| European School of Luxembourg Schola Europaea |
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|---|---|
| Location | |
| Luxembourg City, Luxembourg | |
| Information | |
| Type | International |
| Established | 1953 |
| Founder | European Coal and Steel Community |
| Headmaster | Panayota Vassilacou |
| Number of students | 3 802 |
| Website | www.euroschool.lu |
The European School of Luxembourg was the first of the European Schools. It was founded in October 1953 on the initiative of officials of the European Coal and Steel Community, with the support of the Community's institutions and the government of Luxembourg. In April 1957, it formally became the first of the European Schools. Today it is located on the Kirchberg-Plateau in Luxembourg City.[1]
In October 2003, the student population of the European School was 3 802 — of which 440 were in the nursery school, 1 414 were in the primary school and 1 948 were in the secondary school. It is currently the largest school in Luxembourg and the largest of the 14 European Schools.
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When the school was founded it was located on the premises of a former furniture shop in the Limpertsberg quarter of Luxembourg city. In 1956 construction began on a new building on Boulevard de la Foire, just outside the city centre. The building was opened on 11 December 1957. At a later date, the school moved to a new site on the Kirchberg plateau, another quarter of Luxembourg city. During the late 80s, the school re-used the building at Boulevard de la Foire, as an overflow school for three age groups of the primary school. Since the end fo the 1990s, the old building at Boulevard de la Foire has no longer been used by the European School.
At the end of the 1990s, the campus on Kirchberg was completely redesigned. Old buildings were demolished and new ones (e.g. a new primary school building, an extension of the secondary school building and a new theatre building) were erected, though three blocks of the old Secondary school (the current A, B and C blocks) were left standing. More recently, as proof of the school's struggle to keep up with high demand, several temporary steel-framed structures were erected and will remain in use until the completion of Luxembourg II (the planned second European School in Luxembourg).
A second European School will be built on the border of the neighbouring communes of Bertrange and Mamer. The primary department of Luxembourg II has already been formally established and is located in temporary buildings next to Luxembourg I on the Kirchberg Plateau (in the "Village Pédagogique").[2]
Academically, ESL maintains a reputation as one of the strongest schools in Luxembourg. Many of its students go on to study at leading European universities; most of the English section students and a significant minority of students from the other language sections apply to British institutions. Typically, two or three students in each year will acquire places at Oxbridge colleges, although recent figures suggest this is likely to increase.[3]
The school is known for high standards in languages; the European Baccalaureate requires students to study many subjects in their second or third languages. Students also benefit from the international environment provided by the school's segregation into English, German, French, Dutch, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Swedish, Danish, Finnish and Greek language sections. Participation in the Model European Parliament, the European Schools Science Symposium and the Eurosport Championship, as well as a number of other recreational projects, allows students to excel in other areas.
The Pupils Committee seeks to represent the interests of the students whilst operating in accordance with the aims of the European Schools. The committee's latest projects include "the Smoker's issue" , the "Green-School issue" and the "School Journal".
The current head of the European School of Luxembourg is Panayota Vassilacou, previously head of the European School, Brussels III.[1]
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