The protesting students from the National Academy of Theatre and Film Arts will meet today with the rector, Prof. Miroslav Dachev.
Their dissatisfaction is due to the risk of losing European partnerships, an atmosphere of pressure on teachers and the unjustified increase in electricity bills in the dormitories, according to young people.
10 days ago they also held a demonstration in front of the NATFA building, closing part of the lane on the capital's ”Rakovski“ street and demanded the resignation of the rector of the Academy.
The students accuse the management of threatening to exclude the Academy from a European project, which will affect the international positioning of NATFA and the opportunities for international education.
In addition, the students claim that there is pressure on lecturers who have expressed a critical position, that there is a lack of transparency regarding the electricity bills charged in the dormitory and interference in the educational process.
"At the moment, what is being created is actually artificial tension in the Faculty of Theatre. We are simply fighting for the rights of the students and for this Academy to maintain the prestige it had," explains one of the protesting students.
The Deputy Rector of NATFA, Professor Dr. Penko Gospodinov, responded to the students' demands: ”The situation is quite unpleasant. This means that communication has broken down somewhere. We haven't heard something when we should, as we should. And I don't think there's anything in their petition that can't be communicated, resolved”.