Zelenodolsk building a school by donations

Education in Islamic traditions

The building area of the multilingual school is about 5,000 square meters. The future educational institution is designed for 500 students. It is assumed that children from 1st to 11th grade will study here, and the main emphasis will be on spiritual education and learning languages — Russian, Tatar, Arabic and English. At the same time, the training will be organised in the Islamic traditions. For example, students will be provided with halal food. Currently, work is underway to develop a special program for an unusual school, said one of the authors of the idea, philanthropist Ilyas Gimadov.

“We have recruited a serious team that develops a training program, taking into account the experience of the best schools, including international ones. At school, classes will be divided by gender — from the 5th grade, girls will study separately from boys. The special features of this school include its location next to the mosque. Muslim students will be able to recite prayer here. Education at the school itself is secular, but after graduation, children will be able to receive religious education and upbringing within the walls of the mosque," the entrepreneur explained.

“This is not a business project”

The cost of the facility is estimated at more than 700 million rubles. The construction is carried out entirely at the expense of philanthropists. Parents will need to pay for their education. Exactly what amount is still unknown, however, according to the organisers, it will be symbolic.

“Despite that the training will be paid, this is not a business project, but a truly social one. If it were implemented in the interests of business, the school would have one investor who would become its owner and beneficiary. The situation here is completely different. The school building will belong to the Muslim Spiritual Board of the Republic of Tatarstan, it is a waqf, not a private building. This is a public school, as the construction is carried out with public money. This is the school of the Ummah. A certain amount of tuition will be charged primarily in order to pay decent salaries to teachers. In addition, a grant-based education system is provided for talented children," said Ilyas Gimadov.

Everyone understands that it is a difficult task to staff a school with high-level teachers. Therefore, it is planned to build another one next to the school building, which will serve as a kind of boarding house, where teachers will receive their square meters, and students from other districts will have the opportunity to stay here during their studies, said Ildar Gataullin, the author of the idea of building the school, imam-khatib of the Jamig mosque in Zelenodolsk.

“The demand for such an educational institution is very high. Today, fortunately, a lot of mosques are being built in Tatarstan, there are about 1,600 throughout the republic. But there is no such project. Already today, people are asking how everything will be organised when the construction of the school is completed. Even representatives of other faiths come to us. The doors will be open for children from all over Tatarstan," the imam assured.

“We're still in the red”

“The mosque's territory is about 12,500 square metres. Until now, only the mosque itself and the refectory stood here. Now a school is being built, the idea of which we have been hatching for about 10 years. After the decision to start construction and the support of patrons, we made a preliminary design, which we defended in the city council. Then he passed the examination and the construction began. So far, we are in the red by 8 million rubles, but we do not want to stop the construction, we hope for the help of those who are not indifferent," Ildar Gataullin admitted.

The initiative of the patrons was supported by the city administration. The mayor of Zelenodolsk, Mikhail Afanasyev, having inspected the facility, noted that the construction is carried out according to plan and even ahead of schedule.

“The work is underway with the blessing of the Mufti of the Republic of Tatarstan, Kamil khazrat Samigullin. We are confident that the project will be implemented, and a high-level spiritual and educational centre will appear in our city. We provide all possible support to this popular project and are grateful to our friends who were not afraid to take on such a difficult job. The multilingual school was named after the outstanding Tatar scientist and educator Kayum Nasyri. He was born in the village of Verkhniye Shirdany, Zelenodolsk district, in February the 200th anniversary of the writer was celebrated. The year 2025 has been declared the year of Kayum Nasyri in Zelenodolsk," the mayor noted.

Educational institutions have always been supported by patrons

Today, there are three private schools in Tatarstan — in Kazan, Almetyevsk and Yelabuga. All of them operate with the support of the Muslim Spiritual Board of the Republic of Tatarstan. It is worth noting that the development of the national religious education of the Tatars before the revolution became possible only thanks to private donations. Patrons created and maintained mektebs and madrasas at their own expense. At one time, Salikh Saidashev, Galiasgar Kamal, Baki Urmanche and many others graduated from such educational institutions. The construction of the spiritual and educational center (multilingual school) in Zelenodolsk is also being carried out at the expense of caring people. Everyone can make their own contribution.