– As the war in Ukraine continues, a refugee now living in San Antonio made it her mission to keep her culture alive in her new home.Since fleeing her home country Ukraine last May, Mariia Shvetsova has dreamed of opening a Ukrainian school.Now that dream has become a reality with a partnership with Our Lady of the Lake University.“It’s very important that children can do a study about Ukrainian language, about Ukrainian culture. It’s our culture,” Shvetsova said.
“It shows that San Antonio stands with Ukraine. We’re going to welcome everybody with open arms. We are a compassionate city and this is exactly what we’re doing today,” Garcia said. While the Ukrainian school is starting out small, OLLU President Abel Chavez is hoping that it’ll grow and expand to other students as well.
“Go beyond arts and culture. Perhaps it’s multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, so much the way that we are approaching higher education here on our campus,” Chavez said. The opening of the school comes as Ukraine’s commander-in-chief released a new video foreshadowing a counter-offensive could be coming.Copyright 2023 by KSAT - All rights reserved.Leigh Waldman is a news reporter at KSAT 12. She joined the station in 2021. Leigh comes to San Antonio from the Midwest after spending time at a station in Omaha, NE. After two winters there, she knew it was time to come home to Texas.