Lithuania to allow all willing gymnasiums to offer cadet education

VILNIUS – All municipal and state gymnasiums in Lithuania will be able to offer a cadet education curriculum if they are willing and ready to do so, the Education, Science and Sport Ministry said on Friday. 

The ministry, in collaboration with the Defense Ministry, has developed a national Cadet Education Program.

Under the program, cadets can be trained starting from primary school or from the fifth grade.

A municipal school wishing to implement the Cadet Education Program will have to obtain approvals from the education and defense ministers.

One of the requirements is that at least 20 percent of the students must reside outside the school's municipality.

A cadet education gymnasium serving students from across the country or region will be eligible for not only educational funding but also maintenance funds from the state budget, under the amended Law on Education.

"We are putting significant effort into strengthening and expanding cadet education," Deputy Education, Science and Sport Minister Ignas Gaiziunas said in a press release. 

"A couple of years ago, at the Education, Science and Sport Ministry's initiative, the Seimas amended the Law on Education to facilitate the establishment of municipal cadet gymnasiums. Now that we have approved the program, we have effectively finalized the cadet education concept," he said.

In cadet gymnasiums, students will study all mandatory subjects, as in regular schools, but will also receive training in basic national defense skills, resilience to threats, leadership, and other competencies. They will purposefully build character traits such as courage, determination, responsibility and resilience.

Cadet training will emphasize not only physical endurance but also value-based education: respect and loyalty to the state and the nation, its history and traditions, democracy, a positive attitude toward transforming Lithuania, and creatively addressing contemporary global challenges.

Currently, there are two cadet schools in Lithuania: the General Povilas Plechavicius Cadet Lyceum in Kaunas and the Klaipeda Sea Cadet School.