Ashot Gabrielyan, a teacher in the Artsakh village of Kolkhozashen, has been stranded in Armenia for the past month due to the closure of the Lachin Corridor.

Gabrielyan, a native of the Artsakh town of Askeran, says he misses his students and hopes to reunite with them soon.

He joined the Teach for Armenia program that recruits professionals to teach in underserved schools in Armenia and Artsakh and was sent to Kolkhozashen in September 2021.

"My decision was partially emotional, but I decided that I should work and live in Artsakh. One of the interesting aspects of this program is that you won't know where you will end up until the last moment. I got Kolkhozashen. I always say my village is the best, the most beautiful. I love my village, my students, and my colleagues very much," says Gabrielyan.

We met Gabrielyan in Yerevan at the Teach for Armenia office. Due to the road closure, he conducts classes despite Azerbaijan’s periodic cutting off the internet and electricity connections to Artsakh.