Vienna International School

Infobox Private School
name = Vienna International School


motto = "The mission of VIS is to empower learners to achieve their potential in a nurturing and diverse environment, giving them the means and confidence to be successful and responsible in an evolving world."
established = 1959
type = Private
religion = None
head_name = Director
head = James Walbran
city = Vienna
state =
country = Austria
campus = Suburban
enrollment = 1400
faculty =
class =
ratio =
year =
SAT =
athletics =
colors = Blue/White
mascot = Panther
conference = ISST & SCIS
homepage = [http://www.vis.ac.at www.vis.ac.at]
The Vienna International School is a non-profit international school, located in Vienna, Austria. The school was built to accommodate the children of UN employees and diplomats when the UN decided to locate one of its offices in Vienna, and it remains affiliated to the UN. About 80% of students are children of UN employees and receive education grants, while much of the remaining students are children of embassy staff and Austrian nationals. It awards the International Baccalaureate Diploma and/or an Austrian Matura by fulfilling extra requirements. VIS has an enrollment of 1400 students, from pre-primary to twelfth grade.

History

The Vienna International School was originally set up in August 1955 as the Vienna International Community School. Previously, it had been the 'British Army School' in Schönbrunn barracks and catered for the children of the British occupying forces in Vienna. The Austrian State Treaty signed in May 1955 resulted in the occupying forces leaving Austria, so the school transformed into the Vienna International Community School under the patronage of the British, American and Indian Missions.

It opened on the 1st of September 1955 in the 18th district of Vienna. By the end of the year 150 students between the ages of 3 and 15 years attended the school. Soon the building proved too small for the expanding school, which moved into the 19th district. By 1959, 300 children represented 25 different nationalities in VICS. However, most of the children were American or Canadian, so the British and Indian Embassies started a separate British style school in 1959, while the VICS changed into the American International School.

The English School moved into Grinzinger Straße 95, a premises found with the help of the British Ambassador, Sir James Bowker, the legal advisor at the Embassy Walter Rhodes, and Vienna's Deputy Lord Mayor, Hans Mandl. The school quickly expanded and was visited by the British Minister of Education in 1961. The first staff of the International Atomic Energy Agency sent their children to the English School in 1959. The school year 1961-62 saw the introduction of William Kirk as director, who helped raise the quality of education at the school considerably. In 1974, children from families of the UNIDO started sending their children to the school.

In May 1969, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip visited the school on a state visit to Vienna. Another significant director of the school was Maurice Pezet, until June 1985. In September 1978, the decision was made to change the English School into a specific United Nations school, and the name "Vienna International School" was introduced. The Austrian government and Chancellor Dr Kreisky supported the school, and the idea of a new, especially built premises was established. The new building was created in Kagran, two U-Bahn (underground) stops from the UN, and opened in 1985.

Graduation requirements and courses

Full-year courses at VIS earn one credit each, while semester courses earn half of a credit. A secondary school student must earn 24 credits to graduate. The following subject areas were being offered as of the 2005-2006 school year.

*English
**General English Classes
**English as a Second Language

*Languages
**German
**French
**Spanish
**Latin
**Mother-Tongue Courses
**English

*History
**Western & Eastern Civilization
**Modern World Problems
**Early Modern European History

*Economics

*Information Technology in the Global Society

*Geography

*Philosophy

*Arts
**Visual Arts
**Theatre Arts
**Fine Arts
**Concert Choir
**Concert Band
**Film

*Mathematics
**Algebra
**Geometry
**

*Sciences
**Biology
**Chemistry
**Environmental Science or Geoscience (alternating years)
**Physics
**Ecosystems & Societies
**Design Technology

*Electives
**Computer Science: Computers and JAVA Programming
**Theory of Knowledge

*Physical Education

Famous alumni

*Salam PaxFact|date=February 2008

porting achievements

* The VIS Golf Team is the only VIS team to win the National Schools' Championships.
* The VIS Rugby team has defended its title as number 1 in Austria for 5 years now and are a group of extremely tough boys.
* Over the past ten years, the VIS "Panthers" Senior Varsity Boys Basketball team has won 6 consecutive championship titles and two second place awards in the International Schools Sports Tournament.
* The VIS JV basketball team has now won the SCIS tournament 2 years in a row.

couting

Vienna International School is the home of Vienna International Scout Group 88 ( _de. Wien 88-Internationale Pfadfindergruppe) [http://www.scout.at/wien88/] . The Scout group is affliated to Boy Scouts and Girl Guides of Austria. It is the only english speaking group within this Scout association. It was founded in 1980.

External links

* [http://www.vis.ac.at Official School Site]