Five village communities in the Shirak region- Dzorashen, Zorakert, Zarishat, Aghvorik, and Aniavan- did not have any first grade students attending school this year. The reason is not only due to the sad demographic situation in faraway Ashotsk, Amasia, and Ani, but also due to internal emigration. It seems that many young families who live somewhat well prefer to send their children to school in Gyumri. The principals of the village schools have also confirmed this.
Principal of the Zorakert village school Aghavni Hovhannisyan told Aravot Daily, “There are no problems with the social conditions in our village. Every family has between 15 and 20 cows and they constantly have some sort of income. So, they have the ability to rent a home in Gyumri and send their children to school there. There are many opportunities in Gyumri. They can send their children to participate in sports and dance; they want their children to be educated. No matter how much I tried to convince parents to bring their children to school here, they said they wanted to go to Gyumri. It’s painful to see so few students, but this is the will and mindset of their parents. But the village is emptying out and getting old because there are no students.”
Nune Arevshatyan
