Education and Science, Estonia, Latvia

The school director has asked for financial support from the Estonian State.

Urve Aivare, the Director of the Estonian School in Riga with nearly 170 pupils, stated that the school will not be able to admit any pupils into the 10th grade this academic year as the funds provided by the City of Riga and from the Latvian State will not be enough for paying the teachers’ wages.

Hence the school is asking for funds from Estonia or for help to apply for funding from an EU aid programmed so that the school would maintain its sustainability.

Aivare said that her school has been looking for all kinds of cost-cutting measures in the past few months. “We are still in trouble, although we have compiled smaller classes in drawing and singing lessons and have tried managing by combining other measures – it is not enough,” she explained.

The school sent a letter to the Minister for Education and Sience Tõnis Lukas, requesting for the financial assistance. Thus far, the Estonian State has helped the Estonian School in Riga by sending a teacher of the Estonian language. Estonia also supports the school with Estonian textbooks.

“I have not made any detailed calculations, but this year it would help if Estonian State would provide wages for one teacher,” explained Aivare. While an average pay for teachers in Estonia is nearly 10,000 kroons, in Latvia it is nearly two times smaller – 5,600 kroons, said Aivare.

The Head of the Languages Department of the Ministry of Education and Science Jaak Viller said that the Ministry recently decided that it will support the Estonian School in Riga this year with another 34,000 kroons. According to the Ministry of Education and Science, the Estonian State is very much interested in having the Estonian language taught abroad.