School Caught in Oil Tycoon's Misfortune

The school costs about $30,000 a year per student to run. In addition to core subjects, it offers music, dance, choir, art, photography, theater and fashion design. There is a gym, a small swimming pool, computer rooms, a large library, and a kitchen and canteen that defy stereotypes about school lunches. The wall of the school is adorned with student work and valuable paintings donated by Khodorkovsky.

There is also a clinic with four doctors, a dental suite and a staff of psychologists on-site to assist the children. A room made of tons of mineral salt provides relief for children with breathing problems.

"We are an elite school for children with problems," said Alexander Yarulov, the headmaster. The school is loosely modeled on a British public or elite school. The students, all in uniform, appear unfailingly polite. They universally beam when Khodorkovsky's mother passes by, and some stop to kiss her. Khodorkovskaya spends most of her time at the school now.

"Not any school can replace your home, but this school had replaced mine," said Viktoria Nikitina, whose father, a Russian border guard, is stationed in a remote area that has no educational facilities. "I've loved it here."

A deep unease has settled into the student body. At a school assembly last week, students reported on the week's news, as they do every week, but Thursday's report included material on their own uncertain fate. A student reported straightforwardly that human rights activists and others planned to protest in Moscow. He also noted that the Moscow Helsinki Group, a leading human rights organization, had called for the release of political prisoners, including Khodorkovsky.

"It's a special place," said Dzgoyeva, from Beslan. "And if it hadn't been for this school, I don't know what would have happened to me."

"We're all trying not to think about what might happen," said Sasha Zakharova, 16, an orphan from the Tyumen region in Siberia who came to the school three years ago when her grandmother could no longer care for her. If she hadn't been accepted, she likely would have ended up in a bleak state orphanage.

Khodorkovsky, who was recently slashed in the face by another inmate, has spoken to his father about what has been happening at the school.

Marina Khodorkovskaya said her son told his father that, as long as they both persevered, "This lyceum will continue to live."