“Eduzměna has successfully completed its pilot project in the Kutná Hora region, and five years of systematic work with school leaders, teachers, parents and mayors have resulted in a functioning model of regional education support. We now want to expand this model and bring additional partners into our collaborative network,” says Zdeněk Slejška, Director of the Eduzměna Endowment Fund. “Our main goal is for children to enjoy school and find meaning in learning. That is why we want to share our approach to transforming education with other regions that have expressed interest in it.”
Between 2020 and 2025, Eduzměna worked in the Kutná Hora region, where, after the completion of its pilot project, it helped establish an Education Support Centre. The centre now operates fully independently and provides long-term services, activities, consultations and professional development opportunities for teachers, school leaders, parents and mayors in the region. In September 2025, Eduzměna also co-founded another Education Support Centre serving the Šumperk and Zábřeh regions. Its goal is for at least one similar centre to be operating in every region of the Czech Republic by 2028. To this end, Eduzměna launched a selection process for new regions, which attracted 20 applicants in spring 2026.
“Local Action Groups have long been working on educational development in their regions, and they were among the most frequent applicants in the selection process. One of the criteria was whether applicants were able to secure co-financing from local sources for the activities of the emerging Education Support Centres, ensuring that their work would be sustainable over the long term,” explains Monika Hrochová, who was responsible for managing the selection process for new regions at Eduzměna.
The new Education Support Centres will begin taking shape during the 2026/2027 schoolyear in the Hřebečsko and Voticko regions, where associations of municipalities submitted successful applications.
“I see Voticko’s selection as one of Eduzměna’s regions as confirmation that even a small rural region can aspire to pursue education in a high-quality and systematic way. It is also, in part, a recognition of the long-term work carried out here by our schools, municipalities and teachers. At the same time, we recognise that quality education is a key factor in maintaining the stability and attractiveness of life in our communities. I believe that the Education Support Centre will help us further develop this foundation and transform it into a strong and sustainable system of equitable, high-quality education for children in Voticko,” says Viktor Liška, Chair of the Voticko Microregion and Mayor of Ratměřice.
“We are very pleased to be among the selected regions. Even while preparing our application, we identified a number of shared themes and opportunities for cooperation, whether in sharing experience and good practice, strengthening mutual support, jointly organising educational activities or preparing for the challenges associated with the expected population decline in our area. I believe that together we can seek effective solutions, inspire one another and become an example of good practice,” says David Šimek, Mayor of the City of Svitavy.
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