Räpina describes itself as the oldest and biggest vocational school teaching horticultural subjects in Estonia, offering a range of traditional courses from study of gardening, landscape design, floristics and textile work to more modern classes on protecting natural resources.
Since Estonia's EU accession, the school has wasted no time in broadening its horizons, joining a number of European networks. Räpina now takes a student from the EU's Leonardo programme every year, while its own students enjoy traineeship opportunities in eight EU countries.
Moreover, in 2010 the school joined the Flornet EEIG (European Economic Interest Grouping), which is a transnational network of floristic schools and other interest groups whose aim is to improve floristry education in Europe.
New school, new standards
While the school was founded in 1924, it has undergone thorough refurbishment in recent years, building a new greenhouse, sleeping quarters and canteen, as well as purchasing new landscaping equipment and other technology, which has vastly modernised its facilities.
School director Heino Luiga explained to EurActiv that the new, modern facility is thriving: the greenhouse allows students to carry out practical training using modern equipment even in wintertime; the new landscaping equipment has brought new technology and specialist skills to the training activities; and the new dormitory has improved living conditions considerably.
Generally speaking, says Luiga, the school's educational conditions have improved significantly, while the motivation of students and teachers has increased.
EU funds had a "very big impact" on this development, says the director, who explained that these changes would never have happened as quickly with Estonian aid alone.
The availability of EU funds has heralded a major and rapid change in Estonia, allowing the accelerated development of a number of sectors. The proof is in the results: Estonia currently has one of the highest rates among member states - 52.3% - in using the EU regional funds available to it.
Too much bureaucracy leads to lower standards
However, as in other member states, problems and bottlenecks with EU funds persist. In Räpina's case, the director says there was simply "too much paper work" in the application and processing of funding, which made life "very difficult" for the project leaders.
More fundamentally, the school feels that an excess of red tape may have prevented it from achieving the best possible standards in its renovation. Too much bureaucracy - in both the Estonian and EU funding procedures - has been an obstacle to getting the best possible public procurement and subsequent maximum quality, Luiga claims.
Nevertheless, Räpina is approaching the future with confidence. The key to a successful project lies in putting the right team in place early, project leaders explained. Luiga argues that the project learned from the mistakes of others, putting all the right measures in place to ensure the school remains vibrant and sustainable when its EU funds are spent.
"We've done the calculations and we are confident that things will continue to go well," he said.
