Welcome to the ninth issue of the Macedonia Schools Project Newsletter, which summarizes the grants we have funded in 2025. The Executive Board of the Macedonia Schools Project (MSP) met via Teams on April 13, 2025, to review and approve the grant requestssubmitted by Macedonian schools. This year, regular grants were provided to 11 schools, and pilot projects were awarded to seven schools. All grants totaled $37,352, a new high for MSP. The schools were all primary schools, with students aged 6 to 15 in grades 1 to 9.
A LETTER FROM OUR PRESIDENT, BLAZO MITASEV
Dear donors, volunteers and readers, Thank you for your support of MSP and allowing it to be a key contributor for many schools in Macedonia. We ended 2024 with record funding, thanks to all of you, company-matching donations, and especially to the generosity of an anonymous donor.
This success enabled us to fund 11 schools, add seven new pilot project schools, and support summer teaching volunteers in Bitola and Struga this year. Last month, I personally visited with all of the seven new pilot project schools and a few of the ones already in our program, to distribute funds and help them with purchasing requested items. My efforts stem from a desire to be a good steward
of your donations and to increase our “bang for the buck.”
For all of the schools in the program, and the new pilot schools, MSP is a beacon of hope, a helping hand that improves the learning environment. This year there were two major areas of need. Several schools requested new chairs and desks to replace very old, worn-out ones that have been damaging children’s clothing. With help from the supplier Dafka, we are guiding the schools to invest
in agronomically proper chairs, to promote better posture. The other area is technology: computers, smart boards, tablets, printers and projectors. All of the suppliers pitched in and provided discounts to help with the purchases.
The pilot schools were extremely thankful, children and teachers, for our donations and the difference they make in their daily lives. All are hoping to become regular program partners.
Let’s keep up the good work,
Blazo
INDIVIDUAL SCHOOLS AND GRANTS FUNDED FOR 2025
VANCHO NIKOLESKI in LESKOEC. This school in the Ohrid region has 255 students. The school Director is Sasho Klimoski, and the school MSP liaison is a counselor, Vesna Terzioska. Last year, with an MSP grant, the school purchased seven personal computers and one laptop, to further develop an IT(Information Technology) classroom, a learning space that uses digital tools. The Macedonian
government’s Ministry of Education has ordered that all schools be completely digitalized, but unfortunately adequate funds for this conversion have not been provided. For this reason, MSP grants are having a major beneficial impact on teachers and students. Macedonian teachers report to MSP that IT classrooms have stimulated motivation for innovation and creativity.
This year, the Executive Board approved $2,500 for seven more personal computers and a color printer, for use in the IT classroom. IT classrooms are becoming a necessity, especially if the Ministry of Education comes through with its promised digital textbooks. In addition, municipal and regional competitions are held online in mathematics, natural sciences, and biology, which, of course, require computers for participation. The grant request closed with “sincere gratitude to all supporters of education, donors who are helping Macedonian schools.”
BRAKA MILADINOVICI in STRUGA. This school, one of the largest in Macedonia with 1,100 students, has classes being taught in three languages. The school Director is Albana Zhuta, and the school MSP liaison teacher is Jasmina Kukuneshoska. In previous years, MSP grants have provided laptops, smart boards, and printers. This year’s grant request was innovative.
As stated in the request: “This year our focus as a school is beyond having only well-equipped and modern classrooms. . . . So this time we had a discussion on how we can make something deeper, something better, and something sustainable for our school, something that the other schools don’t have. And we came up with an excellent idea! Problems with internet connections include bad
networks, a lot of cables around the classrooms, plug in devices, and connections that cost a lot but last for a short period of time. . . . Our aim this year is to implement a new, modern, and sustainable optic internet network for all departments in our school. A consulting internet technician recommended ‘Access Points’ in several parts of the school. This would also eliminate interruptions by allowing separation of the connections into three spots, for teachers, students, and staff. Our goal this year is demanding but possible. We
aim to continue being a school with trendy novelties, improved conditions, motivated teachers and students who show great results.”
Impressed by this novel request, which may be ground-breaking, the Executive Board approved $2,490 to fund nine “Access Points.”
BRATSTVO EDINSTVO in OHRID. This school has 870 students (Macedonian, Albanian, and Turkish). The school Director is Cemal Mehmed, and the school liaison is Emilija Paunkoska. In 2024, the MSP grant provided two large TVs, a desktop computer for the library, equipment for PE classes, and 20 logo shirts for tournaments in soccer, basketball, chess, ping pong, and volleyball. In addition, in response to a unique request, MSP supported the school’s children choir for their participation in a children’s choir competition, held in Tirana, Albania.
This year, our Executive Board approved $2,472 for white boards and refurbished computers. In multi-user computer rooms, a powerful computer can support multiple users via terminals.
ZHIVHO CHINGO in VELGOSHTI, OHRID REGION. The Director of this school of 226 students is Ljubica Angeloska Krkachoska, and the liaison teacher is Marija Miceska. Previously, MSP funds have increased the digital capability of this school.
This year, our Executive Board approved $2,392 for additional computers, white
boards, books for the school library, educational aids, and physical education
equipment.
VANCO PRKE in STIP. This is a large school of 1,219 students. The school Director is Kokan Radev, and the liaison teacher is Jasminka Durdubakova. Last year, MSP funds helped to modernize the English classroom with one 65-inch interactive TV and two 55-inch smart TVs. The teacher expressed the school’s gratitude, saying, “Thanks to your donations, modern teaching takes place in our school, supported by the use of modern technology.”
This year, the school requested support for the installation of ductless heaters and air conditioners. This can be accomplished without increasing the consumption of electricity because the school is installing solar panels on the roof. The staff asked for the help of MSP in maintaining a stable environment that would “contribute to many positive aspects in the teaching process.”
A grant for $2,497 was approved for the purchase of seven ductless units.
DOBRE JOVANOSKI in PRILEP. This school of 1,250 students is directed by Pande Nikoloska, and the liaison teacher is Ilija Risteski. In 2024, MSP pilot project grant funds supported the purchase of laptops, a smart board, and printers.
The purpose of this year’s grant was to create a “media library.” There is a complete absence of books in grades 4, 5, and 6. The idea is to develop a work space, a “media room” with digital access. The intention is also to use this space for teacher-guided workshops for students and for meetings with parents and counselors, targeting the problem of early dropouts.
The Executive Board approved $2,500 for the instillation of a bleacher-like structure in the media room and for some desks and chairs.
KOLE KANINSKI in BITOLA. There are 830 students in this school. The school Director is Dijana Hristovska, and the liaison teacher is Mare Stojmenovska Micevska. Last year, a pilot project grant ($1,000) improved the conditions in a day care classroom for children of working parents by providing for new desks and chairs.
“We have a lot of old desks and chairs which we must repair from time to time. Besides this we have two classrooms which are the most [frequently used], and the situation there is alarming. Usually, the students are destroying their clothes from the old chairs, which are not reparable anymore. The desks are also very old with names and drawings engraved on them. And a big part of them are with holes, from different reasons. Our idea is, the most visited and used classroom where the English classes are held, to be equipped with new interior, which would be new tables, desks, and chairs. That classroom is the English classroom where all the students have English classes from very young age – the first grade till ninth grade.”
The MSP Executive Board approved a grant of $2,521 for new table tops and chairs.
JOSIP BROZ TITO in STRUGA. This school, with 718 students, operates with a central center in Struga, and three village schools in Vranista, Radozda, and Mislesevo. The school Director is Dejana Chakareska, and the liaison teacher is Margarita Ruvinova Nicheska. Over many past years, MSP funds have helped with the digitization process in all four sites. Margarita wrote, “The new moment in the financial work of the Struga schools is that the community is covering all our expenses according to electricity, water, hygienic supplies, but no financial support for educational supplies.”
Digitalization, with the help of MSP, is now essentially complete in these schools. Now attention has turned to the old, mostly destroyed, and unusable chalkboards in the classrooms.
The MSP Executive Board approved a grant of $2,418 for one new smart TV for the IT classroom in Struga, nine chalkboards in Struga and five chalkboards in Vranista.
KOCHO RACIN in PRILEP. There are 709 students in this school; the school Director is Julijana Trenkoska, and Elizabeta Veleska is our school liaison. The school, named after a Macedonian Poet and revolutionary, is the oldest educational institution in Prilep. The building dates to 1926 and is an official site of the Museum of Macedonia. It has been a primary school since 1954.
Last year, a grant from MSP provided funds to equip a “sensory room.” MSP has previously supported the development of sensory rooms in Skopje and Bitola. A sensory room is used daily by students with special needs. These students suffer sensory overload or underload, producing difficulties with communication, social interactions, and regulation of emotions and behaviors. The sensory room is meant to be a safe, calming, and therapeutic space.
The request concluded by saying, “We do have financial hardships in providing teaching props and equipment regularly, but thanks to your donations, we manage to supplement them and contribute to better teaching and better experience for the children in our school.”
This year, a grant for $2,472 was approved for a large smart board and equipment for physical education classes.
GEORGI SUGAREV in BITOLA. This school has 630 students. It is directed by Biljana Temelkova, and the school liaison is Liljana Vasilevska, a math teacher. The school is close to Roma settlements, and 90% of the students are Roma. Last year, the MSP grant provided a large interactive board for the school’s sensory room, and three smart TVs. Liljana wrote, “Our goal is to meet innovative
technologies and adapt their usage in our everyday teaching. Our future goals are mainly focused on inclusion since by law we are obliged to accept students with special needs in regular classes as well as to prepare special lesson plans according to their needs. We are glad to mention that our school staff is very responsible, motivated to work and we have a good atmosphere in our school.”
The grant request asks for funding to provide new desks for two classrooms, biology and mathematics. Currently, classroom desks are heavily worn, unstable, and unsafe. School representatives visited a school that had new plywood desks. “Within just one year, the desks had deteriorated significantly, with many damaged beyond repair.” The request asks for higher quality, more durable material. “We sincerely appreciate the important work your organization does to uplift education, and we are confident that with your assistance, we can significantly improve the classroom experience for our students, ensuring a brighter future for all.”
The MSP Executive Board approved a grant of $2,500 for 22 new desks and a special grant for 44 chairs.
ALEKSANDAR MAKEDONSKI in SKOPJE. This school has 692 students. Its Director is Maja Bukleska, and the school liaison teacher is Aleksandar Temelkovski, with assistance by English teachers, Sanja Dimitrieva and Tanja Ivanovska. The school’s first grant, in 2023, provided musical instruments, which had a wonderful impact on the students. Last year’s grant funded a sensory room
that is used daily. “By regular monitoring and evaluation of the progress, we can ensure that last year’s project has so far achieved its goals, and we are expecting even greater results as time goes on.”
This year, the request asked to create an outdoor classroom, something MSP previously funded in 2023 for the Vancho Nikoleski School in Leskoec, Ohrid area. The grant application made a compelling argument for an outdoor classroom, with the following points:
“ENCOURAGING EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING: activities that interact with nature.
PROMOTING ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY: exploring different ecosystems, maintaining a garden, and learning conservation practices. The teachers call an outdoor classroom a ‘green classroom’.
EXPANDING LEARNING BEYOND FOUR WALLS: improving the mood of students and increasing social skills by allowing increased physical activity and more flexibility by engagement with nature without being bound to an indoor classroom. “Whether a group discussion, project-based learning, or quiet reading time, outdoor spaces will support us teachers in a variety of teaching styles and will meet the diverse needs of students at the same time.”
The MSP Executive Board approved a grant of $2,500 for the building and installation of a gazebo-type wooden structure and a wooden desk, chairs, and a fence.
PILOT PROJECT GRANTS
Pilot Project grants are limited to $1,000 and are intended to introduce schools and MSP to each other. Our primary goal is to identify potential new partner schools for eligibility in the annual MSP Request for Proposals process. In 2025, the MSP Executive Board reviewed pilot project grant requests from seven schools.
BRAKJA MILADINOVCI in DOBRUSHEVO. This is a village school in the Bitola region, with 176 students. The Director is Cvetanka Petrevska, and Blagica Brdarovska, an English teacher, is the school liaison. This is a small school, but it has one central location and four satellite schools. The computers in the central school “have not changed for over a decade. There are no computers in the satellite schools.” The MSP ExecutiveBoard approved a $1,000 grant for laptop computers. Afterwards, Blagica wrote: “Our school "Brakja Miladinovci", Dobrushevo, Mogila is incredibly thankful to the Macedonia Schools Project and the generous people of the United States for supporting our small rural school! Your donation gives our students and teachers hope and brings us closer to a more connected, modern classroom. In a municipality with limited resources, your help means everything. With better access to technology, our students can finally connect more easily with their peers across Europe and fully participate in Erasmus+ and eTwinning projects.”
Blagica Brdarovska, Blazo, Cvetanka Petrevska
DIMITAR VLAHOV in STIP. This school maintains an enrollment of 900-950 students. The Director is Nevenka Velichkova, and the school liaison is Vesna Trajkovska. All students use a computer lab, which has “obsolete” computers, and many are nonfunctional. “The last computer purchase for this lab was made around 2007.” The request for three multi-user computers for $992 was approved.
DIMKATA ANGELOV GABEROT in VATASHA. The Director of this village school in the Kavadarci region, with 265 students, is Daniela Mukaetova, and the school liaison is Dobrinka Laskova. “Our school has rather old, dilapidated school inventory, which really needs to be renewed, in order to ensure a more pleasant stay for students at the school, because the happiness and well-being of the
students always comes first.” MSP approved the request of $976 for 32 new plastic chairs.
KOCHO RACIN in DOLNO LAKOCHEREJ. This school of 365 students is in the Ohrid region. Director of the school is Slavica Koteska and the school liaison is Aleksandra Roskoska. The school has had upgrades with desktop computers. One classroom in the satellite school has been made into an “English Resource Classroom.” It has an interactive white board provided by a Peace Corps grant. The request for 12 “10-inch tablets,” to be shared by students and teachers, was approved for $977.
EDINSTVO SCHOOL in OKTISI, near STRUGA. The Director of this school of 274 students is Mustafa Kaliqi. The school liaison is Angelina Stojkoska. The small village school lacks digital equipment. MSP approved the request for $1,000 to purchase two smart TVs and a projector.
TODE HADZI TEFOV in KAVADARCI. This school has a location with 675 students in the town of Kavadarci, and in addition, there are 22 students in a rural area. The Director is Marija Trajkova, and Dushanka Trajkovska is the liaison teacher. The request was for four school lockers with multiple compartments. An amount of $998 was approved.
SVETI KLIMENT OHRIDSKI in DRASLAJCA near STRUGA. The school Director is Miroslav Razmoski and the liaison is Sanja Kotevska Klechkaroska for this school of 195 students, with a central location in the village of Draslajca and satellite schools where there are classes for grades 1-5 in the villages of Lozhani, Bidzevo, and Moroishta. The schools currently have one smart board, and computers that are 15 years old. The request for five smart TVs for $1,017 was approved.
DONATIONS & MEMBERSHIPS
Reading about these Macedonian schools, MSP hopes that you can appreciate how small grants can make large impacts. Our dream is to increase our budget and help more students and teachers in Macedonia.
Please become a member of the Macedonia Schools Project by making a donation to help the youth of Macedonia. Your tax- deductible contribution will enhance the growth and impact of our program. Check out our website, send us an email, or join us on social media for more information.
Website: https://msp.charity/index.php/donations
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
