Powerful educational centers give additional impetus to the development of cities
The situation that has developed today in the labor market can be considered both dramatic and unique at the same time. According to industry experts, Russia lacks about 5 million specialists. It seems that Russia has never encountered such a large-scale shortage of personnel in modern history. For planned and systematic development, our country needs millions of blue-collar and technical specialists who possess modern programs and equipment.
Photo: User:Yuriy75. Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4728956
In order to provide the economy with workers, the authorities launched the educational project «Professionality». Read about how this state program is developing in the regions using the example of the Kuban city of Ust-Labinsk in our article.
Ust-Labinsk is located 50 km from Krasnodar, on the picturesque bank of the Kuban River. The city with a population of just over 40 thousand people has a rich history and originates from a fortress built by order of Field Marshal Suvorov in 1778. It was one of the many outposts that protected the south of the country from the raids of the Nogai tribes.
In 1783, one of the largest battles of Suvorov's Trans-Kuban campaign took place nearby, in which the Nogai troops were utterly defeated. Over time, a settlement appeared around the fortress, called Aleksandrovskaya (in honor of the future Emperor Alexander I), which turned into a city. In memory of the heroic past, a large Cossack culture festival, «Aleksandrovskaya Fortress», has been held in Ust-Labinsk for several years.
Today Ust-Labinsk is a typical Kuban city, lost among endless fields. Wheat, sunflower, corn — what kind of crops are not grown here. Among the endless hectares that turn yellow to the horizon, it is not difficult for a predominantly one-story city with a lot of private sector to get lost.
Winters here are mild, and in summer the heat is unbearable – Temperatures below +40 on the thermometer are normal. Therefore, closer to lunch, the city streets are empty, and in the evening, when the heat subsides a little, people leave their houses again. Points of attraction in the city have been familiar to many Russians since childhood – a square near the Eternal Flame, a city park, a palace of culture, the facades of which are decorated with mosaic panels depicting astronauts, scientists and grain farmers.
Local historian Tatyana Ignatova calls Ust-Labinsk the breadbasket of Kuban. “We have a small city, but Ust-Labinsk and the region occupy an important place in the Krasnodar Territory in terms of agricultural production volumes. The main employment of people is in agriculture. There is an essential oil plant, a dairy, a sugar and a meat plant. Thanks to investments, the city is developing dynamically, this is visible to the naked eye,” she says.
One of the architectural pearls of the city – This is a building built in the mid-19th century that houses the Ust-Labinsk Social and Pedagogical College (USPK).
Today, the admission campaign is in full swing and will last until mid-August. Every year, more than a thousand ninth-graders receive certificates in the Ust-Labinsky District. Some continue their education further, finishing 11th grade, some go to colleges and technical schools in Krasnodar, but many enter USPK. People come here to study, including from neighboring villages and settlements.
Right now, the college is accepting its first students for the programs of the recently launched federal project «Professionality».
On the basis of USPK, with the support of the energy holding «En+», an educational cluster «Center for the Development of Digitalization of the Krasnodar Territory» was formed, where future IT specialists are trained. Students who sign a target agreement with the company will be guaranteed to get a job there after training. In addition, they will be paid a monthly stipend of 4 thousand rubles depending on their academic performance.
To apply the acquired knowledge and skills in practice, all students will undergo an internship at En+ Digital. She oversees the digitalization process of the energy holding's facilities in Siberia, which include 4 hydroelectric power plants (including some of the largest in the country, the Bratsk, Ust-Ilimsk, and Krasnoyarsk hydroelectric power plants), as well as 11 thermal power plants.
College Director Ekaterina Grozina notes that there are many ninth-grade graduates who want to become IT specialists. «The flow of applications is very high, because young people want to get a relevant profession. The guys are attracted by the opportunity to find employment in a large company, transparent career prospects, new life trajectories,» she says.
The energy holding's assistance to the college is no coincidence: its founder, industrialist Oleg Deripaska, spent a significant part of his childhood in Ust-Labinsk, and now actively contributes to the development of the city in every sense of the word.
For example, in 2019, with his assistance, the First Lobachevsky University Lyceum was opened here, where Moscow State University graduates teach. With the support of the entrepreneur, the already mentioned Aleksandrovskaya Fortress festival is also being implemented, and the Progress Agro agricultural holding founded by him provides jobs for several thousand people in the region.
“Digitalization of the economy is inevitable, the real sector really needs specialists trained in practical skills and ready to immediately produce results, without a long adaptation period and retraining. The two key areas of training at the college are pedagogy, the specialties in which we plan to expand, and the new IT direction. We also have blue-collar jobs that are in demand in the Krasnodar Territory: electricians, builders, tractor drivers,”, said Ekaterina Grozina.
Like the city, Ust-Labinsk Social and Pedagogical College has a long history, which dates back almost 100 years. Teachers say that it used to be one of the flagships of pedagogical education in the region, but gradually lost its former laurels. However, the federal project «Professionalism» helped breathe new life into it.
Today, «En+» is investing significant funds in its re-equipment, and a program for the development of the college for several years ahead is being formed. «We do not want to live only for today, so we are making long-term plans,» emphasized Ekaterina Grozina.
She also added that thanks to participation in the state program, the mentality of USPK teachers is changing, and new approaches to teaching are being formed. The material and technical base of the college is being developed, which has a positive effect on student motivation. A new academic building is being built, the historic main building is being renovated, and new equipment is being purchased that is necessary for students to effectively master the curriculum.
All this, together with the opportunity to obtain a profession that is in demand on the labor market, will be the driver that will allow school graduates to stay in the city, rather than leave in search of better conditions and prospects.
“Our task is to revive the glorious traditions of training specialists, which USPK used to be rightfully proud of, with the support of the regional Ministry of Education and a reliable investor. Today we are doing everything to lay the foundation for this. We want the college to become a unique educational institution for Ust-Labinsk, where about 100 thousand people live together with the district,” says Ekaterina Grozina.
The director of USPK is confident that the development of education is the foundation of all positive changes. “Education is the basis of progress. Where powerful educational centers appear, people's horizons broaden, new projects appear, the quality of life changes for the better, they give an additional impetus to the development of the city,» Ekaterina Grozina summed up.