“Today we celebrate our internationalism, our purpose as a school, our unique place in Lebanon, and the importance of teamwork and working together.”

These were the words which the ACS Head of School, Hamilton Clark, kicked off the first annual Convocation Ceremony at ACS. He addressed High School, Middle School and fifth grade students, explaining to them that ACS actively recruits an international student body, based on the understanding that “the only way to a better world is through learning to live and work with others who are different from us”. The result is that ACS is home to sixty five different nationalities on campus this school year.

The convocation began with a parade of students bearing flags from the 65 countries represented at ACS.

In his speech, Mr. Clark referred to the ACS Mission Statement and used it to reflect on how our education and mission are evident in our daily lives today and wherever life may take us. He stressed that the school does not only celebrate diversity amongst its students, but also amongst its faculty, who have in turn come from near and far, work hard to help students develop their own voices, become critical thinkers who ask ‘why’.

The ceremony also featured a number of musical interludes by the ACS band and student singers, as well as speeches by Middle and High School representatives.

“ACS is the flag that brings us all together regardless of our race, gender, background and beliefs,” said Liana Safa ’19. She explained how her ACS experience empowered her understanding beyond the classroom: through athletics, extra-curricular activities, international trips and everyday school work that “motivates her to create change”.

In turn, Jad Kaiss ’15 addressed his peers with a call for action: “Happiness is only real when shared. ACS is not wonderful on its own; it’s wonderful because of all of you, because you make ACS what it is.”