The pedagogical dynasties of Saratov University have adorned street billboards. The Saratov - the city of family traditions photo project was launched in the region on the occasion of City Day. Eight families who have devoted their lives to teaching at SSU have taken part in it.

Thus, some dynasties who participated in the festive photo session included the Sayapins, the Zinovyevs, the Karelins, the Kirillovs-Sorokins, the Kryuchkovs-Kadkalovs, the Gozhii-Nikitins, the Luchinins-Lukomskiis, and the Kurilenko-Nikiforovs. Each of these families has a long working history closely related to the social life of the city and the region.

The founder of one of these dynasties was the rector of SSU who died at the front during the Great Patriotic War Daniil Luchinin. His niece Natalia Lukomskaya followed in her uncle's footsteps: she worked as a programmer in the Laboratory of Computational Methods. Her husband, Sergei Lukomskii, became a professor at the Department of Mathematic Analysis. And their son, Dmitii Lukomskii, is an assistant Professor of the Department of Mathematical Physics and Numerical Analysis.

The dynasty of pedagogues in the Sayapin family was born in 1979. Then the head of the family, Vasilii Sayapin, started working as a senior laboratory assistant at the Department of Algebra and Geometry, Saratov State Pedagogical Institute. From 2004 to the present day, Vasilii Sayapin has been working as the chair of the SSU Department of Technology Education. His wife has also been working at Saratov University for over 30 years. Natalia Sayapina began her professional career at SSU in 1999. Since 2011, she has been a member of the Research-to-Methodology Commission of the Faculty of Pedagogical and Special Needs Education. The son of Vasilii and Natalia Sayapin’s followed in the footsteps of his parents and chose the pedagogical profession. Since 2018, Nikolai Sayapin has been responsible for the research work of the faculty.

The Zinovyev family began their pedagogical career in 1973. Then Pavel Zinovyev and Tatiana Zinovyev graduated from Saratov State Pedagogical Institute as teachers of mathematics. From 2006 to the present day, Pavel Zinovyev has been working as an assistant professor at the Department of Elementary Natural and Mathematical Education, Tatiana Zinovyev worked at the same department from 2000 to 2014. Maria Zinovieva also decided to follow the pedagogical path. Since 2016, she has been chairing the Corporate Department of Childhood Pedagogy in Saratov Gymnasium # 7.

The role of the founder of another pedagogical dynasty belongs to Anna Kadkalova. Almost all her life, she worked as a primary school teacher in a rural school. That dynasty was continued by Yurii Kadkalov and Emilia Kadkalova, who, after graduating from the University of Alma-Ata, first worked as teachers in Kazakhstan, and then moved to Saratov. For many years, Professor Yurii Kadkalov was the dean of the Faculty of Philology, SSU Pedagogical Institute; he is remembered with gratitude by numerous graduates working both in Saratov Region and abroad. Professor Emilia Kadkalova headed the Department of the Russian language at the same faculty. Both of them defended their dissertations on the same day at the Faculty of Philology, Moscow University.

The third generation of the dynasty is represented by the doctors of philology Olga Kryuchkova and Vladimir Kryuchkov. Olga Kryuchkov is a professor at SSU, the chair of the Department of Language Theory and History and Applied Linguistics, the Institute of Philology and Journalism. Vladimir Kryuchkov chairs the Department of Speech Therapy and Psycholinguistics, the Faculty of Pedagogical and Special Needs Education. Earlier he chaired the Department of Special Methods for Teaching Russian Language and Literature. Also he owns the title of Honourary Worker of Education.

The Kirillov-Sorokin family also has several generations of pedagogues. Thus, Valentina Sorokina works as the secretary of the academic office of the College of Radaioelectronics, continuing the family tradition of her mother and father-in-law, who dedicated decades of their lives to their beloved profession. From 1945 to 1985, Stepan Sorokin was a professor at the SSU Department of Thermophysics. In turn, Antonina Kirillova worked as a laboratory assistant at the Faculty of Biology, Saratov University, from 1952 to 1966.

Elena Gozhii and her brother Sergei Nikitin, like representatives of the other noted dynasties, work in SSU. Elena Gozhii teaches information technologies at the College of Radaioelectronics, and Sergei Nikitin works in the technical office of the university. The founder of this university workers’ generation was their mother, Valentina Nikitina, who from 1972 to 2006 held the position of the chief accountant of the College of Radioelectronics.

The parade of labour dynasties participating in the city project was continued by the Karelin family. For many years, Irina Karelina has held the post of the deputy dean for full-time academic affairs of the SSU Faculty of Sociology. Her son, Maksim Karelin, heads the Research-to-Methodology Youth Centre at the SSU Faculty of Sociology. Besides, he is engaged in social and educational work with students. Maksim Karelin inherited his love for pedagogy not only from his mother, but also from his grandmother. Svetlana Karelina worked at the university from the mid-1970s until 2012, she was an employee of the SSU Party Committee, a methodologist of the Faculty of Geography and the Dean Office of the Faculty of Physics as well as the superintendent of SSU Bldg. III.

Another family that got on the Saratov billboards was the Kurilenko-Nikiforov dynasty. The brothers Igor Nikiforov and Yaroslav Nikiforov have been working at SSU since the late 1980s. Igor Nikiforov works as an assistant professor of the Department of Petrochemistry and Technogenic Safety, and his brother is a professor of the Department of Region Sociology. Their parents and even their grandfather also devoted their lives to the university. Since 1965, Alexander Nikiforov has held the position of an engineer at the Research Institute of Chemistry. Since the same year, his wife, Olga Kurilenko, has been working as a chemistry teacher at the preparatory department. Olga Kurilenko’s father worked in SSU since 1954, he was the deputy dean of the Faculty of History for full-time and part-time studies and the keeper of the Battle Glory Room.