The United Nations International School (UNIS) is a private international school in New York City, established in 1947 by families who worked for or were associated with the United Nations. The school was founded to provide an international education, while preserving its students' diverse cultural heritages. Today, UNIS has over 1600 students in two locations, serving the United Nations, international and New York communities. The campus in Jamaica Estates, Queens is a K-8 school and the Manhattan campus, overlooking the East River, is K-12.
UNIS was one of the founding schools of the International Baccalaureate (IB) and was among those awarding the first diplomas. The comprehensive K-12 curriculum prepares UNIS students for the IB, and the school’s internationally recognized academic standards enables students to go on to study in top colleges and universities in the United States and worldwide.
The main language of instruction is English and all students study French or Spanish, beginning in elementary school. Arabic, Chinese, German, Italian, Japanese and Russian are also taught beginning in the seventh grade at the Manhattan campus. Additional mother tongues may be studied after school.
The school's current Interim Executive Director is Salvador Uy, a graduate of the UNIS class of 1983. Before returning to UNIS as Assistant Executive Director in 2012, Sal ran operations and programs for two large New York social service organizations focusing on justice and community. In October 2017, the Board of Trustees announced a search for an Executive Director, to start in 2019-20.
The current Chairman of the Board of Trustees is Vijay Nambiar, the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Myanmar. Nambiar has also served as Chef de Cabinet to the Secretary-General at the rank of Under-Secretary-General from 2007-2012.
UNIS is a member of the Council of International Schools, the International Baccalaureate Organization, the European Council of International Schools, the New York State Association of Independent Schools, the National Association of Independent Schools, the College Board and is registered with the New York Board of Regents as an independent, not-for-profit school.
Curriculum
Life at UNIS Graduation Video 2015 - Film by UNIS students from the class of 2015 on life at UNIS.
In the formative years, UNIS offers a school-designed curriculum, from Kindergarten to Grade 10. Junior and senior students enroll in the International Baccalaureate Diploma (IBDP) or IB Courses, where a wide range of subjects are offered. Within the framework of IB requirements, students have the possibility to choose from over 200 course combinations.
Students are taught in relatively small classes, with averages of 17 children in kindergarten (JA), 17 in grade 1 (J1), 17 in grade 2 (J2), 19 in grades 3-4 (J3-J4), and 21 in middle and high school (M1-T4). Emphasis is placed on preparation for the IB exams during High School, for which virtually all seniors sit (full Diploma or Certificate). Children whose parents transfer from abroad to work for the United Nations, Missions to the UN, and Consulates enjoy priority in terms of admission, but admission is not necessarily automatic. All children are required to be interviewed and assessed in person at UNIS, in addition to consideration of official school reports.
The AEFE categorizes this school as a French international school.
College attendance
Nearly all UNIS graduates matriculate at four-year colleges in the semester following graduation, with a small number choosing a gap year program. A typical year will see 75% to 85% of graduates enrolling at colleges in the United States with remaining graduates attending 20 different universities in thirteen countries outside the U.S.
Events and programs
Each year, high schoolers organize a conference in the General Assembly Hall of the United Nations and invite other schools. This activity allows students to improve their public speaking and diplomacy skills. It also allows students to engage with real world issues.
Alumni
- Asa Akira, adult film actress and writer
- Byrdie Bell, actress
- Yasmine Bleeth, actress
- Kate Burton, actress
- Suleiman Braimoh, professional basketball player
- Andrea Brand, Biologist
- Dorothy Bush, daughter of George H. W. Bush
- Vikram Chatwal, socialite and business tycoon Sant Singh Chatwal
- Gary Cohen, TV sports broadcaster
- Radhika Coomaraswamy, lawyer and former United Nations Under-Secretary-General
- Stéphane Dujarric de la Rivière, United Nations spokesperson
- Mohamed A. El-Erian, former CEO of PIMCO
- Mike Greenberg, sports radio host
- Jennifer Grey, actress
- Nicholas Guest, actor
- Stephen Hartke, composer
- Sarah Jones, actress
- Sarah Kay, poet
- Rashid Khalidi, Columbia University professor
- Richard Lachmann, American sociologist and specialist in comparative historical sociology, professor at University at Albany, SUNY.
- Gaurav Nanda, actor
- Joakim Noah, basketball player for the New York Knicks
- Atsushi Ogata, film maker
- Amanda Plummer, actress
- Elettra Rossellini Wiedemann, food editor and writer, fashion model, and socialite.
- Devon Scott, actress
- Qubilah Shabazz, daughter of Malcolm X
- S. K. Thoth, performance artist
- Vasili Tsereteli, Russian artist, executive director of the Moscow Museum of Modern Art.
- Marius Vassiliou, scientist.
- John Zorn, musician
References
External links
- Official website