Olga Anikst Russian teacher, organizer of vocational education in the RSFSR, Date of Birth: 14.11.1886

1. Early Life and Education
2. Revolutionary Activities and Exile
3. Organization of Professional Education
4. Advocacy and Leadership
5. Moscow Institute of New (Foreign) Languages
6. Later Career and Persecution

Early Life and Education

Olga (Golda) Anixt was born in Kisinev, Bessarabia Governorate, Russian Empire (present-day Chisinau, Moldova) to a large working-class family. She was the thirteenth of eighteen children. In 1905, Anixt graduated with honors from the Kishinev Jewish Girls' School, where she received her education in Yiddish.

Revolutionary Activities and Exile

Anixt actively participated in the 1905 revolution and was subsequently arrested and imprisoned for a year. After her release, she went into exile in France and Switzerland. In 1917, she returned to Russia with her husband and two children.

Organization of Professional Education

Upon her return to Russia, Anixt dedicated herself to organizing professional education. She was a member of the Council of People's Commissars of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR) and played a key role in establishing vocational schools, apprentice programs, and on-the-job training for workers. She edited the journal "Zhizn' Rabochey Shkoly" ("The Life of the Workers' School") and advocated against the narrow specialization of vocational training.

Advocacy and Leadership

Anixt was a prominent figure in the field of labor education and organized the first All-Russian and All-Union Congresses on Workers' Education. She served as scientific secretary of the Scientific and Pedagogical Section of the People's Commissariat of Education (Narkompros). In the mid-1920s, she engaged in a notable debate with Aleksei Gastyev, director of the Central Institute of Labor, on the nature of vocational schools.

Moscow Institute of New (Foreign) Languages

In 1930, after studying foreign language teaching methods in Germany, Anixt established the Moscow Institute of New (Foreign) Languages in Moscow and became its first rector. Later renamed Moscow State Linguistic University, the institution became a leading center for foreign language instruction.

Later Career and Persecution

Anixt also worked in the All-Union Central Council of Trade Unions (VTSSPS) and the "Technique to the Masses" society. She authored numerous publications on education and published the book "Workers' Education in the RSFSR" (1925). In 1938, Anixt was arrested and sentenced to eight years in labor camps in Mordovia. After her release in 1946, she lived in exile in Sverdlovsk. She was finally rehabilitated in 1956.