SOVIET TIPICAL SCHOOL TRANSFORMATION
The Project was developped within the Program of Soviet Standard School Transformation
This project was developed in collaboration with the Hungarian architectural bureau ARCHICON.
Architects Peker & Partners: Pavlo Peker, Anastasiia Konotopenko, Anton Stepanov.
Architects ARCHICON: Csaba Nagy, Pólus Károly, Dóra Tihanyi, Debóra Leitold, Flóra Bordás, Gergely Bognár.
Project design completed in 2024.
The Soviet School Transformation Program in Ukraine was initiated by the urban bureau Big City Lab with the support of Vice Prime Minister for Innovation, Education, Science, and Technology Development Mykhailo Fedorov, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and the Mariupol Reborn NGO.
On July 19, 2023, a Memorandum of Cooperation was signed between the Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine, the Ministry of Education, the Mariupol community, the Mariupol Reborn NGO, and Big City Lab. As a result, five conceptual designs were created for five pilot schools.
Most typical Soviet schools were built between the 1950s and 1980s. Over decades of operation, they have rarely undergone major renovations. Beyond their technical deterioration, these buildings were designed in a different socio-political context, making them incompatible with modern educational and social values.
Currently, the school does not integrate with its surroundings: the inner courtyards remain unused, the main entrance is narrow and unremarkable, and the corridors serve only as passageways without functional spaces.
We are changing this:
•Entrance area. The space in front of the school will be transformed into an open plaza for meetings, events, and leisure. We will add benches, seating areas, and multifunctional stairs.
•Library. Instead of a small storage-like space, the new library will be a modern learning environment with natural light and wooden furniture. After school hours, it will remain open to the local community.
•Corridors. These will no longer be empty passageways but interactive spaces for communication, study, and relaxation, featuring platforms, benches, and comfortable learning areas.
•Classrooms. We will preserve the authentic wooden floors, update the color schemes, and create a more flexible and adaptable environment for various teaching formats.
•Community space. The school will not only serve as an educational facility but will also become a community hub, open for extracurricular activities, clubs, meetings, and events that bring people together.
We are creating not just a building, but a modern educational space that fosters student development and community engagement. This is more than a renovation—it is a fundamental rethinking of school environments in Ukraine.
