Washington International School
Encyclopedia
Washington International School (also known as Washington International or simply WIS) is a coeducational international school
for day students in grades pre-Kindergarten through 12. The school is located in northwest Washington, DC.
Established in 1966, WIS was the first school in the Washington area to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) program.
The school has two campuses: the primary school (grades PK-5) in Georgetown
, and the upper school (grades 6-12) in Cleveland Park
. The upper school’s campus is located on the grounds of Marjorie Merriweather Post
’s Tregaron (estate)
.
to meet the educational needs of Washington’s international community and American families seeking a rigorous international education.
In the post-World War II
years, international schools were established throughout the world to serve the growing number of families, mostly from developed countries, posted abroad by governments and commercial firms. These schools usually were founded by a community of families of a particular nationality and followed the educational system and curriculum of their country. They were international primarily in the sense that they accepted children of other nationalities.
When Goodman founded WIS with three pre-school students in the basement of a Washington, DC house, she had a clear vision for the school. Informed by scientific research on the capacity of the human brain to acquire multiple languages, especially in the early years, and marketing research that focused on the educational needs of international families in Washington, she imagined a school in which children could become functionally multilingual and at the same time well informed about world history, geography, literature, and cultures.
From the beginning, WIS has offered a range of subjects for study within a common curriculum. The school aims for high academic standards and enables students to master at least two major modern languages. The program equips students to enter university in their own country or any country of their choice.
The school’s founding was followed shortly by the incorporation of the International Baccalaureate Organization
(IBO), which itself grew from International School efforts to establish a common curriculum and university entry credential for geographically mobile students. WIS was among the first 60 schools to adopt the IB Diploma curriculum.
In 1969, with financial assistance from the Ford Foundation
, WIS purchased the Wendell Phillips
School building on Olive Street in Georgetown. The Olive Street campus served the school for 29 years, first as a space for the whole of the school, and, in subsequent years, as its Lower School site. In 1998, the lower grades moved into a newly-built facility at Reservoir Road and 36th Street NW. For the first time, this location enabled Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 5 to be in the same Primary School Campus. The Tregaron Campus
, acquired with assistance of the Ford Foundation in 1980, is the site of the Middle School (Grades 6 through 8) and the Upper School (Grades 9 through 12).
Due to the strong international background of the students, WIS usually has a strong soccer program and has won the PVAC league banner and tournament trophy many times. Three years ago, WIS won the regular season banner and beat the Field School in the tournament final. Last year, WIS was able to derail Sandy Spring Friends School's unbeaten run in the finals of the PVAC tournament in a 2-0 win. However, this year they lost to Sandy Spring in the final 3-1.
Furthermore, in 2008, the WIS basketball team upset Jewish Day School to win the PVAC basketball championship.
in Thailand
. Sharing a vision and philosophy, and with identical mission statements, WIS and KIS maintain an active and mutually rewarding relationship with frequent visits and consultations.
In addition, WIS is affiliated with the National Association of Independent Schools
, the Council of International Schools
, and the European Council of International Schools
.
Universities in italics indicate a destination for at least one member of the Class of 2011; the numbers in parentheses show how many WIS graduates (Class of 2008 through Class of 2011) matriculated at a given school.
University of Virginia (11)
University of Michigan (9)
University of Maryland at College Park (8)
University of Pennsylvania (8)
University of Southern California (8)
Columbia University (6)
University of Chicago (5)
Boston University (4)
Carleton College (4)
College of William and Mary (4)
Princeton University (4)
University of California at Berkeley (4)
Virginia Polytechnic University (4)
Yale University (4)
Bard College (3)
Brown University (3)
Georgetown University (3)
Haverford College (3)
James Madison University (3)
New York University (3)
Tufts University (3)
University of Colorado at Boulder (3)
Boston College (2)
Carnegie Mellon University (2)
Colgate University (2)
Drexel University (2)
Duke University (2)
Emory University (2)
Franklin and Marshall College (2)
Grinnell College (2)
Oberlin College (2)
Parsons School for Design (2)
Pratt Institute (2)
Rhode Island School of Design (2)
St. Mary's College of Maryland (2)
Swarthmore College (2)
University of Miami (2)
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (2)
University of Wisconsin at Madison (2)
Amherst College (1)
Barry University (1)
Colorado College (1)
Cooper Union (1)
Dartmouth College (1)
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (1)
George Mason University (1)
George Washington University (1)
Indiana University at Bloomington (1)
Johns Hopkins University (1)
Lehigh University (1)
Lewis & Clark College (1)
Maryland Institute College of Art (1)
Middlebury College (1)
Morgan State University (1)
Muhlenberg College (1)
Northeastern University (1)
Northwestern University (1)
Pennsylvania State University (1)
Reed College (1)
Skidmore College (1)
Smith College (1)
St. John's University (1)
Stanford University (1)
University of Arizona (1)
University of Delaware (1)
University of Mary Washington (1)
University of Vermont (1)
University of Washington (1)
Vanderbilt University (1)Universiteit Maastricht (2)
Universiteit Utrecht (2)
Eindhoven University of Technology (1)
Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam (1)
Leiden University (1)
Universiteit van Amsterdam (1)
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (1)
Vassar College (1)
Washington University in St. Louis (1)
Wesleyan University (1)
University of Melbourne (1)
Ghent University (1)
McGill University (15)
University of Toronto (9)
University of British Columbia (5)
Universidad de Navarra (1)
University of St. Andrews (9)
University of Sussex (3)
University of Edinburgh (2)
University of Cambridge (2)
University of Manchester (2)
University of Oxford (2)
Durham University (2)
University of Bristol (1)
Loughborough University (1)
University of Nottingham (1)
Peninsula Medical School (1)
University of Reading (1)
Queen's University (2)
Ontario College of Art & Design (1)
Ryerson University(1)
Ecole Nationale d'Architecture de Paris (1)
Keio University (1)
International school
An International school is loosely defined as a school that promotes international education, in an international environment, either by adopting an international curriculum such as that of the International Baccalaureate or Cambridge International Examinations, or by following a national...
for day students in grades pre-Kindergarten through 12. The school is located in northwest Washington, DC.
Established in 1966, WIS was the first school in the Washington area to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) program.
The school has two campuses: the primary school (grades PK-5) in Georgetown
Georgetown, Washington, D.C.
Georgetown is a neighborhood located in northwest Washington, D.C., situated along the Potomac River. Founded in 1751, the port of Georgetown predated the establishment of the federal district and the City of Washington by 40 years...
, and the upper school (grades 6-12) in Cleveland Park
Cleveland Park
Cleveland Park is a residential neighborhood in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C.It is located at and bounded approximately by Rock Creek Park to the east, Wisconsin and Idaho Avenues to the west, Klingle and Woodley Roads to the south, and Rodman and Tilden Streets to the north...
. The upper school’s campus is located on the grounds of Marjorie Merriweather Post
Marjorie Merriweather Post
-External links:******...
’s Tregaron (estate)
Tregaron (estate)
Tregaron is a estate in Washington, D. C..The property, originally part of a larger estate, "Twin Oaks", was bought by Gardiner Greene Hubbard, founder of the National Geographic Society, in the 1880s, and named "The Causeway". His daughter Mabel married Alexander Graham Bell, and inherited the...
.
History
Washington International School was founded in 1966 by Dorothy GoodmanDorothy Goodman
Dorothy Goodman is an American educator closely associated with the charter school movement. She was educated at Bryn Mawr College and received her Ph.D. from the University of London...
to meet the educational needs of Washington’s international community and American families seeking a rigorous international education.
In the post-World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
years, international schools were established throughout the world to serve the growing number of families, mostly from developed countries, posted abroad by governments and commercial firms. These schools usually were founded by a community of families of a particular nationality and followed the educational system and curriculum of their country. They were international primarily in the sense that they accepted children of other nationalities.
When Goodman founded WIS with three pre-school students in the basement of a Washington, DC house, she had a clear vision for the school. Informed by scientific research on the capacity of the human brain to acquire multiple languages, especially in the early years, and marketing research that focused on the educational needs of international families in Washington, she imagined a school in which children could become functionally multilingual and at the same time well informed about world history, geography, literature, and cultures.
From the beginning, WIS has offered a range of subjects for study within a common curriculum. The school aims for high academic standards and enables students to master at least two major modern languages. The program equips students to enter university in their own country or any country of their choice.
The school’s founding was followed shortly by the incorporation of the International Baccalaureate Organization
International Baccalaureate Organization
The International Baccalaureate , formerly the International Baccalaureate Organization , is an international educational foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland and founded in 1968. IB offers three educational programmes for children ages 3–19.The organization's name and logo were changed...
(IBO), which itself grew from International School efforts to establish a common curriculum and university entry credential for geographically mobile students. WIS was among the first 60 schools to adopt the IB Diploma curriculum.
In 1969, with financial assistance from the Ford Foundation
Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is a private foundation incorporated in Michigan and based in New York City created to fund programs that were chartered in 1936 by Edsel Ford and Henry Ford....
, WIS purchased the Wendell Phillips
Wendell Phillips
Wendell Phillips was an American abolitionist, advocate for Native Americans, and orator. He was an exceptional orator and agitator, advocate and lawyer, writer and debater.-Education:...
School building on Olive Street in Georgetown. The Olive Street campus served the school for 29 years, first as a space for the whole of the school, and, in subsequent years, as its Lower School site. In 1998, the lower grades moved into a newly-built facility at Reservoir Road and 36th Street NW. For the first time, this location enabled Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 5 to be in the same Primary School Campus. The Tregaron Campus
The Causeway (Washington, D.C.)
The Causeway, also known as the Tregaron, is a country house estate located in the Cleveland Park neighborhood of Northwest, Washington, D.C.. The estate was designed by Charles A. Platt and constructed in 1912. The original occupants, the Parmelees, lived at the estate from its construction until...
, acquired with assistance of the Ford Foundation in 1980, is the site of the Middle School (Grades 6 through 8) and the Upper School (Grades 9 through 12).
Athletics
The Washington International School has a strong athletic program and has excelled in the Potomac Valley Athletic Conference (PVAC) for many years. WIS competes in a variety of sports such as Basketball, Soccer, Volleyball, Swimming, Softball, Baseball, Track and Field, as well as Cross Country running.Due to the strong international background of the students, WIS usually has a strong soccer program and has won the PVAC league banner and tournament trophy many times. Three years ago, WIS won the regular season banner and beat the Field School in the tournament final. Last year, WIS was able to derail Sandy Spring Friends School's unbeaten run in the finals of the PVAC tournament in a 2-0 win. However, this year they lost to Sandy Spring in the final 3-1.
Furthermore, in 2008, the WIS basketball team upset Jewish Day School to win the PVAC basketball championship.
Affiliation
For nearly a decade Washington International School has enjoyed an affiliation with KIS International SchoolKIS International School
KIS International School is an international school located in Bangkok, Thailand. KIS is an IB World School offering an international curriculum that follows the International Baccalaureate programmes of study....
in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
. Sharing a vision and philosophy, and with identical mission statements, WIS and KIS maintain an active and mutually rewarding relationship with frequent visits and consultations.
In addition, WIS is affiliated with the National Association of Independent Schools
National Association of Independent Schools
The National Association of Independent Schools is a U.S.-based membership organization for private, nonprofit, K-12 schools. Founded in 1963, NAIS represents independent schools and associations in the United States, including day, boarding, and day/boarding schools; elementary and secondary...
, the Council of International Schools
Council of International Schools
The Council of International Schools is a non-profit association of international schools and post-secondary institutions which aims to improve international education...
, and the European Council of International Schools
European Council of International Schools
The European Council of International Schools - ECIS is an association of international schools founded in 1965. ECIS is a collaborative network promoting the ideals and best practice of international education....
.
College Destinations
http://www.wis.edu/academics/university-counseling/colleges-of-wis-graduates/index.aspxUniversities in italics indicate a destination for at least one member of the Class of 2011; the numbers in parentheses show how many WIS graduates (Class of 2008 through Class of 2011) matriculated at a given school.
University of Virginia (11)
University of Michigan (9)
University of Maryland at College Park (8)
University of Pennsylvania (8)
University of Southern California (8)
Columbia University (6)
University of Chicago (5)
Boston University (4)
Carleton College (4)
College of William and Mary (4)
Princeton University (4)
University of California at Berkeley (4)
Virginia Polytechnic University (4)
Yale University (4)
Bard College (3)
Brown University (3)
Georgetown University (3)
Haverford College (3)
James Madison University (3)
New York University (3)
Tufts University (3)
University of Colorado at Boulder (3)
Boston College (2)
Carnegie Mellon University (2)
Colgate University (2)
Drexel University (2)
Duke University (2)
Emory University (2)
Franklin and Marshall College (2)
Grinnell College (2)
Oberlin College (2)
Parsons School for Design (2)
Pratt Institute (2)
Rhode Island School of Design (2)
St. Mary's College of Maryland (2)
Swarthmore College (2)
University of Miami (2)
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (2)
University of Wisconsin at Madison (2)
Amherst College (1)
Barry University (1)
Colorado College (1)
Cooper Union (1)
Dartmouth College (1)
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (1)
George Mason University (1)
George Washington University (1)
Indiana University at Bloomington (1)
Johns Hopkins University (1)
Lehigh University (1)
Lewis & Clark College (1)
Maryland Institute College of Art (1)
Middlebury College (1)
Morgan State University (1)
Muhlenberg College (1)
Northeastern University (1)
Northwestern University (1)
Pennsylvania State University (1)
Reed College (1)
Skidmore College (1)
Smith College (1)
St. John's University (1)
Stanford University (1)
University of Arizona (1)
University of Delaware (1)
University of Mary Washington (1)
University of Vermont (1)
University of Washington (1)
Vanderbilt University (1)Universiteit Maastricht (2)
Universiteit Utrecht (2)
Eindhoven University of Technology (1)
Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam (1)
Leiden University (1)
Universiteit van Amsterdam (1)
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (1)
Vassar College (1)
Washington University in St. Louis (1)
Wesleyan University (1)
University of Melbourne (1)
Ghent University (1)
McGill University (15)
University of Toronto (9)
University of British Columbia (5)
Universidad de Navarra (1)
University of St. Andrews (9)
University of Sussex (3)
University of Edinburgh (2)
University of Cambridge (2)
University of Manchester (2)
University of Oxford (2)
Durham University (2)
University of Bristol (1)
Loughborough University (1)
University of Nottingham (1)
Peninsula Medical School (1)
University of Reading (1)
Queen's University (2)
Ontario College of Art & Design (1)
Ryerson University(1)
Ecole Nationale d'Architecture de Paris (1)
Keio University (1)
Trivia
- The mental hospital scene in the Pelican BriefThe Pelican Brief (film)The Pelican Brief is a 1993 legal crime thriller based on the novel of the same name by John Grisham. Directed by Alan J. Pakula, the film stars Julia Roberts in the role of young law student Darby Shaw and Denzel Washington as Washington Herald reporter Gray Grantham...
was filmed in the mansion of the Tregaron Campus.
- The humor coach scene in Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of KazakhstanBorat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of KazakhstanBorat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, often referred to simply as Borat, is a 2006 mockumentary comedy film directed by Larry Charles and distributed by 20th Century Fox...
was filmed in the Mansion (Room 205) of the Tregaron Campus. This room is usually used for Economics.
- Several scenes in Advise and ConsentAdvise and Consent (film)Advise & Consent is a 1962 American motion picture based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name by Allen Drury, published in 1959. The movie was adapted for the screen by Wendell Mayes and was directed by Otto Preminger...
were also filmed in the mansion of the Tregaron Campus.
- The children of Johan CruyffJohan CruyffHendrik Johannes Cruijff OON , known as Johan Cruyff, is a retired Dutch footballer and is currently the manager of the Catalan national team as well as a member of the AFC Ajax board of directors. He won the Ballon d'Or three times, in 1971, 1973 and 1974, which is a record jointly held with...
, a famous dutch soccer player, attended WIS for a short time when Cruyff played for the Washington DiplomatsWashington DiplomatsThe Washington Diplomats were an American soccer club based in Washington, D.C.. Throughout their existence, the club played their home games at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium...