Dear GISC Community,

 

Happy International Women's Day! Today, the world recognizes International Women’s Day, taking its cue from the United Nations which officially recognized the day in 1975 for the first time. In 2011, former President Barack Obama declared March as Women’s History Month. On that occasion, President Obama said: "International Women’s Day is a chance to pay tribute to ordinary women throughout the world and is rooted in women’s centuries-old struggle to participate in society on an equal footing with men. This day reminds us that, while enormous progress has been made, there is still work to be done before women achieve true parity."

 

I wish you a great weekend. We look forward to seeing and connecting with you at the upcoming Parent-Teacher Conferences.

 

The first signs of spring are apparent, and once spring rolls around, we celebrate longer days of sunlight. It is in the spirit of celebration that we are happy to launch our most wonderful community get-together – the annual Gala, which this year is entitled An Evening at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, taking place on Saturday, May 11, 2024.

 

We hope to see all of you at this great GISC tradition – at this point, I want to thank the great volunteers planning the event along with our Development Director Jaclyn Stacy – in this newsletter, you will find ticket information.

 

On a different note, I also congratulate our soon-to-be graduates, who are currently finalizing their high school choices. Along with this momentous decision comes the task of sitting for the Deutsches Sprachdiplom I (DSD I) examinations, beginning March 13 and concluding March 25. Viel Erfolg on this test that certifies our students’ German language skills to be at such a level that they may qualify as proficient German communicators to enroll in school in Germany. Outstanding. I wish to thank all of our faculty members to prepare our students for this exam, and in particular, I thank longtime GISC German Department Chair, Herr Ulf Hennig, for his leadership and efforts in facilitating these exams along with our ZfA (Zentralstelle für das Deutsche Auslandsschulwesen – Central Office of German Schools Abroad) representative, Frau Gabriele Maiss-Minkler, who serves as our North American German Language Advisor. Nochmals, viel Erfolg! You got this!

 

All the best,

Ben