The eleventh of October at the Faculty of Social Pedagogy and Psychology was held a meeting of teachers and students with the Canadian Professors Otto and Florence Dreger. This year the Faculty of Social Pedagogy and Psychology celebrates 25 years, and active collaboration with Canadian partners has been continuing almost all of this period. The session was chaired by the Dean of the Faculty Olga Ponomarenko, who along with the representatives of the Department of Social Pedagogy, summed up a longstanding Canadian-Ukrainian cooperation.
Otto and Florence Dreger first visited the Zaporizhzhya National University back in 1994, when they
were invited to give lectures and to develop programs for a new specialty in Ukraine of that time, “social pedagogy”. For many years Otto and Florence had been reading different courses in social work, work in community, restorative justice. Thanks to the cooperation of ZNU and the Rajini University (Canada) there were implemented the exchange programmes for teachers and students, were organized Canadian experts’ visits to give lectures and consultations, the Faculty obtained the specialized academic literature, and assistance in the development of training programs.
The Head of the Department of Social Pedagogy Nataliya Zaveryko thanked honorary professors Dreger for longstanding and fruitful collaboration. Many generations of students had the opportunity to study under Professors Otto and Florence. So, those present at the meeting 
teachers of the Department of Social Pedagogy and Psychology Tetyana Solovyova, Olena Leshchenko, the head of the university laboratory of Social Pedagogy and Psychology Natalya Mamay, the lecturer of the Department of Psychology Natalya Mosol were at some moment the students in the courses of the Canadian professors. During the lectures in ZNU, Otto and Florence not only provided new information but also actively involved students in dialogue, and successfully combined studies and socializing with the students. Besides teaching, Otto and Florence Dreger held the consultations for teachers and students, facilitated the Canadian-Ukrainian projects and supported the development projects of local communities. Among them, the project of restorative justice, the international conferencing in the field of healthcare, the opening of the community center. So, the Zaporizhzhya regional organization “Florence” , headed by the Associate Professor of Social Pedagogy Lyudmyla Romanenkova, is successfully operating to this day, actively cooperates with the faculty of SPP and implements a number of social programs.
At the end of the meeting, Otto and Florence noted: «We are very fortunate to meet a wide range of teachers and students, to meet fellow professionals and good friends. We are glad to have the opportunity to make a contribution to the development of educational programs, social services, and to promote the well-being of people in Ukraine».
Faculty of Social Pedagogy and Psychology
