OPEN SOCIETY FUND-LITHUANIA

OVERVIEW

Overall Strategy

Summary Planning Form

Staff List 1998-2001

EDUCATION

Center for School Development

Foundation for Educational Change

HESP

Education Policy Center

Egmont Project

Step-by-Step

YOUTH

Debate

Critical Thinking

Children's Support Center

Career Center

EAST-EAST

East-East

INFORMATION

Library

Publishing

Internet

PUBLIC HEALTH

Public Health

Medical Internet

ARTS AND CULTURE

SCCA

Culture Programs

LAW

Law Program

WOMEN

Women's Program

CIVIL SOCIETY

Civil Initiative

OSFL STRATEGY AND ACTION PLAN FOR THE YEARS 2000 - 2001

 

The main mission of the Fund is the implementation of the ideal of an open society. This ideal can never be completely achieved, as when some of its parts become implemented, new aspects emerge. Moreover, it is peculiar to an open society to continually assess its own values.

Nowadays the most important parameters of an open society are the following:





•Self-organization and self-government of the citizens;



•Effective protection of individual rights;



•Domination of market economy;



•Strong democratic government;



•Openness to the modern world culture and knowledge.







The OSF strategy in 1999 was predetermined by three major factors:





•Attitudes and requirements of Mr. George Soros and the OSI;



•Lithuania’s needs and the OSF priorities;



•Situation around the OSF and its programs.








1.EXTERNAL PREREQUISITES OF ACTIVITIES







The external prerequisites of the Fund’s activities are determined by the status of the Lithuanian society, assessed according to the parameters of an open society. The societal life is undergoing the process of intense segmentation, and change in separate segments is happening in a different speed.





•Self-organization of citizens is strengthening slowly but surely, though not without difficulties. At the same time negative trends are revealed: the formation of the middle class is too slow; social atomization still remains significant; polarization of society and disintegration of the rural population is continuing to grow; there are signs of regional marginalisation; a culture of poverty is emerging. The development of regional self-governing is slow. The widely spread mistrust of governmental institutions is combined with the inability of individuals to organize themselves and to cooperate. The third sector is developing slowly both in terms of quantity and quality.



•Individual rights are more or less protected by the law, but an effective mechanism for the implementation of laws is still missing. Shortcomings in establishing the principle of civic identity, implementing the rights of the minorities and developing the system of social rights are apparent. Development of legal awareness of the citizens is rather slow. A high crime rate is accompanied by the feeling of insecurity. The situation with the criminal law is unsatisfactory. Demographic situation is negative, and the suicide rate in Lithuania is the highest in Europe.



•Private business is becoming more professional; its activities are acquiring more civilized forms. However, the economic development faces significant difficulties. The recent economical instability in the region (Russian crisis) also makes a negative influence. The legal environment is not favorable for the development of small and medium-sized businesses. The existing law and its implementation does not encourage philanthropic activities.



•During the last decade major institutions and structures peculiar to a democratic state were formed in Lithuania. Although the system of democratic power is undergoing stabilization, two major negative possibilities of its development remain: authoritarianism and weakness of authorities. The separating line between the civic society and the government is very clear. The growths of an oligarchy and bureaucracy as well as signs of corruption are evident. The transparence of the activities of the governmental structures on all levels is very scarce.



•Acceptance of the modern world culture and knowledge may be based on the existing cultural and intellectual potential of society, but, undoubtedly, this process needs to be supported. Cultural identity is undergoing the process of modernization and at the same time it is becoming a problematic issue, as the ethnocentric tendencies are starting to emerge. The creation of the "manor" culture is evident in political life. The principle of pluralism of information in mass media is more or less implemented, but there is still a great shortage of modern high quality cultural and other kinds of information from Lithuania and the world. There is also a lack trustworthy professional, analytical and political journalism.







Accumulated experience and possibilities of the OSF

The OSF is currently the largest functioning fund in Lithuania, which combines the functions of grant giving (40%) and operating (60%). The budgets of other local and international funds and organizations, functioning in Lithuania, are relatively small:





•United Nations Development Program (UNDP) – 1 mln. USD (1994-98)



•United States Agency for International Development (USAID) – 0.5 mln. (1995-96)



•Civil Society Development Program (EU PHARE) – 525 000 EURO (1996-98)



•Programs of Partnership and Democracy (PHARE LIEN) – 320 000 EURO (1998)



•Prof. Vytautas Landsbergis Fund – 46 398 USD (1998)







During the eight years of operation the Fund has become a unique institution with a qualified staff, capable of purposeful strategic policy making in the variety of areas.

In 1998 the Fund administered and implemented over 40 different programs and projects.

A stable and a relatively large budget enable effective activities. While implementing its mission, the Fund makes a marked impact on Lithuanian culture and society. The Fund has been successful in forming a businesslike relationship with governmental authorities at various levels and maintaining partnership with other state institutions.

Developed international relations strengthen the international prestige of the Fund. The Fund gained experience in separating its units and transforming them into independent institutions. (see section "Partners").

While evaluating the activities of the Fund in the annual strategic meeting in 1997, the OSF Board observed signs of inertia. This gave the stimulus for strategy renewal. It was decided to strive for:





•Systemic changes;



•Enlargement of grants;



•More focused programs;



•Long-term projects and creation of independent institutions (the following institutions were founded: Soros International House (1993), Lithuanian Junior Achievement (1994), Lithuanian Center of Journalism (1996), Invisible College (1998));



•New partners;



•Decentralization of activities.







In 1998 the decisions made by the General Assembly induced the OSF Board to review the Fund strategy once again. As a result new strategic directions were determined. In order to secure the organic and dynamic change of its activities, the Fund is now operating in two main directions:





•The maximum use of obtained resources and planning the careful termination, continuation or independent existence of the programs;



•The creation of new projects in accordance with new challenges and priorities.







PRIORITY AREAS AND GOALS





•Supporting diverse forms of self-organization and self-government of the citizens, the Fund strengthens the sector of non-governmental organizations (further referred to as NGOs) and seeks to transform it into a real power in society. The Fund encourages constructive dialog between NGOs and central, as well as local, governmental authorities.



•In its attempts to protect individual rights effectively, the Fund supports the formation of the system of legal and educational information. It encourages the renewal of the criminal law, cares about the "legality in the streets" and minority rights.



•The Fund supports initiatives of spreading local and international experience of business development, as well as projects, implementation of which helps to solve social problems. In its attempts to reduce the negative social consequences of rapid economic change, the Fund supports implementation of effective models of social security and assists programs of preventive health care (including suicide prevention).



•Supporting the growth of a democratic and legally educated state, the Fund assists the updating of judicial system, the development of local self-government, ensuring of the transparency of governmental activities, and supporting activities against corruption. The Fund seeks to secure the accessibility of information, which is necessary for the functioning of the civic society.



•Aiming for Lithuania to be open to the modern world culture and knowledge, the Fund supports the creation of an education and information society. Direct educational activities are reduced, educational programs are separated and supported during the transitory period. The Fond aims to establish ideas of an open society in teaching programs. The Fund encourages the renewal of social sciences and humanities, the reform of higher education, especially policy making in this field. The Fund aims to actualize the civic and democratic traditions in Lithuania, to create a modern cultural identity.







 

STRUCTURE OF THE OSF

In 1997 the OSF Board divided all the programs of the Fund into 5 blocks (Educational programs, Cultural programs, Social-Economic programs, Civic programs, Science programs as well as Publishing and Internet programs, which provide services for all the other programs) (see the scheme OSFL 1999).

From the year 2000, in order to limit the activities of the Fund and to cut the expenses, the OSF decided to leave three major blocks:





•block of civic-social programs;



•block of educational-cultural programs;



•block of information programs.







(see the schemes OSFL – 1999 ,OSFL 2000 and OSFL 2001)

ACTION PLAN (presented in accordance with the OSF 1999 structure)

In accordance with the new strategy the following changes were implemented in 1999:





•Some of the programs were closed down (Education for Lithuania’s Future, Youth, I*EARN, Health Education, Foreign Travel, Studies and Conferences);



•The "exit" strategy was worked out (Law library, Educational Advising Center and others);



•NGOs, which should gradually develop into self-maintaining organizations, were established (Center for School Improvement, Foundation for Educational Changes, Center for Children Support, etc.) (see the scheme).







BLOCK OF EDUCATIONAL-CULTURAL PROGRAMS

Until 1999 we had two separate educational programs blocks – block for pre-school, primary and secondary education, and HESP. From 1999 all educational programs have been united to one block of Educational programs. From 2000 all educational and cultural programs will be unit to a block of Educational-Cultural programs.

Educational Programs

The largest OSF project "Education for Lithuania’s Future" united the following programs: Curriculum Development, Professional Staff Development, Educational Innovation, Center for Educational Studies, Implementation of New technologies, Modernization of School Libraries and Book distribution. This project significantly contributed to the implementation of the national education reform. Unique qualifications of the staff and close cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science assured the success of the project and proved that cooperation between the state and the independent institutions can be very effective.

The project "Education for Lithuania’s Future" terminated in 1998. In order to continue the activities of the project and in search of the new forms of activities the following decisions were implemented:





•Center for School Improvement was established (on the basis of the Teacher Training program). The Center is the only organization in Lithuania, which works with a school as a whole, provides consultations, helps to make developmental and evaluation plans, spreads new educational ideas.



•Foundation for Educational Change was established by the Ministry of Science and Education and the Open Society Fund-Lithuania, and registered on May 4, 1999. The Foundation will operate as a grant giving body, will continue to promote the educational changes and strengthen the cooperation between all institutions, which are involved in modernization of education process. The Foundation is a new model of cooperation between government and non government organization in Lithuania.



•Concept of the Center of Educational Policy and Modern Didactics is being worked out together with Vilnius Pedagogical University (on the basis of the Center for Educational Studies, Developing Critical Thinking by Reading and Writing program, the New Technologies program and other OSF programs).







Educational Innovation program and Modernization of School Libraries and Book Distribution program terminated its activities in 1998. The school libraries will be supported through Library support program according OSF and OSI NLP priorities.

Curriculum Development program is ending its commitments in 1999 and will terminate its activities in 2000.

Visual Thinking Strategies program terminates in the middle of 1999.

"Step by Step" program is to be integrated into the Center for School Improvement. It also intends to cooperate with the Center of Educational Policy and Modern Didactics.

Egmont project "Democratization of the System of Pre-School Education" is successfully developing partnership with the Danish Egmont Fund since 1993. The poroject has commitments to its partners until 2002. The possibility of independent functioning of the Egmont project is under consideration.

Debate program in 1999 is registered as an independent institution. The idea of this program is considered as important. Therefore the OSF Board would like to continue supporting of program activities from OSF budget in 2000-2001, and afterwards, if possibilities allow.

I*EARN program terminated. At the end of 1998 several innovative teachers established the Lithuanian I*EARN Association. The OSF intends to support its activities via the Fund of Educational Change.

Health Education program terminated in 1998.

On the basis of Career Development program and Kaunas Information Center the Open Society Career Center is to be established together with Vytautas Magnus University. The concept of the Center is currently worked out.

Student Exchange program will be implemented within the possibilities offered by the OSI. The coordinator of the Cultural Infrastructures program will administrate it.

Lithuanian Junior Achievement (LJA) was established as the independent institution in 1995, and became self-sustainable. In 1998 OSF awarded LJA a long-term grant to extend their activities in the province. The last part of the grant (25 000 USD) will be provided in the year 2000.

Higher Education Support program. In the course of the last three years program activities were oriented towards the modernization of humanities and social science studies, creation of alternative forms of studies, encouragement of policy making in this field in order to evoke systemic changes.

The budget of the Higher Education program comprises only 15% - 20% of funds that were allocated to secondary education. However, there were significant achievements, such as establishment of Invisible College, Center for the study of Judaica and Cultural Communities, development of new Curricula in humanities and social sciences, especially, sociology. Unfortunately, the reform of science and studies in Lithuania at the present moment is stagnating, and from the year 1999 the government substantially decreased the funding for institutions of higher education. Lithuania as well as other countries of Central and Eastern Europe has no consequent scientific policy. Due to the existing situation one of the priority aims of the OSF is to support the projects which will provoke systemic changes in the scientific domain.

Educational Advising Center has a high international rating, and its activities have no analogues in Lithuania. Diminishing financial resources force the OSF to make decisions about the future of this program. Currently negotiations about handing it over to Vilnius University are taking place. The decision was prompted by the "geographic" location of the Center (the Center operates in the premises of Vilnius University) and the statistical data, which shows that the major part of the visitors (about 80%) are Vilnius University students. The testing center (which officially administrates the TOEFL, SAT, GRE, GMAT tests), founded by the OSF in cooperation with the Sylvan Prometric Center, is also to be handed over to Vilnius University.

The programs of studies abroad (E. Muskie Fellowship program, Oxford and Cambridge universities scholarship program, CEU study program, Undergraduate Exchange program, Soros Supplementary Grants programs) will be taken over by the OSF Higher Education Support program.

Science Journal Donation program. In the year 2000 the OSF intends to allocate a small sum for the activities of this program. Funding in 2001 will depend on the general strategy of the OSI network.

Cultural Programs

The OSF considers culture as an important instrument of creating an open society, which liberates thinking, develops critical outlook, encourages social changes through different forms of educational activities and creates new models of cultural functioning. The OSF Board is going to finance cultural programs from its discretionary fund.

Cultural Infrastructures program is oriented towards the initiation of modern cultural structures and renovation of existing cultural structures. It supports projects, which encourage systemic changes and form the cultural policy. The program is operating in the following areas: support of the educational activities of museums, surveys of cultural situation in the regions, support for the establishment of modern cultural centers, funding of cultural periodicals by means of open competitions. These areas receive a very limited funding from the state. A joint project "Culture for Social Changes" was recently initiated together with Polish, Estonian and Latvian Soros funds. The OSF is intending to finance these activities in 2000-2001.

Soros Center for Contemporary Arts will became an independent institution in 1999. It will cooperate with its partners (the Ministry of Culture, the Lithuanian Arts Museum, Vilnius Arts Academy, Vilnius municipality, the Center of Contemporary Arts, the newly established National Arts Gallery, foreign arts organizations) and will rise funds for its activities on the basis of joint projects.

The OSF intends to support the project in 2000 (40 000 USD) and in 2001 (20 000 USD).

In future the collected valuable data bank on Lithuanian arts could be handed over to Vilnius Arts Academy or a new museum of contemporary arts.

Performing Arts Program strives to provide new impetus on the development of the modern theatre, dance, filmmaking and music. It encourages professional artists to raise their qualifications, to seek for new forms and models of activities, to establish and strengthen non-governmental arts organizations. The OSF Board considers this program as a long-term one; however, its budget will constantly diminish.

OSF House was founded in 1995. During the four years of its activities it became a unique center of attraction for civic and cultural activities. The OSF Board appreciates the activities of the Center, which have no analogues in Lithuania, and intends to finance the OSF House from its discretionary fund. In the course of the years 2000-2001 the Board plans to solve the question of its possible transformation into an independent institution together with other interested partners (e.g. the Ministry of Culture, national cultural associations). The question of the OSF House will also be on the agenda when the Fund will move into new premises. In the year 2000 the activities of the OSF House will be partially transformed in order to reduce the number of the staff.

BLOCK OF CIVIC AND SOCIAL PROGRAMS

The activities of the block are oriented towards the measures of ensuring the main economic and social rights of the individuals, strengthening of citizens’ self-organization and self-governing, strengthening of the credit unions, support for the creation of the system of legal information and education, securing the transparency of the governmental actions and free access to information.

The program block supports social initiatives, which help to solve social problems of society or its separate groups and ensure the prevention of negative social phenomena.

The block of social economic programs encourages programs and projects which attempt to implement effective models of social and health care, especially the ones which are not supported by central or local governmental institutions in Lithuania or are supported minimally. The programs of this block successfully cooperate with the Ministry of Social Care and Work and with the Ministry of Health.

The program block supports economic education, socially important and valuable projects, which enrich economic, business initiative and international business development experience. Priority is given to the projects, which help to solve social problems.

Civic Initiatives Program is financed from the discretionary fund. It is oriented towards large projects, which encourage changes in society and towards the creation and replication of new models of civic activities. By encouraging civic tolerance and responsibility, as well as cooperation between different sectors of society, the Civic Initiatives program is vitally important part of the Funds’ general strategy.

After the establishment of the BAPP the Civic Initiatives program is reoriented towards the following directions:





•Encouragement of citizens’ self-organization and self-governing;



•Support for the public administration reform;



•Support of the national minorities.







Mass Media Program is ending in 1999.

Law Program is oriented towards providing legal education to citizens, creation of a system of legal aid, and assistance with improvement and interpretation of laws. Special attention should be given to the problems of criminology and criminal law. One of the tasks of the program is to implement the COLPI mega-projects. Anti-corruption activities are initiated and supported.

Activities of creation of the legal basis for the progressive system of social and health care, implementation of innovative measures in these areas, spreading information about human rights in the spheres of social and health care, providing continuous legal education of specialists in this field are initiated and supported.

After the implementation of the idea of law clinics, the program should control the effectiveness of its activities.

Professional training of lawyers is supported. Besides judges, prosecutors, interrogators, staff of the special institutions, policemen are also involved in the training.

Library of Law was founded in 1995. During the four years of its existence the library collected a unique 3 500 books collection of the newest literature on law, subscribed for 60 law journals. More than 3 000 visitors of the library can use the legal Lithuanian and international databases. In the year 1999 the library will be handed over to one of the three Vilnius libraries (negotiations are under way) and transformed into the George Soros legal literature reading hall.

East-East program is directly linked with the strategy of the OSI network program. Open budget makes it possible to participate in this program in the most intense way and involve other OSF programs.

Women’s program. The OSF joined the Women’s program network in 1998. Some of the projects were also funded from the national budget. In the years 2000-2001 we intend to continue our participation in the projects offered by the network and the funding of the national projects.

Roma program is integrated into all the programs of the OSF. Separate sum is allocated for the administration of the program. For several years the project Successes for Roma has been successfully implemented. It is aimed at eliminating illiteracy of children and integrating them into educational system. Interactive cooperation with Roma community in Lithuania is taking place. Support is provided for them while creating projects in educational, cultural, citizens’ initiatives and health care programs. We also try to influence the outlooks of the majority towards the Roma people and their culture via the citizens’ initiatives program.

Health Care programs. The aim of the Health Care programs is to integrate into the development of the open society and to implement the most important social rights of people in the area of health care, to provide equal opportunities of receiving health services by all people, especially by the most vulnerable groups.

The program is in close cooperation with the OSI Health Care programs. In 1997-1999 the Health Care programs were funded from the block grant. After coordinating the program strategy with the OSI, the programs will receive funding, which will be fading during the years 2000-2001.

Social Support Program will be terminated by the end of 1999. The most important social projects will be continued via the Citizens’ Initiatives, BAPP, Cultural and Health Care programs.

Children Support Center. Big Brother Big Sister, Child Abuse and Street Children (the project implemented together with King Badouin Foundation) programs in 1999 will be transferred to a new institution established by the OSF. The Fund intends to support the center with gradually diminishing grants during the years of 2000-2001.

Economic programs. Economic program as a whole was not very successful with the exception of several projects, e.g. the Credit Union project. In 1998 the Fund started to participate in the OSI program of small loans. The first stage with the disposition of small sum (50 000 USD) was successful, so we would like to continue our activities in this field. The administration of the program will be conducted via the program of Citizens’ Initiatives.

INFORMATION BLOCK PROGRAMS

Publishing (translation) program

The program made a revolution not only in the book market, but also in the consciousness of the publishers and in the intellectual life of the country. From 1996 open competitions started to be arranged for the publishing houses, and their number increased from 6 to 22. The program is based on the principle of subsidies, which are fading each year. During the years of 2000-2001 the focus of attention will be transferred from social sciences and humanities to publications from applied fields (e.g. public administration, economics, management). We intend to finance the program and to encourage its close cooperation with the Internet program, especially in the domain of electronic publishing.

Library Support Program. The strategy of the Library program is directly connected with the OSI Library program. During the years 2000-2001 the same level of funding is to be maintained. In future the activities of the program will depend on the general strategy of the network. A closer cooperation with the Internet and the Publishing programs is encouraged.

Internet program. The activities of the Internet program are closely related with extremely rapid development of computer technologies. Therefore its strategy is continuously reviewed. Since 1998 the program was reoriented towards the "contents" projects, and starting from 1999 it does not provide free public services. In 2000-2001 the Internet program will provide services for the other programs of the Fund. There are many points of contact with the Electronic Publishing, the Medical Internet and the Libraries programs. In future they could all develop into a single Information Technologies program. Funding for this program, after reducing the number of staff, could continue during the years 2000-2001.

PARTNERS

The OSF maintains good relations with the governmental institutions of all levels (the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Social Care and Work, the Presidents’ Office, the Parliament, local NGOs, international organizations (UNDP, PHARE, the British Council, the Swedish Institute, United World Colleges), embassies and various funds (the Danish Egmont Fund, King Baudouin Foundation, Charity, Know-How) in Lithuania and abroad. The OSF usually supports 40% of the project budget, and other sponsors should fund the rest.

THE OSFL PREMISES

In 1998 Mr. George Soros purchased a building in Vilnius, which under contractual agreement will be handed over for use by the OSF. The total space of the building is 1 300 square meters. The planned budget for the years 200-2001 and the number of staff will not require the whole space. Therefore we think that it makes sense to settle there all the NGOs, established by the Fund, and to create an incubator of an open society. In this case:





•We could rent premises for non-commercial price;



•Finance Department of the OSF could provide paid services for all organizations, established by the Fund, and thus save substantial amount of administrative costs. Maybe it could compensate the enormous investments into the accounting programs, which didn’t pay off yet;



•Concentration in a single center would maintain the image of the Fund as a whole and thus could help the NGOs to strengthen their positions in public and continue the mission of creating an open society.







BUDGET

At the present moment the funding provided by Mr. George Soros makes most of the OSF budget. Cooperation with partners, which attracts about 25% finances from donors, is mainly project-based. Administrative costs of the projects are usually not covered.

After the budget for the year 2000 was cut 50%, the OSF Board was forced to take hasty and radical decisions. Such hastiness can bring negative consequences: the human capital, the know-how, the material resources, accumulated by the Fund, could be wasted. The premature termination of prospective programs will inevitably damage the prestige of the Fund. Securing the project or the methodology, extension, search for partners, etc. is usually a time-consuming task. After receiving the final information about the budget for the years 2000-2001 just on the 1st of April, we have already taken a number of hasty decisions. Negotiations about the future of prospective programs are still continuing.

In order to avoid major mistakes and to ensure some flexibility, we ask to approve a reserve fund of 200 000 USD.

EVALUATION

When evaluating the results of its activities, the OSF is conducting:





•Self-evaluation;



•External evaluation.







Self-evaluation

Once in a year the program leader presents a detailed evaluation to the Board. Evaluation shows to what extent strategic aims were implemented. In its annual strategic meeting the Board evaluates the results of all the programs. On certain occasions members of the expert councils are asked to evaluate the projects, or the Board can allocate a grant on the condition that it will be given in parts after separate phases of project implementation will be evaluated.

External evaluation

External evaluation is applied to the programs, which:





•Terminated its activities (in order to find out whether the aims of the program have been achieved) (e.g. Education for Lithuania’s Future);



•Are transformed into the institutions of different type (e.g. step by Step project);



•Are looking for new forms of activities (e.g. the Citizens’ Initiatives program).







Usually an independent group conducts the evaluation or the OSI services are used.

Numerous publications in the press, radio and TV editions are also useful for the evaluation of programs and projects.

The transparency of the Funds’ activities is assured by a detail annual report of the activities of the OSF, which is presented to the public.

During the transitory period of 2000-2001 we intend to pay special attention both to self-evaluation and to external evaluation.

GOVERNANCE

Since 1998 the following management structure of the OSF was established:





•OSF Board;



•OSF block sub-boards;



•OSF program expert commissions;



•OSF administration.







The OSF Board governs the Fund. Establishment in 1997 of five block sub-boards was a successful step towards the decentralization of management. After evaluation of the activities of the block sub-boards, in 1998 the Board delegated to the sub-boards the right of approving grants up to the sum of 10 000 USD. The OSF Board approves every protocol of the sub-board.

Every program has expert commissions, which consist of competent specialists in certain areas. In 1999 some programs started to apply a new form of expertise: instead of a meeting of 3-5 experts a vast bank of experts is used and 2-3 selected experts evaluate the projects in writing. Therefore the costs of the expertise diminish and more detailed written reports are received. We will further develop this method of expertise and will apply it to a larger number of programs.

Due to the wide activities of the operating nature (40 programs were run in 1998), which mainly determined the success and the influence of the Fund in Lithuanian society, during the years 1994-1997 the number of the staff significantly increased. Reduction of the staff started in 1998 and we had 87, in 1997 – 65; in 2000 we plan to have 27, in 2001 – 20 members of the staff (see the scheme).

Attachments:





1.The renewed version of the OSF strategy for the year 1999;



2.OSFL structural changes:



•OSFL – 1999;



•OSFL – 2000;



•OSFL – 2001;


1.OSFL changes in the number of staff 1998 – 2001;



2.OSFL budget 2000 – 2001;



3.OSFL program strategies.

During the years 1993-1998 the Open Society Fund implemented a large project "Education for Lithuania’s Future", which had a great impact on the development of Lithuanian education. The important aspect of the project was school improvement, spreading of modern ideas on education management and encouragement of the professional development of educators. These activities laid a foundation for the establishment of the Center for School Improvement in 1999. The Center strives to help Lithuanian schools develop as organizations, to encourage schools’ participation in development of educational policy, and to promote ideas of the open society in educational community.

In the course of the last decade an educational reform was implemented in a rather intense way. Its aim was to liberalize and decentralize the system of education in the way that it could better meet the needs of the pupils, to provide them with the greater variety of choice, and to help them acquire the skills, which are needed for their life in a democratic society. In order to achieve these aims, school as an organization needs to undergo essential changes: it should establish partnership with the community and parents, change the rigid school structure and relations between the members of the community, and reconsider the basic values. The national strategy of education raises high requirements for schools; however, not a single state educational organization provides support for schools as organizations, does not consider schools as a whole. Pedagogical universities, local educational authorities may provide support for the subject teachers, but no one can help the schools as a whole. In the year 2000 the Ministry of Education and Science plans to launch the program of assessment and accreditation of schools, but, again, it is not considered yet, who and how will provide support for schools on the national level. The Center for School Improvement is the only organization in Lithuania, which works with a school as a whole, helps the schools in making the plans of development and self-assessment, and spreads new pedagogical ideas. During the first month of the activities of the Center more than 80 Lithuanian schools approached the Center in order to get various services. In 1998 we conducted a survey of teachers in five regions. It showed that schools need the overall help and reorganization of the professional development in order to meet the needs of the specific school. On that ground we designed our program of activities.

Another aspect of the activities of the Center is expanding the influence of schools, teachers and parents on educational policy. Social policy in Lithuania is still determined by political groups and the interests of participants and users of education are often ignored. The Center will encourage various public actions and campaigns, aimed at involving the society in the discussion on important questions of education. Development of educational policy is impossible without professional research. In the year 2000 the Center will undertake several projects of investigating the situation of education in cooperation with independent groups of sociologists, as it is not convenient in Lithuania to consider education as social phenomena.

The basis for the activities of the Center is the intellectual capital, which was accumulated while implementing the project "Education for Lithuania’s Future". A lot of work was done, the consultants were trained, the books were published, school networks and new educational organizations were established. In our work we mainly rely on adult teachers and consultants, trained by the OSF. They are practitioners, who implement successfully the newest pedagogical and school development ideas in their schools. While implementing the project, we maintained close links with the universities of Toronto, McGill and London. We used to receive and still get a vast intellectual support. When the Center became an independent organization, involved solely in the activities of school improvement, our work became more purposeful and professional. Currently we may provide more thorough and complex help for the schools.

• To secure spreading of the ideas about open society and democracy via the cooperation between schools and community, to encourage the society to solve questions on education and other kinds of social policy.

• To create a system of consulting for schools and other educational institutions.
• To encourage liberalization and decentralization of professional development of teachers in order to meet better the needs of every particular school and teacher.
• To initiate and foster the documentation and research of change processes in schools.
• To assess the theory and practice of school effectiveness and improvement in Lithuania.

1. To gather 30-40 educators, who are interested in improving the activities of schools, to support their professional development and to train them work as consultants.
2. To prepare 4 new modules of professional development, e.g. "The methodology of schools’ self-evaluation", etc.
3. To make 2 large scale surveys on school change.
4. To organize consulting in schools and to consult up to 100 schools in a year.
5. To organize about 200 seminars and other activities per year on various topics requested by schools.
6. To organize about 10 seminars in Russian for minority schools in order to ensure their normal integration into the Lithuanian education system.
7. To organize continuously actions of provoking greater activity of the society, to involve mass media and different civic groups.
8. To create small libraries and to create possibilities of using it by specialists in the following fields:

• education management;
• sociology of education;
• school effectiveness and school improvement;
• investigating and teaching the problem of holocaust.

1. The activity of teachers and schools and their interest in the problems of school improvement will increase.
2. The surveys will point out the most important and problematic areas of school development and the necessary help will be offered.
3. Schools will positively evaluate the programs offered by the Center and will ask for more.
4. A group of professional school consultants will be created and the programs required by schools will be developed.
5. The system of professional development of teachers will start to undergo essential changes.
6. Communities of national minority schools will become more self-confident, and their co-operation with Lithuanian and other schools will increase.
7. Society will be more actively involved in discussion about education and other topics of social policy.

The Center is the organization, which implements important educational projects and programs in cooperation with other governmental and non-governmental organizations. It also offers various paid services to teachers and educational institutions. Major partners of the Center in Lithuania are the Ministry of Education and Science, regional education centers, club of Initiative Schools and other non-governmental organizations. Center is actively cooperating with numerous foreign partners, e.g. the Beth Shalom Holocaust Memory Center, the National Council of Economic Education, the International Center for Educational Change, etc.

The Center will exist as long as its services will be needed and demanded, or until its functions will be taken over by state institutions or until the Center will be incorporated into some state institution, e.g. Pedagogical University or Vilnius County Educational Center. A rather active market of educational services is currently in the process of development, and, if the Center will maintain high professional level, its services will be on demand for a long period of time. It is very important to become professionally strong, carefully observe and investigate the situation in schools, and be able of continuous self-renewal during the first and the second years of the Center’s existence. There are signs showing that after the year 2001 the Center will manage to exist even if the support from the Open Society Fund will substantially diminish. The main source of financing the Center will be paid services and state funding allocated for the implementation of various projects (e.g. project "Evaluation of School’s Activities").

In 1999 the Center implemented the programs of three types:

1. Long-term or continuous programs of professional development of teachers, which could be booked by schools or educational centers, e.g. "Methods of Active Learning", "School Development Planning", "Managing the Process of Change", etc. These events were very popular as the consultants of the Center visited all the schools, which showed interest in the program. Teachers not only learned new things, but also experienced the joy of common work, acquired skills of cooperation, which they usually lack in schools. The seminars often gave the impetus for the radical school change.
2. Complex projects, which incorporate a variety of analysis and research, the organization of events for teachers and wider society, e.g. "Holocaust in the Context of Contemporary Lithuania" or "School as learning organization: developing in-service training in schools".
3. International projects, e.g. "Teaching Economics in the Schools of the Baltic Countries", international conference on school improvement, etc.

In the year 2000 we intend to maintain the same principles of our activities. However, we will give more attention to school counseling, work with national minority schools, research on educational policy, various civic actions.

1. In the year 2000 main attention will be given to the long-term project "School as a Learning Organization: Developing Model of In-Service Training of Teachers in One's ’Own School ", which started in 1999 and is aimed at creation of the model of professional development. It should be oriented towards the needs of the school and would help to optimize the use of state funding, allocated for the in-service training. The project is implemented under the special agreement with the Ministry of Education and Science and gets its partial financial support.
2. The long-term program "Teaching about Holocaust" will be continued. It includes intense work with teachers and students, activities for historians, representatives of the church and organization of civic actions. The main partners are Beth Shalom Center for the Memory of Holocaust, the Washington Holocaust Museum, Center for Civic Initiatives, Vilnius University, Vilnius Seminary of Clergy, etc.
3. Educational research of the situation in education will be conducted: "Situation of the National Minorities Schools in Lithuania", "Professional Development of Teachers and the Needs of the School", etc.
4. The Center is coordinating the regional initiative of the network of the Soros funds on school improvement. In the year 2000 an international conference will be organized in order to discuss the school improvement movement in Western and post-communist countries.

The Center conducts continuous internal assessment of its activities with the help of the members of the Board of the Center and school consultants. The clients evaluate all the events, organized by the Center, and the staff of the Center makes a thorough analysis. In mid-2000 we will conduct the external audit of the Center activities with the help of independent auditors.

The management structures of the Center are the administration and the Board. The OSF Board, which is the founder of the Center, approves the composition of the Center Board. The OSF Board also approves the annual program of the Center activities and the budget. The 1999 Board is composed by the representatives of the Ministry of Education and Science, representative of the OSF Board, representatives of schools and other funds and non-governmental organizations.

The Board of the Center approves strategic directions of the Center activities and new programs, defines organizational structure of the Center and approves the reports. Members of the Board provide professional help to the Center. The administration runs the everyday activities of the Center. It consists of three full-time members of the staff: director, project director and administrator. The part-time workers and volunteers run all other activities. We do not intend to increase the number of full-time staff members in 2000.

The reform of education in Lithuania started ten years ago. During these years considerable results have been achieved in the area of curricula modernization and development, in restructuring education, in-service training of teachers. However, the dissemination and implementation of new ideas, understanding of how essential is to change educational process and its policy, did not reach critical weight. The impact of reform ideas and results on the system of values and teaching process, on the mentality of teachers, educational scientists is still too week and not widely spread. More effective promotion of educational changes requires a tight cooperation between all institutions which are involved in the education process, first of all, the Ministry of Education and Science, schools, universities, non-governmental organizations. The example of OSFL project "Education for Lithuania’s Future", which was ended in 1998, has shown how effective this cooperation between the governmental and independent institutions could be.

The Foundation for Educational Change seeks to consolidate the efforts of the Ministry of Education and Science and the OSFL by providing more significant support to educational changes and, dissemination of new ideas, to encourage participation of the third parties in this process.

The Foundation relies on the experience, accumulated by the Ministry established institutions, currently operating programs, the most effective projects of "Education for Lithuania’s Future" and other institutions, and seeks to expand this experience.

• To introduce modern ways of assessment of educational processes within the educational community;
• To encourage Lithuanian educational community for a creation of positive educational milieu in order to provide opportunities for the best possible development of every pupil;
• To encourage Lithuanian citizens’ influence on educational change by supporting educational initiatives of schools, teachers and communities;
• To accelerate the modernization of Lithuanian system of education by implementing strategic projects, which could lead to essential improvement of the quality of general education;
• To involve society into deeper discussions of educational problems;
• To encourage different layers of society for a greater contribution to the proceedings of educational change.

The Foundation will support long-term projects in the following important areas of education:

• Modernization of education management;
• School community development;
• Curriculum change;
• Publication of new textbooks and teaching materials;
• Civic education;
• Modernization of school libraries;
• Multicultural education and integration of national communities;
• Roma education;
• Reform of initial teacher training;
• Development of professional education;
• Introduction of new technologies;
• Support of various educational institutions (except institutions of higher education), school communities, projects, designed and initiated by students and teachers;
• Initiation of new models of financing education;
• In-service training of educational leaders.

The Foundation will provide priority support to the projects, which:

• Encourage the wider "grassroots" development of public initiatives;
• Develop regional educational policy;
• Involve cooperation with other educational institutions, municipalities, non-governmental organizations, foreign partners;
• Assure the project’s continuity and its dissemination in other regions.

1. Provided financial support will help Lithuanian educational community to implement its initiatives and will encourage their further development.
2. Cooperation between schools and other institutions will be strengthened.
3. Educational reform will get support in the regions, the network of initiative schools will expand and productive cooperation will be encouraged.
4. A more effective integration of the communities of national minorities schools into Lithuanian education will take place and a greater variety of choice will be provided;
5. Wider opportunities for education will open for the socially vulnerable groups of people.

The Foundation will not take over the functions of implementation of projects and programs. It will seek to provide focused help for educational initiatives in an effective and qualified way in order to assure the development and expansion of educational reform. In order to rise funding for Lithuanian education, the Foundation is looking towards active cooperation with other Lithuanian and foreign funds, which support education.

The Foundation is non-political, non-profit organization. It actively promotes values of an open democratic society. Its ideology is based on tolerance and polylogue of different cultures and outlooks. The Foundation bases its own activities on the principles of publicity and transparency. The Foundation continuously reports to its founders and the society about its activities and expenses. The annual report of the Foundation is published by the end of each year.

The Foundation cooperates with all institutions, which are implementing educational reform and act in accordance with the goals and mission of the Foundation.

The Foundation seeks to involve into the reforming process not only state institutions, but also innovative citizens, their groups and educational communities. The Foundation also encourages cooperation between different educational communities, coordination with state institutions of different levels and non-governmental organizations.

For an updated analysis of different aspects of Lithuanian educational situation, in order to name the most important educational problems and to offer solutions, the Foundation is going to organize open discussions on the most urgent educational topics.

The Foundation will continuously report about its activities both to the founders and to the society. By involving members of the Board and independent experts, the Foundation will organize regular monitoring of the funded projects. It will also conduct sociological surveys to measure effectiveness of open competitions when they are completed.

The Board and the administration manage the Foundation. The founders – Open Society Fund - Lithuania and Ministry of Education and Science, determine the composition of the Board. If new shareholders (sponsors) will emerge, they will be also represented in the Board. The Board determines strategic and priority directions of the Foundation, the subjects of open competitions for receiving support, and approves financial decisions. Administration of the Foundation consists of the director, the program coordinator and the financier. In the case of necessity administration can make temporary work agreements with other persons. For the evaluation of the presented projects the Foundation can invite experts of various fields. Expert commissions are presented by the administration and have to be approved by the Board. The maximum number of members of the expert commission - three experts.

In 1999 OSFL and Ministry of Education and Science will contribute to the Foundation’s budget $300,000 each (total budget - $600,000). In 2000 and 2001 OSFL will allocate $250,000 and $200,000, respectively. Ministry of Education and Science will match this amount of money.

The program aimed to modernise research and studies in Lithuanian social sciences and humanities by the way of integrating the latter into European and worldwide academic community.

The program focused its attention on building potential for research and studies of the higher education institutions during the period of 1995-1998. It supported: international conferences and seminars; publication of original monographs and textbooks; organisation of summer universities for young faculty members; preparation and introduction of progressive MA courses into curriculum; visiting professors; research projects involving PhD and graduate students; PhD studies abroad; and purchase of academic literature. Especially, it should be distinguished, a great deal of aid given to sociology in the 1996. The sum of money allocated to various institutions amounted to 36,000 USD. The new journal "Sociology. Thought and Action" has been established.

The program also initiated projects that were intended to become replication models for long-term successful activity in Lithuanian universities. The projects of Invisible College, Centre for History of Western Lithuania and Prussia, doctoral seminars and Centre for the Study of Judaica and Cultural Communities may be mentioned as worthy examples. The latter has been approved just recently while expecting that such centre will activate studies of Yiddish culture and civilisation, and research of other minorities and cultural communities in Lithuania as well. It is envisaged that such centre will successfully contribute to combating ethnocentrism in Lithuania. The centre’s idea was born during the very successful course of the Yiddish language (which has been held at Vilnius University last summer with the help of OSF-L) while having been confronted with the picture of dying out Yiddish culture and the lack of its systematic studies. It should be mentioned also a research competition "Holocaust studies" organised by the program which resulted in six interesting and promising projects dealing with this sore issue.

It is being launched, also, the organisation of several research seminars for PhD students with the participation of outstanding western professors this year. A PhD course "Main Issues in Contemporary Social Anthropology" delivered by Professor Jonathan Friedman from Lund University and Paris School of Advanced Studies and Social Sciences (Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales) has taken place this April. This course has significantly caused an interest in this still new discipline in Lithuania. The course became a model for the organisation of similar course. The next course titled "Narrative Interviewing – Interpretative Text Analysis: History and Life Story" will be lectured by Professor Gabriel Rosenthal from Kassel University this summer at Vytautas Magnus University in Kaunas.

The program actively supported two summer schools together with International HESP last year. The summer schools provided an opportunity for young scholars from post-communist countries to analyse and discuss the current social processes occurring in the region, some historical problems and phenomena. This summer another school devoted to the theory of international relations "Constructivism and security: New frameworks for analysis" will take place. There are preliminary arrangements being already made to organise two or three summer school in semiotics and social anthropology (tentative title Transformation of Everyday Life in Post-Communist East Central Europe) together with above-mentioned Paris School of Advanced Studies and Social Sciences in year 2000.

It have been attempts to research higher education systems of other countries and to compare their reform experience to Lithuanian situation. Subsequently, discussions in media were launched and seminars organised aiming to draw attention and to influence opinion of lawmakers, state officials, academia and general public. International conference "Science in an Open Society" (1994), seminars "Evaluation of Political Science" and "Criteria for Evaluation of Humanities and Social Sciences" could be counted as fruitful examples of such activities.

There is an obvious lack of a clear, consistent strategy and effective means for a development of higher education and research on a national scale in Lithuania. There appear to be an apparent tendency to diminish financing of higher education and research too. The sum allocated to this purpose for 1999 comprise only 1.12% of GDP while in 1998 was– 1.24% GDP). Therefore, not only shortage of funds but also systemic contradictions and setbacks impede the reforms in higher education and research in Lithuania.

Due to vague perspectives for scientific and educational career and low salaries gifted young people more often and often abandon academia. During the last five years the number of people awarded a doctoral degree felt down twice. Irrational proportions of young scholars develop in different disciplines. Many young lecturers and scientists leave the country for indefinite period. The number of scholars working in higher education institutions shrank by 9% since 1995. The average age of universities’ faculty was over fifty in 1998.

This short sketch of the situation indicates that the reform of higher education and research has not achieved its aims yet (or is stalled):

• Private sector and other strata of the society are loosely involved into the reformation and maintenance of the infrastructure of higher education system;
• The legal and social conditions and procedure for establishing private universities are still undefined;
• The mutual rights and obligations among administration, faculty and students of the universities, between the latter and the state and employers’ organizations are not sufficiently clear. The mechanisms for the bringing together their interests are also missing;
• The financing of higher education and research is irrational that compels lectures and gifted students to work in several places or even give up academic career.
• The integration of Lithuanian scholars (especially in humanities) into global academic discourse remains unsatisfactory;
• Information system of higher education is fragmented and unproductive.

Open Society Fund-Lithuania is one of important non-governmental organisations which is able and willing to participate actively in the policy formation of higher education and research (paying substantial attention to humanities and social sciences) in order to attain subsequent objectives:

• To stimulate and strive for adoption of laws and legal acts which produce a favourable social and economic environment for the professional growth of university faculty members and encourage gifted students to seek career in academia;
• To create and propose to society clear and consistent models that would define the mutual rights and obligations and mechanisms for the compromising between administration, faculty and students of the universities, between the latter and the state and employers’ organizations;
• To strengthen qualifications of the Lithuanian scholars and their cooperation among themselves and with foreign partners.

The program would actively contribute to the higher education policy making on the national scale by establishing and supporting (at least at the outset) policy and research institutions in cooperation with universities: Higher Education Policy Unit and Educational Policy Centre. Higher Education Policy Unit could successfully operate as a department within a prospective Public Policy Centre (or Institute) which is to be established jointly by the network Local Government and Public Service Reform Initiative program and Civic Society Program (OSF-L). The unit would be supposed to carry out analysis and prognostics in higher education sphere. The unit would seek to speed up and expand the development of the national education and research system: effectiveness of government decisions and active reflective participation of academic community and wider public in decision-making process.

Unit’s activity would include:

• Production of annual analytic research report on situation in higher education and science and development perspectives in Lithuania;
• Organisation of public seminars, conferences and meetings for politicians, state officials, academics and representatives of interest groups;
• Publication of the annual report and various ad hoc publications dealing with specific issues of evolving circumstances. They were to be addressed to state institutions, political parties and other NGO, academic institutions, libraries, etc.

The program would support certain projects initiated by other prospective non-governmental institution Educational Policy Centre that is planned to be established under auspices of OSF-L. It should manage research in secondary education system.

Thus, Higher education and research program would integrate and co-ordinate a whole network of non-governmental educational institutions (Invisible College, Educational Policy Centre, Higher Education Policy Unit) while operating in grant-giving operation mode. In other words, it would provide for infrastructure of these organisations (at least in the initial phase), ensuring further democratisation of study system in the country on the whole.

The support of Invisible College and young faculty members through the organisation of doctoral seminars and summer schools remain direct objectives and immediate priorities of the program. The program will keep up on the arranging of a series of research competitions on themes related to clarification of shortcomings of market societies and methods of their alleviation too.

External partners:

Ministry of Education and Science, Centre for Quality Assessment in Higher Education, administration of universities, student unions, academic societies.

Internal partners:

International HESP, Library Support Program and Internet program. The Higher education and Research program will compose target collections (books, encyclopaedias, CD-s, etc) and share financing with Library Support Program and libraries themselves. Also an interlibrary loan and a subscription to on-line scientific journals will be jointly covered. The program will go in for introduction of new courses by offering expertise for organisation of distance learning courses together with Internet program.

The projects supported by the program have been evaluated in respect of content results and finance spending on a basis of reports provided by the grantees up to date. The Board of the foundation evaluated an overall activity of the program based on a report of program co-ordinator at the end of each year.

The success of the supported projects would be assessed by statistic and qualitative analysis methods (interviews, participant observation, etc.) grounding the analysis on quantitative and qualitative indicators.

Quantitative indicators:

• The increment of publications dealing with analysis and prognosis in higher education;
• The growth of citation index of Lithuanian scholars and number of publications in humanities and social sciences;
• The rise of activity of academic societies supported by the program;
• The growing numbers of scholars and lecturers who primarily and solely work in higher education and research institutions;
• The growing numbers of young faculty members in the universities;
• Discussions on higher education reform and problems in media; seminars devoted to this problematique;
• New courses in humanities and social sciences being introduced in universities’ curricula.

• The creation of clear legal and rational socio-economic base that stimulate growth of higher studies and research;
• The formation of relationship pattern based on mutual respect and trust among administration of universities, faculty members and students.
• The rise of public prestige of lecturers and scholars.

Grantees themselves and program co-ordinator will assess the results of the projects. Ultimately, the Board will evaluate the program at the end of the year and correct activity objectives if necessary.

The program could be closed down when the Public Policy Centre, Educational Policy Centre and Invisible College will become financially sustainable, and the governmental and university funding of research and higher studies will develop into reasonable and effective system. It is impossible to determine the exact time limits, since this is long-term process of change.

The idea of establishing the Educational Policy Center emerged as one of the possible ways of using, developing and disseminating the experience and resources of the OSFL Center for Educational Studies, New Technologies program and regional educational programs: Reading and Writing for Critical Thinking project, Conflict Management and Communication program, Step by Step and Egmont projects, Debate and Career Development programs. Analysis of these projects and overall system of Lithuanian educational institutions has shown that the most effective way is to establish the Educational Policy Center within an existing university (negotiations are under way with Vilnius Pedagogical University). Though university is an autonomous and very inert institution, eventually the establishment of such an open unit may guarantee its renewal and influence on the modernization of the educational system.

Lithuanian educational reform started after the reestablishment of independence. However, the reform can not be considered as the outcome of purposeful efforts of Lithuanian political forces or wide public consensus on main educational issues. The lack of compatibility between different reform actions, structural units of educational system, levels of education, etc. is pointed out by a large number of researchers of the reform. The criteria for continuous monitoring of reform and evaluation of educational situation are not developed, nor the mechanisms of disseminating educational research information. Systematic analysis of an educational policy is non-existent. The above problems require certain solutions to be made, and it could be one of the priorities of the Educational Policy Center. On the other side, the Center for Educational Studies, operating within the OSFL, has accumulated intellectual resources and significant funds of modern educational and informational literature. The Center is a recognized partner among teacher training institutions. The Educational Policy Center could make use of the above potential.

With technological invasion in all spheres of life, education gets a new important task – to educate members of an information society. Schools do not employ all the possibilities of new technologies for the modernization of education and management process. There is a lack of teaching materials and handbooks on computers, a small number of teachers get acquainted with possibilities of new technologies. New computer learning facilities often are not combined with new teaching methods (they are just used as useful means of demonstration during the traditional lesson). At present it is extremely important to rise the level of information literacy in Lithuania by including information literacy and information skills training courses into the programs of initial and in-service teacher training. However, interest in the development of effective introduction and use of new technologies in the teaching process is insufficient, neither on state, nor on local level. OSFL New Technologies program has sought to be good exception.

The system of initial teacher training is the field, least affected by educational reform. Due to the university autonomy and inertia, initial teacher training in fact remained unchanged, inherited from the Soviet times. Teacher training does not meet the demands of educational reform and the needs of the changing school. The newly trained teachers learn about changes in education only when they start working at schools. It is completely ineffective, as teachers need to be "retrained". The newly established institution could offer optional accredited courses for students on the didactic basis of regional programs. Programs of studies on educational policy, management, modern educational research could be designed and presented to students.

The Educational Policy Center will be established on the basis of the experience and accumulated resources of the OSFL Center for Educational Studies, New Technologies program and regional educational programs – Critical Thinking project, Conflict Management and Communication program, Step by Step and Egmont projects, Debate and Career Development programs. It will be established in accordance with the OSI-Budapest EPI recommendations and on the basis of the experience, partnerships, intellectual and material resources of the OSF.

• Tested methodologies; prepared courses and trained lecturers with substantial practice of teaching in general secondary schools and institutions of higher education;
• The network of model schools and expert teachers, who use modern methods and new technologies. There is a possibility of using them as a basis for teaching practice;
• The network of doctoral students in education, trained by the OSFL;
• Partnerships with Lithuanian institutions of higher education. E.g. university lecturers, doctoral students and teachers, trained by the OSFL, deliver optional courses of regional programs.
• Partnerships with the authors of various projects; foreign universities.
• The acquired experience of organizing paid courses;
• The acquired experience of introducing information technologies in the teaching process;
• Qualified coordinators of the OSFL programs.

• Library of the Center for Educational Studies
• Computer classroom and the Internet reading room for students and lecturers;
• The library of computer teaching programs;
• The teaching literature, published by the Center for Educational Studies and the New Technologies program; periodicals "Journal of Educational Studies" and "Computerization";
• The operating information system: the Internet server for education (http://ntpl.osf.lt), informational electronic newspapers.

• To encourage the further development of Lithuanian educational reform and successful implementation of the national education policy, based on the principles of openness, informativeness, continuous learning and equal opportunities;
• To support the creation of an effective system of educational information;
• To train and develop high quality specialists on education management and educational policy;
• To expand inter-university links – both within the country and abroad;
• To introduce newest information technologies to university lecturers;
• To create opportunities for students to choose the courses which introduce a variety of methods;
• To combine courses with the teaching practice in model schools;
• To involve teachers into the process of initial training.

• The creation of the research center of educational policy and reform;
• The creation of the center for distance education and education technologies;
• The creation of modern didactics center on the basis of regional programs;
• The creation of modern library of educational resources (printed and electronic information);
• The creation of effective network of educational information;
• Preparation for the Masters studies on education management and educational policy;
• Better-trained students – would-be teachers, which meet the requirements of the modern school; lecturers, acquainted with the newest technologies and didactics.

The Center is an institution, operating in three directions:

• Analysis, dissemination and studies of educational policy and information;
• Introduction of new education and management technologies at schools and in teacher training;
• Introduction of new information and communication technologies at schools and in teacher training.

• Analysis of education policy and spreading information for the society;
• Organization of studies on educational policy and education management;
• Creation of educational information center; collection and dissemination of information, literature and new teaching materials; creation of new information system on the Internet;
• Optional and distance education courses on the basis of regional programs for students, teachers and lecturers;
• Optional courses for students on application of new information and communication technologies in educational process and organization of education;
• Presentation of new methods;
• Combining optional courses with teaching practice at schools.

We intend to carry out the activities by conducting research and analysis of important topics of educational policy, organizing public discussions on educational problems, offering paid optional courses for university students, as well as paid in-service training courses for teachers and school teams, accumulating educational information and spreading it to the public via the Internet and during the seminars, publishing informational periodical on education policy analysis.

The founder of the Center is the Open Society Fund. The partner of OSFL is Vilnius Pedagogical University, which provides premises free of charge in 1999 and 2000. From the year 2000 the University’s contribution will be premises as well as payment for the optional courses for university students.

Main partners in Lithuania are: the Ministry of Education and Science, Information Center, Institute of Pedagogics, National Examination Center, regional and local educational authorities, educational centers, teacher training colleges and institutions of higher education, school and teachers’ associations. In the field of education policy analysis close cooperation will be maintained with the OSFL HESP program, Civic Society program and other regional educational programs. Foreign partners: OSI -Budapest EPI, Gothenburg University, Halmstad College, Oslo University and Iowa University.

The participants of events will conduct continuous parallel internal evaluation, followed by evaluation analysis. The Center Board will make an annual expert evaluation. Financial audit will be conducted yearly. Periodical sociological surveys of students, teachers and lecturers will be initiated, aimed at corrective identification of needs and changes. The independent evaluators with the participation of the OSI EIP experts will conduct evaluation every second year.

Activities of the Center will be regulated and approved by the Board, and implemented by the staff. Center staff will consist of director, coordinator of educational policy programs, coordinator of the modern didactics programs, coordinator of the new technologies programs, engineer, librarian-administrator.

The budget of the Center will consist of the contributions of the founders, grants and incomes from paid services.

1. In the year 2000 – 200 000 USD, including the OSF grant of 100 000 USD.
2. In the year 2001 – 150 000 USD, including the OSF grant of 100 000 USD.

The OSF-L – Egmont Foundation program started in 1992 and was at first going one direction – changing kindergarten practice. Gradually field of activity increased and the project started to initiate changes in the areas of students’ training and pre-school in-service training. Today Egmont project is influencing systematic changes in pre-school education.

The project is not blindly copying Danish methods, but is the the initiator of changes, it suggests new ways of acting and supports in their realisation. Pre-school system is getting enriched with new, perspective models ( summer camps in the institutions, the 8 established Early Childhood Centres (in-service training centres); projects of original play-grounds; initiating the establishment of parents’ rooms .

Separately should be mentioned successful implementation of Project Method in all mentioned levels Adjusting Project Method in kindergartens and becoming a model of activities helped pedagogues solve professional problems that are actual to most pre-school institutions, such as: integrating children with special needs, integrating children of different age, "softening" schedule for children in the kindergarten ,integrating content of education, making transition from kindergarten to school fluent, integration of ethnic minorities and others.

Project method is spreading also in the places of students’ training as a new teaching subject included into teaching plans. In the system of in-service training Project Method is presented in 8 Early Childhood Centres.

1997 – 1998 during the international study visit program 100 students and lecturers and practitians learned Project Method in Denmark.

For 10 years already educational reform in Lithuania has been going on. In the process of implementation Egmont project as disseminator of the ideas of this reform (in the area of pre-school education), it became obvious, that changes in pre-school practice are not enough, and that - a more systematic influence on the pre-school system is necessary.

Changes in pre-school system are one of the activity areas of Research Institute of Pedagogy, Lithuania’s Pedagogues’ Qualification Raising Institute and Regional Teachers’ training centres (they are about 20).

In state system the innovations are "let down from above", and in Egmont project the initiative is given to pedagogue (and the child). Gently speaking, Egmont project declares and seeks to realize a more flexible and responsible attitude towards changes in the pre-school system, at the same time being not only pure words about democracy, but having a firm methodological backbone.

But even if pre-school system is striving for changes, and a lot has been achieved owing to state and private initiatives (e.g. activities of OSFL), new democratic ideas are not yet its inner property and necessity. We see many work in perspective and feel our partenrs’ concern and readiness to support.

The Egmont Foundation, starting with 1992, is Egmont project’s great teacher in the areas of practice, methods and theory.

Egmont project has always been planning its activities bearing in mind successes and failures. For example, when it became obvious, that students’ training area yielded to changes with most difficulty, (and the project is planning to concentrate its potentials in future on it), in-service training was started, and the especially effectively functioning 8 Early Childhood Centers were established.

Egmont project has been always seeking to "refresh" and "modernize" mentality ( and prestige ) of pre-school and primary school pedagogues, raise their understanding of citizenship, independence, activity, creativity, professionality and initiative and help them to bring-up a new-quality generation. We are striving for a kindergarten as an open institution with more discussions, where the entire kindergarten community is decission makers .

The main goals and priority of the project have always been to speed up and turn to the right direction practice, methods and theory ,changing it from reproductative to interpretative.

The project in the future can go on in 3 directions, but 2 of them gradually will decrease before 2001, and the main attention will be paid to improving student training.

The whole fundamental strategy of Egmont project is being co-ordinated with partners – the Egmont Foundation. Perspective plans have been discussed many times, a joint meeting of representatives of OSFL and the Egmont Foundation is planned in the beginning of June 1999.

We hope to have initiative, active, creative and professional pedagogue in the kindergartens; renovated - humanized environment of kindergarten classes and playgrounds; close relations between pedagogues and family; active kindergarten community.

In qualification raising area in state system the 8 Early Childhood Centers activity has consolidated. Being approbated and legal, it is a positive alternative and suggest pedagogue possibility to choose.

The most significant changes we expect from students’ training mega-project. It is difficult to give prognosis, because this initiative has only been started this year and Egmont project is beginning to realize it (strategy, vision, curriculum).

1. approach

Egmont project has been operating projects itself for a long time, only in 1997 it started giving grants (besides operation of the very project). The project is running open and targeted competitions. All these activities fit into main strategic directions of Egmont project. In recent years our competitions require getting sponsoring from other sources – state, NGO, etc. Some grants are long-term grants .

2. sustainability

It is planned to narrow the program, concentrating all the potentials in the beginning on two areas (in-service training and students’ training), later – on one – students’ training – area.

Changes in kindergarten practice should turn into Egmont assotiation and no longer will be financed.

In-service training direction – the 8 ECC– have got financial support and will get a certain support in future, too, but, as they are established by the state institutions, they will be sustainable very soon. (The state has contributed in some places by establishing staff for methodical function in the centers).

The most resourses will be required in students’ training area. If Egmont project transforms into a special institution, we hope to get support from OSFL and the Egmont Foundation, also including state structures.

3. delivery models

Egmont project will give institutional support , at the same time will go on creating initiated projects and then it could be various – seed or bridge - financing.

In students’ training area a general long-term development will succeed. So, delivery models are planned various – depending both on life requirements and on project goals.

Some examples of activities, which Egmont project is going to support (see table of detailed strategy attatched, p. 5–7):

• creation of curriculum for two years training of the 8 ECC pedagogues (4 – 5 courses );
• a study visit to Denmark for the teams of ECC;
• publishing of the book of projects, made by lecturers and students;
• longitudinal evaluations – study of changes in kindergarten practice .

1. Network of kindergartens (65) ( including kindergardens-primary schools). I.e. 1/12 of all functioning in the country pre-school institutions.
2. Pedagogical universities and Higher pedagogical schools.
3. State institutions (e.g. Ministry of Science and Education).
4. The Egmont Foundation in Denmark and other Danish partners – Pedagogical colleges, etc.

Egmont Foundation alotted for realization of Egmont project 4,829,636 DKK or about 850.000 USD in the period from 1992 till 1998.

5. Ethnic minorities kindergargens outside Lithuania –in Russia, Poland, Latvia and Belarus.

H. Implementation (Please, see the table enclosed, p. 5-7).

1. Evaluation

The evaluation was made during the longitudinal research (I stage in 1995 , II – in 1999). Pedagogues and parents from 65 institutions are taking part in it. The data is being analyzed afterwards on different levels. In the area of in-service training the participants are filling in forms.

The book by our Danish partners – lecturers from Jutland Pedagogical college , ( "Pedagogy and Democracy – Experiments of Developmental Work in Lithuanian Pre-schools ", 1999) is an evaluation and generalization of Egmont project in the eyes of our Danish colleagues.

Egmont project has 2 staff members – a co-ordinator and an assistant co-ordinator / book - keeper.

Egmont project has an expert group for educational and financial decissions, consisting of 4 persons from Ministry of Science and Education, from Pedagogical University, Higher pedagogical school and Service of pedagogical and psychological assistance.

All strategic decisions are approved with the Board of OSF L .

Debate

After regaining its independence in 1991 Lithuania needed profound reforms in all spheres of life: economy, social and political life and education. Soviet system of education was based on memorizing redy-made truths presented by a teacher. No critical thinking or personal judgement was needed.

The Debate program was as if a blow of fresh air in our out-of-date educational system based on teacher as the only source of knowledge, a teacher who believed to have one truth, his own truth.

The program was established in 1994 and imediately started filing the gap. The first seminars on debate for teachers and the first summer camp for students showed that critical thinking, argumentation, team building and cooperation were the burning issues of the day.

So the strategy of a Debate program has become to promote critical thinking through various debate related activities such as seminars for teachers and students, summer camps, tournaments, Students’ Congresses and provide schools with informational assistance.

1. Mission statement of the National Debate Program

We state our mission as a pledge that, through debates, we can help the young generation of Lithuania to become socially-aware citizens, involved in dealing with the problems facing their native country and the world, creating an active and positive attitude in finding solutions for a better future.

2. Goals of the National Debate Program

Our most immediate goal is to establish a non governmental debate organization. Once this goal is accomplished, we can proceed to fulfill other goals such as:

1. to improve the quality of debate and incorporate it as an academic subject into the school curriculum.
2. to train coaches in management in order to develop the program of fund-raising meant to involve the community and the debaters’ parents in the efforts to ensure self-sustainability for the organization.
3. to establish the Board of Trainers that will plan, coordinate, and implement nationwide activities.
4. to improve the quality of judging by organizing regular training sessions in judging and critical thinking skills.
4. to enlarge the pool of independent judges by recruiting University students to judge high-school debates after receiving proper training.
5. to establish contacts and develop cooperation with other existing NGOs in Lithuania that would enable debate NGO to be better known and more efficiently run.
6. to increase the number of students and coaches invited to participate in summer debate camps.
7. to invite experts for top-rate instruction on debate.

1. Objectives

To make debate activities (either as a subject at school or a club activity) availabe to students of all regions of Lithuania.

To achieve one of the main goals of the program (incorporate debate into school curriculum) we’ve already made the following steps:

1. wrote the debate program for high shools, which was approved by the Ministry of Education
2. prepared a debate textbook which will be published in time for the next school year.

1. to present the program to the officials of the Ministry of Education and all educational centres of teacher qualification of Lithuania
2. to prepare a necessary number of qualified debate trainers
3. to establish a teachers’ certification system.

We’ve made the following steps to make the program self-sustainable:

1. received a formal approval of the program by the Ministry of Education.

This provides with the opportunity of sustaining debate clubs on school resources (teachers receive salary from the school, clubs receive rent-free space for their activities, schools provide debaters with school transport to travel to competitions). It also enables teaching debate as a school subject.

2. established good contacts with schools having debate clubs
3. trained a large number of teachers on debate

1. to be taught as a subject at school
2. used as a method of teaching different subjects at school

1. establish contacts with other NGOs having similar goals
2. write proposals to international foundations supporting educational goals of the debate program
3. establish contacts with local businesses and find areas for mutual cooperation
4. advertise program in all possible ways through media
5. recruit a team of volunteers helping in organizing all debate related activities
6. teach debate coaches and members of the staff in program management and fund raising
7. involve parents and other members of the community into the program as:

1. as active audience (floor debates)
2. judges for tournaments
3. sponsors
4. facilitators of tournaments and camps
5. trainers and consultants

 Activities

The main activities of the program:

1. seminars for teachers:

1. introducing debate as a method of teaching
2. preparing coaches for the school clubs
3. improving qualification of the existing teachers and coaches

1. debate clubs:

1. sustaining the existing clubs
2. establishing new ones (debating in Lithuanian, Russian, Polish and English)

1. tournaments:

1. local (of the same city or region)
2. national
3. international

1. summer camps (for students debating in Lithuanian, English and minority languages)

 Partners

We’re planning to cooperate:

1. with other NGOs (e.g. Center for Qualifying Schools)
2. debate NGOs of other countries (planning joint projects with Latvian and Estonian debate NGOs. We are planning to register a Baltic Debate NGO to make it easier to get funds from the Baltic foundation and Baltic community in the USA)
3. international corporations having businesses in Lithuania (e.g. Coca-Cola)

 Implementation

We’re planning to implement our goals into practice and make the program self-sustainable (receiving only small funds for administering of the program) since 2002.

 Evaluation

• Site visits and observation of activities of local debate clubs
• Pre- and post- tournaments evaluation sheets
• Comparative analysis of qualitative and quantitative evolution of each debate club

We’re planning to hire an independent team of evaluators for:

1. evaluation of the educational part of the program (by the end of 2001)
2. auditing the program (once a year)

Responsibilities of the staff:

1. to ensure smooth running of high quality debate activities
2. provide schools with information, possible equipment and research materials
3. provide teachers and coaches with high quality training
4. write projects searching for funds

1. establish criteria for certification of teachers and judges
2. evaluation of the program

1. create educational programs for teacher and student seminars
2. create programs for summer camps and tournaments

1. implement all the programs created and approved by the Program board

Second half of the year 1999 and first half of the year 2000

From September 1999 the third and the last year of the project is to begin. The first year focused on training of trainers. During the second year new groups of teachers were selected and trained. Students of Vilnius University and Vilnius Pedagogical University had an optional course "Developing Critical Thinking in Teaching of Different Subjects". During the last year of the project new groups of teachers will be selected and optional courses will be provided in Vilnius University, Vilnius Pedagogical University and Klaipeda University. Candidates, willing to deepen their knowledge in strategies and methods of “Developing Critical Thinking" and capable of training other teachers, will be selected from 500 teachers who participated during the second year of project. A project book is to be published and an external evaluation is to be conducted in the year 2000.

PARTICIPANTS OF THE PROJECT

A group of 30 persons began the training in autumn 1997. 21 of the participants, who were more or less involved in project activities, remained in the project during the second year, including 4 primary, 10 secondary teachers and 7 lecturers from Vilnius Pedagogical University. There are 4 project centers – "Vyturys" primary school, S. Daukantas secondary school, Šilute’s 1 gymnasium and Vilnius Pedagogical University. These centers independently organize seminars for teachers, conduct open lessons. They also provide the basis for students’ teaching practice.

In 1998 about 500 teachers were selected from different Lithuanian schools and education centers. More than 100 students took the optional course.

It is planned to work with 30 would-be trainers of teachers and 26 teachers of high schools during the second half of the year 1999 and the first half of the year 2000. New groups of teachers will be formed in regional education centers and project centers. The work is planned with the fifth-grade teachers in "Step by Step" schools. Summer schools are arranged for students and lecturers from high schools and universities.

WHAT’S MOST IMPORTANT

Exceptional feature of the project is that it’s not a single act. The project is continuous; it could and should go on after the end of the planned period. Working on project is a consistent process, which includes training during the seminars, approbation of acquired methods during lessons, lesson observations, discussions, analysis and improvement of the teaching process. A course of that kind lasts for at least one academic year. The nature of the project is universal; i.e. it is applicable to children of different age groups and to schools of all levels. It is also suitable for teaching all subjects from the first grade to university students. Both general secondary school teachers and university lecturers take part in the project. Some of them are teachers and lecturers at the same time. The work is done in pairs. Primary teacher can work with university lecturer and vice versa. Therefore the link between schools and universities is maintained.

SUPPOSED STRATEGY OF THE PROJECT "DEVELOPING CRITICAL THINKING BY READING AND WRITING" AFTER THE YEAR 2000

THE NEED TO CONTINUE THE PROJECT

First of all, there is a demand. At the present moment we already have 400 applicants, who are willing to join the project from autumn 1999. Another institution of higher education – Klaipeda University – would like to introduce the optional accredited course. There are acting project centers – model schools, which plan to expand their activities and strengthen their ties with universities. The optional course in Vilnius Pedagogical University will be connected with the teaching practice in project schools. The matter of equal importance is that the methodology of the project, which encourages the development of critical thinking and independent learning, perfectly fits the requirements for the modern school. As many as three participants of the project are included in the group for developing a new system of national examination. Therefore there is a possibility of making direct influence on the process of making new exams, teaching programs, textbooks and teaching materials (there are three authors of textbooks among the participants). In order to ensure successful continuation of the work, further coordination of the project is necessary.

POSSIBILITIES OF CONTINUING THE PROJECT

Teachers, lecturers, methodical project centers will be trained to continue the project. They will acquire skills and experience and will act as experts in this field.

HOW TO CONTINUE THE PROJECT

The way of continuing the project after the time allocated for it expires will depend on the possibilities of further support. Authors and coordinators of the project are thinking about different possibilities of its continuation. In any case it depends on the country needs and general situation in education. If there will be a possibility, the most preferable option is to hand on the project to state in-service training institutions. In our country the system of in-service training is not completely formed and stable. On the contrary, it’s constantly changing. The in-service training institute undergoes reorganization. The Ministry of Education and Science is still making a new draft of regulations on the in-service training, and it’s totally unclear, when it will start to operate. There are two possible ways in this ambiguous situation. The first – to terminate the project. The second – to continue the project and to look for sponsors. All the assumptions and possibilities mentioned above are in favor of continuing the project.

As we have already mentioned, the project is a bridge between general secondary schools and universities. Quite often the universities, and even the pedagogical university, prefer to remain as strictly academic institutions. They are not inclined to become the learning organizations of teacher training. Summer schools, accredited courses for the students, winter school for the Rector’s office and lecturers of the Vilnius Pedagogical University demonstrate that it is possible and even necessary to work together with institutions of higher education. Negotiations have started with Vilnius Pedagogical University about the possibility of establishing the Center of Modern Didactics. The Center could offer optional courses for students, organize teaching practice, invite serving teachers, develop inter-university connections, and create the library. The program "Developing Critical Thinking" could form the basis for the Center. It could unite all regional OSF programs, which also have prepared methods and trained lecturers, capable of working with students and teachers. This could be said about the programs like "Step by Step", "Strategies of Visual Thinking", "Conflict Resolution", "Career", "Debates", "Health Education" and "Egmont". The Center would operate as an independent institution, and the founders would be the Open Society Fund and Vilnius Pedagogical University. The Center for Educational Studies is also negotiating with Vilnius Pedagogical University about the possibilities of cooperation. Both centers could unite their efforts, expand and strengthen their activities.

FINANCING

All that time a single main donor – the Soros Foundation - funded the project. However, the Soros Foundation didn’t pay and is not currently paying the lecturers, which lead the seminars. From last September we have paid courses. Teachers’ training centers and teachers themselves cover the training costs. Universities pay for the optional course. The same principle will remain in future. If the project will become an independent institution – the Center of Modern Didactics – the main sponsors will be the founders: the Open Society Fund and Vilnius Pedagogical University. One of the possible sources of funding is the World Bank, which looks favorably at the activities of the project. Authors of the project are negotiating about the possibilities of further support of the project. It is also possible to receive support for joint projects by establishing links with other universities (e.g. North Iowa University). As one of the authors of the project is the World Reading Association, we could also address the Association. However, at least during the first years of independence the greatest support is expected from the Soros Fund. Of course, the activities of this kind could be much more focused if the perspectives of continuing the project were clearer.

PARTNERS

Main partners – the Center for Educational Studies and the regional programs, which agreed to participate in the activities of the Center of Modern Didactics. Other partners – institutions of higher education, general secondary schools and teachers’ training centers.

EVALUATION

The project was continuously assessed in a variety of ways – by talking to teachers, lecturers, students, by filling the questionnaires during the seminars, by non-structured note writing, by observation and discussion of the lessons. US lecturers-volunteers, authors and coordinators of the project were continuously observing and evaluating the project. The project is considered as one of the main leaders among joint international projects. An external evaluation will be conducted this year: both locally and internationally. Questionnaires were already filled and sent for the international evaluation. Local qualitative and quantitative evaluation will be done with the help of sociologists, who are evaluating the whole "Education for Lithuania’s Future" project.

THE STRATEGY OF THE CHILDREN SUPPORT CENTER

The years 2000 – 2001

 

A. Introduction

The development of the Children support center started in 1995 with the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Lithuania program - the project of volunteer non-professional aid for children and teenagers from incomplete or single parent’s families. In 1995 was established OSFL Big Brothers Big Sisters of Lithuania program. During 1995 and 1996 number of children coming for the service significantly increased and the spectrum of their psychological needs and problems started to vary from loneliness and lack of friends to severe sexual and/or emotional abuse. In 1996 we joined OSI network Child abuse prevention program and started co-operation with colleagues of different disciplines. Interdisciplinary team consists now of child psychiatrists, psychologists, juvenile police officers, lawyers and pediatricians. In 1998 the center became involved in joint project of Open Society Fund – Lithuania and King Baudouin Foundation - Street Children/ Children in the street. All these activities laid a foundation for the registering Children support center as independent NGO in March 1999.

B. Need:

The mission of the Children Support center is to serve the needs of children and families by implementing broad range of services, prevention and training programs and providing professional interventions that effectively encompass the uniqueness of each child, adolescent and family.

Center is to respond to massive changes in healthcare and social environment. Families in Lithuania are facing many social, economical and psychological issues that significantly affect the development of their children. During tremendous changes in social and economical life today a lot of families experiences enormous pressures. Children and adolescents, in particular, are vulnerable group and require exceptional help, support and understanding to become more healthy, creative, independent, conscious and responsible members of society. To address this need we are able through providing advocacy, prevention, education and direct services, including the development of one-to-one mentoring relationships.

On-going need assessment in local communities demonstrated that there is big number of children who need support that is to be provided by professionals or/and adult trained volunteers.

Local communities showed readiness to share some human and material resource for the start of the BBBS program.

Children Support Center have got 18 request from the schools regarding suicide and child abuse prevention programs during the one year, on going request for the psychotherapy of abused children from the SOS Kinderdorf Village, need for conducting multidisciplinary complex project in foster home, on going need for the methodological help in working with street children.  

C. Capabilities, expertise and past experience:

There are three psychologists on a staff who works in close cooperation with inter disciplinary professionals in achieving goals and providing services. Professional skills, believes, devotion and commitment of the staff is the guarantee of the success of the Children Support Center.

The Children support center is unique organization in using volunteer forces in helping children to overcome psychological crises. Vilnius BBBS program was recognized as a model program for other BBBS programs in Central and Eastern Europe and case managers of the Center became a part of the Consultant team for BBBS program network. We maintain close cooperation with BBBS of America and BBBS International organizations and it’s President Dagmar McGill. Big Brothers Big Sisters program was successfully implemented in three other cities of Lithuania – Kaunas, Klaipeda and Kretinga.

While implementing Child Abuse prevention program we work in close cooperation with professionals of different disciplines from other institutions and organizations. A lot of work was done in training Juvenile police officers, pediatricians, teachers, school psychologists who now makes interdisciplinary intellectual capital of our center as well as partners in implementing complex projects. The resource center for the people working with Street children was opened recently and offers professional support as well as library on Child abuse and Street children issues.

D. Goals:

Long-term goals:





•to enable children and adolescents at-risk and their families to cope with psychological crises and emotional disturbances that disrupt daily life and functioning at home, at school, or in the community.

•to empower at-risk children and adolescents to become independent, constructive adults by helping them to develop positive self-esteem and skills to make positive life choices.

•to develop network of professionals dealing with children for professional collaboration, support, training and supervision.

•to provide new knowledge ant skills for professionals and volunteers in children care.

•to increase public awareness about children’s needs and problems and to facilitate community involvement through volunteering shared support.





Objectives for the years 2000 – 2001:





1.Development of the national Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Lithuania organization network:






•To facilitate establishment of BB/BS programs in other 5 cities;

•to develop, print and publish Manual of BB/BS Of Lithuania standard procedures;

•To initiate programs network formalizing including professionals, volunteers and children;

•To organize first National BB/BS of Lithuania conference;

•To organize National Forum for children and volunteers participating in the program






1.Child abuse prevention and treatment






•To organize on going group training in child abuse prevention - "Parenting skills school" ;

•To implement psychological – educational intervention project for temporary foster care home for abused and neglected children "Atsigrezk";

•To organize international conference on Child and Adolescence suicide prevention and treatment;

•To organize continuous evaluation and treatment possibilities for child abuse victims;

•To translate and publish book on Questioning Children for professionals in the field of child abuse.

•To conduct suicide prevention education for teachers and school psychologists.

•To start to implement violence prevention program in school.






1.Street children/Children in the street program






•To operate Resource center for the people working with Street children;

•To manage training and special seminars according to the needs of the participants;

•To coordinate planing and activities of NGO’s / individuals involved into the work with children in the streets and to create a network;

•to raise public awareness on the problem of street children/children in the streets;





E. Management of the center:

Center is an independent public institution. The management structures of the Center are the Administration and the Board. The OSF – Lithuania Board - the founder of the Center - approved the composition of the Center’s Board. Members of the Board are following:





1.Audra Juodeskiene – President of the Board – representative of Eli-Lily (Suisse).

2.Ausra Maldeikiene - Baltic News Service, Editor of Economics Section.

3.Loreta Zadeikaite – Ministry of Education, Chief of the Learning Content Department.

4.Kristina-Ona Polukordiene – Youth Psychological aid center, director

5.Violeta Toleikiene – Open society Fund – Lithuania, program coordinator.

6.Arunas Siksta – HansaBank, Executive Director.





The Board of the Center approves strategy directions and activities, defines administrative and organizational structures and approves annual reports. The administration organizes and runs daily activities of the Center. The staff consists of the three full time professional psychologist: director, Big Brothers Big Sisters program coordinator, Street children program coordinator and a part time technical assistant.

F. Strategy. Program and services

The long term goals and nearest objectives are to be achieved through the continuos program and services. The Center is providing day-to-day services for children and families as well as organizes and participates in special projects involving local and international partners.

EDUCATION






•training programs for building interdisciplinary team for child abuse prevention and intervention

•training programs and supervisions for Children hot-line volunteers

•training programs and supervisions for school psychologists

•special training programs for nurses, pediatricians and social workers

•"Parenting skills school "

•training and consulting coordinators for establishing and developing the program "Big Brothers Big Sisters ".






CHILD ABUSE AND SUICIDE PREVENTION






•child abuse prevention programs for teachers, nurses and social workers

•suicide prevention program for social workers and teachers

•Activities for increasing public awareness about child abuse problem, designing and distributing publications, booklets and posters.

•Organization of seminars, conferences and consultation on child abuse issue for child field professionals.

•Cooperation with state and NGO children protection agencies, juveniles police, education institutions.

•School-based social skills education for children and youth in violence prevention.






MENTORING






•"Big Brothers Big Sisters" program - making professionally supported one-to-one relationships between child in need and caring adult (trained volunteer) and supervising the match.

•Promotion and coordination of "Big Brothers Big Sisters" program expansion in Lithuania.






PREVENTION PROGRAM "STREET CHILDREN / CHILDREN IN THE STREET"






•Operating the resource center

•Developing and organizing training for the people working with the "Street children/children in the streets".








PSYCHOLOGICAL COUNSELLING






•Providing individual, family and group psychotherapy for children and adolescents at risk of substance abuse, school problems, family conflicts and other psychological crisis.

•Providing counseling for parents and teachers in child guidance, child development, constructive problem solving and discipline styles.

•Providing treatment for victims of physical, emotional or sexual abuse.






The Center is seeking to become a self sustain organization. For that purpose we are going:





•To offer various paid services for the families and children and for the larger community.

•To participate in fund raising activities through the BBBS International organization

•To collaborate with state institutions and seek state support.

•To apply to the various International foundations for the new project development and implementation.





G. Partners:

For the year 2000 and in the future our main partners are to be:





•Child Development Center, Vilnius University Clinic;

•Safe Child Center, Kaunas;

•Children’s Right’s Protection Agency;

•Vilnius Juveniles Police office;

•SOS Kinderdorf Village, Vilnius

•Vilnius Psychotherapeutic Center;

•School Psychological Service Center

•Big Brothers Big Sisters International , president Dagmar McGill;

•King Baudouin Foundation;

•Mental Health Alliance, NY

•Association for promoting social and emotional competencies, Denmark

•Nobody’s Children Foundation, Poland





 Projects applied for the year 2000:




1.Council of Europe Programme for Children. "Big Brothers Big Sisters Lithuania: National Network Development" 2.Nordic Council of Ministers "School Based Social Skills Education for Children and Youth in Violence Prevention"




H. Evaluation

Local and international experts in the field constantly evaluate the activities of the center. The success of the Big Brothers Big Sisters program is measured by the growing number of matches, by the growing interest and number of BBBS programs in Lithuania, by the quality and time length of the matches. The Pedagogical University and Ministry of Education recognize volunteer training program as a solid training program for the social pedagogues.

The pilot study in Vilnius evidenced of considerable impact of volunteering support for children in BB/BS programs where 40-70% of children has improved their academic achievements, behavioral patterns and relationship with parents and peers. The same study proved that 87% volunteers see the meaningfulness and impact of their work for children and for themselves.

The Children Support Center achieved publicity and is identified as by it’s name in social, educational and other state institutions and NGOs in Vilnius. It became known in the community as a valuable service for the children at risk and as a partner in implementing prevention and intervention projects in the field of Child abuse.

In the year 2000 we are planing to conduct audit of the Center activities by the independent auditors.

 

Contact person: Address:

Ausra Kuriene Saltoniskiu 58 - 106

Director Vilnius 2034

Children Support Center e-mail: ausra@osf.lt

As we approach the close of the twentieth century, the world in which we live and work continues to change and become more complex. Far-reaching changes are occurring in the nature and structure of the personal, social, political and economic systems in which people live and the occupational and industrial structures where they work. More and more people are looking for meaning in their lives, particularly through personal development, family relationships, education, work, community involvement and leisure activities. Do support structures exist within formal and informal social institutions that enable people to pursue the satisfaction they want?

The Open Society Career Center will be the first and only institution in Lithuania dealing with the human career in the broadest meaning of the term—as the formal or informal occupation an individual chooses. This broad view of the concept of a career encompasses issues of self-realization, satisfaction, self-esteem and social development.

The overarching need, of which the particulars below are part, is to combat the negative perception of the concept of "career". Formerly, "careerism" implied conforming to official policies in order to secure a job or professional advancement. If people are to find the personal satisfaction they seek through their jobs, then a "career" must connote a freely chosen, personally directed occupation that is consistent with personal development.

During the past ten years our society has been developing from the closed, soviet model, toward an open, civil society. For instance, the free market economy that is developing in Lithuania has had, and will continue to have, a great impact on our social structures because it implies freedom of choice. As freedoms continue to develop and expand, Lithuanian youth, who did not directly experience the repression and indoctrination of soviet times, will be a primary conduit of democratic ideas and a vehicle of the development of an open society. By creating a confident generation of young people who are well informed about their career options, and well equipped to shape and direct their own professional development, according to their own choices, we can encourage the development of the open society we seek.

Currently, employment initiatives focus on finding the unemployed jobs. However, insufficient attention is given to the task of matching people—especially the young educated and talented—with appropriate, motivating jobs that coincide with their particular skills and interests. It is this type of "matching" that will enable each person to flourish and to contribute optimally to his/her job and to the democratic and economically strong society we wish to build. No such catalyst for career optimization currently exists in Lithuania. Career guidance structures do not exist in universities or secondary schools. Indeed, to date, there has not been any stable, socialized way in which such strategies could have been learned. We aim to introduce vehicles for self-assessment, career exploration and adequate preparation for one’s chosen career path, for youth, students and recent graduates.

But it is not enough to focus only on the young generation. Today, remnants of the old system remain. Bureaucratic license and corruption still threaten the emergence of merit-based employment and equal opportunity. Seemingly "arbitrary" rules limit access to education and professional opportunities for a variety of groups, on the basis of gender, physical disability, age, and other non-essential factors. An "inheritors caste" in which social privileges and opportunities are derived from parents’ social and/or professional position rather than from individual ability, persists. Most employers do not broadly or actively recruit from among the growing well-educated young adults. Youth unemployment already appears to be a major source of widespread depression among students and graduates. If young adults continue to perceive that their abilities and talents are not adequately appreciated by the employer community, they will increasingly seek work outside Lithuania. The Career Center will help employers to access Lithuania’s young "intellectual capital" by providing an infrastructure for broad-based, frequent connections with young job-seekers in an equal opportunity context.

Since independence, Lithuania has aspires to rapid economic development. The technological progress that is characteristic of other "economically advanced" countries, leads to a continually changing labor market that constantly adapts to changes in supply and demand. It is in some ways an encouraging fact that Lithuania has begun to see the emergence of a similarly dynamic labor market: in recent years, some industries have shrunk, and others have begun to expand. However, this dynamism has created problems as well. Mismatches have developed between people’s skills and those that are in demand, and unemployment has grown. Individuals’ ability to change careers in response to a dynamic labor market is increasingly essential to curbing unemployment. Currently, employment offices exist, but they deal only with lower-skilled workers and do not work with highly skilled professionals. The Career Center aims to fill this gap by helping professionals to adapt to the changing market.

The newly established Career Center will imply all strengths and positive experience and achievements of OSFL Kaunas center, which had a strong focus on student advising, career development , conflict management, mediation, and peer counseling.
Over more than six years, we achieved outstanding results in creating a network of human resources – trainers, project managers, experts, consultants, volunteers, and supporters -- on national and international levels. Through this network of people we have remained informed on the newest career guidance and development issues, and based on our learning we have developed perspectives on how to integrate these issues into our own society.

We already have a small but client-centered, well equipped and academic and educational community based resource and advising center located on the Vytautas Magnus University campus. This center will be the basis for the proposed Career Center. Our location and the collaborative relationship we have already developed with the university will model and enable cooperation between the newly developed Career center and educational institutions in Lithuania and abroad.

Qualitative and quantitative research conducted through Kaunas center has corroborated our perceptions that there is poor support for young people in the management of their careers, and that young people are experiencing increasing levels of social insecurity and uncertainty. Findings also indicated that young people lack the ability to recognize and market their skills. The results showed that the career choice problem is not only age related but also stems from family socialization, financial issues and career prestige matters. Aiming to meet the ends shapes a challenge for the professionals in the field to produce new knowledge for approaching new life cross-roads.

LONG-TERM GOALS

1. Reduce the rate at which young people are leaving Lithuania to live and work abroad (slow the "brain drain") by:

• Equipping youth (starting in secondary schools) to direct their own career progress by providing information and skills related to making satisfying career choices, and securing desirable jobs.
• Encouraging an equal opportunity environment, legally and socially, in which educational opportunities are equally available to all, and all candidates with appropriate skills are able to apply for a particular job.

1. Reduce youth unemployment by:

- Creating an infrastructure through which employers can market their needs and youth can market their skills

- Encouraging an equal opportunity environment

- Equipping youth to be flexible in their career management, to adapt to a dynamic job market.

2. To help professionals find alternative careers when demand for their skills in the labor market decreases by:

• Providing access to information regarding the changing needs of employers and ways to update/improve skills to be marketable to them

EVALUATION AND SUCCESS INDICATORS

1. Reduction in proportion of young graduates who migrate outside of Lithuania for employment.
2. Equalization of employment rates between different groups, for which equal opportunity has not historically existed.
3. Reduction in youth unemployment rates
4. Success rate for those who wish to change careers at finding employment in their chosen field.
5. Job satisfaction rates for targeted groups.

1. Career guidance will be seen as a life-long process, because "career" might
involve different occupational sector at different stages of a persons’ lifetime.

2. Elements of career guidance and management will be built into the curriculum of
   educational institutions along with internships that allow students to put the things
   they learn into practice.
3. Modern citizens will be able to anticipate and adapt to cultural, organizational and technological development. They will assimilate a creative life strategy – a strategy based on the stimulation and development of psychological mechanisms, which are generating a creative behaviour – a stage of creation and recreation of personality, a process of the individual development like a unique entity.
4. The society will alter its responsibility to support the individual’s professional development efforts, and will get involved in giving value to the existing intellectual potential.

1. The role of career guidance and management in relation to social change will be explored and some possible implications to career theory will be outlined.

The planning phase of the project will last until the end of 1999. Implementation will begin at the start of the year 2000.

Career Counseling Services 2000 January - 2001 December

• Psychological testing of abilities, interests and skills;
• Information about study programs in Lithuania and abroad;
• Education on strategies and tactics for finding a job and/or requalification;
• Information about the labor market’s dynamics and individual industry profiles;
• Instruction and consulting on preparation of CV, cover letters, and interview skills;
• Recruiting strategies for employers and recruitment programs for students

Elite self-realization in Lithuania 2000 January - 2001 December

Aims: To encourage bright young Lithuanians to be exposed to the broadest possible
range of concepts and ideas through advanced study programs both in
Lithuania and abroad, and
To encourage "the best and brightest" to remain in/return to Lithuania to
live/work permanently

Career Management 2000 January - 2001 December

• Seminars, lectures and videotrainings on theory and methodology of career planning/realization.
• Sponsorship of "Career days"
• Providing recruitment infrastructure, such as pre-recruiting employer information sessions, interviewing venues and schedules, etc.

Career Management Research/Database 2000 January - 2001 December

Aims To develop and update electronic database that provides information and

statistics on available professions/jobs in Lithuania and abroad, the
opportunities to acquire these jobs, and the changing needs of the labour
market.

Educational Curriculum Advising 2000 January - 2001 December

Aims To advise educational institutions on the incorporation of new curricula
commensurate with the changing needs of the job market.

• OSF
• Vytautas Magnus University
• Ministry of Education and its educational institutions
• Ministry of Social Affairs
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including Embassies
• International Association for Educational and Vocational Guidance
• Corporate sector
• Student Associations
• Training and Career Guidance Association, UK
• United States Information Agency
• PAR (Psychological Assessment Resource, Inc.)
• John Hopkins University, USA
• Peace Corps of the United States
• Art Council of England
• Council for Exceptional Children, USA
• American Psychological Association
• The Association of "Empowering Education"in Ukraine
• The Educational Center for Families and Schools in Latvia
• EAIE –European Association for International Education
• NAFSA – Association of International Educators

1. The Founders of the center are OSFL and Vytautas Magnus University. The management structures of the center are the administration and the Board. Board members are appointed by the Founders. They help to determine organizational structure of the center, strategic directions, priorities, approve activities and the budget and provide professional support. The Administration run every day activities.