'The story of the School "Vadu Soresti"

Welcome to the world of education in the Romanian countryside! :-)

We`ve already mentioned the school in Vadu Soresti in this blog, when we described the project "FROM ZERO". As we wrote, a part of the funds has been devoted to the renovation… of the abandoned institution.

This "abandonment" began in 2008, when students had to start going to school in Zarnesti, waiting for the renovation of the building, and the primary school from Pruneni was moved to... Vadu Soresti.

However, in 2010 the School of Vadu Foresti lost its legal status. Therefore, the local children (according to the latest available data, their number is 132) go to school in Zarnesti, still in the same municipality, but not as close to home as the previous generation of pupils.

Among the members of our Chinese Language Camp there are people who have to spend hours to get to school every day (since primary school), and it definitely means a waste of time. Child should either use their time to learn, or to have fun, but the time spent in the bus on the way to school is unrecoverable. I think it`s quite clear, though.

In the Internet we found some evocative images of this school. It does not look so bad, so the restoration doesn`t seem impossible, neither do further repairs. 

 Apart from the option which implements valuation of the school building, there are variants in which the reconstruction can help distinguish Vadu Soresti.

 We know that this statement might sound strange, so we use the information recorded by Mr. Professor Constantin Baciu, so you can realize what are its sources and reasons.

 Although the school mentioned above is located in a rural area, this building is 115 years old. As an institution, for the first time is was mentioned in documents in 1845, 170 years ago. Back then, only 15 students visited the school! At that time, 9 pupils attended the school in Clociti or currently Pruneni (in the pictures of Nania Forest in fact you can see Pruneni). And we you go back in earlier times, we can learn from the archive documents that in 1838, 177 years ago, the activity directed at "recovering" the local education has already started. On the 28 April of the same year, potential teachers were gathered from the villages Zarnesti, Clociti (today Pruneni) Ghizdita and Vadu Soresti.   

The schools were closed in 1848, during the Revolution, many teachers participated in these events, among them Radu Poescu, a teacher from Vadu Soresti and Clociti, is mentioned.

       In 1865, after the Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza (ruler of Moldavia and Wallachia between January 24, 1859 - February 23, 1866) had adopted the "Act on public education," according to which primary education in Romania became free and compulsory, a small institution Vadu Soresti Primary School appears in documents. Let us mention that the acquisition of general (compulsory) education lasted 7 years in 1948, and 8 years in 1963. From 1877 until 1912  Ilie Poescu from Prahova county (western part of the province Buzau) worked there as a teacher. After having married in Vadu Soresti, he founded a school on the basis of existing institution, in the old building.

       

And now we are going back to the year 1900, when the old school was torn down and a new one was built, according to Minister of Education Spiru Haret`s plan, which comprised the construction of schools in all Romanian villages "for cultural emancipation of the peasants and liquidation of their ignorance." Among the names of the teachers in the years 1920-1968, the name of Rebeca Dobrescu appears, so the testimony of the School of Vadu Soresti shows that from that time (perhaps even earlier documents exist), education in the village does not discriminate sex, and girls were encouraged to study.

Some teachers of those times - Matei Dobrescu, Alec Ionita Nestorescu, Irina and Pavel Munteanu, Ion and Aurelia Stefan were buried in the cemetery Vadu Soresti, near the church, but we will tell this story next time.

You will meet other teachers and professors (there are mostly former Vadu Soresti school students among them), if you come to the village to attend Chinese courses, or as a guest or tourist. Some of these teachers retired after 1968, some of them are still working. According to the available data (only until 1988), "local children from Vadu Soresti" have become: engineers (13), doctors (70), professors (17), economists (3), teachers (12), officers (7), priests (2) and architects (12).

Of course, up to 2015 the number of those who have succeeded professionally is much higher. Therefore, reading "Tales of Vadu Soresti School", shown here in a nutshell, can be very interesting and even useful - for writing a paper, for example. You have a chance to find out further details, to know events and stories associated with an educational institution in particular, and the Romanian village in general directly from the source, from the local teachers.

Pre-school education also attracted officials` attention in 1963, when 8 years education became compulsory, a kindergarten was founded, which is now called "Kindergarten with basic curriculum Vadu Soresti". According to the latest data, 30 children visit it.

Also in 1963, outbuildings for school laboratories were built, new furniture and teaching materials were bought, a school library was founded, which later "melted away" reason, time and place being unknown. We got this information only on the spot.

Also, there was a Cultural Centre, different shows and festivals were organized, where the students of Vadu Soresti School themselves acted as actors and singers on stage. There was a cinema, where local people were meeting each other for decades to see the pieces of "seventh art".

Once, in the same building you could also be a witness of weddings and other Romanian customs, representing cultural values since the time of Dacia and preserved up to our days. So, without going to the "territory of paranormal", you can travel back in time in Vadu Soresti.

Basing on the data we have, "time machine" mentioned above can be found now in kindergarten building, because not only it has not been forgotten, it exists and waits until you learn about it.

Cultural Centre, built near the school, is a beautiful renovated building, it looks even nice on the outside, but inside it is dark and deserted after the fire.

We wish you a good day!

The "Chinese Language Camp" Team