American International School of Budapest
Budapest, Hungary Director Start Date: July 1, 2020 www.aisb.hu Mission The American International School of Budapest prepares its students to be responsible global citizens and inspires in each a passion for knowledge and lifelong learning. AISB is a nurturing and diverse community that instills respect for self and others, develops the whole child, and strives for academic excellence. Fast Facts Year established: 1973 Total enrollment: 920 Nationalities: more than 60 Teacher nationality: 48% American; 13% Canadian; 11% British; 28% other Student nationality: 20% American; 20% Hungarian; 14% China; 46% other Number of Faculty: 114 Faculty with advanced degrees: 73% Nickname: AISB Blazers
Overview
The American International School of Budapest (AISB) is an independent, coeducational day school for preschool through Grade 12 located in Budapest, Hungary. Enrolling more than 900 students annually representing more than 60 nations, AISB serves the needs of a large and diverse international population, including families of the local and expatriate business and diplomatic communities as well as host-country nationals. Informed by best teaching practices, AISB offers a dynamic international curriculum. At the high school level, the school offers the full International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program. AISB is committed to preserving this international character to foster a positive learning environment as well as develop lifelong learners and globally responsible citizens.
AISB seeks an outstanding Director to continue the upward development of the school. The next Director will head a leadership team that oversees all major aspects of school operation. Core responsibilities include nurturing and developing the school as an outstanding academic institution, hiring and retaining the best international faculty, maintaining excellent facilities, ensuring the financial health of the school, and offering rich and challenging programs for students and the school community.
In particular, given the quickening pace of change in education, the new Director must be committed to focusing on innovation in education to supplement academic achievement. “Status quo doesn’t exist here,” one administrator notes. The Director must also support the development of the school’s fundraising activities in order that the school remain affordable while continuing to improve in all facets of its mission.
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The American International School of Budapest was formed in 1973 by the United States Embassy to serve the dependents of United States Government employees. Since its founding, AISB has grown into a leading international school serving a diverse student body including children of the local and expatriate business and diplomatic communities. English is the language of instruction.
The school originally occupied two separate campuses, but all divisions were merged on to a new campus with state-of-the-art facilities in the Nagykovácsi neighborhood on the outskirts of Budapest. The new shared middle and high school building was built in 2000.
The School
Along with offering a rigorous academic program for international families, AISB is an inclusive and involved community of students, teachers, and parents. The school respects each member of the community as an individual with unique talents and abilities. It embraces an American philosophy of education and an approach to teaching that emphasizes critical thinking skills, creativity, and inquiry- based learning.
The school delivers an internationally focused curriculum that encourages open mindedness, tolerance, and cross-cultural understanding. It respects the host country’s culture, traditions, and environment, and requires personal integrity and ethical behavior. It advocates social responsibility and community service and promotes an open and caring dialogue in which each voice is heard.
The Search Group | Carney, Sandoe & Associates 3 [email protected] | www.carneysandoe.com Teachers at AISB are passionate about their subjects and about working with young people. As one administrator puts it, “[f]aculty are consummate professionals who see themselves as lifelong learners.” Along with its talented faculty, AISB has a state-of-the-art campus that serves the needs of both its curricular and extracurricular programming.
At all levels, AISB provides English as an Additional Language (EAL) and Learning Resource Center (LRC) specialists to support differentiated learning and allow each participating student to fulfill his or her academic and social potential.
Academics
AISB tailors its program to the age-appropriate needs of its students. The curriculum is based on clearly articulated, internationally benchmarked standards. It emphasizes critical-thinking skills and creativity through an inquiry-based approach to teaching and learning. “AISB teaches us how to think,” observes one student. The faculty and administration are committed to using data and benchmarking to identify strengths and areas of improvement for teaching and academic success of the student body.
The Elementary School aims to develop well-balanced, independent, and curious students who love to learn. In all, the division strives to meet students’ individual needs as well as to develop self- confidence, respect for one another, and an appreciation for diversity.
The Middle School further enhances students’ social and academic learning. The division aims to develop responsibility, independence, and identity through appropriate social, emotional, and
The Search Group | Carney, Sandoe & Associates 4 [email protected] | www.carneysandoe.com College Placement Graduates of AISB consistently attend some of the finest colleges and universities in the world. In the past three years, graduates have matriculated to the following, among others:
USA/Canada Amherst College Boston University Brown University Colby College Cornell University Duke University McGill University New York University Northeastern University Purdue University Rutgers University Stanford University University of California, Berkeley academic challenges. It’s here that students really begin University of Florida to discover themselves as committed, responsible global University of Michigan citizens. University of Texas, Austin University of Washington The High School provides students with a wide array Yale University of learning opportunities in a supportive, diverse, and rigorous environment. The High School offers a college UK and Elsewhere preparatory curriculum. The academic program prepares American University of Dubai all students for a United States high school diploma. City University of London Students typically enroll in eight courses each semester, Georgetown University in Qatar which normally include English, world languages, social Imperial College London studies, mathematics, laboratory sciences, and electives King’s College (including the arts, physical education, and technology). Leiden University National Taiwan University A vast majority of graduating seniors successfully complete Sophia University in Japan the IB Diploma. In 2018, the success rate for the IB Diploma St. Andrew’s University was 97%, compared to the world average of 78%, and the University College London average diploma score of those students who passed was University of Aberdeen 34.2, compared to the world average of 32.3. University of Amsterdam University of Edinburgh University of Exeter University of Glasgow University of Hong Kong University of Melbourne University of Westminster
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AISB believes that the arts nurture personal growth and self-expression through creativity, collaboration, and exploration. Within the arts program, students perform, design, and create works of art while developing their interests and skills in theater, dance, music and the visual arts. The visual and performing arts are threaded throughout the curriculum. The additional arts enrichment program includes musical theater, spring plays, cabaret, art club, photography club, band, choir, and set design.
Athletics are an important part of AISB student life. Most students participate in sports on a friendly level. The school believes sports provide students with excellent opportunities for learning fundamental skills, including fair play, teamwork, and good sportsmanship. Soccer, volleyball, cross country, basketball, swimming, tennis, softball, golf, and track and field are offered at the Middle School and High School levels.
Student Life
Service learning at AISB integrates community service with instruction in order to create a united community and teach social responsibility. Each service project has a five-step process: investigation, preparation, action, reflection, and demonstration. Annual projects include environmental stewardship; clothes, food, and book drives; hosting Special Olympics events; supporting animal shelters, elderly homes, homeless shelters, and schools for the educationally and physically challenged; and supporting AISB’s partner school in Senegal. Starting in the 9th grade, community service is a requirement for graduation.
The Search Group | Carney, Sandoe & Associates 6 [email protected] | www.carneysandoe.com The school also offers a wide array of clubs and after-school programming. After-school opportunities include cookery, science club, choir, Minecraft club, drama, origami, cheerleading, yoga, band, robotics, Knowledge Bowl, Model UN, digital photography, bike club, math counts, speech and debate, global issues network, Kung Fu, self defense, student council, and the National Honor Society.
All high school students also participate in a four-day experiential trip in Hungary or to neighboring countries.
Campus
AISB’s state-of-the-art campus is unquestionably beautiful. The school operates five divisions on the 33-acre Nagykovácsi campus, close to the leafy residential suburbs of Budapest and within easy reach of central Budapest’s business, commerce, and tourist districts. The Elementary building houses students from preschool to grade 5, while the Middle and High School building is home to grades 6 through 12. The Middle and High School building was completed in 2000. It includes 54 classrooms, a library, a cafeteria, a double-sized gymnasium, a 25-meter indoor pool, a 350-seat theater, and performing and visual arts facilities.
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Budapest is the capital and largest city in Hungary and, with 1.7 million people, currently the 10th largest city in the European Union. Today, Budapest is known as an Alpha-global city – a thriving center for commerce, finance, media, art, research, technology, education, entertainment and more. It serves as Hungary’s financial center and is the highest ranked Central and Eastern European City on the Innovation Cities Top 100 Index. The city is home to the European Institute for Innovation and Technology and more than 35 colleges and universities. Budapest is also considered one of the most beautiful cities in Europe – and ranked as “the world’s second-best city” by Conde Nast Traveler.
Budapest is a very livable city with a thriving, globally-minded population – and one of the fastest growing economies in Europe. It boasts many municipal parks and open spaces, and travel around the city center is quick and easy with the Metro and tram system. Among its major museums and institutions is the Museum of Fine Arts, the Hungarian National Museum, the Franz Liszt Academy of Music, the Palace of the Arts concert hall, and the Hungarian Opera House. The central area of the city along the Danube River is classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The nearby Buda Hills, in which the school is situated, also offer a variety of outdoor activities. The city is also the only mainland European city with active hot springs, many of which have been converted into health spas.
The city attracts 4.4 million visitors a year and allows easy access to all nations within the European Union.
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Opportunities for the next Director include: • Being able to build on an already very strong platform • Leading a financially strong and stable school • Working with a dedicated and strong Board • Working with a committed and capable leadership team • Leading a strong, stable, and professional faculty and staff • An appreciative and supportive parent body • A beautiful, well-resourced campus • Living and working in Budapest
Challenges for the next Director include: • Leading the development of a forward-looking program that meets the needs of future generations of students • Fulfilling the academic potential of each student, in view of the diversity in the student body • Building cohesion and alignment between the school’s divisions • Developing clear and strong channels of communication throughout the school community • Working with the Board and Leadership Team to develop a clear – and clearly articulated – strategic direction for the future • Being an active, engaged, visible, and accessible presence in the daily life of the school
The Search Group | Carney, Sandoe & Associates 9 [email protected] | www.carneysandoe.com Desired Qualities of the Next Director
• A strong academic background, with proven success of driving academic achievement • K-12 teaching experience – knows what good teaching looks like • Internationally minded and culturally competent; international experience preferred • Visionary/innovative – someone who can take the school into the future • Ability to work with the Board to develop a long-term strategic vision for the school, and works to obtain buy-in from all of the School’s constituencies • Exhibits strong leadership skills, including through empowering a strong leadership team around them • A Community builder • Demonstrates strong communication and listening skills – a “listening leader” • A good networker – able to connect well with embassies, local government, and businesses • Straightforward, honest, transparent, high integrity • Committed to understanding the business side of the school, including the financial inputs involved in creating a surplus • Understands good governance, able to work effectively with a strong and engaged Board
To Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should submit electronically in one email and as separate documents (preferably PDFs) the following materials:
• A cover letter expressing their interest in this particular position; • A current résumé; • A statement of educational or leadership philosophy and practice; • A list of five professional references with name, phone number, and email address of each (references will not be contacted without the candidate’s permission) to:
John Chandler Senior Consultant [email protected]
Art Charles Senior Consultant [email protected]
David Chojnacki Senior Consultant [email protected]
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