On October 2, an online webinar titled “Mental Health and Stress: How to Maintain Balance in Challenging Times” was held. The webinar focused on maintaining mental health and developing effective stress-management skills.
The speaker was Oleksii Karachynskyi, PhD in Psychology, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Philosophy of the Faculty of Sociology and Law, psychologist, psychotherapist, and veteran.
The event was also attended by lecturers of the Department of Philosophy Natalia Tymoshenko, Zosia Kais, Maryna Storozhyk, Tetiana Svidlo, and Natalia Denysenko, as well as first-, second-, and fourth-year students of the Social Work and Counselling programme.
During the webinar, participants explored the causes of anxiety and stress, their impact on the body and everyday life, and practical tools that can help them manage emotional tension more effectively and maintain inner balance in challenging times.
The event was held in cooperation between the Department of Philosophy of the Faculty of Sociology and Law and the Social and Psychological Support Department of Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute. The webinar was organized by Anastasiia Zhukova, Lecturer at the Department of Philosophy of the Faculty of Sociology and Law and Head of the Social and Psychological Support Department.
Such meetings contribute to fostering a culture of mental health care within the university community and help participants find practical ways to maintain their psychological resources and well-being.
Recently, Volodymyr Yakovenko, head of the NGO “Youth Agency for the Advocacy of Roma Culture “ARCA”, visited a class in the course “Inclusive Approaches to Organising and Running Socio-Cultural Events”, taught by Nataliia Vainilovych.
As part of the course, Social Work students design projects for participatory and inclusive events for different communities. One of the students chose Roma teenagers as the target group for her project. To make sure the event would be ethically sound, meet the community’s real needs and do no harm, we invited a representative of the community to talk with us.
During the meeting, we learned many important nuances. For example: 🔹 reaching the Roma community often happens through NGOs and community initiatives, personal contacts, or Protestant churches; 🔹 it is better to avoid the word “integration” in event announcements: state institutions often use it to mean assimilation, a process in which the community loses its language, customs and other features of its culture.
The conversation was professional, candid and full of real-life examples of how Roma people face discrimination and how to avoid it when planning social events.
We sincerely thank Volodymyr Yakovenko and the NGO “Youth Agency for the Advocacy of Roma Culture “ARCA” for the lively dialogue with our students and for the chance to learn about their work on increasing the visibility of the Roma community and destigmatising it.
The work of social workers changes alongside people’s needs. Professionals need opportunities to update their knowledge and develop their skills, while the state has a responsibility to support them in this process.
That is why the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has adopted a resolution developed by the Ministry of Social Policy, Family and Unity of Ukraine, introducing a unified system for the professional development of social sector workers.
We developed this initiative together with UNICEF Ukraine and the League of Social Workers of Ukraine, with the support of the Government of Sweden, and based it on the needs of professionals. We conducted two studies of the sector’s human resources capacity, collected feedback from social service workers and managers across the regions, and involved educational institutions and experts in the process.
📉 The studies showed that only about 15% of social sector workers have specialized professional education. This highlights the need for accessible learning and professional development opportunities for those already working in the field.
The professional development system will be coordinated by the National Social Service of Ukraine. It will approve training programs, identify priority areas, and publish information about available training opportunities and their providers.
Professionals will be able to choose learning opportunities according to their individual needs. These may include courses, training sessions, internships, peer-learning and experience-sharing opportunities, or self-directed learning. For those just entering the field, the system provides for weekly supervision during the first three months of employment, as well as a basic training program. Learning outcomes will be recognized through ECTS credits and taken into account during professional certification. Professionals will be encouraged to earn at least one ECTS credit each year — equivalent to 30 hours of learning.
The system will help professionals grow in their careers and receive ongoing support in their work. Its implementation will not require additional expenditures from the state or local budgets.
Ihor Meshchan, Associate Professor at the Department of Philosophy of Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute, PhD in Sociology, and Director of the Department of Social Protection of the Population of the Kyiv Regional State Administration, organized a series of field lectures for postgraduate students of the Department.
The lectures focused on the implementation of integrated social services in territorial communities. As part of the educational program, postgraduate students had an opportunity to explore practical approaches to organizing social support services through the experience of the Bucha Center for Social Services and Psychological Support.
The Municipal Non-Commercial Enterprise “Bucha Center for Social Services and Psychological Support” of the Bucha City Council, headed by Director Olena Renchka, operates as a unified municipal institution providing a wide range of social and psychological services through specialized services and multidisciplinary teams.
The Center provides, in particular:
Day Care Service for Children with Disabilities, focused on care, development, and socialization;
Early Intervention Team, supporting families with children aged 0–4 and promoting children’s development and family well-being;
Psychological Service, offering individual consultations, psychosomatic support groups for adolescents, and psychosocial assistance;
Social Support Service, assisting families experiencing difficult life circumstances;
Mobile Outreach Team, providing services to residents of remote settlements within the Bucha community;
Social Taxi Service, providing specialized transportation for children with mobility impairments;
Center for Comprehensive Child Development and Support.
A Family-Centered Model of Support
Particular attention during the field lecture was devoted to the newly established Center for Comprehensive Child Development and Support.
The Center operates on the basis of a modern, family-centered approach and introduces an integrated model of support for children and their families. It brings together early intervention, day care for children with disabilities, rehabilitation, and resilience-building services within a single system.
Unlike traditional models, in which individual services often operate separately, the Center provides a continuous pathway of support — from the early identification of a child’s needs to long-term assistance in the child’s development and the strengthening of family resilience.
Each family can receive comprehensive support based on an individualized plan. Such an approach helps families develop their capacity to respond to life challenges, reduces the need for institutional care, and promotes the social inclusion of children within their community.
Early Intervention: Ages 0–4
Approximately 150 young children with developmental impairments live in the community. To support these children and improve their quality of life, the Center has established a qualified multidisciplinary team that includes a psychologist, speech and language therapist, and physical therapist.
Support is provided primarily through parents. Specialists conduct home visits and combine them with sessions at the Center, enabling families to receive assistance within their everyday environment.
Rehabilitation: Ages 0–18
The community is home to approximately 370 children with disabilities. The Center provides individualized programs of physical, psychological, and sensory therapy.
Day care services focus not only on providing care but also on children’s socialization and the development of self-care skills.
The Center’s resilience-building services are designed to support the entire family. They include psychosocial support, parent support groups, family therapy, and art therapy for children.
The field lectures provided postgraduate students with an opportunity to see how the concept of integrated social services can be implemented in practice and how coordinated, family-centered support can contribute to the well-being and inclusion of children and their families within the community.
On September 26–27, 2026, the Institute of Innovative Education of Kyiv National University of Construction and Architecture (KNUCA) hosted the fifth annual Seminar for Chess Coaches, organized by Debut Chess School and its founders and directors, Serhii Mykolaiovych and Serhii Serhiiovych Stavroiani, with the support of the Chess Federation of Ukraine.
The seminar brought together more than 30 professionals from all over Ukraine. During two intensive days of learning, the participants had an opportunity to exchange experience and insights from various areas of professional practice.
This year, among the speakers were Yuliia Strebkova and Zosia Kais, lecturers at the Department of Philosophy of Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute (KPI).
Yuliia Strebkova spoke about safety in the training process, focusing on potential risks in the work of chess coaches and ways to prevent them. She provided a detailed overview of first aid and, during the practical session, taught the participants how to measure blood pressure correctly. In addition, Yuliia shared many useful recommendations on maintaining physical well-being, healthy sleep and nutrition routines, as well as methods for preventing stress and fatigue.
Zosia Kais spoke about the image of a chess coach and shared some insights into consciously developing a professional image. The discussion focused on the coach’s visual image and personal style, rhetorical image and ways to improve speech technique and communication skills, as well as confident communication with others, corporate image, and the conscious development of one’s informational image.
As always, the seminar was held in a warm and friendly atmosphere of open and sincere communication and exchange of ideas.
