearings, make proposals, be involved in consultations and advisory bodies at the local level. As the Representation of the Commissioner for Human Rights emphasizes, the “School Ombudsman” project is a logical continuation of this trend — a practical step towards the formation of a new type of citizen: informed, responsible and capable of action.

In the future, it is expected that this project will not only activate student self-government, but also change the atmosphere in schools: reduce the number of silent conflicts, give children a sense of security and influence, and form communication and mediation skills necessary in adult life. And most importantly, it will show that children’s rights in Ukraine are not empty words, but have very real defenders. Even if that defender is a fifteen-year-old classmate.

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