The Power of Faith: The Story of a Young School Principal

Taking over a neglected neighborhood school with just one small class per grade – 9 students in Grade 1 and only two in Grade 4 – mid-year and transforming it by September into a community gem with double the students borders on magic.

How many leaders do you know who have managed to double their team’s results in just eight months? 

One of them is Rosen Bogomilov, a young principal and graduate of the A New Way to Teaching program by the Teach for Bulgaria Foundation. Rosen is someone whose life has shown him that when you believe in your abilities, as well as in the abilities of the people around you, no goal is out of reach.

On January 3, 2024, when Rosen Bogomilov first stepped through the doors of 100 “Naiden Gerov” Primary School as principal, he found the school staff lined up in the hallway. 

“All my colleagues had their heads down, looked at me suspiciously, and… were sad.”

At that time, the only municipal school in Sofia’s “Fondovi Zhilishta” neighborhood had only 72 students. Each grade had a single small class—nine students in Grade 1 and just two in Grade 4. The school was entirely neglected, and the building was on the verge of collapse.

By September 16 of the same year, the school had doubled its enrollment, and the teachers had long since forgotten their sense of despair. 

In his eight months as principal, Rosen managed to inspire both students and teachers. But his greatest achievement, he believes, was “winning over” the parents, who became an active part of the school community. This was no small feat, as working with parents is often one of the most challenging tasks for teachers and principals in Bulgaria.

Mrs. Belyakova’s Red Pen

“Faith has shaped me profoundly,” says Rosen Bogomilov. Years ago, Mrs. Belyakova, his first-grade teacher, showed him and his classmates the power of unconditional faith. 

Mrs. Belyakova was a very demanding teacher. Every day, her students would strive to win her approval—and the grand prize: whoever came with their completed homework and performed their daily tasks best would win the right to use Mrs. Belyakova’s red pen to sign  their classmates’ notebooks. Rosen would often secure the pen and would later rush home to teach his cousins everything he had learned that day.

“It made me feel important.”

It was in Mrs. Belyakova’s classroom that his childhood dream of becoming a teacher first took root.

“You can make a difference. You can teach. Your place is in the classroom.”

These were the words of Violeta Stoycheva, the methodologist who supervised Rosen during his pre-diploma practice at the Emilian Stanev School in Veliko Tarnovo. And these words stayed with him during his first job at 106 “Grigorii Tsamblak” Primary School in Sofia, where he taught history and geography to children from vulnerable groups. Connecting with  students was highly rewarding for Rosen, but over time, he noticed that many of his colleagues were apathetic. His enthusiasm began to wane in the absence of like-minded colleagues.

“I started feeling like a lone marathon runner. I knew something had to change.”

In search of like-minded individuals, Rosen encountered the Arete Youth Foundation, who in turn, introduced him to Teach For Bulgaria with whose guidance, he developed a vision for his own professional growth with one clear goal: to become a principal.

Teach for Bulgaria and Shifting Attitudes

Rosen successfully completed the rigorous application process for Teach for Bulgaria’s A New Way to Teaching program. Following an intensive summer institute training, he became the class teacher for “a wonderfully wild class” at 106 Primary School. Soon after, he was promoted to vice-principal. Rosen no longer felt alone because he was now part of a community—a community that believed in its own potential to drive positive change in Bulgarian schools. A community that also believed in the potential of every Bulgarian child to reach ambitious goals.

“Teach for Bulgaria changed everything. It changed my attitude, taught me not to set my own limits, and showed me firsthand that if you want change, you have to become part of the driving force behind it. Through Teach for Bulgaria, I realized the importance of having high expectations—for myself, for the children, for my colleagues. Because we have high expectations for the people we believe in most,” Rosen shares.

After becoming the vice-principal of 106 Primary School, Rosen felt that it was only natural to take the next step—becoming a principal. Not long after his application to “Nayden Gerov” Primary School (situated in “Fondovi Zhilishta” neighborhood in Sofia), he was appointed to his dream job. 

Achieving High Results in a Short Time

The Teachers

“I was greeted by a school which had lost all sense of faith in its future. Teachers had no faith, students had no faith, parents had no faith, the administrative staff had no faith in anybody,” Rosen reminisces.

When he met with his team for the first time, Rosen invited them to talk openly about their challenges. He told them up-front that he would leave right away if they weren’t ready to stand behind him.

“I am no captain of a sinking ship. I have no intention of being the principal under whose leadership the school shuts down,” Rosen told the team, winning their trust. With the staff and faculty on board, the new principal set his new goal—welcoming two classes of first graders in the following academic year, even though, at that point, they had one, and an undersized one at that. 

Rosen made use of one of Teach For Bulgaria’s methods for success—getting the team involved in creating a new vision for “Nayden Gerov” Primary School. Together, they discussed how to better the school’s base, what goals to set for the students, parents, and the community as a whole.

The following day, two teachers sent in their resignations. Teachers, who had occupied key positions—a primary school teacher and a Bulgarian language and literature one.

“Finding people to fill these positions was hard. But we succeeded by searching together. It hasn’t been as hard for us to hire teachers since then because we managed to persuade people that our school has potential.” The team got creative with the solution to the challenge, inviting Kostadin Filipov, a journalist working for the Bulgarian National Television, to join them in transforming the school. Filipov agreed and, by the end of August, became the school’s permanent Bulgarian language and literature teacher.

The School

Despite being the only municipal school in the entire district, “Nayden Gerov”’s material base was in a state of disrepair. Rosen was determined to change this. With the help of the Time Heroes non-profit volunteering organization and Teach for Bulgaria, he attracted sponsorships and donations that transformed the school’s facilities. The first volunteering initiative involved employees from mobile operator A1, who spent a day painting the school’s fence. When the school children’s parents heard about it, they decided to join in. Passersby from the neighborhood saw people crowding into the schoolyard and also spontaneously lent a hand.

“Suddenly, the schoolyard was full—some people painting, others planting flowers, watering them. I didn’t expect this level of engagement,” Rosen says. 

By the start of the 2024-2025 school year, the school looked entirely different. The classrooms were painted, the desks were new, and the computer lab was renovated with support from the Bulgarian Development Bank.

The Community

Rosen realized that the neighborhood knew very little about the school and didn’t see it as part of the “Fondovi Zhilishta” community. “Until now nobody knew what was happening at “Naiden Gerov” or how talented the teachers were,” he shares.

Rosen invested time in developing the school’s Facebook page. One of the students’ parents volunteered to update the school’s website. Gradually, thanks to social media, the whole neighborhood began to see what was happening at the school.

The results speak for themselves: just nine months after Rosen took over as principal, on September 16, 2024, the school welcomed 132 students, including 31 first-graders.

The Students

Rosen walks around the classrooms every day, talking to students in between classes, paying attention to them, telling and showing them that he believes in each and every one of them. This has inspired his colleagues, who began encouraging students to participate in Olympiads, math competitions, and other events.

The Parents

Productive relationships with parents are challenging for many Bulgarian schools, but not for 100 “Naiden Gerov” Primary School.

Every morning, as parents drop off their children, Rosen enjoys his coffee on the sidewalk in front of the school. He chats with the parents, listens to their opinions, and gradually builds mutual trust. The parents have come to see that Rosen genuinely cares about their children and support him.

Dreams

The gloomy school that Rosen entered in January is no more. In its place stands a warm and welcoming environment, happy students, a motivated team, and a principal who refuses to set limits for himself.

Rosen has clear plans for the future. “First and foremost, I want us to get the promised expansion [the school currently has access to only part of the building’s facilities]. I want us to have the capacity to meet the neighborhood’s needs,” he says. He isn’t aiming for a huge school with a thousand students; his priority is to provide a supportive environment where children from “Fondovi Zhilishta” can reach their full potential. A potential which their principal believes in unconditionally.

There’s another item on his list—a center for children with special educational needs. “Now, boss, that’s wishful thinking,” his team responds when he shares his plans. But the young principal is resolute: “I’m sure we’ll succeed yet again.”