Colegio Americano...
Quito's finest bilingual school since 1940.
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The American School opened its doors to 162 students
on October 14, 1940. The process of founding the
school was initiated the year before by Galo Plaza
Laso, President of Ecuador and later President of
the OAS, in conjunction with Mr. Boaz Long, the U.S.
representative to Ecuador.
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They were joined by a group of founding Ecuadorian
families and the families of the U.S. diplomatic
mission and multinational companies. The founders of
the school were concerned with the fact that their
children had only two options for education: Roman
Catholic schools or the German school.
These families were interested in establishing a
school based on U.S. schools in which race and
religion were not impediments for learning. |
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Additionally, among the liberal
families at that time, there existed a strong desire
to establish democratic roots in a country that had
lived under dictatorships and military governments
from the time of its independence.
This vision has been maintained over the years and
the current students of the school are still members
of the leading families of Ecuador.
The school has been vital in establishing and
maintaining democracy in Ecuador and has among its
graduates leading political leaders, who have
contributed to the country’s stability. |
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The school has graduated a former
president of Ecuador (Galo Plaza, center, above), a former mayor of Quito,
government ministers, ambassadors, and CEOs of
multinational companies, among other dignitaries.
A cooperative of parents was formed at the school’s
initiation and was replaced by the Foundation in
1988. SACS (Southern Association of Colleges and
Schools) accredited the school in 1948 and
experimental status was obtained from the Ministry
of Education in 1948, 1985 and finally in 1994.
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From wikipedia: The Fundación Colegio Americano
de Quito or Colegio Americano de Quito
(American School of Quito) is a college preparatory
school in
Quito, Ecuador. It was founded by the former
president of
Ecuador and the president of the Organization of
American States (OAS)
Galo Plaza Lasso in 1940.
The American School of Quito opened its doors on
October 14, 1940 to 162 students. The first
directors were Robert E. and Mrs. Hazel J. Tucker,
who had just arrived from the United States. The
founders of the school lived in a time characterized
by the fascist movements in
Europe, represented in Ecuador and other South
American nations by the German and Italian schools
operating there. The two founders wanted to counter
this. They had a vision of educating the youth of
Ecuador in democratic values knowing these students
would become the future leaders. |
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