Language Lab Marks 10 Years With Launch of Ukraine Connected

Language Lab, the Kyiv-based Ukrainian language school, marked its tenth anniversary with an evening at The Last Barricade, the restaurant under Independence Square known for its tribute to Ukraine’s protest movements. The event, held at the beginning of the month, brought together students, teachers and friends of the school. It also served as the launch of Ukraine Connected, a new community for foreigners and Ukrainians that grew out of the informal support the school has long offered its students.

“The 10th anniversary event went wonderfully. And considering the circumstances – the war and constant air-raid alerts – I would even say it was incredible,” said Nataliia Antonenko, one of the school’s teachers. In the days after, she said, the team received many thank-you messages from students.

“Ten years ago, Language Lab started as a small school in Kyiv. Today it brings together people from more than 50 countries who have chosen to learn Ukrainian in person or online and connect with Ukraine,” said founder Ksenia Golubytska.

“We have never stopped working, not during COVID and not during the full-scale invasion and ongoing war, because our students needed us,” she said. “Over the years, many of them came to us not just for lessons, but for advice and support with life here. That’s why we chose our 10th birthday to launch Ukraine Connected: a community where everyone who feels connected to Ukraine can find help, friends and a sense of home.”

Other Topics of Interest

Kyiv: From Kyivan Rus to Hidden Courtyards

A walking tour for the Baptism of Kyivan Rus Day.

Grammar at the party

Teachers weren’t sure what guests would want from the evening. Aliona Skliar said she wondered whether students would bother with the Ukrainian-language tasks the teachers had prepared, or would simply want to chat.

“It turned out they were interested in challenging themselves a little,” she said. “Throughout the event, beside networking, many people came to our stand with tasks.”

Teacher Oksana Matii said what struck her most was how naturally people connected. “It reminded us that a language school is not only about learning a language – it is also about creating connections and a sense of community,” she said.

Not everyone remembers the evening for its big moments. Jay Tagliani, a volunteer who has studied with the school for about a month, singled out the food, especially the roast beef appetizers, and the 1,000-hryvnia wine voucher he unexpectedly won.

“It was just a good chance to meet folk and talk,” said James Glennie, a Language Lab student who works in energy and power systems.

Why learn Ukrainian

For the students, learning Ukrainian is less a hobby than a practical necessity.

“In order to live in a country, one must speak the language,” said Bas, a Language Lab student who declined to give his last name.

Bas said he’s lived in Ukraine since 2012 and has studied with the school for about three years. He listed asking for help, handling documents, contracts and landlords as important reasons for learning Ukrainian.

“You can’t stay ‘the tourist’ forever when you live somewhere.”

Brian True, from Corunna, Michigan, runs a nonprofit that imports human cornea implants and works to develop private eye-banking in Ukraine. He said he has always struggled with languages, but working under Ukrainian laws and regulations made it essential. He wants to speak with people and understand the documents in his daily work.

For Glennie, it pays off “almost every day.” Understanding Ukrainian helps him follow what is happening around him, he said, and lets him keep up in meetings “without having to have every word translated.”

Even a little goes a long way. Tagliani said supermarket trips are now much less stressful. On Ukrainian trains, where he often sits close to strangers who strike up conversations, he has gotten better each time at making himself understood.

Several students said Ukrainians respond warmly to the effort.

“By learning and speaking the language at any level, you show respect for the nation,” True said, “and in return earn and develop both respect and credibility from those who are from here.”

Help beyond the classroom

Students describe a school that has often helped with life outside lessons.

Glennie said his teacher helps him “constantly with innumerable minor things which locals take for granted.” These include setting up air-raid alerts, finding a vet, dentist or optician, and explaining the mood in Kyiv. The absence of such knowledge, he said, makes life much harder for new arrivals.

Building a social life was the hardest part of arriving, many said. “Everything!” Glennie said. “New country, new town, new apartment, new people, new language and no instant network arising from having a job to go to.”

True said his biggest early hurdle was bureaucracy. He listed four things every foreigner needs to sort out: a temporary residency card, a registered address, a bank account and a work permit. Help with those would have saved him time and stress, he said. He is still building a social circle beyond work contacts, and said Language Lab “has provided a community from which to grow.”

Ukraine Connected aims to formalize that kind of help. Skliar, who also coordinates international volunteers for a charity, said she plans to share the tips she gives foreign volunteers with community members, along with volunteering opportunities.

“How will UC differentiate itself?”

Not every student is convinced yet. Glennie said he enjoys networking, but warned that any new group “needs to be approached with great care,” with a clear idea of what it offers that others do not.

“There are already some excellent networking organizations out there,” he said. “How will UC differentiate itself?”

Organizers point to one goal: connecting foreigners with Ukrainians, not just with each other.

True said that is often harder than it sounds. “Ukrainians are very private people; yet once they get to know you, they will be open and kind,” he said. Getting established socially, he added, “can take time and patience.”

Planning for a hard winter

Teachers say the community is being built with the war in mind.

“We hope for the best, but we prepare for the worst,” Antonenko said. She expects the next few months to be difficult. Events may move to shelters when needed, and safety will come first.

Matii said events will be planned around possible air-raid alerts and disruptions, and can move online when necessary. Members may also leave Ukraine, return, or join remotely. “We want it to remain a supportive community where people can stay connected regardless of where they are,” she said.

Antonenko said she hopes Ukraine Connected can become a “Point of Invincibility” for foreigners living and working here. The phrase refers to the heated, powered public shelters Ukraine set up during Russian attacks on the energy grid.

“We want Ukraine Connected to be a place where people can stay connected, support each other, and feel that they are not alone, even in these difficult circumstances,” she said.

To sign up for Ukraine Connected, click here.