COMENIUS – BiographyGeorge Plamenov Atanasov

Bulgaria Language School “Frederic

Joliot-Curie”, VarnaApril 2009

Family

• My name is George Atanasov. I was born in 1983 in Varna. • My parents and all relatives have Roma origin.• My elder sister Teodora and I had been

separated after the divorce of our parents when I was 7. Teodora had been brought up by our mother and I- by our father and our Grandmother.

Family

• My Grandmother was born in Tolbuhin. In the 1930’s she trekked to Varna where she became a textile factory worker. She is of the protestant religion.

• My father had a job in a factory designated for employing disabled people.

• My father and my grandmother spoke only Bulgarian at home. I didn’t know Romany until I was 16.

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•Kindergarten - in Vladislavovo district where the family lived. My father volunteered for kindergarten furnishing and thanks to that I have been registered at the garden. My memories about this period are not cheerful. We were 2 Roma children in the group. I had been reproached for all nuisances because of my Roma ethnos. The kindergartener was often beating me.

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•Primary school – “Aleko Konstantinov” school in the same district. I had to repeat my first class, my first schoolmistress didn’t like me - I had learning problems because of dyslexia. Because of that she hit my head on the blackboard … •I lost my willingness to continue school, but my father urged me to repeat first class with another teacher.

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• Grammar – school – in Draganovo village

My father was unemployed, our life became very difficult and we had to move from the village to survive. There I completed at the Draganovo grammar – school.

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• Agriculture Vocational School in Valchi dol

My family moved to the little town Valchi dol, where we bought a house in Roma district. Most of our relatives lived there. We farmed in Valchi dol. At 16 I had to experience new stress - because I did not speak Romany the Roma people did not accept me. They surnamed me “the Bulgarian”.

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University • In 2001 I was admitted to study law

at the Varna Technical University, but because of the high fees I couldn’t begin.

• I finished a course of ethno pedagogic in Veliko Tarnovo and worked as a resource teacher in an intercultural school.

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• 2002-2006 I studied Social pedagogic at the Shumen University . (the fees there were not so high and I paid them by working)

• After my graduation I worked for 2 years at Social Welfare – in the Keeping Children Safe Department.

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•Now I am a pedagogical advisor at First Primary School, Varna. I consult teachers, the headmaster, parents about the school’s integration of minority students. •I am a president of a nongovernmental organization – Balkan Association AMALIPE (www.amalipe.hit.bg ) We deal with intercultural education and prevention of drug- addiction.

AMALIPE

Friends and interests•I am not married yet.•My religion is Protestantism and I go to the Evangelical Methodist Church in Varna. Maybe I profess this religion because my grandmother and my father were protestants. •I have many friends from different ethnics – Roma, Bulgarians, Turks, Armenians, Greeks. •I play the piano in a Rock Style Gospel band.

The reasons for my successful integration and realization in the

Bulgarian society

• The family support and care.• Early involving in educational System.• The role of the religion.• Growing among Bulgarian surroundings.

George Atanasov, 27 April 2009

Project: “Mind the Gap – Migration Needs Integration”