WELCOME BACK TO SCHOOL ADNAN!
Where are you from and do you remember how you came to attend AISB?
Did you have a favorite teacher? Which one of the teachers made the biggest impression on your life and why?
I am from Egypt, and I came to Budapest in 2008 and joined AISB in early 2009. I was very young, but I remember the first day driving up to the school and being excited about having a huge area outside for sports and lunch break.
I had a lot of teachers that I loved and admired, and many for different reasons. Ms. Dubiel was my first teacher and also the one who nurtured my compassion for others that did not look like me, speak my language, or come from my country. She wrote me a letter when she was leaving that touched my heart and that I still have. In middle school, Mr. Rudnicki and Mr. Matlock were always there to support me. Mr. Rudnicki’s energy every day would boost my enthusiasm to go to all classes, not just his, and Mr. Matlock’s funny, but honest demeanor always put a smile on my face and made me feel accepted.
How was your first day? I remember making friends quickly and easily. Also my first teacher at AISB, Ms. Dubiel was, and still is one of my favourite teachers to have taught me. She managed to guide us all to each other and made it easy to talk to people by doing even the simplest of things like sitting us differently every few days.
In high School there were many teachers that made my time at AISB memorable. Even though I only had one class with him, Mr. Miller always made me feel welcome in the hallways and made me feel like a friend. Sometimes seeing him in the hallways when I was down would change the course of the day when he would crack a joke, or even just say hello and ask how I was. Ms. Macdonald was my saving grace in IB. English was one of my favourite classes, not just because I was learning things I enjoyed, but because Ms. Macdonald made the things I didn’t like fun and interesting. I always thought that she managed the perfect balance between teacher and friend. I owe her a lot for my success in IB. Finally, Ms. Woj.
Ms. Woj was a member of the faculty that was teaching me for the longest time. All of high school and some of middle school. She was with me through all the tough academic and personal times and always celebrated my achievements (sometimes more than I would). Those were the teachers that taught me. Then there were the faculty members that were always there for me, supported me, and very honestly, made me feel loved. Ms. Reka Sari, Ms. Tarnoczi, Mr. Fubler, Mr. Scanga, and Mr. Slocombe all were there to help me throughout my time at AISB.
I owe all these people a lot, because in their own ways they shaped me into being a good person and a good student. What have you been up to since your graduation from AISB? I graduated from university with a bachelors of arts from UCR in Middelburg, Netherlands. I had a fantastic time, but now I am back at AISB working as Advancement Assistant. Did you keep in touch with your classmates after you graduated? Yes! I am still in touch with some of my closest friends at AISB, some of which I see quite often, and some that I see nearly daily!
Tell us about your new role at AISB. It’s a lot! Admissions is the first role I have, so assisting the admissions team whenever necessary (usually from January until the beginning of the school year). I also do marketing for the school, so social media and photography mostly. I am part of the Green Initiative team as well, where we create projects that hope to make the school a more sustainable, environmentally friendly and healthy environment.
And finally, I will soon be running the Alumni initiative. So hopefully i’ll be contacting some Alumni soon and finding out what they have been up to since AISB.
