It is exciting times at the school and community that I have the privilege to lead. We are about to move to a beautiful ecologically thoughtfully designed new campus in the summer. At periods of transition, we are invited to reflect and take stock, whilst also thinking about our aspirations for the future.
As a team at ISR, we are firmly in this place and wanted to find a way to celebrate all that our school is and what we will take with us; we wanted to celebrate the very essence of our school. Alongside this, we also celebrated the 20th school year of ISR. So, we decided to create an annual event that would honour all that has gone before and reconnect us with our roots, whilst also reaching for the stars with high aspirations for the future.
On 11th March 2002, ISR was literally signed into being as the school became a Verein, an association. What perfect date than this to launch our inaugural Founder’s Day that will become an annual celebration for our school. Community matters, identity matters and I look forward to celebrating this for years to come.
My speech to our community – our inaugural Founder’s Day 2023
What an honour to stand here today. Our school came into being on 11th march 2002. Today we are here, in a full theatre from the single registered student in 2002.
In 2020 I walked through the doors of ISR for the first time. I was intrigued. Who is this ‘small but mighty school’? I’ve worked in international education, and some of the world’s leading institutions in this field, for over twenty years, and this school is somehow different.
This school aspires to be local and global. This school is small and great in its smallness. It aspires to offer a world leading global education through the International Baccalaureate, whilst also offering the best that a community school can offer. Firmly rooted, whilst reaching for the stars.
Having grown up in a small community myself, I know the value and importance of identity and roots. The importance of belonging.
In international education, this is often the missing piece as our students move across the globe or enter international schools that could be anywhere in the world.
As third culture children grow into third and fourth culture adults, we face the challenge of increasing globalisation against the need for rooted identity.
At ISR, we offer both. This school is becoming the global standard for what education can be. As I took the baton from Mrs Sutcliffe and worked with our community and our wonderful partners, such as the Hilti family and company, we are defining an education where every student is valued; and supported as the individual that they are.
We believe in:
- An education where academic excellence sits firmly alongside personal responsibility and global citizenship.
- An education where skills are valued highly alongside knowledge.
- An education where belonging, where care, is intrinsic to all that we do.
It is a privilege to lead the school into our world-class ecologically designed campus this summer, as we to work together to deepen our foundations and create a model for education that will last generations to come.
And so, today we honour all that has gone before and we say thank you to all that have supported ISR’s mission and vision.
From me, from Mrs Sutcliffe, from all our board, we thank you, we thank our students, our parents, our partners, and we look towards bright blue skies and and a long-lasting local and global future for ISR.
“Great leaders inspire greatness in others” 