August 2015 - International School of Schaffhausen

BUSI NESS NAME
School
News
School News
Welcome to the academic year 2015/16
Dear Parents, Students and Friends of ISSH
A warm welcome back after the summer break to all of you.
All staff have returned sound and safe from their holidays with
recharged batteries and we are currently all very busy preparing
what promises to be a great start to the new school year. ISSH
continues to grow substantially. We will start the new school year
with 274 students (including ISCC) which is a phantastic 12% percent increase in student numbers compared to last year’s August
figures. The main bulk of the growth is in our secondary department. Next year’s DP section will have as many as 45 students.
The Boarding Residence is now catering for 10 students.
We are welcoming 66 new students from 43 families. Most of them
have relocated to Switzerland over the summer. We wish them a
good start in their new environment. Don’t hesitate to contact the
school ([email protected]) or the PA ([email protected]), if we can assist you
in any way.
You can find the latest facts and figures about our growing ISSH
community in the statistics article on page 4 of this newsletter.
There you can see the number of students in the different sections, the nationalities and which companies send students to
ISSH.
There has been very little staff turnover this year, only 4 of our
teaching staff left in July. However, due to the growth in the DP
section, we welcomed 12 new members of staff. You will find the
portraits of some of the new team members on pages 10-14.
On page 2 of this newsletter, you will find a welcome note from
Thomas Moser. Thomas is the contact person between the boards
and the school and meets regularly with the staff and the PA.
First day new students
A day prior to school start, on Wednesday 19th August at 14:00,
we will meet the new families in the Assembly Hall (main building).
After introductions of the team, the students will meet their teachers who will take them on a tour of the school. The parents will
stay in the Assembly Hall and will receive specific information for
families new to the school. They will then go to meet their
child/children in the classrooms and also meet the teachers. There
is also an opportunity for you to meet the PA (Parent Association).
New families, please make sure to not leave before you have
had your family picture for the welcome board taken.
On the first day of school (Thu, 20th Aug) Primary Students
grades 1-5 will gather in the playground (wet weather alternative is the Assembly Hall). Early Years 1, Early Years 2 and
Transition students will meet directly in their classrooms. Secondary Students will gather in the gym hall.
We are all looking forward to meeting you soon.
Yours sincerely
Gundula Kohlhaas, Head of School
[email protected]
August
2015
Calendar
First Day Back
New Students: Wednesday, 19 August, 14:00
Returning Students: Thursday, 20 August
Parent Information Evenings
Wed 26 August
EY1/EY2
gr 2/3
Thu 27 August
Trans/gr 1
gr 4/5
Tue 8 September
grades 6/7
Wed 9 September
grades 8/9
Thu 10 September
grades 10, 11, 12
6:00-7:00pm
7:00-8:00pm
6:00-7:00pm
7:00-8:00pm
6:00-8:00pm
6:00-8:00pm
6:00-8:00pm
2nd Grade Overnight Camp
in School
Friday, 28 August 2015
Open Day at Boarding House
26 September, 14:00-17:00
MY Camp Week
28 September—2 October
gr 6/7 Scuol
gr 8 Kandersteg
gr 9/10 London
Professional Development
Days for PY Teachers
Friday 2 October 2015
No school for Primary
(MY students are in camp week)
Monday 19 October 2015
No school for Primary and Secondary
Friday, 15 January 2016
(No school for Primary & Secondary)
Friday, 13 May 2016
(Secondary only)
Autumn Break
3—18 October 2015
S ch oo l New s
P age 2
A Message from the Board
Dear Parents and Students
Dear ISSH Staff
Dear Friends and Supporters of the ISSH
Dear ISSH Community
international companies to Switzerland.
ISSH’s continuous development reflects the welldeserved recognition for all the excellent work of our
team of ISSH educators and support staff under the
leadership of our Head of School, Gundula KohlOn behalf of the ISSH Board, I’m very happy to wel- haas. But it also stands for the general spirit of the
come all of you to the new school year. A special
entire ISSH community. We definitely wouldn’t be
welcome to all the new students and new staff mem- where we are now without all of you. Your engagebers who will join our school this August.
ment, commitment, support and dedication for collaboration really amazes me again and again. It’s greISSH has seen a tremendous growth since its
at to be part of this community!
founding back in 1999 and again this summer we
can count more students than we ever had before in I’m sure, the new school year will bring along its
our history. There is no doubt that the continuous
challenges, some of them more, some of them less
growth and development of the International School exciting. I’m looking forward to dealing with these
of Schaffhausen is one of the biggest success stochallenges, together with the whole ISSH family!
ries in the economic development of the Canton of
Thomas Moser
Schaffhausen in the course of the last decades.
Member of the ISSH AG Board
Most likely, it is the pivotal element for an international company to decide whether or whether not to
settle in the Schaffhausen area.
In the past years we continuously invested in the
expansion of the infrastructure of our campus and
the general school and programme offerings. The
implementation of the Diploma Programme four
years ago was a milestone in order to further increase the attractiveness and the quality of the education at the ISSH. These investments pay off! Today we are extremely pleased to see more than 270
students starting into the school year 2015/16 (with
a remarkable growth of student numbers in the secondary section/diploma programme). This great
development happened despite certain popular votes (e.g. “1:12”, “minimum wage” and, in particular,
“mass immigration”) which created a number of
uncertainties and made it more challenging to attract
The Hot Lunch Programme will start on
Monday, 24 August!
Please bring a packed lunch on the first two
days of school and hand in your enrollment
form for Hot Lunch—if you wish—at the
latest by Friday, 21 August 2015. Enrollment forms are attached.
ISSH T-shirt sale
You will need ISSH T-shirts for PE. T-shirts will be
sold in the Assembly Hall on the following
days/times after the start of the school year:
Thursday, 20 August:
Friday, 21 August:
8:30-10:00
15:00-16:00
8:30-9:00
After that you have to purchase
ISSH T-shirts at the office.
S ch oo l New s
P age 3
Welcome by the Secondary Principal
Dear Secondary Students and Parents
On behalf of the Secondary team at ISSH, I
would like to welcome
you to our 2015/16
school year. For students who are new to
the school, we are having an introductory afternoon on Wednesday,
19th August from 2pm
until 3pm. We will meet
in the school’s main hall,
where you will be introduced to your homeroom teacher. From there you will be taken on a tour
of the school and visit your new classroom.
and some DP English. We have been fortunate to
secure an excellent selection of new teachers, with
valuable experience that will be of great value to our
students.
The Secondary team are looking forward to starting
the school year and have great activities and learning experiences planned. Managebac will be used
widely and students need to check their accounts
daily. All students and parents can access Managebac in order to monitor their (child’s) progress. If you
are a new parent, please email me, so I can add
your email to the system: [email protected]
The school computers and server have been upgraded and students will now be using Windows 10
alongside their Google accounts. All students in
Grade 10 and above are provided with Chromebooks so they can make full use of the internet
For all returning students, your first day is Thursday, whilst they study at ISSH.
20th August. We will meet in the gym in the second- A few classrooms are moving in order to adjust to
ary building to meet and greet our new students and our ever changing needs. Our expanding Grade 11
staff and organise ourselves for the day. Some of
and 12 are being re-housed in their new common
these students will join our Junior College boarding room in the Logierhaus building, while Mr André will
facility who will live at the ISSH boarding house in
move back into the former DP common room (0.4).
Schaffhausen, housing 10 boarders who are mainly Ms Newby will move her art class into Mr André’s
DP students. We now have 45 Grade 11 and 12
room, whilst Mr Burton will take his drama and mustudents studying the Diploma Programme - in total sic classes into the former art room. Mr Burton’s old
125 students in Secondary.
room (1.3) will be another maths class for Mr Bambrough. All very exciting changes for the better!
Our increase in numbers has resulted in a number
of new staff joining the secondary team. Bridget
Thomson and Stephen Rix will join the English department. Alex Bambrough will join the mathematics
department along with Don Campbell, who will also
teach Economics and Business Management. Paul
Forbes will take over the teaching of Technology, as
well as some English. Vanessa Sciarrino will teach
French and Fabienne Good will be teaching Art. Finally, Philip Pflugbeil will be teaching Humanities
I look forward to welcoming families and students,
old and new, for what promises to be another exciting year in the Secondary School. Please let me
know if you have any questions, concerns or suggestions, now or anytime during the year.
Things to Bring to School
You should always bring these things to each lesson:
You need to bring these things every day:

Pencil case with pens, pencils, erasers, ruler, protractor and
pencil sharpener
Chris Taylor
Secondary Principal

Student planner or diary

Schoolbag

Student planner or diary

Writing Equipment

Translating dictionary (if English is not your first language)

Snack, lunch and drinks

Scientific calculator

The correct books and files

Something to tell the time with
You need to bring these things when necessary:

Appropriate kit for PE

Rain gear
All of these items should be marked with your name.
S ch oo l New s
P age 4
ISSH Community Statistics
Founded in 1999, we are starting into our 17th year
with 274 students from 186 families with 128 girls
and 146 boys. 66 new students from 43 new families
are joining our community of learners. The team consists of 20 class/homeroom teachers, 21 subject
teachers, 4 administrators, 7 members of the leadership team, 18 support staff (marketing, library, IT,
learning support, EAL, upkeep, transport), 4 trainees,
9 members of the ISCC team, 8 members of the parent association and 11 board or foundation board
members.
The following 42 nations are represented in our community: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bhutan, Britain,
Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, China, Denmark, Ecuador, Eritrea, Finland, France, Germany, Greece,
Hungary, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mexico,
The Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia,
South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania,
Tunesia, Turkey, United States and Venezuela. The
seven biggest national groups are the USAmericans, the Swiss, the Germans, the British, the
Dutch, the Polish and the Swedes. 34 % of the students are English native speakers. 23 % of the families are local families. We have 136 students in the
primary section, 125 secondary students and 13 children in the child care centre (ISCC). 66 % of the
school places are taken by companies (ad notam
AG, Agco, Burckhardt Compression, Cilag Schaffhausen, Citrix, Covidien, Delta Tau Europe, DSM,
Garmin, Goldwin Europe AG, Google, Groupon,
ISSH, IWC, John Deere, Johnson & Johnson, Karl
Storz, Lupin Atlantis, Makhteshim, Military Base Pfullendorf, Nestlé Singen, Oriflame, Pentair, Reckitt
Bendeiser, Rising Tide, Swiss Re, Takeda, Tavrida
Electronics, Terex, Tyco, Unilever, Werner International and Xylem, with Unilever (41), Terex (9), Xylem (9), Tyco (9), Oriflame (8), Nestlé (8), Pentair (7)
and Groupon (7) occupying the majority of places.
Welcome to a new year in ISSH Primary
It is my pleasure to welcome all our parents,
students and teachers to
a new year at ISSH Primary. I hope you have all
had a restful summer
and are ready to: be unique, achieve potential
and take responsibility!
These are our core values at ISSH and we hope
to help all our community
members embody these
values throughout the
school year. It promises to be another amazing year
of learning with numerous events and activities, building from the success of last school year. Below are
details regarding a number of initiatives and you will
hear in more detail about things that will be going on
in your child’s own classroom during the open evenings for parents. These will take place on Wednesday, 26th Aug for EY 1&2 and Grade 2&3 and on
Thursday, 27th Aug for Transition & Grade 1 and
Grades 4&5.
Last year we continued with our goal to develop
competitive sports in the school. We hosted a basketball and football tournament and attended, with
some real success, a number of tournaments both in
the locality and at other international schools, including cross-country running, football and basketball.
We also saw the continued growth of our field hockey group that played every Wednesday on the
school field. This year we will continue to participate
in these events, but we will additionally host a crosscountry running event that a number of other international schools have already expressed an interest
in attending.
We drastically changed our after school club system
last year, changing from every teacher offering 2
clubs in 2 set times during the year, to every teacher
offering 3 clubs in a variety of times throughout the
year. This gave our students a lot more choice and
offered more flexibility in terms of timing. Moving
forward we have adapted the sign up process so
families will be able to sign up for a set of clubs
during 3 set times of the year: from August
31st, November 9th and March 7th.
S ch oo l New s
P age 5
Our interest in utilizing the outdoors, as stimulus to
learning, continued with some grades regularly going
into the forest for lessons or investigations last year.
By organising various activities the student council
raised funds for our outdoor classroom and are now
in the process of installing a shed with gardening
tools and more seating. The gardening club has also
helped in this area, redeveloping the vegetable patch
and the insect hotel. This year we will have
scheduled times for every class to use this new learning environment.
re, welcoming three international schools, one local
school and even an English language adult learners’
group, in addition to the rest of our school community. All these visitors added a new element to the student’s presentations and they had to answer some
very different questions. This year we will have a
new Exhibition theme and again invite these groups
and attempt to share this with more of the local community as well.
Last year’s show, Cinderella-Rockefella, had a bigger main cast than any other show we have done in
the primary and as always featured performances
from every grade. It was a great experience for all
involved and resulted in a magical evening. This
year I am proud and excited to announce that we will
be presenting our own version of the Disney smash
hit ‘Frozen’. I have no doubt we will have no shortage of aspiring actors and actresses and a ready
supply of costumes. If you are interested in helping
out with the show, please see Cathy Taylor, our music teacher.
Maths’. This is a brand new scheme from the UK
aimed at pushing the level of mathematics beyond
the ’expected’ level. So far it has been a useful tool
to aid in the differentiation for varying student abilities. This year we will also utilize the newly published
assessment material that supports this scheme,
using them regularly to inform teaching and learning.
Part of the preparation for the Exhibition in Grade 5
last year involved the Grade 6 students coming over
Last year both Safety Week and Community Langu- to primary and talking about their experience during
ages Morning were again a big hit with the students. the exhibition and offering advice. Many of the older
For the safety week we had visits from the police;
DP students also worked in primary classrooms and
talking about traffic safety with the younger students, tutored students as part of their community service
and first aid training for the older students. In additi- work and we had senior students assisting with
on, teachers addressed other aspects of safety
sports, refereeing games and coaching both basketthrough activities and stories in the class and the
ball and hockey. We will continue this partnership
student council gave an award to the safest student with the secondary section this year and are deof the week. During the Community Languages Mor- lighted that the younger students have the opportunining some brave parent volunteers came in to teach ty to see such good role models.
the students some of their mother tongue language. Last year, in October, we reintroduced the ACER
This raised awareness of the different languages
ISAs, which are standardized tests done by internatithat are used in our community, again celebrating
onal schools, across the world, for language and
the differences we have in the school. This year we mathematics. We trialed the October test period for
hope to build on the success of this morning, not
Grades 4 & 5, but have now opted to participate in
only by running it again, but also introducing more
the May online testing from 2016 onwards. This will
language after school clubs, run by parents (please mean that we have annual standardized, externally
let me know if you have any interest in running a lan- marked, testing for Grades 3 to 5. The teachers will
guage club, or helping to run one). UN Day is albe able to use the diagnostic reports from these
ways great fun and this year, on October 1st, we are tests to inform future teaching and we will publish an
going to develop the wonderful international lunch by overview of these results for the school community.
creating buffet tables that the students can go to and In terms of academic testing, we also introduced a
learn more about the food and where it comes from. new mathematics resource last year called ‘Busy Ant
I look forward to meeting all our new families on
Wednesday and welcoming back everyone else on
Thursday. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Kind Regards,
For the Grade 5 Exhibition project last year, the students were given the overarching theme of ‘Ripples Mr Nick Wragg
Primary Principal
through time’ and tasked with developing a focus
that considered how things from the past can have a
lasting impact. We had a wide variety of subject matter, from motorcycle safety to the evolution of ballet
choreography, testament to the student’s individuality and each mind having its own method. During the
two open days we had more visitors than ever befo-
S ch oo l New s
P age 6
New Enrollments for August 2015
Early Years 1
Daisy Holland, Ethan Levi, Edoardo Serra, Mia Pinzas, Marina and Sofia Berson Velasco, Sullivan
Massery, Liam Pflugbeil, Jade Tang, Joel and Philip
Gai, Giovanni Zacchi-Cossetti
Grade 7
Valentina Brunner, Paula Smith, Dominik Kaniecki,
Maurits Post, Wilhelm Nilsson
Early Years 2
Anja Pinzas, Matthew Forbes, Isla Bella FergusonWeir, Victor Varela Verbeeck, Caelan Pflugbeil
Grade 9
Shane Hodel, Michael Rocke, Shao Dongchen (start
in the autumn), Linda Vils, Isabella Coopey, Emma
Coburn, Karl Nilsson
Transition
Ole Burkart, Roy Simon, Juliana Marini
Grade 1
Oskar Nilsson
Grade 2
Auryn Rix, Andres Arellano, Laxman Shirwaikar
Grade 3
Samira Perez, Matylda Kirpsza
Grade 4
Vincent Marini
Grade 5
William Wragg
Grade 6
Jenna Smith, Lia Specht, Milosz Kaniecki, Caden
Coburn, Sophia Marini
Grade 8
Jasper Post
Grade 10
Miha Berce, Gregory Vermeulen, Seán Power
Grade 11
Zala Berce, Seangy Ear, Julia Holste, Simge Kilic,
Rina Ly, Henry Stark, Philipp Widmann, Yoshimitsu
Katsuta
Grade 12
Julian Brinkers, Ladina Brunner, Katharina Christensen, Gwendolyn Hodel, Richard Matalewski, Julian
Pohl, Devarsh Shah, Caroline van Winkel, Kai Ohlig
We wish you a very warm WELCOME and a great start!
New: ISSH English School!
From September 2015, the International School of Schaffhausen
will open a new programme, the „English School“
The programme offered is specifically for students age 5-9, who have English as their Mother
Tongue, or are near native in their proficiency, but do not attend an English speaking school.
These afternoons (Wed, 14:00-16:00) will include 2 X 50 minute lessons, with a 20 minute
break in between.
The lessons will include differentiated work on reading and writing skills, comprehension,
grammatical structure, spelling patterns and spoken proficiency.
The cost is 50chf per afternoon, billed on a quarterly basis.
The students will have access to ISSH's modern educational resources and facilities, and be
able to borrow books from the ISSH Library.
Members of the ISSH English school are part of the ISSH community and welcome to all community events.
Please email the Lead Teacher, Mrs Sharla Günthardt ([email protected]) if you are interested. Sharla Günthardt is from Mesa, Arizona, USA and has been living in Schaffhausen for
12 years. She is qualified in Elementary Education, has worked for ISSH in the past and has a
lot of experience tutoring children in English.
S ch oo l New s
P age 7
ISSH Parent Association: 2015/2016 Committee
The PA is pleased to introduce the PA Executive Committee Members for the 2015-16 school year:
President Annika Jensen; Vice-President Jacqueline van Ryneveld; Treasurer Christine Norberg;
Secretary Sandra von der Geest; Class Parent Coordinators Laura Kemper Cogley & Iris Kath;
Newsletter Kate Braukus & Iris Kath and Communications Niki Anderson.
My thanks go to all of them for their acceptance of their PA roles and responsibilities!
The new Parent Association
Committee 2015/2016
S ch oo l New s
P age 8
Staff News
Hello! My name is Grace Tiffin and I will be teaching Grade 3T at ISSH.
This will be my sixth year of primary school teaching but my first time
teaching Grade 3. I am very much looking forward to this new experience.
I recently moved to Switzerland from Brunei where I worked for Brunei
Shell Petroleum. There, I taught in an international school which catered for 37 different nationalities. This provided me with a wealth of
experience in teaching students with varying levels of English whilst
also giving me the opportunity to learn about different cultures and
ways of life in countries all over the world.
Whilst in Switzerland, I am hoping to learn German, learn to ski and to
write more children’s stories.
My name is Paul Forbes and I am an
ICT and English teacher from the United Kingdom. I am excited to be
teaching the MYP Design and English
Acquisition programmes at ISSH. I
hold BA (Hons) and BSc (Hons)
degrees in English, and Information
Technology Education and I also have
an M.Ed in Leadership and Curriculum
Development. Prior to my most recent
position in Germany, I spent a
considerable amount of my career
working in international schools in Singapore, holding various subject
responsibility positions. I have been
married for twelve years, to my wife
Alison, who is an Early Years Teacher
and we have a four-year-old son,
Matthew. Alison is also expecting our
second child this October!
Alex Clover: New Zealander.
From England I have an MA from
the university of Newcastle-uponTyne and from New Zealand: a BA
from Waikato University and a
Teaching Diploma from the University of Auckland.
I have lived in Schaffhausen since
September 2014 with my Swiss
wife, where we both truly appreciate this vibrant city with all the comforts of home, enhanced. My wife
and I are avid rock climbers who
also enjoy cycling, running and
swimming.
It is simply wonderful 'to dwell in
shining' Schaffhausen, our Ithaca.
My name is Alex Bambrough and I’m
excited to be a new member of the
growing ISSH community. I have previously worked for nine years as a
Secondary Mathematics and Humanities teacher in Adelaide, Australia,
and I will be continuing my love for
these fields by teaching both MYP
and DP Mathematics and DP Geography this year at ISSH. My partner
was born and raised in Bad Säckingen, Germany, an hour west of
Schaffhausen, and the positive of
being again close to family acted as
another key influence on our decision
to move. Outside of school, I enjoy
playing and watching sport, namely
football and AFL, while I also enjoy
cycling, which the Schaffhausen region is perfect for.
S ch oo l New s
P age
My name is Philip Pflugbeil, and I am
the new Humanities coordinator. This
year I am the Grade 8 homeroom teacher and I will be teaching Individuals
and Society 8,9 and 10, as well as History and Language & Literature in the
DP. I am Canadian by birth, from a
small town in British Columbia, with an
Irish dual nationality. I have a BA and
BEd in History and Literature, and a
Masters in International Education. My
career as a teacher began in Canada,
and I have also worked in China, Qatar, Costa Rica, India, and for two
years in central Switzerland. I return to
Switzerland with my wife, Angie, who
is from Zug, and our two little boys
who will be in Early Years 1 and 2.
My name is Stephen Rix, and I join ISSH after many
years teaching in a wide range of settings, including
primary schools, large comprehensive schools and
sixth form colleges and adult education in England,
and most recently United World Colleges in India
and Italy. I have held posts as Head of Year, Head
of English, and Head of Theatre Studies, and at
UWC Adriatic I taught Diploma Language & Literature, and was also Senior Residence Tutor and
Head of Library.
My partner Bridget and I have also taught in socalled “alternative education”, including Inwoods
Small School and Brockwood Park School (both
founded by Jiddu Krishnamurti), and The Small
School (founded by Satish Kumar); and in 2009 we
were the founding teachers of the South Downs
Small School.
On leaving school, my first job was as a sewerman,
crawling about under the streets of London. Going
up in the world, my subsequent experience included
working with young offenders and children in care,
running drama workshops in Antigua and training
courses for drama teachers in England, the design
of The Griffin Performing Arts Centre, Hereford (UK),
examining A Level Theatre Studies, and leading creative writing workshops. My personal interests include writing and reading poetry, and visiting Paris
as often as Bridget will let me.
Our seven-year-old son, Auryn, is already giving
lessons himself, showing us that young people are
natural learners, and know instinctively what they
need to know and what they want to learn.
My name is Bridget Thomson, and I am very happy to be joining ISSH
as an English and Humanities teacher (and as mother of Auryn in
grade 2). I’m also excited about living in a Swiss village, having the
opportunity to revive my lapsed German, and rediscovering walking,
yoga, swimming and playing the piano. I have spent the last five years
living and working in United World Colleges in Italy and India, as residence tutor and as Head of English.
I’ve always been involved in education, spending a very long time studying literature and cultural history at university in London and Cambridge (as student and as professor). Then, in my mid-thirties, I chose
to broaden my experience by working in a range of independent progressive schools. I especially enjoy being part of a diverse learning
community, and engaging with students and colleagues outdoors in the
hills or a vegetable garden, or through baking bread or reading poetry,
or exploring gender issues together. I also always keep trying to adopt
and encourage a more sustainable approach to living.
V o l ume 1 , Is s ue 1
P age 1 0
I'm Céline Spengler and I'm 18 years old. I will work at ISSH for
one year as a trainee. I completed my secondary school in
Schaffhausen and then I went to the FMS at the Cantonal
School for the following 3 years. With the internship at ISSH I
will be able to complete my professional baccalaureate. I live
with my parents and my little sister in Schaffhausen, my
mother is from the Czech Republic and my father is Swiss. In
my free time I play Volleyball and the piano. I also enjoy swimming, jogging and reading. In my holidays I adore travelling
around the world and experiencing other cultures.
My name is Irina Riggenbach and I
am 18 years old. I am from America
and am living with my grandparents
here in Schaffhausen to learn the language and see the country. I graduated high school in my hometown, Peoria IL, USA and will go to college to
study communications after my one
year traineeship at ISSH. In my free
time I like to read, go on long walks,
and talk to my family in America.
Our Student Trainees
My name is Gina Tomas and I’m 20 years old. I live with my mom and my dog in
Schaffhausen. I’m Portuguese but I was born in Switzerland, therefore I speak both of
these languages fluently. In my childhood I attended private English classes for a long
period. The ISSH is a great opportunity to improve my English and to practice the oral
English. Before becoming a trainee I was a student at the Fachmittelschule Schaffhausen. I’m very glad to be at the ISSH now as you can meet a lot of people from different
countries and learn a lot from them. After finishing my traineeship I’ll go abroad, preferably to England. My goal is to study translation and to become a translator. Maybe
even a interpreter.
In my spare time I like to hang out with friends. When I’m alone I often watch a movie or
I read. I love music and without it I wouldn’t function properly.
My name is Georgina Hurt. I am 18 years old. I‘m from England but have lived in Spain for 10 years and
am now living in Schaffhausen. I love Schaffhausen and think it is a great opportunity to learn a different
language and a diferent culture.
My dream is to travel the world and to learn lots of languages.
In my leasure i like to be with my family, read and swim. I am also a frenetic animal lover and have a
beautiful dog called Belle.
I am very excited to be at the ISSH and I hope to learn a lot during this year.
More Staff Portraits to
follow in the ISSH
Bulletin.
Gina, Céline, Irina, Georgina