Skaistkalne school seeks to retain secondary status

Skaistkalne Secondary School is three students short of the minimum required at secondary level, but has until the end of December to improve its numbers. LSM reported, citing Zemgale Regional Television, that the school and parents are looking for ways to attract more students.

The school in Bauska Municipality is among several whose student numbers are being monitored before decisions are made about their future. It currently has 219 pupils and 50 children in preschool. The school has operated for more than 100 years in the historic Skaistkalne Manor, on the Latvian-Lithuanian border by the Memele River.

Headteacher Dzintra Noreika said the school hopes to get through the next three years, when it expects classes of 20, 19 and 21 pupils. To attract students, it is preparing a distance-learning secondary education programme, which is still awaiting licensing.

Students also travel to Skaistkalne from nearby parishes, including Kurmene, Valle and Bārbele. Daniels, a 12th-grade student, makes the 13-kilometre journey from Kurmene each day. He said the school offers many activities and clubs, and recently built a sports hall.

The school employs 40 teachers. Latvian teacher Daina Kundziņa said smaller classes allow staff to know their students and provide more individual attention.