Oikos IV-5 from Nikšić, a Foundation for which modesty is a virtue and knowledge is a measure of success, is rare in this area.
It was founded in 2011, during the celebration of 30 years of high school graduation, by former students of the IV-5 biology department of the former High School Center, which was declared the best in the former SFRY in 1980, in order to preserve the memory of the department and the class leader once a year, through donations and voluntary contributions, awarded a cash prize in the amount of one thousand euros to the best high school student from Nikšić.
Since 2012, the best of the best have been competing for the award given by the students of the "golden class", as they were called, which had 28 girls and six boys and had an average grade of 4,72.
This year, the members of the commission were in a difficult situation - who to award the prize from among the six candidates.
"In the past, we had the problem that we did not have good enough candidates according to the criteria we set, while this year we had a lot of trouble. Of the six candidates, almost all had the prerequisites to receive the award. We thought that the prize should go to the student who had the best results in natural sciences, and I think we chose the right candidate," said M.Sc. Željko Radojević, a businessman who lives and works in London and is one of those who initiated the establishment of the Foundation whose goal is to trace the path of knowledge to the young generation.
Danijel Aleksic, a graduate of the "Stojan Cerović" Gymnasium in Nikšić, and a freshman at the Faculty of Medicine in Podgorica since the fall, according to the unanimous opinion of the committee, is the winner of this year's award. He deserved it with the medals he won, first of all in chemistry, but also in mathematics.
"The award means a lot to me and I am honored that I was even given the opportunity to apply. I have to admit that half a year ago, I learned about the Foundation from the professor who suggested I apply, and I was pleasantly surprised that there is an entire department that tries to promote natural sciences, that there is someone who values knowledge and encourages young people. That's why receiving an award from them is a special privilege," Aleksic said.
Even as an elementary school student, he fell in love with natural sciences. As he said, mathematics is to blame for that, which won him over "at the first ball".
"It is the first branch of natural sciences that interested me. She is still my great love. Then came chemistry, which won me over because of the fact that it connects mathematics, biology, and medicine. Municipal, state, and international competitions and awards started, and this award crowned all my previous work because someone, outside the relevant ministry, recognized that there are students who strive to be as good and successful as possible", said the future medical student who talks that he would like to be a surgeon one day.
"Average" students cannot apply to the Foundation's competition, nor those who "only" have all fives, because the Foundation is looking for more than that - students who have distinguished themselves from their generation with ambition, creativity and results in competitions, not only in Black It's hotter and wider.
And such were this year's candidates. Out of six of them, five have finished high school, while Luka Jakic, a student in the third grade of the Gymnasium, have two more chances to compete for the "golden class" award. In addition to the two of them, four exceptional young ladies - sisters - competed for the award this year Ljubica i Mikica Mirkovic, who finished high school and high school of music and enrolled in architecture and pharmacy in Podgorica, Borjana Karadzic, a former high school student and a pharmacy student since autumn, i Jovana Jaredić, who graduated from the High School of Music and entered the Faculty of Music, majoring in music pedagogy, in Belgrade.
"The award and successful young people are our link with the past, with the days when we were in their shoes. What delighted us and caused us 'trouble' is not only their successes, but also their understanding of true values. These are such healthy children and if they were all like this and had this view of the world, if they nurtured the right values, then we too could say, like Tito used to say: 'A nation that has this kind of youth does not have to worry about its future,'" Radojević was visibly proud.
The prize was awarded for the first time in 2012 and the previous winners are: Petar Tadic, Janko Radulović, Jelena Lalic, Milena Roganović, Rade Dacevic, Marko Petrusic, Vuk Jovovich, Vladimir Boskovic, Rajka Pejanović i Milena Radovic, laureates who, with their success in later education, showed that the prize went into the right hands.
Dr Mira Joksović, president of the Foundation, thanked the donors and expressed satisfaction that philanthropy has come to life in Nikšić and that an increasing number of companies and individuals are coming forward to help the Foundation, and therefore successful young people.
This year's sponsors were "Trebjesa" Brewery, Elektroprivreda Crne Gore, Prva banka and Dekor "Iva".
Professor Brajušković "diamond necklace clasp"
The "Oikos" foundation is named after the student nickname of the head of the class of the "golden department", the late professor Slobodan Brajušković, who was, as former students like to point out, "home" for their teenage souls.
"Oikos" in translation means house, home, and Brajušković was not only a professor who knew how to "infuse" students with knowledge and "infect" them with science, but someone who brought them together, taught friendship and respect, was, as Radojević said , “diamond clasp necklace composed of 34 precious beads scattered all over the world”.
Brajušković, who worked in Nikšić for 18 years and in Podgorica for 22 years, died on August 20, 2014 and left behind generations of successful and grateful students, the best of them being the founders of the "Oikos" Foundation.
Bonus video:
