Italian Scandurra Studio wins Future School for Ukraine competition to design modular K-12 solutions

Winners have been announced in the Future School for Ukraine competition that was funded by Lithuania and tasked with delivering a "blueprint" for constructing a wave of new safe and sustainable technical school facilities in war-torn Ukraine.

The Italian Scandurra Studio Architeturra won over 14 other entries for a collaborative design with the Ukrainian architect M.A. Vustianskyi. Their adaptive reuse plan won’t be finalized until February 2025, but will then be implemented with backing and oversight from the Ukrainian Central Project Management Agency (CPVA). The first prize-winning project, which was evaluated based on a five-point criterion, is worth a total of €12,000 (or $13,334 USD). A second prize winner from Ukraine and the Netherlands took home €10,000 ($11,120), followed by the €8,000 ($8,896) third prize winner from Finland.

To date, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has resulted in damage to more than 1,600 schools across the nation. Another 197 have been destroyed completely. Adding to the challenges educators face is a lack of attendance caused by fears over a lack of bomb shelters attached to school buildings. The competition’s organizers say the winners addressed this concern and made the most of the available €500,000 ($556,000) in funding, adding that its combination of modular construction methods and recyclable materials won their favor. Scandurra Studi will now have €300,000 at their disposal to implement the winning design. 

Jury member Helena Sandman said finally: "There is power in education to rebuild and inspire hope. This makes this project extremely important. When selecting the winner, I looked for sustainable, innovative and flexible designs that not only addressed immediate needs but also fostered resilience, community, and a vision for a brighter future for Ukrainian children."