Students United for Ukraine

What a great letter to president Trump by former president of Poland, who himself was a fighter for freedom and political prisoner, receiving a Nobel Peace Prize in 1983. Your Excellency, Mr. President, We watched your conversation with President Volodymyr Zelensky with fear and distaste. It is insulting that you expect Ukraine to show gratitude for U.S. material aid in its fight against Russia. Gratitude is owed to the heroic Ukrainian soldiers who have been shedding their blood for over 11 years to defend the free world’s values and their homeland, attacked by Putin’s Russia. How can the leader of a country symbolizing the free world fail to recognize this? The Oval Office atmosphere during this conversation reminded us of interrogations by the Security Services and Communist court debates. Back then, prosecutors and judges, acting on behalf of the communist political police, told us they held all the power while we had none. They demanded we stop our activities, arguing that innocent people suffered because of us. They stripped us of our freedoms for refusing to cooperate or express gratitude for our oppression. We are shocked that President Zelensky was treated similarly. History shows that when the U.S. distanced itself from democratic values and its European allies, it ultimately endangered itself. President Wilson understood this in 1917 when the U.S. joined World War I. President Roosevelt knew it after Pearl Harbor in 1941, realizing that defending America meant fighting in both the Pacific and Europe alongside nations attacked by the Third Reich. Without President Reagan and U.S. financial support, the Soviet empire’s collapse would not have been possible. Reagan recognized the suffering of millions in Soviet Russia and its conquered nations, including thousands of political prisoners. His greatness lay in his unwavering stance, calling the USSR an “Empire of Evil” and confronting it decisively. We won, and today, his statue stands in Warsaw, facing the U.S. Embassy. Mr. President, military and financial aid cannot be equated with the blood shed for Ukraine’s independence and the freedom of Europe and the world. Human life is priceless. Gratitude is due to those who sacrifice their blood and freedom—something self-evident to us, former political prisoners of the communist regime under Soviet Russia. We urge the U.S. to uphold the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, which established a direct obligation to defend Ukraine’s borders in exchange for giving up nuclear weapons. These guarantees are unconditional—nowhere do they suggest such aid is a mere economic transaction. Signed, Lech Wa??sa, former political prisoner, President of Poland

A 23-year old Ukrainian athlete Yaroslava Mahuchikh became the Female Athlete of the Year! I couldn’t imagine a more deserving candidate! In 2024, she broke a world record in women's high jump, becoming the first woman in history to clear 2.10 meters. The previous record of 2.09 meters stood unbroken for 37 years. Also, she won the 2024 Olympics. Yaroslava has become a symbol of Ukrainian strength and resilience. Slava Ukraini!

I was at Harvard for Parents' Weekend and attended Ec10 with my son William Buehler '28. Professor Jason Furman taught the class in Sanders Theater, covering Lecture 14: The Economics of Labor Markets. He was brilliant. The discussion of the minimum wage and the empirical discussion of the impact of, say, a 10% increase of the minimum wage on the quantity of employment (the short-run employment elasticity) was particularly fascinating. Estimates of the employment impact of a 10% increase in the minimum wage ranged from an increase in employment by roughly 4% (Cenzig and others (2019)), to a sizeable decrease of 17% (Clemens and Withers (2016)), to a median estimate of a decrease of 2.5% by the Congressional Budget Office (2019). Note that at that median estimate, total wages increase, even though employment falls. Before the economics lecture, William and I had breakfast next door in Annenberg. Pro tip: try the Veritaffle. Supply, demand and waffles — a great combination! ?? ?? ?? #economics

???? Khan Academy for Ukraine ???? It is wonderful to see how students like Laker Newhouse, Nazar Drugov and Michael Malyshev are working to bring Khan Academy to students whose education has been disrupted by the war in Ukraine. To learn more or to support their efforts, visit Khan Academy for Ukraine at the following link: https://lnkd.in/ex2ZHE-7 #education #ukraine #innovation

Congratulations, Nazar! Your work to help ensure Ukrainian students have access to world-class STEM education is deeply impressive. Best of luck at Tufts University!!

The history of Ukraine is marked by the resilience and strength of its people, and today—on Ukrainian Independence Day—we honor and celebrate their courage.? “That’s all I’ve ever known about Ukrainian people—we do not give up, we will not give up, we will not surrender,” shared Marta Rubel, social outreach director for the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia. Ukrainians continue to persevere through difficult times as war in their home country persists. You can show your support by providing Ukrainians in need of refuge with a pathway to safety in the United States. Find out how at https://welcome.us/. Together, we can offer hope to Ukrainian families fleeing conflict.

Happy Independence Day, Ukraine. Slava Ukraini.

The education of Ukrainian students in frontline regions is constantly disrupted by numerous daily air-raid alarms and shellings. 3,798 educational institutions in Ukraine have been damaged by bombings, and 365 have been completely destroyed. This has to change. Khan Academy can bring this change. With Khan Academy, we can give Ukrainian students the opportunity to study even during blackouts and in bomb shelters during bombardments. khanacademyforukraine.org?- visit to learn how you can help! Incredibly grateful to Laker Newhouse, Tymofiy Mylovanov, Oksana Malysheva and Kevin Buehler for your support and your huge efforts in making STEM education accessible to every child in Ukraine!

???? Full course in mathematics and other STEM disciplines from the global online education platform Khan Academy – free for every Ukrainian school student. This is the goal set by Nazar Drugov, a 16-year-old student at Tufts University, graduate of Basis School, and participant in the KSE Prompt Design Challenge 2023 – the platform helped him prepare for university admission. Nazar initiated the project, students from Kyiv School of Economics supported it, and KSE Foundation launched the "Khan Academy for Ukraine" initiative?? – within which they have already translated and localized the Algebra Basic course? and started working on the "Arithmetic"?? and "Precalculus"?? levels – enabling coverage of crucial topics from school mathematics and starting preparation for university programs. ???? You too can support the localization of STEM lessons. Join us in bridging educational gaps for Ukrainian schoolchildren: https://lnkd.in/e_Qev3hW The platform hosts over 5,000 videos on mathematics, natural sciences, economics, and computer programming, along with interactive summaries and tests. KSE Foundation has launched a $600,000 campaign to translate these materials into Ukrainian, ensuring accessibility and relevance. ?? The project involves a team of 39 experts. Apart from Nazar, the team includes Laker Newhouse, an MIT student who helped develop the Multivariable Calculus course for the platform; Taras Pavlov, a mathematician and curriculum expert; KSE University students, translation specialists, video creators, auditors, and editors. Thanks to their efforts, Ukrainian students now have access to the "Algebra Basics" course: ??https://lnkd.in/eqWQAUPX, featuring 7 fully localized sections covering algebra topics from the Ukrainian school curriculum for grades 6-8. Our strategic goal: to provide free access to quality STEM lessons with a personalized approach for all Ukrainian schoolchildren – anytime, anywhere?? ?? For reference Khan Academy is an American non-profit organization that develops online educational content. The platform has 165 million registered users globally and has been used by one third of US students. It is trusted in 190 countries, already translated into 40+ languages, and supported by Google, Bill Gates, and donors. In addition to helping students, Khan Academy is designed to support teachers in the classroom and let parents see their child’s progress at home.