Dear GISC Community,
Today I am happy to make a special announcement concerning the future of our school that we will celebrate with a festive event. You are cordially invited to our reception and signing ceremony at the German International School Chicago (GISC) on Tuesday, October 1, to celebrate our official recognition as a German School Abroad (Deutsche Auslandsschule – DAS). Our designation as a DAS school strengthens our school’s mission to offer GISC students “a rigorous German-English bilingual education.”

The reception will begin at 8:30 a.m. here at GISC campus in Ravenswood, followed by brief remarks from Herr Ralf Beste, Head of Cultural & Social Affairs, German Federal Foreign Office, and Frau Julie Steffen, Vice Chair, GISC Board of Trustees. A special student presentation will also be included. Please RSVP via this sign-up form.

This milestone places GISC alongside 135 schools in major world cities, including six prestigious DAS schools in the U.S., located in Boston, New York (2), Washington, D.C., Portland, and Silicon Valley. What’s more, GISC will bridge the gap as the only DAS school in the entire Midwestern United States.

GISC will benefit from the full scope of services available to DAS schools, including pedagogical and administrative consulting, teacher recruitment, professional development, and the preparation of our students for international diplomas. 

GISC’s new DAS status complements our existing accreditations, including the Independent Schools Association of the Central States (ISACS) and our status as an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School. These affiliations demonstrate our commitment to maintaining high standards across German, international, and U.S. educational systems.

“Our DAS designation reflects the tremendous efforts of our faculty and staff in developing a school of national and international stature,” said Kurt Gamauf, Chair of the GISC Board of Trustees. “It underscores the quality of the programs and services we offer our students.”

Joining Encounter Schools Across the World
The DAS network, established in 1968 by the Bundesamt für Auswärtige Angelegenheiten (BfAA – German Federal Foreign Office), aims to foster intercultural dialogue and provide a well-rounded education for students of diverse backgrounds. The BfAA refers to DAS schools as ‘Begegnungsschulen,’ (Encounter Schools) in which children of German-speaking origin and children of the school’s host country, as well as children from other nations can learn together within a German language and culture context. 

As of today, GISC perfectly fits the profile of a Begegnungsschule: On average, DAS school student bodies comprise 25% German students with the remaining 75% of students representing the school’s host nation and other nations. In line with these guidelines, GISC’s enrollment reflects this diversity, with students nearly 20% German, 20% U.S., and the remainder from international families. The DAS schools share GISC’s mission to help students become “well-rounded, creative, and responsible global citizens.”

All DAS schools are expected to offer a diploma such as the Abitur or IB Diploma. As GISC develops, we will offer a Mixed Language IB Diploma (Gemischtsprachiges IB Diploma/GIB), whereby students will take half their classes in German and the other half in English. Graduating students will also earn the U.S. High School diploma. 

For the past six years, GISC in partnership with the Lycee Francais de Chicago has successfully offered our graduates the opportunity to earn a bilingual IB Diploma. In the process, GISC students continued with German language instruction given by GISC teachers. The partnership between the LFC and GISC is a relationship that we value and will continue to foster. The ongoing focus on solidifying a GISC high school program beyond eighth grade is in line with our school mission to “prepare our students academically and socially to succeed in an increasingly global world.”

Today we are celebrating this important step forward for our school as we write the next chapter together with our partners and stakeholders. We will keep you informed as this process unfolds and look forward to celebrating with you on October 1.