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On the right you can see what remains of the buildings of the Baghdad International School which were destroyed by fire after the looting which followed the conflict in Iraq. The school's future however, is assured and the search for temporary accommodation is underway. On the following pages you will be able to get an idea of what the school was, and is, all about and a glimpse of life there before, during and after the extraordinary events of 2003. If you would like to help with the reprovisioning of the school then bookmark this site and we will keep you posted. Monday, 2nd June 2003 |
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Message from Graham Cherry, Director BIS, June 12, 2003
Any ex students of BIS are urged to get in contact with Mr. Cherry to get an update on the situation of the school. We have many photos from the preceding year and the events at the school that led up to it’s closure before the commencement of hostilities and we’d love to hear from you. Post a message on the guestbook or contact us directly. |
The entrance to the High School as it appeared earlier in the year. |
The following message from the Director of BIS went out from the European Council of International Schools on Monday 19th May 2003. Dear colleagues In late February I wrote to you all to tell you of the determination of the staff, students and parents of Baghdad International School to keep the school open, even in the face of the harsh reality of probable war, and of all the uncertainties that surrounded us, in a country where we depended mostly on BBC Radio, when it was available, to know what was happening outside our borders, and what decisions were being made. In the event, thanks to the dedication and sang-froid of our staff, we were able to keep the school open until March 13, just a week before the first bombs fell, and then we closed for "Spring Vacation". Forty-five children, almost all of them Iraqi, remained in Baghdad, and all of our teachers and staff except two who had chosen to leave the country. Two months later, the "Spring Vacation" continues, and is likely to do so for some time to come. Situated as we are, with the airport runways a kilometer to the south, a palace complex 500 meters to the east, and the main military zone just to the west, it is not surprising that the school buildings suffered damage during the bombing. But what is most deeply troubling to report is that after the bombing, the school was pillaged, and both the elementary and high school buildings set on fire and totally destroyed. Gone are our 60 classrooms, five science labs, two computer labs, two theatres, two gymnasia, two libraries, artrooms, music suites, canteens and offices. This is the worst blow of all, as, in all seriousness, we had hoped to be able to complete this academic year for our kids, even if it meant working through the summer months. |
Fortunately, in anticipation of just such an outcome, we had removed all our computers to teachers' homes, as well as all our documents and archives of value. But it is our beautiful purpose built school that has gone, and will be long in the replacing. This is the bad news. The very, very good news is that all of the current members of our BIS staff and their families are safe and (physically) unharmed, although one former teacher was killed.I want to be in touch with you at this time for two particular reasons. The first is to bring you this update regarding the international school in Baghdad, and the second is to extend the heartfelt thanks of all of us at BIS for the outpouring of support and empathy for our children and staff in the time leading up to the bombing. Your e-mails were blown up ('enlarged' would doubtless be a better word!) and posted on noticeboards all around the school, and they provided a very necessary sense of support for us all. It was particularly powerful to receive messages from schools and school staff members who had confronted different but recognisably similar experiences, in their own schools. For the present time I remain here in France, as it is yet not safe enough to return to Baghdad. I am writing a number of articles for different publications and with this exposure we hope to be able to begin the task of building a financial base so that it will be possible to re-open in a small way, and in rented buildings, in late August or September. So far, the support offered has been very encouraging. The war in Iraq lead to a dramatic fall in our roll - from nearly 300 students last June, to 250 in December, to 45 in March - and a near bankrupting of the school. All our staff are local and they have been paid till June, but we need funds to pay them through the summer months: some $ 60,000 in all. This, of course, is just a drop in the bucket of the money that has to be raised to re-build and re-establish ourselves But this funding will need, ultimately, to come from governments and organisations who are served by BIS. When I return to Baghdad in the next weeks, I will have a better sense of the School's needs. Clearly textbooks and teaching aids and materials are also going to be a priority, and it may be possible that some of the international schools will be able to offer assistance in this area by having a spring-clean of their bookstores! If any of you would like to reach me or to send messages to our staff, please contact me at this e-mail address (CherryGC@aol.com). I can also be contacted by phone and fax at (33) 492 027 286. And there is now a Website (this one) which we are in the process of setting up and which I invite you to visit where it is possible to view the "as we were" and "as we are" pictures and to imagine the "as we will be"! On behalf of the students and staff of Baghdad International School Graham Cherry, Director |
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Last updated Thursday 12th June2003 - Links to other sites are placed automatically by the hosts of this webpage and are neither associated with nor endorsed by BIS in any way.