The morning of Sept. 19 saw the opening ceremony for Wuxi Dipont School of Arts and Science, where guests wrote messages of congratulations on a giant poster board.

Executive principal Craig Monaghan gave a brief introduction to the school, saying that staff were committed to working with families and the local community to provide high-quality academic courses, rich extracurricular activities and a robust student care system in order to support student growth and all-round development.

The school’s other principals, Moade Shen and Zhengjing Dong, both spoke of their earnest anticipation of the start of the new school year. As key figures in the school’s partnership, Andrew Halls, headmaster at King’s College School, Wimbledon, and Zou Zheng, Principal of Nanjing Foreign Languages School, expressed their keen support for the school.

Finally, representatives from local government, including Xia Liu, Wuxi Vice Mayor, expressed their delight in the new school.

Yang Jianping, from the Management Committee of the Economic Development District in Wuxi, added that the school was a significant step in developing international education in Wuxi:

“In recent years, a batch of high-end education institutions…have been constructed and opened in our district. Today the latest one joins their ranks, one that is bound to integrate the best of western and eastern education…It is safe to say that, with the backing of [its two partner] schools, Wuxi Dipont School of Arts and Science is set to grow exponentially and bear wonderful fruit,” he said.

During the ceremony, several students gave wonderful musical performances, while the event came to a close with the unveiling of a ceremonial plague, marking the significant date.

After the ceremony, guests visited the campus and school classrooms. Benson Zhang, CEO of project partner Dipont Education, and Andrew Halls received a surprise gift from students at the school: shirts with their names on.