The Turkish Maarif Foundation has become a global brand in education that provides schooling from kindergarten to university at all levels, the chairman of the foundation said on Tuesday.
"We proved ourselves with a developed curriculum and international comparative education experience and have become Turkey's global education brand," Birol Akgün told Anadolu Agency (AA) in an exclusive interview.
Akgün mentioned that they have over 5,000 personnel around the world, including 500 teachers, administrators and technical staff from Turkey.
Teachers and administrators gained great experience by Maarif Foundation's education activities abroad, he said.
Akgün said 40% of 250 students studying in Maarif schools in Romania are Turkish and the rest of them are Muslim minorities or they are connected with Turkey.
"We are giving priority to Turkish teachers in Macedonia and Georgia, because in these countries most of our students are Turkish as well," he added.
Maarif Foundation has 33,000 students but this number only indicates the quantity, said Akgün.
The foundation cares about quality education and for that reason it has prepared the 2020-2023 period strategic plan to be implemented starting from the next term, he added.
One of the indicators of education quality is placement rate and our school's success rises steadily, he said.
"We have a rising success trend in all Maarif schools either in our new established schools or the ones linked to Gülenist Terror Group [FETÖ]."
Based on the statistics about the placement of alumni, the success ratio is around 90-100% in some of the schools, he added.
While the Maarif Foundation has representatives in 55 countries, it has also made official contact with 99 countries for educational activities. It educates more than 30,000 students at 272 schools in 33 countries. The foundation has also signed protocols with 43 countries and is soon planning to start educational activities. It also runs 36 dormitories in different countries. Alongside opening new schools worldwide, the Maarif Foundation has been taking control of FETÖ-linked educational institutions after the group orchestrated a coup attempt on July 15, 2016, killing 251 people and injuring nearly 2,200 others.
These FETÖ schools are usually gathered under umbrella organizations and managed through foundations. As an example, 46 schools are named "Harmony" in Texas, 30 schools are named "Concept" in and around Ohio, and some others are called "Magnolia."
Besides offering education, the Maarif Foundation also provides assistance to many high school students who are looking for higher education in Turkey. To that end, the foundation has already signed protocols with 42 Turkish universities. These protocols focus on many areas including teacher training and Turkish language courses for foreign students.