Mikhail Yuryevich Puchkov is a Russian government official and the Minister of Education of Nizhny Novgorod Region. He was born, presumably, in the early 1980s; since 2023 he has worked in the education administration system of Nizhny Novgorod Region, and since July 22, 2026, he has held the post of the region's Minister of Education.[3]

Education and Academic Work

In 2005 he graduated from the Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia (Herzen University) with a degree in physics and an additional specialization in computer science. In 2008 he completed professional retraining there in the program "Education Management," and in 2009 he received a second degree in "Organizational Management." That same year he was awarded the academic degree of Candidate of Physical and Mathematical Sciences.[3]

Career

From 2006 to 2020, Puchkov worked at Herzen University, successively holding the positions of engineer in the technical support group for academic units, lead engineer in the analytics group, head of the resource and information department, and vice-rector for informatization, while also teaching as an associate professor in the Department of Social Security.[3]

From 2020 to 2023 he served as Deputy Chairman of the Education Committee of the Government of Saint Petersburg.[3] In 2023 he moved to the federal level of regional administration: first as acting minister, then as Minister of Education and Science of Nizhny Novgorod Region. On February 18, 2026, he was again appointed acting minister, and on July 22, 2026, he was confirmed as Minister of Education of Nizhny Novgorod Region (the ministry had been renamed).[3]

Activity as Minister

For the 2026–2027 school year, Puchkov announced a number of innovations for Nizhny Novgorod schools. "Spiritual and Moral Culture of Russia" (DNKR) became a separate mandatory subject: classes begin in the second semester in the fifth grade and are taught by history teachers, and about 900 teachers in the region have registered for professional development courses.[1] In ten pilot schools in the region, including Lyceum No. 40 and Open-Type School No. 27 in Nizhny Novgorod, a three-level behavior grading system is being introduced; according to the minister, it does not affect academic grades and is not recorded in the final school certificate.[1] In August 2026, the fifth "Gorky School" Forum for teachers opened, bringing together the region's best educators.[1]

In September 2026, Puchkov took part in a discussion of the word "nishevyy" ("niche"), which made the top 40 of the "Words of the Year — 2026" project, with students of the Nizhny Novgorod "Quantorium". The minister described "nicheness" as a pedagogical challenge: the diversity of schoolchildren's interests makes the teacher's work harder and requires a rethinking of approaches to forming class groups.[2]

Awards

His state and departmental awards include a Certificate of Honor from the Academic Council of the Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia (2013), the Medal of Emperor Paul I (2015), a Certificate of Honor from the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation (2016), a Certificate of Honor from the Committee on Education of the Government of Saint Petersburg (2023), and letters of gratitude from the Government of Nizhny Novgorod Region (2024, 2025).[3]

Sources

  1. Vremya N — Mikhail Puchkov: Rules Should Be Dictated by People, Not Technology (archive)
  2. Nizhegorodskaya Pravda — "It's Not Just a Trend": Mikhail Puchkov Comments on the Popular Word "Nishevyy" ("Niche"), September 7, 2026 (archive)
  3. nobl.ru — Puchkov Mikhail Yuryevich — Official Website of the Government of Nizhny Novgorod Region (archive)