FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
French International School’s Time Capsule will provide a glimpse of 2017 for future generations
[Hong Kong – 2 May 2017]
The French International School (FIS) welcomed officials, partners, friends, staff and students to a Time Capsule Ceremony at the site of their new Tseung Kwan O campus on Wednesday 26 April. Construction of the new campus is well underway and this was an opportunity to gather on site to celebrate FIS today by ensuring that a selection of pertinent objects will be available to remind tomorrow’s students of today’s vision.
At the new campus in Tseung Kwan O, FIS will continue to place great emphasis on language learning and Primary students from the FIS Hung Hom campus demonstrated their language abilities and delighted the assembled guests with songs in French, English and Mandarin. After speeches from the Chairman of the Board of FIS, Mr Arnaud de Surville, and the Consul General of France in Hong Kong and Macau, Mr Eric Berti, students Céleste Judet in 3eme and Dhruv Sodhi in Year 9 explained the concept behind the Time Capsule: “We’re leaving our mark for future generations to discover. What will our school be like in 2067? What will the students be learning about and how will they be learning it? Today’s ceremony could be part of a history lesson and that’s why we want to pass on these ‘historical’ items for the students of 2067 to discover!”
Mr Thierry Mariani, MP for French people outside France, and Mr Christian Soulard, FIS Headmaster, joined the others on stage to place selected items in the Time Capsule to be opened in 50 years’ time by those attending FIS. Students from both the French and International Streams at FIS placed items inside the capsule including that day’s South China Morning Post, the French newspaper ‘Le Monde’, a USB key, photographs and letters from selected individuals involved with the new campus including the Headmaster and Hung Hom students. The student letter read out by Clementine Bouev-Dombre in CM1 ended “Finally, we hope that you are happy because you, the students of 2067, you are our children or grandchildren and we want only happiness for you in the future.” There was also a print of the artwork by famous artist Almond Chu that has been generously donated by Mr & Mrs Miller and will hang in front of the new Collège building from August 2017. Almond’s beautiful piece of work will be printed on vinyl which will be displayed until June 2018 before being dismantled and recycled into bags which will be sold to the FIS community – an excellent ‘green’ initiative in keeping with the Eco School status of FIS.
Guests to the ceremony were lucky to have the chance for a sneak preview of the blocks which will be used to build the main facade of the South entrance. This focal point of the campus will comprise coloured ceramic sun breakers to symbolise the diversity within the school and how each student plays a role in colouring their future. This interesting feature will allow light to diffuse into the gymnasium space beyond.
The new campus will open its doors in September 2018 creating 950 primary and junior secondary school places to better serve both French and International students in Hong Kong. With adaptable and flexible layouts and a wealth of differently scaled, multi-purpose spaces inside, students will benefit from a stimulating and innovative learning environment. In addition, the campus will offer state of the art sporting facilities – a large gymnasium, swimming pool and running track – as well as a 300 seat auditorium all of which will benefit the wider public. FIS is committed to establishing strong links within the Tseung Kwan O neighbourhood by developing new initiatives while also providing a hub to showcase French arts and culture in Hong Kong.
Event photos can be seen here
Other information:
About French International School (FIS)
FIS was established in 1963 as one of the first international schools in Hong Kong. The school offers two streams: the French and International Streams, preparing students towards certification in the French national examination, the French Baccalaureate or the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma. In 1988, FIS became the first in Hong Kong to be authorised as an IB World School.
The school will open a new state of the art eco-campus in Tseung Kwan O in September 2018. Currently, the school is one of the largest international through schools in Hong Kong and welcomes over 2,700 students from Kindergarten/Moyenne Section to Year 13/Terminale, representing 40 different nationalities, across four campuses in Happy Valley, Jardine’s Lookout, Chai Wan and Hung Hom.
The school’s mission is to provide, together with families, a nurturing, culturally diverse community that inspires our young people to realize their true potential as confident, independent learners and responsible global citizens with moral values and integrity.
FIS is the only accredited French school in Hong Kong under the Agency For French Teaching Abroad (AEFE) convention whose role is to ensure that the curriculum delivered in the French Stream follows the French Education system. This convention also stipulates that the Headmaster is appointed by AEFE. Therefore, the pedagogical side of the school is placed directly under the umbrella of the French Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Cooperation Ministry.
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