Over 130 attend ISB alumni reunions

By Sam Wong, ISB Alumni Relations

At times like these, when the coronavirus outbreak has led to the temporary closure of the International School of Beijing (ISB) campus, community is even more important. ISB has held two alumni reunions since the beginning of 2020, bringing together more than 130 alumni, faculty, and friends. The arrival of the new year brought a new level of participation in these events, showing former students’ commitment to staying connected.

2020 began with the London alumni reunion hosted by ISB Head of School Patrick Hurworth, who was accompanied by former High School Principal Paul Wood and long-serving former faculty member Breen O’Reilly. The event took place on January 19, on an unusually sunny London afternoon full of catching up with old friends. Mr. Hurworth presented on exciting goings-on at ISB including developments in the Office of Advancement such as next school year’s 40th anniversary celebration events and activities. Mr. O’Reilly concluded the event by sharing a heartfelt video from his fellow faculty members, current and former. All the moments were captured and posted on to the ISB alumni Instagram account, @alumni_ISB, thanks to our volunteer alumni photographers Valtter Lehtonen (’13) and Catriona Mearns (’13).

New York was the next destination, on February 1, with Elementary School Principal Clarissa Sayson hosting the event. Close to 100 alumni and community members attended the reunion, which would not have been possible without the help and support of many of our alumni. A special thanks to volunteers Megan Wang (’08) and Jennifer Wu (’09) for assisting in pre-reunion set-up and check-in.

The New York reunion attracted diverse alumni representation ranging from the graduating classes of the early 2000s to our most recent graduates, the class of 2019. Ms. Sayson’s presentation to the alumni covered ISB updates like work led by the school’s Office of Learning (OOL) around social-emotional learning and the OOL’s incorporation of alumni experiences through its newly developed Alumni Outcomes Study. Alumni in New York were also encouraged to participate in the Office of Advancement’s 40th anniversary activities, such as the story and photo collection project as well as the 40th anniversary logo competition.

The presentation concluded with another touching video from beloved ISB faculty, which prompted alumni to write letters to many of their former teachers. Nearly 60 letters were posted in total. Many thanks to Juan-Carlos Lopez, Keith Jarman, Mick Green, Breen O’Reilly, Wayne King, Bujar Kumi, and Angela Fournier for being part of the faculty video, which truly made the afternoon one to remember.

Thank you to all our alumni who attended the London and New York reunions! Once a Dragon, always a Dragon.