Every spring, we hold a "100 Days" event for our Terminales, interrupting classes and assembling the entire class for a spectacular party. A combination pep talk and expression of gratitude, students enjoyed a specular snack and read heartfelt letters, written especially for them by their parents.
The American Section
of the Lycée International
Welcome To
The Lycée International, established just outside Paris over a half-century ago by Dwight D. Eisenhower, offers a unique approach to bilingual and bicultural education for children ages 4 to 18.
Students learn from native English-speaking faculty in the American Section. They also follow a full French curriculum within the Lycée International de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, a public institution ranked among France’s top schools. With 99–100% success on the prestigious BFI diploma (baccalauréat français internationale), our graduates go on to the world’s finest universities. Students with limited French can join Français Spécial for one year of language immersion.
The Lycée unites students from 14 international sections. The result is a true multilingual, multicultural experience, with friendships that span the globe and last a lifetime.
University Admissions
The Première class enjoyed a memorable overnight trip to Caen and the D-Day beaches of Normandy this past weekend. Highlights included the Memorial of Caen, the German cemetery at La Cambe, Arromanches, the American cemetery and museum at Colleville-sur-Mer, and the Bayeux Tapestry.
The American Section's Quatrième students recently hosted the third edition of the now-traditional Culture Fair. After meticulously examining a facet of their family culture, they prepared beautiful presentation boards and shared recipes, traditions, artwork, memories, and bits of themselves with our community. It was a tangible reminder of how richly diverse our Section is!
Our MUN Club recently held their annual conference, LIMUN. It was a fantastic Saturday, giving students an opportunity to practice leadership and organizational skills, and offering chances to debate, meet students from other schools, and to learn more about issues important to our society. Thank you to opening speaker, Cedric Ingrand, a technology reporter and expert on AI.
American Section Lower and Middle School students are participating in a school-wide read-a-thon during the month of March. They are counting the time the spend reading, tracking the books they read, as well as finding sponsors. Read-a-thon proceeds with benefit Room to Read.
The Club International's annual basketball tournament was successful with 10 teams and over 70 players enrolled and a day-long succession of games refereed by two officials. Twenty-five American Section players, from Cinquième to Terminale, took part in the tournament.
The Seniors tournament was won by an American Section lead team of Secondes. Congratulations!
The India Exchange Team, comprised of 19 Première students enjoyed and exciting two-week journey to India during the February vacation. Our team was hosted by families from the Mahatma Gandhi International School. Days were filled with service and discovery. Students taught English to children at two different NGOs and an orphanage. They also partook in cultural workshops, learning Indian art and dance, and shared their French culture with the students of MGIS. There was also time to discover the sites of Ahmedabad and nearby Udaipur.
The group of 15 Terminale and Première students kicked off their February break with a three day trip, soaking up the unique ambiance of London. They enjoyed the sights and tours and some wonderful theater productions, including Guys and Dolls, Hamilton, and Witness for the Prosecution. It was a wonderful way to start the vacation.
On of our most popular Gala auction prizes is “Director for a Day.” We recently welcomed last year's winner, age 7, who ran the Section with great flair for an afternoon. He sent e-mails, met older students, visited our facilities, signed documents, and generally brought an infusion of youthful enthusiasm to our daily work. When asked what his favorite part of the day was, he replied “Everything!”.
Former Prime Minister Edouard Philippe visited the Lycée International today. He met with members of the French administration and section directors. About a dozen Upper School students were also in attendance, with each explaining his/her unique parcours.
With over twenty participants of all ages, our fall chess tournament at Collège Marcel Roby has now ended. Congratulations to the winners! Chess playing is part of the Roby DNA. Navigating competition is part of the game and being gracious about it is a wonderful sign of emotional maturity.
A new tournament will begin right after February break.
The Ecole Primaire recently embarked on a heartwarming project entitled the "Wishing Tree." Students from every section were encouraged to write their goals or dreams on colorful slips of paper, which then adorned the branches of the Wishing Tree.
Close to 300 guests attended last Friday night's Snowflake Soirée, in an Atrium transformed into a sparkly winter wonderland, complete with giant snowflakes and glowing lanterns. trium transformed into a sparkly winter wonderland, complete with giant snowflakes and glowing lanterns. Current and former parents, as well as members of the administration and teaching staffs at the Lycée International, Ecole Schnapper, and Marcel Roby were reunited for a lovely evening of delicious cocktail nibbles and great conversations.
Our Second Graders recently completed a science unit which required that they build a device capable of protecting a hard-boiled egg when dropped from the height of one meter. The eggs that survived unbroken during the one meter drop were then dropped an entire floor. This involved a lot of experimenting and trying-out different materials!
Secondes who attended the Collège International as Middle School students were treated to an award ceremony and presented their DNB diplomas on December 21. We are proud to report that our very own Inès Chahid, Seconde, received the highest moyenne generale of the entire class! Congratulations to you all.
Over 50 alumni joined us on Thursday evening for our annual alumni holiday reunion, which reunited members from the classes of 2010 to 2023. It was gratifying to see the sense of belonging our former students have with the American Section, and the camaraderie and common bonds they share from their years here.
200 members of the American Section recently gathered for an Ugly Holiday Sweater potluck dinner. It was a wonderful evening, complete with mulled wine, delicious food, and lots of ugly sweaters, but most importantly of a united community.
This past Monday evening, a group of students, faculty, and staff welcomed a delegation from the local Red Cross. The Student Council presented a check of donated funds raised at the American Section picnic on behalf of our community.
The weather was perfect last weekend for the Lycée's annual Holiday Sale. Featuring foods and crafts from each of the school's fourteen sections, the event is a fabulous way to kick-off the holiday season. Over 130 American Section volunteers contributed to our portion of the sale, with offerings that included gingerbread houses, decorated cupcakes, chili dogs, and handmade holiday decorations.
The Lower School Lego Robotics club has been busy this year programming, building with Legos, and creating stop motion. This week, they took a break from our usual projects to participate in the Lego holiday challenge, Build a Heart, Share the Joy. The club contributed 11 hearts this week!
Voices of the American Section
- Alumnus
“The American Section taught me the importance of having the right people around you. To this day, classmates from the Lycée are among my closest friends. American Section faculty were rock stars - they did everything to ensure that we had the best environment to grow. And I’ll be forever grateful for the once-in-a-lifetime chance to immerse myself in other languages and cultures.”
- Alumna
“The American Section provided the best preparation possible for college in the US. Not only was it an excellent academic foundation, thanks to our English and History classes, but it also allowed me access to American culture through various extracurricular clubs and the community. The French system also supplied me with the rigor necessary to succeed at a challenging place like Yale.”
- Faculty & Parent
“It's a pleasure to teach tomorrow's leaders at the American Section. Our student body, composed of nationalities from all over the world, continue to impress me with their keen minds and curious spirits. I love guiding my students on the path to excellence, and take pride in helping them grasp the complexities of modern history. Students here are among the best minds out there today, making my job at the Section that much more engaging and enlightening.”
- Parent
“I chose the American Section of the Lycée International for my children because I wanted them to grow and learn in an environment similar to that of my own childhood in the United States, with the added bonus of learning with students from the other international sections of the school. In addition to learning an American curriculum, my children share American culture and traditions with their classmates. I’ve also become an active volunteer, which allows me to interact more with the faculty and staff as well as the other Section families. This community has become our children's American family in France.”
- Alumnus
“Some of my closest friends, almost 25 years on, are people I met at the Lycée. Despite being separated over long distances we remain in close touch and try to see each other when we can. Having this core group of friends has been a great constant over a period of a lifetime that involves continuous change. Through college, starting out in the professional world, and eventually starting my own family, it has been wonderful to continue to grow up with some of the same people and see how all these different phases link together.”
- Student
“As an American Section student, I can take advantage of a wide variety of extra-curricular activities, as well as a wonderful and engaging academic life. In both the classroom and the podium during MUN, or working as a photographer during a yearbook photoshoot, the American Section gives us the ability to grow and learn skills, and helps us find who we are and who we’ll become after we leave.”
- Student
“I love the American Section. We don't just study grammar, spelling, sciences... but we also have time for art and library, amazing class projects and a lot of fun activities such as theater, community service, robotics, and Irish dancing. In the American Section I feel just like in my old school in the United States, but here my friends are from around the world.”
- Student
“What I really love most about the American Section is the atmosphere: it is always cool and calm and you are always welcomed. It really makes you want to learn. Our teachers help us and joke with us, and they always find a way to make the lesson interesting. What I also like about the American Section is that they organize and truly put hard work into the dances and trips.”