Special GOP Şefkat Anatolian / Science High School

Özel GOP Şefkat Anadolu ve Fen Lisesi is a private secondary education institution located in the Karadeniz neighborhood of the Gaziosmanpaşa district in Istanbul. The school operates under the umbrella of Özel Şefkat Eğitim Kurumları, which is managed by the Şefkat Foundation, and offers both Anatolian High School and Science High School programs. It constitutes the high school level of a comprehensive educational structure that spans from primary to secondary education.

Özel GOP Şefkat Lisesi

The foundations of Özel Şefkat Eğitim Kurumları were laid in 1986 by 21 founding members who established the Şefkat Foundation in Istanbul’s Fatih district. With the initiative of the foundation, the institution began operations in 1990–1991 as an elementary school in Bahçelievler and gradually expanded to offer education at multiple levels. In 1997, a primary school, a middle school, and a high school were opened at the Gaziosmanpaşa campus. The Science High School program was introduced within the high school in 2005, followed by the Anatolian High School program in 2008. In 2011, the high school unit decided to continue offering education exclusively through the Science High School and Anatolian High School programs. Today, Özel Şefkat Eğitim Kurumları serves students with a total of six schools: one primary and one middle school in Bahçelievler, and one primary school, one middle school, one Anatolian High School, and one Science High School in Gaziosmanpaşa. ^【1】

The school is operated by the Şefkat Foundation, established in 1986, and is affiliated with the Ministry of National Education as a private school. It is part of an integrated educational structure encompassing preschool, primary, middle, and high school levels under Özel Şefkat Eğitim Kurumları. The high school unit offers two distinct programs: Özel GOP Şefkat Anatolian High School and Özel GOP Şefkat Science High School. The institution’s vision is to be a model educational institution in Türkiye and globally, defined by its strong institutional identity and openness to innovation in education. Its mission is to develop students holistically—academically, socially, emotionally, and physically—through a staff proficient in and actively using educational technologies. ^【2】

The school simultaneously implements both the Anatolian High School and Science High School programs. While Turkish is the language of instruction, special emphasis is placed on foreign language education. English instruction is supported by Main Course and Skills classes, with native English-speaking teachers helping students develop speaking and pronunciation skills. The school applies a project-based learning approach. Within this framework, students are not only encouraged to acquire academic knowledge but also to apply it to real-life problems. In addition to academic work, values education is a core component of the curriculum. A different value is selected each month and integrated into the educational content. These values include self-efficacy, responsibility, respect, honesty, empathy, tolerance, and justice. Full-day education is implemented, with instructional hours running from 08:50 to 16:25. ^【3】

Student admissions to Özel Şefkat Anatolian and Science High School are conducted within the framework established by the Ministry of National Education. Admission to high school is based on the LGS (Secondary Education Transition System) score; the minimum cutoff scores and quotas vary annually.

The school is located on its campus in the Karadeniz neighborhood of Gaziosmanpaşa district. The campus includes a conference hall, physics, chemistry, biology, science, and computer laboratories, a library, an industrial arts workshop, visual arts studios, ceramics and drama workshops, values education centers, indoor sports facilities, a gymnastics hall, and extensive playgrounds. Two cafeterias are also part of the campus facilities.

The principal of Özel GOP Şefkat High School is Nurullah Yaradanakul. Born in 1981 in Nevşehir, Yaradanakul completed his primary, middle, and high school education in Bursa. He graduated from the Department of Turkish Language and Literature at Dumlupınar University in 2005 and later completed his master’s degree at Uludağ University. Beginning his teaching career in 2006 at a private institution, Yaradanakul assumed administrative roles after nine years of teaching and has served a total of 22 years across all levels of education.^【4】

The school conducts a variety of social club activities. Clubs operating in the fields of music, drama, sports, art, and technology help students discover their interests and talents while developing teamwork and leadership skills. Club activities also aim to enhance communication skills and foster a sense of social responsibility. In addition, student activities are offered in numerous areas including chess, table tennis, software development, coding, robotics, intelligence games, gymnastics, bağlama, organ, football, basketball, drawing, design, Olympiad, science and project work, manual skills, drama, and foreign languages. Events such as the Spring Festival Fair and Parent Seminars are also part of the school’s annual activity program. ^【5】

Özel GOP Şefkat High School participates in international educational projects. As of May 2026, the school has joined the eTwinning project titled “A Drop of Life: Protecting Water for Our Future.” Workshops on conscious technology use, conducted in collaboration with Yeşilay, are also part of the school’s activities.^【6】

As of May 2026, the school’s high school students have won awards in the Istanbul Science Olympiads (İSBO) in the fields of Geography and Science. Additionally, one student secured second place in a district-level competition themed “One World, Shared Conscience,” focused on Gaza.^【7】

The school’s institutional identity is built around a color palette of blue and red. The emblem, reflecting the book and heart motifs from the Şefkat Foundation logo, is used uniformly across all units of the institution. The lyrics of the school anthem were written by Mukaddes Çıtlak and the music composed by Defne İlgaz. The anthem addresses themes of love for the homeland, commitment to education, and service to society.^【8】

The core principles embraced by the institution include professional competence and capability, respect for the individual, planned work, reliability, commitment to national and spiritual values, scientific rigor, uncompromising quality in education, socialization, and social sensitivity.