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In December 2025, the educational online project Smart Teens Intensive was successfully completed. The initiative was implemented by the IT Ukraine Association in partnership with the Children of Heroes Charity Foundation. The project was designed to support teenagers by providing access to modern IT education, mentorship and a safe environment for development. Its participants were beneficiaries of the Children of Heroes Foundation – young people who have lost one or both parents as a result of the war.
Smart Teens Intensive was an eight-week free online programme that combined digital technology training, soft skills development, an introduction to the IT industry and teamwork. The programme created a space where teenagers could not only acquire new knowledge but also find like-minded peers, experience support and take their first conscious steps towards future education and careers in IT. The main goal of the project was to establish a safe, inclusive and motivational environment in which participants could develop essential digital and interdisciplinary skills, work in teams and bring their own ideas to life.
Ten experts and mentors from leading IT companies – EPAM, Sigma Software University and N-iX – joined the implementation of the programme. The curriculum combined four modules:
Smart Teens Intensive creates conditions where young people can feel supported, find like-minded peers and take their first steps into the digital professions of the future
said Denys Hryniov, Vice President for Education at the IT Ukraine Association and Head of EPAM University in Ukraine
In total, the project delivered 12 workshops and 20 hours of educational content, with 10 homework assignments completed for each thematic block.
For our beneficiaries, Smart Teens Intensive is far more than just a training course. It is an opportunity to believe in themselves again, to feel the support of adults and to see real prospects. We are sincerely grateful to the project’s partners for helping teenagers who have experienced loss to discover their talents and take their first confident steps towards education and professional fulfilment
said Yuliia Lakomska, Senior Corporate Partnerships Manager at the Children of Heroes Charity Foundation
The programme was built on a project-based learning approach, enabling participants to go through the full cycle of working on an idea – from concept development to creating a digital prototype and presenting it. The final stage of the programme took place in December 2025, featuring 10 digital project presentations delivered to mentors and project partners. For many, this was their first experience of publicly defending ideas, taking on team responsibility and working in conditions close to a real IT environment.
Supporting young talent is, above all, an investment in the future of Ukraine’s IT industry. Smart Teens Intensive has proven that quality education and support can work wonders even in the darkest times. Seeing teenagers acquire new skills, work in teams and defend their own projects is the best reminder of why it is so important to create opportunities for young people to find their calling in technology
said Nataliia Solina, CSR Lead at N-iX
The project became an example of effective cooperation between the public sector, charitable organisations and the IT industry, aimed at the long-term development of human capital.
The children who completed this training will have better experience and greater readiness for life’s challenges. Absolutely. We wish them success and hope this experience will become a starting point in their future professions
said Olha Levchenko, Programme Manager at Sigma Software University
Smart Teens Intensive has confirmed that investment in education and youth development today shapes a sustainable, innovative and responsible future for Ukraine. The project has become not only an educational experience but also a space of support, motivation and new opportunities for teenagers taking their first steps into the world of digital professions.
