Almost 40 educational institutions of the Vitebsk region presented their products at the "Autumn Round Dance" exhibition-sale.
An hour before its opening, it was already impossible to pass between some of the trade rows. A multitude of buyers hurried here to acquire fruit and berry products, vegetables, seedlings, seeds, and simply to admire the amazingly beautiful items made of wood, fabrics, and metal by the hands of students. The fair was also visited by the Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, Nikolai Sherstnev, and the head of the Vitebsk region's deputy corps, Vladimir Terentyev.
Despite the cold weather, the trade was brisk. The selection of goods was huge – almost 40 educational institutions of the region presented their products. There was potatoes at 35 kopecks per kilogram, fish soup for one and a half rubles per half-liter, inexpensive kebabs, sausages, and a lot of culinary products. There were also soft toys, dolls, wooden utensils for the kitchen and summer house, and souvenirs – students often specially prepare original items at attractive prices for the exhibition. For example, one could buy a winter coat for 95 rubles. More serious items were also sold: impressive barbecue grills for 50-70 rubles, a powerful smoker for 500 rubles, and even a ready-made log cabin for a summerhouse with benches and a table for 1300. Buyers were entertained by a concert and master classes, and photo zones and interactive areas were available.
– The fair is a kind of report of the education system of the Vitebsk region, – noted Sergey Kovalenko, head of the vocational education department of the main department for education of the regional executive committee. – Products from both school workshops and educational laboratories of vocational institutions are widely represented here. In total, there are almost a hundred points of sale with goods worth 1.3 million rubles. Today, the material and technical base of vocational educational institutions is being seriously updated to bring them closer to production, and exemplary resource centers are being created.
– I regularly attend such events to see the dynamics of the development of our educational institutions, – said Nikolai Sherstnev. – It is obvious that every year they grow in terms of product volume, revenue, and most importantly, students gain practical experience. Communication with the heads of educational institutions is also very useful: I learn about the problems and prospects for development from them firsthand. In general, our task is to increase the prestige of working professions, as the market dictates today.