How challenging times have inspired our students, teachers, alumni and friends to support their peers and the wider community.
When the International Baccalaureate (IB) examinations were cancelled this year, a number of final year students from across our school community, keen to do something positive with their spare time, took action to support their younger peers who are studying the IB Diploma Programme (DP).
Identifying that there are particular areas in the DP where insight from fellow students can be particularly helpful, two students from ACS Cobham, Haya and Annefien, established 'IB Aid', leveraging their own knowledge and experience of the DP for the benefit of other students.
After around a month of hard work, during which they assembled notes and case studies, adapted models for different types of learners, and created a website and an Instagram account, Haya and Annefien were able to share 'IB Aid' with their peers. The pair have also hosted a number of live Q&As on their Instagram account, which have given Grade 11 students the opportunity to ask any additional questions on areas of concern.
Talking about their motivations to start the initiative, Annefien said: "Haya and I wanted to find a way to take our work from the last two years and turn it into something useful for other students. Through the website we're providing students with relatable advice and helpful revision materials that they can apply to their own IB studies."
Two students from ACS Hillingdon, Jaden and Eemil, have also been doing what they can to help younger peers now working on their extended essays. Over the past few weeks, they have been creating a database of example essays, and have also, together, delivered a series of virtual masterclasses on IB core subjects, the theory of knowledge and the extended essay.
Jaden explained: "Having the perspective of another student is greatly beneficial and, particularly with the extended essay masterclass, we think it was helpful for students to hear our approaches to the project, what strategies we applied and how we wrote our own first drafts."
Chris Green, a former ACS Hillingdon Assistant Principal and IBDP Coordinator (2016-18), responded to the recent request for NHS volunteers. He registered with the Royal Voluntary Service (RVS) as an NHS volunteer responder.
He has become critical in providing a number of very important services to help the elderly and vulnerable during these difficult times. Some of these roles have included transferring patients from hospital to their home on a daily basis, initiating telephone contact with the elderly who are in isolation and assisting with their shopping, running errands or just offering a friendly chat.
Chris receives alerts via an app and notifications are sent when his status is set to ‘on duty’. He recounts a recent situation. “I received an alert to telephone a person who was in isolation and living alone. Sadly, they had only recently lost their spouse and had no immediate family in the UK. We talked about the loss, the weather, grief, the weather again, funeral costs, meals, the news and on many occasions we just sit in silence. They ask me if that is okay not to talk, because they just need me to be on the other end of the phone.
“Volunteering at this time is hugely humbling. At a time when we are all spending so much time at home with family and loved ones, enjoying the additional time we have to pause, slow down, reflect, and appreciate our relationships and time more, we are able to look beyond our front doors in a way we have not had to before.
“If it were not for the RVS opportunity, April 2020 would for me have been a little more insular. Now I am able to reach out and support my neighbours, and in doing so, contribute to the combined efforts of many thousands who are doing a little to support the services of the NHS and our community of carers.
I will always remember ACS as a school that encouraged giving back through participation in service learning and supporting the wider community – it was one of the values that attracted me to the school originally. It seems ACS altruism is still alive and kicking!”
Members of our UK school community - including parents, staff members, alumni, local businesses and partner organisations - have helped us to raise £5,000 for the Magic Breakfast programme. This will provide over 7,400 breakfasts to vulnerable children in Surrey.
Due the scale of its operation, for a really low cost, Magic Breakfast is able to deliver healthy and nutritious breakfasts directly to our local partner schools. The donated breakfasts will be collected by families from local schools that are open, or will be delivered directly to the homes of families who are unable to get to a local pick up point.
In addition to the breakfast campaign, teams from across our campuses have stepped up to support their communities in other practical ways. Our science department at ACS International School Cobham donated the PPE available at the school to St Peters' Hospital in Surrey, and ACS International School Hillingdon donated PPE to the Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. ACS International School Egham's science department has also donated almost 200 pairs of safety glasses and goggles, 2,400 gloves, and 25 masks to Frimley Park Hospital. We hope these donations have helped make even a small difference to the incredible key workers in ACS's local hospitals.
While schools have been closed, ACS Cobham also donated its surplus catering ingredients to local food banks, and the stock from its tuck shop to a women’s shelter.
Neil Vora (ACS Cobham 2000) is a physician and epidemiologist focused on emerging infectious diseases, particularly those with animal origins. He works for the US-based Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
For many people an afternoon or evening at the cinema is a nice diversion, generally a two-hour escape from the everyday world. But a great film can do much more than simply entertain, it can inspire. So it was that Outbreak, a 1995 thriller focused on a virus-linked public health crises, changed the course of Cobham alumnus Neil Vora’s life, propelling him forward on a personal quest to become, as he puts it, a “disease detective”. But before that fateful trip to the cinema, there was a whole lot of living and learning.
Neil shares something of his earlier life and where his journey’s taken him today. “I was born in USA and moved to Saudi Arabia when I was 3, where I lived until I was 15, and then started boarding school at ACS. After graduating from ACS in 2000, I joined an eight-year programme at the University of Southern California (USC) that guaranteed me admission to their medical school upon successful completion of an undergraduate degree. I ultimately decided to attend medical school at the University of California at San Francisco (USCF) after finishing my USC undergraduate degree in 2004. While at UCSF (2004-2009), I became very interested in infectious diseases and took an extra year to do research. I spent most of that year in rural Uganda helping to start a new study on malaria and HIV in children. I went on to specialise in Internal Medicine at Columbia University (2009-2012) in New York City (NYC), and joined CDC in 2012 as an Epidemic Intelligence Service officer in the US Public Health Service. Nearly eight years later, I am still with CDC and am currently stationed in NYC.”
ACS and its International Baccalaureate (IB) programme definitely helped develop Neil’s first-class intellect and for that he’s ever grateful.
While his work with the CDC can seem daunting at times, including travel to areas of the world dealing directly with emerging and dangerous infectious diseases, it’s a life’s pursuit Neil absolutely loves. Now well-established in his field, Neil’s happy to share his insights and experience with the next generation of ACSers or just young people in general, a message worth taking on board regardless of chosen career path.
He urges all to press on: “Be bold in what you want to accomplish with your life and don’t let your fears derail you from your dreams. In fact, my sister gave me a poster when I started ACS that read: “Don’t let your fears stand in the way of your dreams”, and that was solid advice.”
Members of our community have recently been courageous in voicing their opinions with candour on racism and injustice.
Racism and racial discrimination in any form are unacceptable.
We stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. We are proud of our culturally-diverse community of students, families, staff and alumni representing over 70 nationalities, and recognise that we have an important role to play in being a positive catalyst for change.
We have taken the time to reflect and continue to learn and acknowledge that we can do better and will work harder as a community. We remain committed to educating ourselves and improving how we address inequality and injustice.
Listening to our community has helped us form action plans around a number of themes. We are committing to:
We will work with our community to build a better future, where everyone is safe, equally valued and able to fulfil their potential.