In all sciences and arts, the fruit is faithful practice. He who thinks about science, loves it, and he who loves it never ceases to learn, even if he may appear inactive outwardly.  Hryhorii Skovoroda

Brief Chronicle of the Life and Work of Hryhorii Skovoroda

Hryhorii Savych Skovoroda was born on December 3, 1722, in the village of Chornukhy (Poltava region) to a family of an ordinary cossack. In the late 1720s and early 1730s, Hryhorii Skovoroda received his primary education in his native village.

In 1734, he was enrolled at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy. In 1741, Hryhorii Skovoroda interrupted his studies at the academy and resumed them in August 1744, majoring in philosophy. In August 1745, he embarked on a journey to Western Europe as a seminarian of the Orthodox Church. He visited Hungary, Slovakia, Poland, and Austria.

In 1750, Hryhorii Skovoroda returned to Ukraine and began teaching poetics at Pereyaslav Collegium. In 1751, Hryhorii Skovoroda was dismissed from his position owing his application of new pedagogical ideas. From 1751 to 1753, he proceeded with his studies at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.

In January 1754, in the village of Kovrai (Pereyaslav region), Hryhorii Skovoroda became a private tutor to the son of a nobleman, Stepan Tomara. From 1759 to 1764, Skovoroda was invited to Kharkiv Collegium as a lecturer in poetics, syntax, and the Greek language.

In 1764, he departed from Kharkiv Collegium because of accusations, living in Kyiv, and later on, in Kharkiv again. In 1768, he returned to teaching at Kharkiv Collegium and wrote a textbook on ethics for this purpose.

In 1769, Hryhorii Skovoroda finally left Kharkiv Collegium due to disagreements on moral issues with Bishop Samuil Myslavsky of Belgorod and began a nomadic life. Over 25 years of travels across the Left-Bank Ukraine, Voronezh, Kursk, and Oryol provinces, he gained a reputation of a popular enlightener, sage, and teacher.

In the summer of 1794, he visited his friend and student Mykhailo Kovalynsky in Oryol province. In the autumn of the same year, he returned to Ukraine and visited his friend Olexander Kovalivsky in the village of Pan-Ivanivka (Kharkiv region).

On November 9, 1794, Hryhorii Savych Skovoroda passed away in the village of Pan-Ivanivka (now Skovorodynivka).

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"Doing history well is more important than writing it beautifully..."

Mykhailo Hrushevsky

H. S. Skovoroda Kharkiv National Pedagogical University is one of the oldest educational pedagogical institutions in Ukraine. It has a distinguished history, but its story intertwines with that of V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, founded on January 18, 1805.

According to the Statute of Kharkiv University, mandatory divisions were established to facilitate the educational process. Among them was the Teacher's or Pedagogical Institute, responsible for training teachers for gymnasiums and schools.

The first day of activity for Kharkiv Pedagogical Institute is considered September 1, 1811. However, in October 1858, the Pedagogical Institute was closed based on a government decree. From 1860, the general history of the Pedagogical Institute as a separate unit of the university came to an end.

On March 20, 1860, the Pedagogical Institute transformed into practical-pedagogical courses, and in 1907, it became the Higher Women's Courses, with certificates equivalent to university diplomas. The Institute for Noble Girls was established on September 1, 1812. It happened due to inspirational work and public service of the writer Hryhorii Fedorovych Kvitka-Osnovianenko and his brother Andriy Fedorovych. The Institute for Noble Girls became affiliated to the Higher Women's Courses, and both institutions merged in March 1919 to form higher three-year pedagogical courses. The merge eventually led to the establishment of Kharkiv Pedagogical Institute in 1933.

Before World War II, the Pedagogical Institute had around 11,000 students in its full-time, part-time, and evening departments, and it witnessed the largest graduating class in its history, with 561 graduates.

During World War II, two buildings of the Pedagogical Institute located in the center of Kharkiv were destroyed. On September 20, 1941, the Pedagogical Institute was evacuated to the city of Samarkand. It began to restore its activities in September 1943 after the liberation of Kharkiv.

From mid-January 1944, the Pedagogical Institute acquired its own suitable premises for educational work located at 29 Artema Street (currently 29 Alchevskykh Street).

In February 1945, the Pedagogical Institute was named after the prominent Ukrainian philosopher, enlightener, and educator, Hryhorii Skovoroda.

Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, the Pedagogical Institute underwent significant development, transforming into an influencial institution of higher education. In July 1958, the Pedagogical Institute was reorganized into H. S. Skovoroda Pedagogical Institute of Physical Education.

In August 1962, the institute was given back its former name, the Pedagogical Institute. At that time, the Pedagogical Institute prepared specialists in 10 specialties. There were 4475 students studying across 6 faculties, including 1935 full-time, 644 part-time, and 1896 distance learning students. Additionally, there were 33 postgraduate students.

In the 1980s, new faculties and departments were opened in the institute, leading to a rapid increase in the number of students. This growth prompted the institute's administration to construct a new educational building in the Saltivka residential area. The new premises were built in 1991. The street was then renamed, and the current address is 2 Valentynivska Street, not 2 Blyukhera Street, as it used to be.

According to the accreditation of 1992, H. S. Skovoroda Pedagogical Institute was accredited the highest, the fourth level, and a decision was made to transform the institute into a university. In accordance with the resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (No. 244 of April 20, 1994), and the order of the Ministry of Education of Ukraine, issued on November 9, 1994, the institute was renamed as H.S. Skovoroda Kharkiv State Pedagogical University.

At its 14 faculties (including 10 with full-time education), 8,406 students are studying across 31 specialties. The Institute of Postgraduate Education is established based on the Faculty of Further Education. Since 1995, the publication of the newspaper "Uchytel" (The Teacher) has been resumed.

The Pedagogical University became a recognized center for training educational personnel, marking the beginning of a new stage in its development.

This progress became the basis for conferring the status of a national university on H.S. Skovoroda Kharkiv State Pedagogical University. By the Decree of the President of Ukraine, issued on August 21, 2004, No. 955/2004, the university was granted the status of a national institution of higher education.

Since December 24, 2020, H.S. Skovoroda Kharkiv National Pedagogical University has been led by Dr. Yuriy Dmytrovych Boychuk, a professor and a corresponding member of the National Academy of Pedagogical Sciences of Ukraine.