Five Reasons to Get Excited About the New School Year

We’re kicking off the end of summer with a countdown to the start of a new school year!

Over the next few days we will share our Top 5 Reasons why we can’t wait to begin the new school year at AIS Vienna.

Reason 5: Building Our AISV Community From Day One

Today, August 11, all AIS Vienna faculty are back on campus! Our incredible teachers and staff are already hard at work preparing classrooms and creating welcoming environments where students can thrive and feel a true sense of belonging. We can’t wait to fill our halls with enthusiastic learners once again!

To launch the 2025–2026 school year, we were honored to welcome Dr. Derrick Gay to AISV today. Dr. Gay is an internationally recognized consultant on belonging, global inclusion, intercultural competency development, and organizational culture. His work aligns with AISV’s belief that:

“Belonging is a feeling of community. Belonging matters because we can only share our talents, experiences, and ideas fully when we are confident in our place in the community.”

Dr. Gay’s sessions provided practical tools and guidance for mindset shifts that support our ongoing efforts to foster a culture of dignity, respect, and belonging across every role at AISV.

With decades of experience in international education, he brought rich insight into how schools can move beyond awareness to action and create environments where all members of the community feel seen, valued, and empowered.

This unique opportunity allowed for all faculty and staff to learn together and strengthen our collective commitment to creating an inclusive learning environment for our students and supports our Belonging and Character and Community Strategic Plan Priorities.