In early 2016, The AISB Board of Trustees approved the first major upgrade and expansion to the school’s facilities since the current school campus was completed in 2001. The construction of the purpose-built Early Learning Center began soon after and in a few short weeks, we will be in the final stages – putting the finishing touches on the exterior of the edi ce and starting the interior design for an August 2017 inauguration. 
 

In the design stage, we followed the credo that ‘form follows function;’ that is, construction was based upon the intended educational purpose for the space and not the other way round, as can often be the case. So, with this parameter in mind, we designed the new Early Learning Center based on the educational philosophy that a young child’s development is enhanced through: teaching symbolic languages, be they mathematical, artistic or dra- matic; developing ne motor control, sorting, or hand-eye coordination; and promoting mutual respect and personal accountability.

This innovative Early Learning Center will have a dramatic positive impact on the learning of our youngest children as they get used to the increased space that has been purposefully designed to meet their needs. These formative years lay the foundations for their future learning by developing the conceptual frame- work and educational fundamentals for successful life-long learning. As such, the opening of the Early Learning Center this fall will enable our educators to apply a new pedagogi- cal philosophy focusing on explora- tion and discovery of the senses – one that will give our youngest learners the tools and principles to succeed in a supportive and enriching environment.

Once the current early childhood space is vacated by our youngest learners, we will begin the concep- tion of the brilliant Design and Engi- neering Center, opening in 2018. The world is changing rapidly, indeed it has already changed signi cantly, and our curriculum should be revitalized if we really are to prepare our students for a world that will trans- form even more dramatically in the years to come.

I am strongly of the belief that the mastery of core knowledge areas, such as English (reading or language arts), mathematics, science and history, will still remain essential. Likewise, Drama, Music and Visual Art, along with athletics and per- sonal tness, will expand horizons necessary for a ful lling life. However, it is in the area of technology, in its broadest sense, product design, creativity and innovation that we
will start to develop in the Design and Engineering Center. This center represents a giant leap in preparing our children to lead the future. This uniquely designed, innovative space, one of its kind in Europe, will o er students a fully immersive experience – a state of the art learning hub that will combine academics and creativity with the power of doing.

We have had considerable discus- sion on the need to educate our students for 21st Century skills. These discussions have empha- sized the importance of cultivating interdisciplinary themes that create greater global awareness. Creativity and innovation, communication and collaboration, research and informa- tion uency, critical thinking, prob- lem solving and decision making, must be integrated into core subject matter across all ages. My aim is quite simply to transform not only how we teach but what we teach across the board. I expect these new spaces, for elementary and second- ary students, to incorporate automation, robotics, material sciences, lm and media, information technology, and food science all centered on the concept of design and innovative thinking.

So much is happening and we are spending a signi cant part of our nancial reserves with no expectation to expand the school greatly with regards to student enrolment. Quite simply, this is because facilities matter if you want an excellent aca- demic and extracurricular program. Together, we are creating spaces for our students to think, read, play, and practice, but above all to experiment so that they can be better inspired to lead new generations in an increasingly complicated future.
 

Our mission is to prepare, engage and inspire – our steps have been strategically taken to fulfil such aspirations.
 

Regards,
 

Robert Brindley
AISB Director 

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AISB is investing 6.5 million Euros in an Early Learning Center dedicated to preschool children 

The American International School of Bucharest is investing 6.5 million Euros in an Early Learning Center dedicated to preschool children between two and ve years old, announced Robert Brindley, the Director of the institution. The capacity of the campus will be of 190 children and for the 2017-2018 school year, AISB estimates that 100 children aged 2-5 from 40 nationalities will inaugurate the building. 
 

Presently, AISB educates around 100 children aged between 2 and 5 years old from 39 di erent countries. The new early education center is being built on an area of 3,800 square meters and will be equipped with facilities to match the needs of the youngest students of this educational establishment. The center will have 20 classrooms for educational activities (without taking into account the administrative spaces) and it will be ready in the summer of 2017.

In addition to the classrooms, the center will have: interior gardens, a specialized library, common work spaces, a music and movement room, a medical o ce, gym, kitchen and canteen for the little ones, nature ateliers connected to each classroom, spaces for changing children as well as rest areas, a digital atelier, and outdoor play areas. “Building a center destined exclusively to our youngest students was necessary to adapt the learning environment to their needs. We are aware that this center will be their rst experience in an education institution and that’s why we want to provide them a dynamic environment, where we combine games and learning,” said Robert Brindley, AISB Director.

 

The American International School of Bucharest (AISB) began the 2016-2017 school year with 810 students, 242 of whom are in High School. The students come from 56 countries, the top 5 represented being Romania (32%), USA (13%), Israel (5%), Germany (4%), and Turkey (4%).

 

For the 2016-2017 academic year, AISB saw revenues of 16 million euros, similar to the values of the year previous. Investments of minimum 500,000 Euros are made over the summer holiday annually, with last year’s investments amounting to 1 million euros. AISB is the oldest and largest International school in Bucharest, founded in 1962 by the American Embassy and currently situated on a 10-hectare campus built in 2001. 

Read the entire WORLD Magazine Spring 2017 edition here.