I'm a ZIS alum
Investing in ZIS
How the new Middle and Upper School campus will open up new possibilities for learning – and why that’s good news for the whole ZIS community.
The ZIS Experience is about so much more than time spent on campus – it resonates throughout life. Which is why so many members of the wider ZIS community continue to support the school in whatever way they can.
Take the new Middle and Upper school campus for example. With “talk and chalk” a thing of the past, a new campus will enable students to take a new approach to learning – while gaining valuable insight into the future of work.
But why would an alum of the school – or even an alumni parent – want to support it? Ron Stejin, Chair of the Board and whose three children, now in their 20s and at university, attended ZIS, is unambiguous. “The main reason we continue to give is that we can see how well this education has prepared our own children – and those of friends and colleagues,” he says. “They are ready for life beyond, and that’s extremely important. They are so successful because they have been so well educated. So, our support is a kind of courtesy to the school – we are grateful that they were at ZIS and that it has put them is such a good position for life beyond.”
But for Ron it’s not just about the benefits ZIS has already conferred – it’s also about the impact it will have on the next generation – and the wider community. “We can already see how much this will enrich the school and the Swiss community beyond,” says Ron. “What we are really looking for is a more holistic educational experience. Better integration and more joint experiences for Middle and Upper School students; that can only help shape a better future.”
Preparation for working life in 2050
Ron expects the new campus development, set to open to students in 2022, will “propel ZIS towards a new educational paradigm”. The joint campus will incorporate new spaces for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), and allow teachers to demonstrate how different disciplines intertwine in a modern world.
“When these students enter the workforce, everyone will need to understand how data, for instance, or artificial intelligence can be used to underpin everyday life and job roles,” he says. “You can’t undertake historical research without understanding databases, you can’t study geography or work in HR without some understanding of how data and AI are used. The new campus will enable teachers to weave this into a modern curriculum. It’s going to benefit everyone.”
School leaders are keen to offer students a glimpse into what future work might entail – inviting companies to get involved with courses involving prominent technologies. “We plan to have robotics classes, understand how they are programmed and used. We want to invest in STEM, develop an understanding of AI. We want students to know about these things,” says Ron. “But we’re trying to take the next step and say, ‘We’ve learned this programming language, let’s show how we can use it in Art or English. We’re looking to the future of work.”
“The main reason we continue to give is that we can see how well this education has prepared our own children – and those of friends and colleagues. They are ready for life beyond, and that’s extremely important. They are so successful because they have been so well educated. So, our support is a kind of courtesy to the school – we are grateful that they were at ZIS and that it has put them is such a good position for life beyond.”
“My own teachers at ZIS were very open in a way that I don’t think would have been possible in the Swiss school system at the time. Maybe all your kids have left, but you will still be investing in what is a really good flexible education with specialist facilities and specialist teachers.”
Investing in the future of education
It’s an ambitious undertaking for a non-profit school. Every board member, including Ron and his family, has made a donation towards the 42 million Swiss Franc project, five million of which is being raised among ZIS’s own community of alumni and corporate partners.
“We reinvest every cent into facilities,” says Suzanne Rapetti-Hunziker, Class of 1982 (1977-1982), former student and current ZIS board member who heads her own consulting in construction practice. “Great classrooms, great art rooms, great music rooms, language and technology tools – flexible spaces that can be geared to what teachers need. If you donate, you’re investing in something tangible,” says Suzanne, whose three children have already passed through ZIS.
“My own teachers at ZIS were very open in a way that I don’t think would have been possible in the Swiss school system at the time. Maybe all your kids have left, but you will still be investing in what is a really good flexible education with specialist facilities and specialist teachers.”
Local and international integration
And local integration is key. ZIS already contributes to local life beyond the campus – hosting local town meetings and offering up outdoor fields and pitches to weekends sports clubs. “But we want to integrate much more closely into our local area and our community of partners,” says Ron. A new gym, triple the traditional size, will be available to other local schools and sports clubs as well as accommodating international school sports events for the school. Modern facilities will help ZIS remain competitive, continue to attract the best students, helping to keep education standards high in the canton.
Funds from corporate partners and the generosity of the wider community have been absolutely key to enabling the school to reach the threshold to realise the new project. “We’ve seen people stepping up already to contribute significant amounts,” says Ron. “For myself, the reason we continue to provide gifts to the school, even though our children have left, is that we can see how well prepared our own children were for life beyond its confines. They’re resilient, ready for university and for success in their working lives. Giving is a way of showing our gratitude to ZIS.”