Kantakuzina Katarina Branković Serbian Orthodox Secondary School

The Kantakuzina Katarina Branković Serbian Orthodox Secondary School (Srpska pravoslavna opća gimnazija Kantakuzina Katarina Branković), abbreviated as SPOG, is a coeducational gymnasium (equivalent to a preparatory high school or grammar school) affiliated with the Metropolitanate of Zagreb and Ljubljana. It is situated in Zagreb, capital city of Croatia, and stands as the only non-seminary high school of the Serbian Orthodox Church in the territory of the former Yugoslavia.

Established in 2005, the school claims to perpetuate a 200-year tradition of Orthodox minority education in Zagreb. Instruction at the institution is delivered in both Serbian and Croatian language.

The curriculum spans four years and encompasses a wide range of subjects, including Serbian, Croatian, English, German, Latin, Church Slavonic, history, geography, politics, economics, music, art history, the Orthodox religion, sociology, psychology, chemistry, physics, biology, mathematics, physical education, ecology, informatics and philosophy. All courses are mandatory for students.

Education at SPOG is provided without tuition cost to students, with additional funding provided by the Serbian Orthodox Church in Croatia covering certain or most of the costs. The student body at the school is diverse, including students from Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary and Moldova. The school maintains an inclusive admission policy, welcoming students regardless of their background, religion, or nationality. SPOG is accredited by the Croatian Ministry of Education and is recognized by other countries in the region. Graduates of SPOG pursue further studies in Croatia, Serbia and abroad. The inaugural graduating class was celebrated at the Monastery of St. Parascheva in Zagreb on June 24, 2009.

Name
The institution derives its name from Kantakuzina Katarina Branković, a notable aristocratic figure in the XV century history of the region. She was the daughter of Đurađ Branković, the Serbian despot, and his wife, Irene Kantakouzene, a member of the Kantakouzenos family of the Byzantine Empire. Kantakuzina Katarina Branković resided for a period in the Zagreb area, where she played a role in fostering the growth and development of the local Orthodox Christian community. Notably, the Varaždin Apostol, hand-written Orthodox liturgical book created in 1454, is associated with her legacy in Zagreb area. It is the oldest preserved text in Cyrillic from the territory of present-day Croatia.

History
Although the present school has a brief history, education organized by the Metropolitanate of Zagreb, Ljubljana and all Italy dates back to early 1814. Lessons were given at the Metropolitanate headquarters on Ilica Street.

Serbian Folk Grammar School
In 1888 the Metropolitan began to collect funds for a Serbian Folk Grammar School, established in 1891 on Mesnička Street. In 1893 the school moved to Margaretska Street, and the following year it was visited by Izidor Kršnjavi. At that time, the school had a garden and a library.

Serbian Autonomous Folk School
In 1897, the Serbian Folk Grammar School changed its name to the Serbian Autonomous Folk School. In 1899, the school commemorated the 50th anniversary of the career of Jovan Jovanović Zmaj. It moved in 1900 to Petar Preradović Square. The school's Teachers Council began in 1906. In 1909 it moved to a new building on Bogovićva Street, where SPOG would be established in 2005. In 1913, the school visited Zagreb mayor Janko Holjac. The school was discontinued during World War I, opening after the war as a girls' boarding school. It kept its name until 1922, when it became a public school: the State Primary School of King Peter I The Liberator.

Serbian Orthodox Secondary School
On 2 October 2003, a meeting was held at the Metropolitanate of Zagreb, Ljubljana and all Italy deciding to reopen the school under the patronage of the Metropolitanate. On 14 January 2004 Metropolitan Jovan sent a letter of intent to the Ministry of Education, and on 20 October a commission met to establish the school. On 21 February 2005, the high school was chartered. Stories about the school have appeared in Jutarnji list, Novosti, Politika, Večernji list, Novi list, on Radio Television of Serbia, Radio Televizija Republike Srpske, the website of the President of Croatia, Croatian Radiotelevision and Radio Television of Vojvodina.

New campus
For the 2011–12 academic year, the school moved into a 6,000-square-foot, €7,000,000 campus in northern Zagreb. It features a library, computer lab, a gym, a playground, student-counselling offices, a cafeteria, a music hall, laboratories, a chapel, a terrace, garden and a quadrangle. Construction began in May 2010. The cornerstone ceremony was attended by the bishop of the Metropolitanate of Dabar and Bosnia Nikolaj, Bishop of Srem Vasilije, Bishop of Eastern America Mitrophan, and hosted by Metropolitan Jovan.

Vice Prime Minister of Croatia Slobodan Uzelac expressed his hope that the school would offer university-level programs in the future. Zagreb mayor Milan Bandić said that the Serbian Orthodox community is integral to the Zagreb family and recalled early Serbian schools in Zagreb. The June 2012 opening ceremony was attended by Serbian Patriarch Irinej and a delegation from the Holy Synod; the patriarch also met with Ivo Josipović and Zoran Milanović. It was the first official visit of Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church to Croatia since the breakup of Yugoslavia. The visit was reported by Al Jazeera Balkans, Croatian Radiotelevision, Nova TV, Večernji list, Novi list, 24sata, Slobodna Dalmacija, Radio Television of Serbia, B92, Večernje novosti, Press, Blic, Radio Free Europe, Radio and Television of Bosnia and Herzegovina, RTV BN, Kurir and Prva Srpska Televizija.

The opening ceremony was attended by several bishops and the patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Croatian government ministers Željko Jovanović and Predrag Matić, ambassadors from Serbia, US, Russia, Norway, France, Canada and Bosnia, delegations from Austria, Ukraine and the Vatican, Milorad Pupovac representing the Croatian Parliament, Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts president Zvonko Kusić, mayor Milan Bandić, MPs and representatives of other religious communities. Croatian President Ivo Josipović appeared in a video made for the occasion directed by Dejan Aćimović.

Workshops with IRCT
Starting from May 2011, Serbian Orthodox Secondary School in collaboration with local office of International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims work on a series of workshops on psychological issues with first grade students. They cover topics such as identity, violence, family dynamics, self-perception and self-confidence. Specific aspects of school student body are addressed, namely identity formation of adolescents - members of ethnic minorities.

Meeting of Council of the Serbian language teachers
In December 2011, in collaboration with Council of the Serbian language teachers of Vukovar-Syrmia County, Osijek-Baranja County and Joint Council of Municipalities in school was organized conference for Serbian language teachers in primary and secondary schools in Croatia for 50 participants.

Professors
Professorial staff is composed mostly of young professionals,     big part of them gained part of their education or career at the most prestigious universities in Russia, the United States, United Kingdom, Europe and region such as Bard College, Moscow State University, University of the Western Cape, University of Gothenburg, University of Tromsø, Ljubljana University, Belgrade University, Zagreb University, University Josip Juraj Strossmayer.