site.btaMay 30, 1931: Foundation Stone Laid for National Student Home in Sofia

On May 30, 1931, the foundation stone of the Student Home (today's National Student Home) was laid at Sofia's National Assembly Square with a solemn water blessing by Metropolitan Stefan of Sofia. The building, designed by architects Stancho Belkovski and Ivan Danchov to combine the national tradition and contemporary European trends in architecture, was completed in 1933 to serve as a centre of student life and cultural exchange.  

That marked the success of efforts dating back to 1904, when Stiliyan Chilingirov, the head of a Student Club established several years earlier, set up a fund to build a home for students. The Ministry of Education provided BGN 10,000 to that end, according to information on the National Student Home website. In a letter dated December 19, 1929, King Boris III told the Bulgarian National Student Union that he strongly sympathized with "the honourable endeavour to build a Home of the Bulgarian Student, where the hearts and minds of healthy and well-educated citizens of Bulgaria will be strengthened and united, who tomorrow, working for the Motherland, will be good workers in international cooperation for the peaceful common human progress."

The building began functioning in 1933, hosting the rehearsals of the first music and art ensembles.  

Between 1944 and 1952, the building served as accommodation for the Soviet Army Staff and then the People's Army Theatre. In 1952, it was designated Student Home again. 

On July 5, 1957, the Council of Ministers renamed it Central Student Club. In 1977, it was transferred to the Central Committee of the Communist Party.

On December 4, 1991, the Council of Ministers assigned the National Student Home to the Ministry of Education and Science for management and administration to meet the social and cultural needs of students. In 1996, the building was declared an architectural monument of culture.

In 2002, the day of laying the foundation stone of the building, May 30, was declared Day of the National Student Home.

In 2020, the National Student Home acquired the official status of state cultural organisation. 

Today, its doors are open to all representatives and friends of the Bulgarian student community. In addition to the administrative services provided by the student centres located on the premises of the National Student Home, as well as the regular activities of the Home's artistic collectives, the National Student Home provides platforms for the organisation of events aimed at personal and professional development, education, science, culture and the arts. The Home hosts many public, cultural, and academic events at the national and international level.