American International School • Vienna: News Stories

AIS Volunteer Appreciation Day

Today, May 14, we celebrate AIS Volunteer Appreciation Day. Click the link below to see a Thank You Video in honor of the commitment, enthusiasm, and all that volunteers do for the AIS Community.

American International School of Vienna Choral Program Invited to Perform Carmina Burana in New York City's Avery Fisher Hall

Distinguished Concerts International New York City (DCINY) announced today that director Kathy Heedles and the American International School Choirs have been invited to participate in a performance of 'Carmina Burana' on the DCINY Concert Series in New York City. This performance at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall is on March 10, 2014. These outstanding musicians will join with other choristers to form the Distinguished Concerts Singers International, a choir of distinction. Dr. Jonathan Griffith, Artistic Director and Principal Conductor for DCINY states: "The American International School students and their director received this invitation because of the quality and high level of musicianship demonstrated.... These wonderful musicians not only represent a high quality of music and education, but they also become ambassadors for the entire community. This is an event of extreme pride for everybody and deserving of the community's recognition and support."

Click here to see the official press release in its entirety.

Earth Week - April 22-26

This year, Earth Week will take place from April 22-26, and we would like to invite everyone to participate. Support our school wide goal to reduce the use of paper and to reduce the number of plastic water bottles used. Every day of Earth Week, we will try to raise awareness through specific themes for Environmental Issues. For more information, click the article heading above.

This year's themes are:

Monday: Vegetarian Day
Tuesday: Plastic-Free Day
Wednesday: Black-out Day
Thursday: Paper-less Day
Friday: Green Day

Other Activities:

Chalk Walk for Earth: Elementary and Middle School teachers will accompany their classes to the sidewalk along the soccer field and students can express themselves with chalk.

Green Book Drive: Used books will be for sale during Earth Week.

Earth Talks: HS student experts speak on Amnesty, Environmental Club, and MUN, current issues affecting our environment, such as Fracking, GMO's in food, Environmental and Human Rights, to name just a few. Students will earn CAS or extra credit.

Videos in the HS Library

Earth Concert on Friday. Environment and the Performing Arts: Drama, TrashBand, Folk Music, Choir, Poetry and Theatrics will make for a lively community event.

We appreciate the support, in our goal to make AIS greener and our students more aware about environmental issues!

Good Knight Assembly

The first Elementary School Assembly focused on good hallway behavior. Students learned about what different signs mean and how good behavior in the hallways benefits everyone. To see a video made by the Elementary School and for more information, click the article heading above.

The assembly began with a short concert by the Elementary School strings players, conducted by Mrs. Reinitzer. Students were treated to a skit put on by teachers showing Goldilocks choosing between schools based on what she observed in their hallways. Some schools were too loud, some were too chaotic and one was just right. Ms. Hughes organized the assembly and spoke to the students about being a good Knight. Finally a video was shown called "I'm Gonna Be a Good Knight". The video was made by Mr. Golden and Mr. Martinez. They rewrote the words to the Black Eyed Peas Song 'I Got a Feeling" and turned it into "I'm Gonna Be a Good Knight". Mrs. LoCascio taught students the song and Music class and it was recorded in her room. The students had a fantastic time and from now on they will demonstrate their Good Knight skills as they walk through the halls of AIS.

IB Art Exhibition

The IB/Art IV Visual Arts Exhibition Opening will take place on Thursday, April 11, 2013 from 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM. To see a slideshow about the artists and for more information click here.

AIS Director Search

AIS is seeking a new director starting August 2014. For further details please click here.

Girl Effect Walkathon 2013 - Success!

This school year, the second annual Charity Walkathon for the Girl Effect took place on April 28, 2013. Enough money was raised to send a girl to school for a year at the Daraja Academy, a boarding secondary school for exceptional Kenyan girls. Click the article heading for a video, photos and more information. Congratulations to the AIS Girl Effect Team and thank you to all community members who participated or who supported the project in any way!

It was an honor to hear a speech by Mrs. Kiragu, the Deputy Chief of the Embassy of Kenya, who emphasized education for girls in her country and the importance of young people at AIS engaging themselves in community.

Click here to see a short video.

This event involved all Grade 10 students, who learned how to collaborate, share responsibility, plan activities, and effectively coordinate the organization of an event of this scale.

Vienna International Science and Engineering Fair

The Vienna International Science and Engineering Fair was held on March 23, 2013. Students in the AIS Middle and High Schools competed against six international schools. As part of the judging process, students were interviewed by scientists from the IAEA and the UN. The students had a great time and enjoyed a banquet in their honor on March 28, held at the UN. Congratulations to all the students who participated!

In addition to competing in the different categories there were some special awards.

Our students won the following:

First Place in the Machines and Technology Category: Ferdinand Ahorner
Outstanding Team Effort: Beatrice Bara and Albert Frank
Environmental Consciousness: Alexander Smolenski

Girl Effect Walkathon 2013

The Grade 10 class at AIS is the proud sponsor of the Girl Effect Walk-A-Thon, a charity event to benefit the Girl Effect Foundation in Africa, in order to keep a young girl in school. It will take place Thursday, 28 March from 3:30 – 5:00 PM. It is open to all AIS students, families, staff and friends of all ages.

For more information click here.

Speech and Debate Invitational

The AIS Speech and Debate Invitational was a resounding success! Congratulation to our talented and courageous students who competed with grace and brought smiles to all around them! Click the article heading for more information.

We are proud to announce winners in all 5 categories including:

GOLD for our debate team of Ben D. and Sasha M.
GOLD for our duet acting team of Jenny S. and Jessica D.
SILVER for our duet acting team of Bianca W. and Abeer A.
SILVER for our Impromptu speaker Sasha M.
BRONZE for our Impromptu speaker Ben D.
BRONZE in Original Oratory for Eu Jin L.
BRONZE in Oral Interpretation of Literature for Eiko I.

Students competed not only against other high school students, but also local Viennese university students who are part of a debate club called the AFA Vienna.