Rachel Caldwell, a passionate and eager leader, has joined our community as the new director of our school. With three decades of experience at several other international schools, her knowledge and experience have already brought an immense amount of light and stability to the school. 

Caldwell recently visited grade 10 Journalism and The Bite staff members were able to ask her a few questions about her time in Romania and AISB so far. 

New Beginnings at AISB

Caldwell fondly shared how warm her welcome has been at the school. She mentioned how safe her colleagues have made her feel and how grateful she is for their support and willingness to be open to her ideas and suggestions. Caldwell shared how impressed she is by the leadership of the teachers and that she is looking forward to working with such a kind and encouraging team.

Caldwell’s previous school was Pechersk School International (PSI) Kyiv, where due to the pandemic and invasion, a sense of community was harder to grasp. She is excited to be physically back in school with students and to be surrounded by a student body larger than the 100 students at her previous school. 

As an incoming director, it is important to Caldwell to build a connection with the students and help bring the student body together. Caldwell has already reached out to faculty and has been visiting classes across the school over the past few weeks. She has been engaged in different classes and has been able to co-teach, sit in class discussions, participate in activities and build connections with students.

Ms. Rachel reads to Mr. Blohm’s 4th grade class (Photo by Claire D.)

Next Steps

When asked about her vision for the next steps for the school during this post pandemic era, she stated how necessary it is to rebuild the sense of community. Caldwell is also learning about the culture of AISB without making assumptions and emphasized how her next steps will be made with the help and ideas of colleagues and students. While her experience and knowledge will help grow the school, she believes the voices of others are equally important.

Personal and Professional Values

When I do get out and mix with the students and with my colleagues, I feel a different energy and motivation. 

Rachel Caldwell 

When asked about her values, Caldwell mentioned family, integrity, compassion and kindness. Caldwell put a significant emphasis on her value of trust, and how important it is to maintain and gain trust in a new environment, where new relationships are being built. 

With Ms. Rachel as the new director at AISB, the faculty and students are excited for what she can offer and the strong leadership that she brings to AISB. After Caldwell visited their grade 10 theatre class, Evelyn S. stated how cool she thought it was for the director to come in and engage with the students and that it was enjoyable to get to know Ms. Rachel on a more personal level instead of just viewing her as the director. Similarly, Nina C. was impressed and excited to see Caldwell interacting with the students which “shows how Ms. Rachel really cares about what we are doing.”