The Armenian Educational Foundation (AEF), during its recent 75th-anniversary celebration, awarded the prestigious Educational Visionaries Award to Ruben Vardanyan and Veronika Zonabend, social entrepreneurs and authors of several educational initiatives, recognizing them as figures with a vision for the future of education. They received the award for their contributions to international education and for founding the United World Colleges (UWC) Dilijan International School. Veronika Zonabend, who was in attendance, expressed gratitude for this recognition on behalf of both herself and Ruben Vardanyan, who is being held illegally in an Azerbaijani prison.
Aravot.am spoke with Armine Haroyan, executive director of AEF’s Armenia branch, and Serop Beylerian, president of the AEF Board of Directors.
“Our story began long ago, 75 years ago, when a group of young Armenian-Americans in California decided to create an organization to help diaspora communities, preserve Armenian identity, and support young people seeking higher education. In its early years, AEF established schools in the Middle East, including Lebanon, Greece, and Syria. During the 1960s and 1970s, AEF funded Armenian day schools in the United States,” Haroyan told Aravot.am. She added that after the devastating 1988 earthquake, the Foundation’s focus shifted entirely to Armenia, and following Armenia’s independence in 1991, it established an office in Yerevan. “So far, 197 schools have been renovated or rebuilt. In parallel, we have provided scholarships covering full tuition at various universities and have funded ARMAT engineering laboratories.” She noted that, for many years, they have worked in the Armenia-Artsakh-Javakhk region, renovating numerous schools.
Read also
“At present, within our largest active scholarship program, we sponsor tuition for 1,300 students studying in Armenia. In parallel, we also have career development programs for students. I am proud to note that 81% of our students live and work in Armenia. The remainder, who have left, are mainly our Lebanese-Armenian and Syrian-Armenian compatriots. In addition to excelling academically, our students are required to complete 120 hours of volunteer work to maintain their scholarships. Incidentally, we are one of the few organizations in Armenia that promoted the concept of volunteering here, 15 years ago,” Haroyan said.
During the conversation, the interviewees also covered AEF’s educational partnerships in Armenia, noting collaborators such as TUMO, Teach For Armenia, and others. “The latest example: we had a $20,000 donation, which was to be allocated for tuition at the UWC Dilijan international school. Representatives of the AEF Board and sponsors visited the school and saw firsthand the excellent conditions in which it operates. The school is the best in the region, providing competitive education, an excellent teaching staff, and engaged students. Impressions from Dilijan were extremely positive: from the library and academic process to physical education and cultural education. It was delightful to see, for example, how a Japanese student plays the duduk — how representatives of another culture present our own centuries-old heritage,” Haroyan added.
Asked why Ruben Vardanyan and Veronika Zonabend were recognized for their vision of the future of education, she responded: “We are always very detailed when selecting and honoring individuals. This year, too, we deliberated extensively. But when we think of Armenia, we immediately think of Ruben Vardanyan and Veronika Zonabend, who have contributed to Artsakh, Armenia, and the diaspora and have been deeply involved in education. Their contributions are undeniable, and we see the results today. We deeply regret that Ms. Zonabend had to attend the event alone, but during her speech, we felt Mr. Vardanyan’s presence beside this remarkable woman and trust that he will return soon, reunite with his family, and continue their Armenian-benefiting work.”
Serop Beylerian also stated that AEF’s mission is to enable Armenian students to continue and fulfill their educational goals. “The vision of Veronika Zonabend and Ruben Vardanyan — to create a world-class school in one of Armenia’s remote communities, in Dilijan — has put Armenia on the international education map. For this, they fully deserve this award. The main purpose of AEF members’ visit was to see the school in person,” Beylerian said. He described his impressions of the Dilijan school: “I had heard a lot about this school, but seeing it in person and interacting with students from diverse backgrounds and nationalities provided me with a completely new understanding of its mission.”
In response to Aravot.am’s question about his perspective on the fact that one of the leading contributors to education is currently unjustly imprisoned in Baku, Beylerian first emphasized that AEF stays away from politics, before adding: “I can express my personal opinion: keeping a person like Ruben Vardanyan in prison for more than two years unjustly and without reason is itself a crime. His contribution — not only to the field of education, but to the development of society as a whole — is worthy of high praise. We all hope that the relevant authorities will soon recognize their mistake and release him as soon as possible.”
Gohar HAKOBYAN
