USAID/Ukraine’s “New Pages of Ukrainian Heroism” campaign tells the stories of women who are making history, working behind the frontlines to support Ukraine’s defense and reconstruction. Follow the campaign @USAIDUkraine on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Iryna Belova lives in Bucha and has worked at Irpin Lyceum No. 2 for thirty years, including more than twenty years as school principal.
"No matter how trite it may sound, I love my job!" she says.
In addition to her day job, Iryna promotes education reforms with support from USAID’s civil society support activity.
Like millions of Ukrainians, Iryna’s life and work were upended by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. She and her family spent nearly three weeks in occupied Bucha, hiding in the basement of their house without water, electricity, or gas.
Despite this, they stood strong:
“Twenty days of occupation taught us that you should do what you know how to do: bandage the wounded, prepare food, support those who lost hope due to the horror of the surrounding events,” says Iryna.
"But the most important thing was that on March 21 our school resumed work online."
Kyiv region was liberated by the Armed Forces of Ukraine in early April. Iryna and her family emerged from the occupation, and she joined her colleagues in returning to school in person. She describes the school as “wounded” - the cafeteria was destroyed, classrooms and walls were damaged, and all the windows were broken.
“But, our school stood!” Iryna says with pride.
“A long process of restoration began, and thanks to the hard work of many people, on January 23, 2023, the lyceum opened its doors to everyone.”
“When all of us were forced to leave our own homes, when our souls were wounded by terror and war, when some teachers already knew that there was no home, no roof over their heads - it was very difficult to be a [source of] support and hope for our children, parents and colleagues,” Iryna explains.
“The teachers not only taught the children, every day they made it clear that there will be victory over the enemy. That we will return home, to our school, to a peaceful life.”
USAID has helped Ukraine’s education system keep running during the war, including by helping pay the salaries of teachers during wartime. To date, USAID has provided $15.5 billion in direct budget support to the Government of Ukraine, helping pay the salaries of 618,000 educators as well as 517,000 health workers and 57,000 first responders, among other critical public services.
Iryna believes that teachers across Ukraine have performed real acts of heroism:
“History textbooks rarely write about the heroism of an individual person. I believe that what I did was also done by hundreds of teachers in my city and country, and that is why future history textbooks should devote a separate page to the Ukrainian teacher.”
Today, the teachers and administrators of Irpin Lyceum No. 2 do whatever they can for their students, for the community in Irpin, and for Ukraine. They support the sick and elderly, raise money for equipment for Ukraine’s defenders, send supplies to the front, and care for homeless animals. In general, they do everything possible to bring victory closer and lay the groundwork for Ukraine’s continued development after the war.
Iryna views her country’s the future the following way:
"I want to see a free country in which the rights of every person are respected, in which it is comfortable to live, in which the quality of life is high, where everyone takes care of their country, and the country takes care of them. In general, I want to see a happy country, home to happy people."
