12 September 2023
TOPEKA (KSNT) — As students are coming back to school, USD 501 announced one language has moved up the ranks and is now considered one of the most common in the district.
Last year, Topeka Public Schools welcomed Ukrainian refugees into its schools after escaping their home country because of the Russian-Ukrainian war. This year, there are 25 Ukrainian families with more than 40 students enrolled at seven different schools in the district from elementary all the way up to high school.
With this many new students in the district, Ukrainian is the third most common language this school year. For some, communication in the classroom has gotten easier this past year, but others still practice their native language so they don’t lose it.
“Sometimes to communicate with teachers and other students, it was kind of hard,” Diana Shapovalova, a Topeka high student said. “But this year, no; this year is much easier.
“Of course, we don’t want to lose connection, and I want that she remember her [Polina, Jardine Elementary school student] national language,” Svitlana Isakova, mother of Polina said. “That’s why we study, continue educated in Ukrainian; she can read in Ukrainian, she can write in Ukrainian.”
These families say it’s been helpful to have others who know what they’re going through at the same schools and in the community so they can bond over these shared experiences.