Dr.Arūnas Šileris takes office as Vilnius’ fourth vice-mayor

The fourth  vice-mayor of the capital city has joined the team of deputy mayors of the capital – Arūnas Šileris, 46, Doctor of Social sciences. The fourth deputy mayor, in charge of general education, was delegated by Laisvės partija (Freedom Party).

The new deputy mayor has a bachelor’s degree in English and a master’s degree in translation. During his PhD studies at Vilnius University, he researched students’ motivation to read in digital environments. A. Šileris has worked as a professional interpreter for more than twenty years and has interpreted for His Holiness the Dalai Lama XVI, the Royal Family of the United Kingdom and the Royal Family of Sweden during their visits to Lithuania, has translated and edited books on educational topics, has worked in the field of traditional and digital publishing, and has been a board member of the Teachers’ Union of the Lithuanian Language and Literature Union and the International Book and Children’s Book Association (IBBY).

“Today’s first graders will open the doors of the fifth grade in four years, and the ninth graders will close the doors of the school. I want the students to remember this year with warmth, and I want us to do everything we can to make it a good year for learning and growing in Vilnius,” says Arūnas Šileris.

So far, Vilnius Municipality has had three vice-mayors – two from the TS-LKD group (Simona Bieliūnė and Andrius Grigonis) and one from the Laisvės partija (Freedom Party) group (Donalda Meiželytė). Simona Bieliūnė is responsible for health, social affairs, night-time economy and culture, while Andrius Grigonis is responsible for urban development, land management, infrastructure and transport. D. Meiželyte is in charge of pre-school, general and non-formal education, youth affairs, sports and health promotion.