"Support of female leaders with disabilities in the Zhytomyr region" - under the name of the Zhytomyr regional public organization of people with disabilities "Youth. Woman. "Family" implements a grant from the "URGENT ACTION FUND" (UAF), USA". As part of the initiative, various activities are prescribed: financial aid, master classes, training with educators and local officials.
— Information about the project proposal was provided by the public organization "VOIC". Its members are Ukrainian girls who live abroad and find various grants to improve the quality of life of citizens in Ukraine. They offered us the "Quick Response Fund (UAF), USA" to receive funds aimed at supporting women who work with people with disabilities, - said the head of the public organization "Youth. Woman. Family" Nelya Kovalyuk. Implementing the received funding, we held a master class on sculpting and painting chocolate figures, decoupage of candles, she added.
According to her, the purpose of the event is to support women leaders who work and head public organizations of people with disabilities and women who are the first to come in contact with people with disabilities, women who raise children and youth with disabilities.
— This category of people was suffering even before the war, but now both material, physical and psychological problems have increased significantly. With these troubles, they come to their organizations, tell the leaders about it, ask for help, Nelya Kovalyuk said.
An informal meeting with representatives of executive authorities was held for the support and psychological relief of women heads of public organizations. During the event, those present had the opportunity to enjoy a concert by the Lesya Ukrainka Music School and a master class of exercises with bubbles by the Popasnya rehabilitation center "Stork".
Funds from the grant are used not only in the regional center, but also in other cities, in particular in Korosten. As the head of the public organization "UTOS" Olena Parfenyuk said, this is the second financial aid to her organization since the beginning of the full-scale war. In both cases, Nelya Kovalyuk contributed to improving the material situation.
- We are usually provided with food kits, detergents and hygiene products. This time, each woman received three thousand hryvnias, including mothers raising children under the age of eighteen, poor and single. The received funds were spent on the most necessary: medicine, new glasses, products, - said Olena Parfenyuk. — We have been cooperating with Nelaya Kovalyuk for more than ten years, since we created the regional accessibility committee. They met at seminars both in Zhytomyr and Korosten. Now we communicate by phone and online. I want to emphasize that Ms. Nelya always comes to the rescue with a kind word, wise advice and helps to solve the acute problems of the members of my organization, - added Olena Parfenyuk and talked about the difficulties faced by women - member organizations.
In particular, Oksana Troyankina has a daughter with a visual disability, and her twenty-year-old brother was injured. Now he moves around in a wheelchair and is waiting to receive his pension. So Oksana is currently taking care of two people with disabilities. Nataliya Zaliska's daughter needs corrective vision treatment, which should take place twice a year. The cost of one course is more than three thousand hryvnias. Nina Samoilenko is single, has no children, and recently buried her husband. Her pension is small, and she spent all the money on food. In order to receive assistance, women submitted the usual package of documents: an application, copies of passports, codes, MSEK certificates and a bank account. The money was received a month later.
"I spent the money on household items and travel," added Vera Korytska from Korosten. — It so happened that I have an eighty-year-old mother who broke her leg in the hip ten years ago. My sisters and I go to her one by one. At work, I wrote an application at my own expense, because my mother lives in another region. It's good that the management is dealing with understanding of the situation, knowing that I am always in touch. Of course, I will not have a salary, and the pension is small. Mom gets around on crutches, but needs help: clean the house after winter, plant a small garden, go to the store, prepare food. Therefore, funds are a product that is always needed. Help came in a very timely manner! says the woman.
In the conditions of war, Ukraine is going through difficult times with an increased level of injuries. Special attention should be paid to the formation of the correct approach to communication with persons who have been injured or become disabled. The school is in the first place in the formation of such knowledge and skills. As part of the implementation of the American grant, the deputy directors of the lyceums of the Zhytomyr Regional Territorial Community held a practical seminar - "Concept of disability, implementation of an inclusive policy in educational institutions of the community." The meeting was attended by the Deputy Mayor of Zhytomyr, Maria Misyurova, and employees of the city's Department of Education. Olha Yermakova, the chief specialist of the Department of Education, told the audience in detail about the positive dynamics of the organization of education for children with special needs in general secondary education institutions of Zhytomyr.
— I remember January 2013, when we did not know what to do with students who need an inclusive approach. We started to move with small steps and shape inclusive education in the city. I would like to note that at that time there were no legal documents. After a year of our "blind" work, 24 children were already studying in 10 institutions, - the specialist shared her experience. — And now, in the 2022-2023 academic year, we have 29 communal and two private institutions in which classes of inclusive education work, they are located in all microdistricts of Zhytomyr within walking distance from the place of residence of a child with special educational needs, — she added.
According to the information of the Department of Education, as of June 1, 2023, 331 students study in 262 inclusive classes, 18 inclusive extended day groups work. 230 teaching assistants, 63 practical psychologists, 33 speech therapists, 32 speech pathologists, and four rehabilitation specialists are involved in working with this category of students. Every week, the number of corrective and developmental classes with students of inclusive classes is 1444 hours. The educational process for students of inclusive classes is organized in accordance with individual study plans and individual development programs, which are developed by the student support team on the basis of the educational program of the institution. The opening of classes and the enrollment of students takes place exclusively based on the conclusions of the comprehensive psychological and pedagogical assessment of the child's development, provided by inclusive resource centers and on the basis of the statements of the students' parents.
Nely Kovalyuk's expert speech was thorough, and she emphasized the need for a deeper understanding of the concept of disability and its practical use in educational institutions. Confirming her words with a photo, she shared the experience of conducting accessibility audits by members of her public organization, showed how to properly solve the issue of accessibility in school premises, talked about the ethics of communication and helping people with disabilities. She emphasized that a person always comes first, and then his physical condition. Therefore, it should be said as follows: a person who moves with the help of a wheelchair uses sticks, crutches, walkers; a person with residual hearing or hearing impairment; a person who is blind or has residual vision; a person with mental and intellectual disabilities.
During the seminar, it was also about creating a life without barriers, so that inaccessibility does not deprive a person of the opportunity to learn. Those present heard stories about those women who realized themselves in life. For example, Viktoria Shevchuk graduated from Zhytomyr Ivan Franko State University with residual vision and conducts tours in museums of darkness in Kyiv and Lviv. Halyna Bezpalyuk, who moves with the help of a wheelchair, graduated from the same educational institution, works in an online store. The girl really wanted to study, so she woke up at six in the morning. Her mother and brother helped her get dressed, and she fell asleep sitting up, because the parties did not start until nine o'clock. Oksana Vakhniuk became an entrepreneur and works with children. Valentyna Pozniak, having residual vision, is engaged in culture and was a deputy of the Zhytomyr City Council.
— The concept of disability is evolving. We need to move away from the perception of disability as a defect or disease, and society must implement a human-centered model. For its competent reproduction, it is necessary to apply the principles of universal design, which was developed by Ron Mace. It is important that the implemented norms will improve the quality of life not only of people with disabilities, but also of less mobile population groups: older people, mothers with strollers, and people who suffered an injury at a certain period of their lives, Nelya Kovalyuk said. Concluding her speech, she emphasized her openness to a constructive dialogue with the deputies of the city's lyceums.
Alla Shovtyuk, the director of the communal institution "Druhy inclusive - resource center", on the basis of which the seminar was held, told in detail about the use of the principles of universal design in education. She also invited the participants of the event to a tour of the institution. The guests inspected the bomb shelter, the office of a psychologist, a special education teacher, a rehabilitation teacher, and visited a sensory room. In the latter, there are ottomans and a dry pool with balls, sand, various screens, "magic rain". Here children not only rest and exercise, but also make wishes. Attention was drawn to the sensory floor with a combination of touch, sound, sensations in the body. It allows you to work with colors, planets, a piano keyboard, make pizza, and more. However, working in such a room is contraindicated for children with epilepsy, vascular problems, and visual impairment.
The grant project to support women leaders with disabilities is implemented by the public organization "Youth. Woman. Family" throughout the region and will last for four months. The organizers plan to hold a master class on candle decoration and a seminar "Accessibility of the public environment for visually impaired women".
Lyudmyla Lobachova/
