The first edition of a series of discussion sessions between a group of parents and the Administration took place this morning. IC President, Dr Don Bergman, and VP for Academic Affairs, Mrs Paula Moufarrij, joined the session. This first session was designed to share with parents the steps taken by the school to improve the curriculum and strengthen the French and Arabic programs, shed light on the upgrades that have been happening at the Ain Aar existing facility and share the ‘what, how and when’ details for the new facility up on the Ain Aar campus. The sessions serve as a stage for parents to share ideas, concerns and questions they might have for the Administration.
Ain Aar Parent Sessions
IC Unlimited Access to the FINANCIAL TIMES
ACE Training Workshop (NEASC)
NEASC: ACE Training Workshop at IC
Saturday, April 14, IC’s Educational Resources Center organized a day-long ACE Learning Training Workshop presented by CIE Accreditation Leader Trillium Hibbeln and sponsored by the New England Association of Schools & Colleges. Thirty IC teachers and administrators were joined by another 27 teachers, administrators and school consultants from other schools around Lebanon and from Jordan. The workshop trained participants in the new NEASC standards and principles for accreditation (ACE) and prepared them to become members of future NEASC visiting teams for Accreditation. These new standards and principles represent the interdependent relationships among the three pillars of ACE Learning – Architecture (what, why and how learners learn), Culture (the school’s beliefs about the conditions for effective learning) and Ecology (the physical and social/emotional “space” in which learning occurs). They indicate the conditions, premises, norms and values that enable effective learning to occur. Participants found the workshop well-presented, informative, and engaging.
This workshop represented Part 1 of the preparation for becoming a NEASC ACE Learning Visiting Team member. Participants will be invited by NEASC to complete Part 2 in the near future. Whether the participants go on to become members of future NEASC Visiting Teams or use what they learned to guide their schools towards their next accreditation cycle, the information was timely, interesting and challenging.
IC Alumni Association's Sports Day on RB Campus
A fantastic day was had by so many Alumni, Parents, Students, Faculty, Administrators and Staff on Sunday 15th April. Sports on the Ras Beirut campus included:
- Faculty & Staff vs Alumni & Parents basketball game
- Sports classes with IC Alumni trainers Rania Hashim ('94) and Lina Itani ('91)
- Inter-mural football game
- Parents & students football game
Thank you to the IC Alumni Association for arranging such a wonderful day of events. Please take a look through the photos to see the fun!
Les premiers Jeux Francophones de IC – Ain Aar
Les premiers Jeux Francophones de IC – Ain Aar, mars 2018.
Comme tous les ans et partout dans le monde francophone, le mois de mars est consacré à la célébration de la langue française. IC – Ain Aar n’a pas dérogé à la règle : le département de français s’est mis sur son trente-et-un pour faire la fête avec les élèves. Dans un esprit festif et ludique, l’équipe des organisatrices a opté pour le culturel ludique en préparant avec soin et minutie, et sans omettre un seul détail, les premiers jeux francophones de IC – Ain Aar. Des lettres et des lettres, Taboo, Ptit Bac, Scrabble, Boggle … ont intéressé les jeunes francophones qui se sont plu aux jeux auxquels ils ont tous participé avec un grand enthousiasme. Les compétitions différentes ont fini par propulser sur la scène de l’auditorium du collège les deux équipes finalistes qui, pour sélectionner le/la gagnant(e), ont participé au fameux Questions pour un champion. Le match serré entre Carlos Daou, élève de 6e et Tara Chahine, élève de 5e, a été, au final, remporté par la jeune Tara, applaudie par la foule en liesse des élèves et des enseignants ! Rendez-vous l’année prochaine, même date pour une nouvelle saison des Jeux Francophones de IC – Ain Aar.
Un premier essai, une grande réussite !
Ain Aar Success at LAU Science Fair
Congratulations to Ryan Abdallah, Haig Baitarian and Issam Youness, Grade 9 students in Ain Aar - 1st Prize winners in the web computing category at the LAU Science Fair in Jbeil.
Environmental Pioneers in Jabal Moussa
The Environmental Pioneers in Ras Beirut Middle School enjoyed identifying trees as they hiked in Jabal Moussa Biosphere Reserve in Kesserwan.
Terminale Students' Success at USEK competition
Pour promouvoir les études de Philosophie, le laboratoire Sophia du Département de Philosophie de l’Université Saint Esprit de Kaslik (USEK) a proposé, le 16 mars 2018, aux élèves de Terminale, un concours autour de la pensée de Sénèque. Cette pensée, toujours d’actualité, aborde les thèmes de la vie, de la sagesse, du bonheur, de la maîtrise de soi… Trois de nos élèves de Terminale ont participé à ce concours et ont porté haut et fort les couleurs de l’IC en remportant des mentions : Sondos Osman (TSM), mention excellent, Aya Goraieb (TSV), mention très bien et Lynn Abboud (TSM), mention bien. Nous sommes tous très fiers de nos jeunes penseurs !
Literary Cafe at the Secondary LMC
On Friday 20th April, the LMC welcomed yet another Literary Cafe after school. Around a dozen Secondary students presented various pieces they wrote, and one student presented a movie he made. The event was well attended, in particular by IB students. Stay tuned for the dates of the next Literary Cafes!
RB Elementary Author Book Readings
As part of our annual library activities this year in the Elementary Library, we invited authors to read and do a book talk with our students during National Reading Week. Our students thoroughly enjoyed the visits of authors Mrs. Jinan Hashash, Dr. Karim Ali and Ms. Maria Matar.
Football Interhouse
Interhouse is an activity coordinated by Nichole Swink on Tuesdays and Thursdays for Middle school students during second break. It aims to promote students’ wellbeing and encourage being active through playing sports. The program is held for each grade level and urges students to organize their own teams, show responsibility in coordinating lineups and strategies, and display teamwork, respect and sportsmanship. Each year kicks off with football. Tuesday, April 26, began the Grade 7 tournament where each team will play each other to earn points. They will then have a play-off for the first through fourth placed teams. Teams who place in first, second and third are awarded medals. Photos below highlight the medal winners from Grade 8.
Grade 8 First Place Winners of 2018
Grade 8 Second Place Winners of 2018
Grade 8 Third Place Winners of 2018
School Closed May 4 & 7 due to the Elections
Dear IC Community,
As per the directive of the Minister of Education and Higher Education, IC will be closed on Friday, May 4 and Monday, May 7, 2018, due to the elections.
Classes will resume on Tuesday, May 8.
The Administration
April Sports Wrap-up from the Ras Beirut Campus
April was an outstanding month for IC Cougar athletics. We had some very notable achievements for our student athletes. Our gymnastics team dominated in the Lebanese Schools’ Championship organized by the Ministry of Education. With over fifty medals won in this tournament alone, our students represented us with pride and dignity. Lynn Domiati being the only girl to compete in level nine brought home first overall. Cyrine Khatib placed first overall in level eight and Yasmine Ghutmi got first overall in level 5. In level three, we secured the podium with Celine Rafeh placing first, Rawan Soubra second and Mia Khayat third. A huge congratulations to the team and coaches for their valiant efforts.
Another great showing was at the annual Alton Reynold’s basketball tournament held at IC. Our Varsity and JV boys both brought home the championship after hard-earned wins in their games. The stands were full of students cheering them to their victories and went wild when senior Fouad Sheikh drilled a three-pointer in the varsity championship game.
The BAU annual archery competition was held allowing our girls to bring home first place and our boys third place. No mean feat at all, especially considering they were competing against university students from BAU and AUB. All that hard work training on the Imad Taher Court certainly paid off.
The girl’s rugby team played a touch match against Brummana High School winning both games during the day. Player of the match for IC was Zoya Haroun scoring two tries helping lead the team to victory. Another distinguished achievement was from the captain Nicole Nsrallah who was the youngest player chosen for the Lebanese women’s 7s team. She spent the month training and ultimately playing in the West Asia Women’s 7s tournament where they placed second amongst Syria, Qatar and Lebanon.
Joint Communique from the Board of Trustees and IC's Administration Re a Meeting with an Independent Group of Ain Aar Parents on Monday, April the 30th
Ain Aar Classes Resume on Tuesday, May 8
Dear Parents and Valuable Members of the IC Community,
We are happy to announce that our IC Ain Aar children will be back at school on Tuesday May 8, following an official decision rendered by the Judge of Urgent Matters in Metn, registered under number 277/2018, within the frame of an amicable solution proposed by the judge.
This decision revokes the freeze on the tuition increase and consequently ends the IC Ain Aar teachers’ strike by legally clearing the way for our teachers, who were exercising their constitutional and democratic right to strike, to receive their full rights and dues, to which IC had committed and applied from day one, months before the decision on freezing the increase on tuition was rendered.
As educators, while eager to maintain the high quality of our school, we are fully sympathetic to the burdens placed on parents by the Government-mandated Law 46. The school has therefore explored various solutions to alleviate the resulting increase in tuition. These include:
- A streamlined and expanded tuition assistance program.
- Payment in installments of the tuition increase up to September 2018.
The school also notes that it solely absorbed the retroactive high cost of living.
Furthermore, in the calculation of the increase, the school took into account the advance and steps paid by the parents in previous years.
As always, the school will never waiver in its commitment to offer its students the highest standards of education.
IC will strive to remain a beacon of education in Lebanon and the region, an outstanding institution, and a benchmark for others, as it has been for the last 127 years.
IC Board of Trustees and Administration
حضرة الأهل الكرام وجميع افراد مجتمع الإنترناشونال كولدج IC الأعّزاء:
نرسل إليكم بياننا هذا لنعبّر من خلاله عن سعادتنا بعودة أولادنا إلى صفوف مدرستهم، الإنترناشونال كولدج IC – عين عار، في الثّامن من شهر أيّار وذلك لإستئناف عامهم الدّراسيّ بشكلّ طبيعيّ، بعدما صدر رسميًّا قرار عن حضرة قاضي الأمور المستعجلة في المتن، مسجّل تحت الرقم 277/2018، وذلك ضمن إطار حلّ ودّيّ اقترحه حضرة القاضي، قضى بنتيجته بالرّجوع عن قراره المتعلّق بتجميد الزّيادة على الأقساط. وأوّل مفاعيل القرار إنهاء إضراب الأساتذة في حرم مدرستهم الإنترناشونال كولدج IC عين عار. وهو إضراب أعلنوه بموجب حقّهم الدّستوريّ والدّيمقراطيّ، بعد صدور قرار تجميد حقوقهم المادّيّة الّتي ستعود إليهم لأنّ إدارة المدرسة كانت وستبقى ملتزمة احترام القوانين وتطبيقها.
إنّنا، وانطلاقًا من إدراكنا لمسؤوليّتنا كمربّين ومعلّمين لأجيال المستقبل الّذين يلتحقون بمدرستنا طلبًا للعلم، وحرصًا منّا على المحافظة على المستوى الرّائد والمتميّز في أدائنا، تؤكّد الإدارة أنها تتفهّم العبء الّذي استجدّ على عاتق الأهل، وما ترتّب عليهم من أقساط مدرسيّة ارتفعت نتيجة زيادة الرّواتب بموجب القانون 46 والّذي لم يكن من سبيل أمام المدرسة سوى الالتزام به، ولهذا السّبب سعت الإدارة، كما دائمًا، الى تأمين أقصى طاقاتها للتّخفيف من أعباء الزّيادة وذلك عبر ما اعتمدته المدرسة من مرونة وتسهيلات في دفع الزّيادة، والتي تضمّنت ما يلي:
1. تسهيل آفاق برنامج المساعدات الماليّة وتوسيعه
2. تقسيط الزّيادة على الأقساط الّتي صار من الممكن تسديدها حتى نهاية شهر أيلول – سبتمبر 2018
مع العلم بأنّ المدرسة قد تحمّلت كامل المفعول الرّجعيّ لبدل غلاء المعيشة، كما أنّ المدرسة قد بادرت، ووفقًا لأحكام القانون، إلى الأخذ بالحسبان الزّيادة وغلاء المعيشة المدفوعة سابقًا من قبل الأهل.
وكما دومًا، فإنّ المدرسة لن تساوم أبدًا على ما قد يؤثّر على مستواها المتطوّر، وأدائها المهنيّ والتّربوي المثاليّ وذلك حتمًا لمصلحة طلّابها وأهلهم ومجتمع الإنترناشونال كولدج IC الَّذي يستحقّ هذا المستوى بجدارة.
وفي الختام، تؤكّد إدارة المدرسة حرصها الدّائم على مركزها كمنارة تربويّة رائدة وقدوة للبنان والمنطقة، وكمؤسّسة تربويّة نموذجيّة بأدائها النّاجح والمميّز والمتفوّق تمامًا كما هي عليه منذ 127 سنة وحتّى اليوم.
مجلس أمناء مدرسة الإنترناشونال كولدج والهيئة الإداريّة
RB MS Student Presentations on Eating Disorders
At the Ras Beirut Middle School, a joint activity between the Science department (Biology) and the Middle School counselor was coordinated. Students made presentations in the Irani Auditorium and then were engaged in a discussion with the counselor and Biology teacher.
In-Service Day, May 24
The school is pleased to inform the community of its In-Service Day on Thursday, May 24. Charlotte Danielson and members of her team presented workshops on quality teaching and learning. The Danielson Framework for Teaching: Evaluation Instrument had already been introduced at IC and this school-wide training will help further knowledge and implementation of the framework, enhancing teachers’ professional practice, curriculum development and autonomous, engaged student-learning.
Liberation Day, May 25
This is to inform you that the school will be closed on Friday, May 24, on the occasion of Liberation Day.
IC Giving Day, June 5
The school is excited to announce IC Giving Day 2018 on June 5 to support the school’s Tuition Assistance program. Helping Lebanon through quality education, and, indeed, ensuring a diverse mix of students receive that education, will assist in shaping the country’s future. The school’s target is to reach 1891 individual donations. Why 1891 you may ask? It’s the year IC was originally founded.
No gift is too small when given for such a worthwhile cause.
With your support, we are sure to achieve and even exceed our target number of donors.
Eid Al Fitr, June 14-17
To mark the end of Ramadan and therefore the Eid Al Fitr holiday, schools and offices will be closed on Thursday, June 14 and Friday, June 15.
Wishing you all a very pleasant long weekend over the holiday.