The ISSA Network is pleased to welcome the Lachezar Tsotsorkov Foundation from Bulgaria as a new member of our community.
Since its establishment in 2019, the Foundation has been working to create long-term change in Bulgarian society by investing in areas that shape people’s everyday lives — including education, child protection, healthcare, culture, and national heritage. At the heart of its work is a strong belief that meaningful impact comes not from one-off interventions, but from sustained partnerships and support that strengthen systems over time.
One area where this approach is already making a visible difference is social and emotional learning (SEL) in schools. Rather than focusing only on short-term teacher trainings, the Foundation has invested in helping educators embed SEL into daily classroom practice and school culture.
In 2025, through Bulgaria’s national program for a Safe Learning Environment, the Foundation’s methodologists trained more than 250 pedagogical specialists from 34 schools. In several schools, teachers also received ongoing support through supervision, professional learning communities, and expert guidance. The result was not simply new methods or terminology, but meaningful shifts in how teachers communicate with children, build relationships in the classroom, and create environments where children feel safe, supported, and included.
The Foundation is now looking even earlier in children’s lives by exploring a new initiative focused on fostering a Growth Mindset in early childhood education for children aged 3–6. The study aims to examine how growth mindset approaches can be effectively adapted and applied within the Bulgarian context.
As a new ISSA member, the Lachezar Tsotsorkov Foundation hopes to exchange experiences and collaborate with organizations across the network on topics such as social and emotional learning, inclusion, child protection, and strengthening early childhood systems. The Foundation also brings valuable experience in building partnerships between philanthropy, schools, civil society organizations, and public institutions to support sustainable change.
“We hope to both share the Bulgarian experience and learn from approaches that have worked in other countries and contexts,” the Foundation shared about joining the network.
We are excited to welcome the Lachezar Tsotsorkov Foundation to the ISSA community and look forward to learning and collaborating together in support of young children, families, and professionals.
The Foundation can also be reached by email at info@tsotsorkov.com or by phone at +359 877 952 361. Organizations interested in collaboration, partnerships, or learning more about our programs are welcome to contact directly.
Learn more about the Lachezar Tsotsorkov Foundation: https://tsotsorkov.com/en/home/
