What's happening here at ACS?
ACS Partnerships Director receives MBE
Graeme Lawrie, ACS International Schools' Partnerships Director has been awarded an MBE for his ‘services to education’ as part of the Queen’s Birthday Honours 2020.
Graeme has spent over two decades working in education and is passionate about supporting quality education, social mobility and increased social capacity via education. Through his various roles in the sector, Graeme has worked with hundreds of schools, refugee camps and other charities to create and provide opportunities to those in less fortunate circumstances. Graeme joined the ACS executive team in January 2019 and has since been working hard to drive ACS' charitable mission to advance the education of its own students and also the wider community, by working locally and internationally in partnership with schools and communities to share expertise and resources.
ACS became a registered charity in September 2018 and partnerships form a key part of its schools' charity activity. It is ACS's aim to become a valued partner to local state schools, businesses and the wider community in the areas its schools serve, and beyond. Over the past two years, Graeme and the Partnerships team have been working on an outreach box scheme which involves ACS representatives - including staff and students - visiting partner schools with a box of state-of-the-art technology equipment, to deliver valuable technology-based training and share expertise.
During the recent UK lockdown the boxes were grounded but hopefully with a new vaccine, soon schools can start to book them out again enabling them to experiment with a range of technology, such as Digital SLR cameras, innovative robots and VR headsets, free of charge.
During the height of the coronavirus pandemic, Graeme spearheaded a number of charitable initiatives to support communities in need. For example, the ACS community raised and donated £5,000 to the Magic Breakfast programme, which provided 13,000 meals to children of families experiencing hardship in the local communities around ACS's three schools in the Surrey and Greater London area.
ACS Hillingdon Launches Global Citizen Diploma
We are pleased to announce that Grade 11 student, Ellie, is our very first student to earn the Global Citizen Certificate (GCC) and is on her way towards earning the Diploma. One of Ellie's GCD stories focuses on her Global Understanding as she explores her role in being an activist for climate change, educating others about the darker side of fast fashion, the racial divide and gender inequality.
Ellie says, "I have realised that there are many things in the world that need to change, and this is only the beginnings of my journey into becoming an activist."In addition to exploring Global Understanding, another one of Ellie's GCD stories is about her Artistic Expression.
Personal on campus tours are now available again by appointment for families who want to see the campus first hand , however we have also been busy creating virtual tours for both Egham and Hillingdon, accessible from our website, with Cobham on its way after the Christmas break.
ACS International School Doha launched its new sports mascot as it moved into its landmark new campus this academic year. ACS Doha Wolves is the new mascot, ushering in a new vision for sport at the school.
The Wolves will feature in all the school’s sports activities and will represent the school at events and sports matches. Conscious that middle school and senior students in particular want a mascot that evokes competitive spirit, teamwork and conviction, the Wolf was the outstanding choice. ACS Doha is also using the popularity of the mascot in promoting the use of face masks for the students and distributing customised ‘wolf’ masks carrying the slogan ‘safety in the pack’.
The World Needs.....Adventurers
Parents, teenagers, teachers and members of the wider Surrey community learnt what it takes to be a changemaker for a better, more sustainable future during a recent ACS Cobham virtual event ‘The world needs…adventurers’ in November. ‘The world needs… adventurers’ was the first in a series of events across ACS schools which will explore ‘what the world needs’, delving into the big societal and technological challenges the world is currently facing and considering exactly what kind of citizen the world needs to contribute to a better, more sustainable tomorrow.
Featuring renowned entrepreneur, Sian Sutherland, a thriving ACS Cobham alumna, Sissel Tønnesen Engblom, and our very own Forest School Trainer, Chris Hupp, the event explored why the world needs adventurous thinkers, the importance of nature in our lives now and in the future, and how taking risks and embracing failure creates positive outcomes.
Former student, Sissel Tønnesen Engblom, was welcomed back to her alma mater to share her career pathway from student to urban architect and CEO, highlighting the importance of the spaces we live in for ensuring a sustainable future. A highlight of the talk was Sissel’s thought-provoking description of her involvement with the redesign of the Government Headquarters in Oslo following the 2011 terror attack.
Through the power of architecture, Sissel worked to redevelop the space in a way that would heal the hearts of Oslo’s community, and provide a platform for them to thrive moving forward from the attack.
Co-founder of A Plastic Planet, Sian Sutherland, followed Sissel with a compelling talk on how a decision at age 25 led her into a career of entrepreneurship, failings and open mindedness.
Sian shared powerful anecdotes on “what she wishes she knew at 16”. Sian talked of the importance of failure, learning from your lows – not your highs - and accepting that things won’t be perfect. She highlighted that, when it comes to entrepreneurship “if it was easy, everyone would do it”; you need to be prepared to set yourself goals and strive every day to achieve those goals.
Wrapping up the event, ACS Forest School Trainer and Lower School Science Teacher, Chris Hupp explored the adventure of childhood and our intrinsic need to connect with nature in order to foster an ecological identity. Chris discussed the benefits of outdoor learning, such as the development of resilience and confidence, as well as the ways it improves wellbeing, creativity, and cooperative teamwork.
Of the event Barny said : “It was a pleasure to welcome three such engaging and insightful speakers– they all truly summed up what it means to be an adventurer, and why it’s so important for us all to think a little more creatively to build a better, more sustainable world of tomorrow. We’ve received wonderful feedback from attendees; it was a fascinating and inspiring experience.”
To stream the ‘The world needs…adventurers’ event, you can click here: https://www.acs-schools.com/the-world-needs