Staff at Embassy

Hallowe'en parties at Embassy

Embassy schools always mark the big holidays and special occasions with a party, and Hallowe'en, on October 31st, is of course always a great chance for students and staff to dress up and have fun.

In San Diego (above), some truly excellent and imaginative costumes were on display. You can see the whole set in our San Diego Facebook photo gallery.

Meanwhile, similar fun and games were also going on at  Embassy Cambridge, UK (above).

And Embassy Oxford had its share of girls ghouls (above). See a couple more photos from the party in our Embassy Oxford Facebook photo gallery.

Helen McGowan, Social Organiser for Oxford, writes:

The students at Oxford joined in with the Hallowe'en Party with their usual enthusiasm. It was a fun, yet frightening, night with music, food and a competition for the best costume. The students really got into the ‘spirit’ of the night turning up in a variety of costumes, ranging from slightly spooky to just plain scary!

The party was a huge success and we’d like to thank all the students for coming and for giving so generously to Building Futures. 

Our new school in Boston Downtown (above) was not going to be left out (see the rest on our Boston Downtown Facebook photo gallery).

Were this year's costume's better than last year's? Check out the photos from Embassy Boston Lasell and judge for yourself.

Newport, Rhode Island

Students studying at Embassy CES go on regular excursions to places of interest. The students at Embassy CES Boston for example, recently enjoyed an trip to nearby Newport, Rhode Island. The photo below shows them outside the school just before they set out on the trip.

Eva Rivas from Embassy CES Boston writes:

Newport is known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions - castle-like buildings with beautiful gardens and opulent interiors. Many of these houses were owned by some of the richest families who made their fortune at Wall Street and today they are owned by the The Preservation Society of Newport County.

We entered two of these overwhelming buildings: The Breakers and Chateau-sur-Mer. It was great as the weather was a bit misty and drizzly so it gave the whole trip a little bit of a mysterious feel. We saw raging waves of the Atlantic Ocean behind the Breakers and admired all the beauty. The guides told us a lot about the former owners of those mansions, their families and made our experience very interesting.

The students were happy as this was another good opportunity to practise their listening skills ;o) The two French girls we had in our group were impressed as the guides kept pointing at various items in the Breakers and saying: "And this huge fireplace is 400 years old and it was imported from France. The furniture is historical and it also comes from France…"

After that we got on our "yellow school bus" and went to have some lunch, buy souvenirs and take a few photos in the centre of Newport. We were back at the school by 6pm.

Diplomas and cake

Students at Embassy CES Boston recently had a party to celebrate completing their Embassy Diploma of English course. A cake was made specially for the occasion and much fun was had by all.

 

Embassy CES in the USA honours its best staff

Each year, the USA Embassy CES schools honour one of the schools' Directors of Studies, and a member of their teaching staff, with an award.

David Tipmore, Director of Embassy CES Fort Lauderdale, writes:

It's my pleasure to announce the 2007 selections for Teacher of the Year and DOS of the Year. The races for both awards were highly competitive and the results came down to the wire.

DOS of the Year 2007

It's a tie!  Leslie Lott, Director of Studies in Fort Lauderdale, and Greg Bartels, Director of Studies in New York, were the dead-heat winners.  Leslie and Greg received special mention from their peers for their improvements to the academic delivery in the US and their support of colleagues.  Congratulations, Leslie and Greg.  You are the winners of a trip to the TESOL 2008 convention.

 

Click to see the pictures bigger. Left, Leslie Lott with a student. Right, Greg Bartels.

Embassy CES in the USA Teacher of the Year 2007

Having achieved favorable comments for his past work in the Embassy CES New York school and his present performance in Embassy CES San Francisco, Chris Barrett is the clear winner in this category.  Besides the range of his teaching  expertise in Taipei and in the US, his work developing TOEFL test materials with ETS and Princeton Review, and his magazine and travel writing, Chris has shown himself to be a team player both in and out of the classroom, helping with activities, assisting with curriculum development, and providing excellent support for John LoGrasso, his Director of Studies.  Congratulations, Chris! You are the winner of a trip to the TESOL 2008 convention.  Honorable mention in this category:  James Kyrouz of Embassy CES Boston.

My personal thanks to Leslie, Greg, and Chris, for their contributions to the academic excellence of Embassy CES USA.

Boston Halloween Party

Last night students and staff at Embassy CES Boston enjoyed a fantastic Halloween party. Here are a few photos from the event: