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UNIS Hanoi’s Quarter-Century

By Emma Silva
01-Feb-13
UNIS Hanoi’s Quarter-Century


Vietnam’s first international school celebrates its 25th year. It takes a thousand people, and it is worth a thousand words (photo: UNIS Hanoi)!
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The United Nations International School (UNIS) of Hanoi is celebrating “25 years of Learning to Inspire” this year, marking a major milestone for international schools in the Asia-Pacific region.
UNIS Hanoi was the first international school established in Vietnam; it is the original IB World School in Asia; and it is one of only two United Nations schools in the world (the other is in New York City).
This year the UNIS community is celebrating both its past and its future with its 4,000 worldwide alumni, the IBO, and of course the United Nations and its host country community.
Head of School Chip Barder, who himself is celebrating his 40th year in international education (the last five at UNIS Hanoi), said: “We are proud that UNIS Hanoi continues to support the work of the United Nations in building this wonderful country’s great future.”
The school opened its doors in 1988, with 12 students in the borrowed classrooms of a local high school. Today, 1012 students learn on a purpose-built, 10-hectare campus in Hanoi’s western suburbs, a location that was deemed “madness” when UNIS Hanoi’s third Head of School, Jim Ambrose, started negotiations for developing the land.
Mr. Ambrose, honored by AIEE during his time at UNIS Hanoi and now a senior consultant with Search Associates, said: “The land was swamp farmland, miles from the city, and people said that no one would travel that far!”
Today, with 66 nationalities and 44 mother tongue groups in its truly international student body, UN Day is a highlight of the school calendar. This year the attempt to gather the entire school for a commemorative photo in the shape of the UNIS logo was also deemed “madness” when it was first proposed.
The sun was tracked, the scaffolding was built, the logo was altered to allow for perspective, and the quasi-military operation of positioning the smallest students at the front and the tallest staff at the back was planned by a team of elementary mathematics students, calculating how many people of different ages you can fit in one square meter!
The result is the stunning commemorative photo at left, with every student in his or her national costume; it will be hung in the conference room named after our school at the IBO’s brand new Asia-Pacific headquarters in Singapore.
Sales of school merchandise branded with the photo will contribute to the school’s “Birthday Gift Fund,” which aims to make a transformational gift to education projects in Vietnam, celebrating UNIS’ strong commitment to service learning in this anniversary year.
As Dr. Barder explains, “This year’s anniversary celebrations continue the school’s pioneering tradition. They are about the future, and building a legacy gift for the next 25 years!”




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