The Konstanty Kalinowski Scholarship Program of the Republic of Poland under the Patronage of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland () is a Polish state aid program for Belarusian youth established in March 2006. Initially intended for students expelled from Belarusian universities for political reasons, over time it also included individuals who cannot study in Belarus due to their political views and involvement in defending democracy and human rights. It is the largest program of its kind in Europe. It is substantively coordinated by the in University of Warsaw, in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Science and Higher Education. The director and coordinator of the program, overseeing the office's work and the work of the committees qualifying candidates for studies, is the director of the Centre for East European Studies in University of Warsaw, . The program is funded from the state budget – in 2008, the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs allocated 1.2 million euros for its continuation.
Reasons and circumstances of the creation On 19 March 2006, presidential elections took place in Belarus, which according to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and Belarusian opposition organizations were deemed to be falsified in favor of President Lukashenko. This led to the outbreak of social protests, primarily involving young people. The authorities responded to these protests with mass arrests and repression. Those targeted included individuals participating in the protests, as well as those attempting to observe the election process and taking part in the election campaigns of opposition candidates for president: Alaksandar Milinkievič and Alyaksandr Kazulin. One of the main forms of pressure exerted on the youth was the threat of expulsion from their universities, which, in many cases, indeed occurred.
Faced with this wave of repression, the Polish government and the authorities of Polish universities initiated the establishment of an aid program for Belarusian students expelled from their universities for political reasons. On 30 March 2006, Prime Minister Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz, representative of the United Democratic Forces of Belarus Alaksandar Milinkievič, as well as the Presidents of the Conference of Rectors of Polish Universities and the Conference of Rectors of Academic Schools in Poland, solemnly signed a "Letter of Intent", laying the foundation for the establishment of the program. The event took place in the Adam Mickiewicz Auditorium at the University of Warsaw in the presence of hundreds of students, academics, and guests. The program was named after Konstanty Kalinowski, born in 1838, a participant in the January Uprising, a representative of the insurgent government in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, who was hanged by the Russian authorities in Vilnius in 1864. He is renowned for his contribution to the defense of Belarusian identity and culture and is held in high esteem by Belarusians who are conscious of their national heritage.
The inauguration of the program took place on 5 July 2006. It commenced with a meeting between the scholarship recipients who arrived in Poland and Prime Minister Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz in the garden of the University of Warsaw Library. This was followed by an academic session at the university's Auditorium Maximum, attended by the Marshal of the Senate of the Republic of Poland Bogdan Borusewicz, Alaksandar Milinkievič, authorities from the university, rectors of Polish universities, and several hundred Polish and Belarusian students.
Eligibility criteria for the scholarship The duration of the scholarship depends on the year the student enrolled. For those enrolled in their first year, the scholarship can last up to 5 years. Participants of the Program receive a monthly stipend of 1,240 PLN to cover living expenses and accommodation costs. Universities offer students paid places in dormitories. Additionally, scholarship recipients receive dictionaries, encyclopedias, books on culture and history, as well as a sum of 400 PLN for miscellaneous expenses at the beginning of the preparatory course. During the first year of studies, students are under the care of tutors assigned to them from the junior academic staff. Tutors assist them in adapting during the initial period of their studies.
Preparatory courses and tour The participants of the first admission were organized into a three-month preparatory course in Warsaw (July–September 2006), which included an intensive Polish language course (up to 5 hours a day), an English language course, and classes on IT, computers, and Internet usage. Within the framework of the course, the scholars also participated in classes and lectures on the history and culture of Poland, Belarus, Lithuania, Ukraine, and Central and Eastern Europe, as well as contemporary international issues, with an emphasis on European Union-related matters. The preparatory course was also an opportunity for numerous discussions, meetings, and cultural events.
In the summer of 2006, the participants also embarked on a three-week tour of Poland, during which they visited 22 cities, including Gniezno, Poznań, Wrocław, Kraków, Lublin, Białystok, Gdańsk, Toruń, Łódź, and Częstochowa. The scholars visited the most important academic centers and places of historical significance to Poles. The tour program included events such as meetings with participants of the 1956 Poznań protests, tours of the Wawel Cathedral and Wawel Castle, visits to the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp, the Battle of Grunwald site, the Gdańsk Shipyard, and meetings with figures like Anna Walentynowicz. The tour provided an opportunity for the scholars to meet with university officials where they would later commence their studies and to explore the most beautiful places in Poland.
Preparatory courses for subsequent admissions were reduced to one month (September) of intensive Polish language courses. Tours were not organized for them.
Admissions
First admission In July 2006, in the first year of the program's operation, out of 300 available slots, 244 scholarship recipients were ultimately accepted. These individuals were unable to commence or continue their studies in Belarus due to their political views or the opposition activities of their parents. The selection of scholarship recipients was based on recommendations issued by a Belarusian unregistered organization called the Social Committee for the Defense of the Repressed "Solidarity", led by Ina Kulej. Knowledge of the Polish language was not required. The allocation of program participants to specific universities in Poland was carried out by the of the University of Warsaw, based on applications submitted by universities, taking into account primarily the possibility of continuing studies initiated in Belarus and, to the extent possible, the expectations of the scholarship recipients. The universities independently assessed program differences and established rules for their harmonization. Program participants began their studies in 15 cities across Poland, at 37 universities, on 77 different fields of study. The highest number of individuals commenced their studies in Warsaw (102), followed by Białystok (30), Wrocław (21), Kraków (16), Gdańsk (14), Pułtusk (10), Biała Podlaska (10), Poznań (9), Lublin (8), Katowice (7), Łódź (6), Toruń (5), Bydgoszcz (2), Legnica (1), and Szczecin (1). Among the universities, the largest group of scholarship recipients (58) was enrolled at the University of Warsaw, across 21 different institutes.
The scholarship recipients most commonly pursued studies in the following fields: computer science, law, management, political science, and international relations. Individual students enrolled in diverse fields such as European studies, molecular biology, Scandinavian studies, philology, civil engineering, and so on.
The scholarship recipients were provided with the opportunity to purchase books necessary for their studies in their respective fields, up to the amount of 500 PLN.
Second and subsequent admissions
In September 2007, in the second year of the program's operation, the number of admitted students was significantly lower for two reasons. Firstly, learning from the mistakes of the previous year, stricter recruitment criteria were introduced. Secondly, the number of individuals expelled from studies in 2007 decreased. According to Ina Kulej, the chairwoman of the Committee for the Defense of the Repressed "Solidarity", the Belarusian authorities realized the inefficiency of continuing such forms of repression. The recruitment process began on 21 June 2007, conducted by a seven-member commission at the headquarters of the BNF Party in Minsk. On 29 August 2007, the list of 63 new Kalinowski Program scholarship holders was approved, including 44 students expelled from Belarusian universities for political reasons and the remaining 19 individuals who suffered for their political beliefs in other ways – activists of the BNF Party, former students of the only Belarusian-language Jakub Kolas High School in Minsk closed by the authorities, and family members of repressed individuals. In the following days, the list was supplemented with several additional individuals, reaching a final total of 71 scholarship holders. They were directed to 15 cities, attending 23 universities, where they pursued studies in 24 fields of study.
In September 2008, in the third year of the program's operation, 58 individuals were admitted, who were directed to 11 cities, attending 22 universities, where they pursued studies in 26 fields of study (according to other sources, it was 70 individuals).
In September 2009, in the fourth year of the program's operation, 44 individuals were admitted, who were directed to 14 cities, attending 22 universities, where they pursued studies in 26 fields of study.
In September 2010, in the fifth year of the program's operation, 53 individuals were admitted. Ten of them met the program's criteria but had not reached the age of 18. These scholarship holders were directed to a one-year preparatory course. The remaining 43 individuals were directed to study in 11 cities, attending 17 universities, where they pursued studies in 26 different fields of study.
In December 2010, a total of approximately 250 students were enrolled in the program.
After the wave of repression following the 2010 Belarusian presidential election, the program's management decided to organize an additional, special recruitment. Candidates participated in Preparatory Courses of Polish Language and Culture from February to September 2011, after which they were directed to Polish universities.
From 2006 to 2015, a total of 988 scholarship holders were admitted to the program, who pursued studies at 76 universities. During this period, 332 scholarship holders graduated from Polish universities.
Organizational issues
Allocation In September 2006, during the allocation of scholarship recipients to universities, it turned out that the majority of them were not satisfied with their placements because almost everyone wanted to study in Warsaw. However, this was not feasible for various technical reasons. The scholarship holders also protested against what they perceived as poor living and teaching conditions, despite the fact that they were provided with conditions significantly better than those for Polish students. A wave of complaints temporarily paralyzed the work of the relatively small program office. Soon, there were reports of unfamiliar people wandering around student residences inhabited by program participants. These individuals incited the scholarship holders against the program management and encouraged protests regarding the allocations.