Letter From the Board
In a house garage that overlooked a lovely green grassy garden and a generous pinch of love for children, was the perfect setting of what would become one of the most integrous and caring international schools of São Paulo. My mother, Anna Kirsten, began with the neighbourhood children, and soon became a voyage that would change the lives of so many families and create a professional community inspiring for all. This community, to this day, is dearly considered by her as her second family.
In a house garage that overlooked a lovely green grassy garden and a generous pinch of love for children, was the perfect setting of what would become one of the most integrous and caring international schools of São Paulo. My mother, Anna Kirsten, began with the neighbourhood children, and soon became a voyage that would change the lives of so many families and create a professional community inspiring for all. This community, to this day, is dearly considered by her as her second family.
It was with this at heart that the school started as “ Tiny Tots”, and quickly became one of the most prestigious preschools in Sao Paulo. These golden years created strong roots as we attended our young children and prepared them for formal education in other institutions. It was with this success that we gained the momentum to become St.Nicholas.
Following this successful Early Years period came our Primary School that brought us our second wave of success. In the year 2000 we were authorised by the IBO to implement the PYP (Primary Years Programme) being the second school in Brazil to do so. After a few years and counting on our amazing leadership, the St. Nicholas PYP programme quickly became an example of good practice and a new standard for other schools.
The development of our Secondary section soon followed and once again with inspirational leadership and dedicated professionals, we developed a mix of home grown curricula, introduced the IGCSE’s (International General Certificate of Secondary Education), and the I.B. Programme. Both of these being internationally recognised as high international standard programmes.
In 2014 an opportunity arose in the city of Alphaville, for us to build a purpose built School. Everything we had engaged ourselves until then we could apply on the drawing board. Alphaville campus opened in 2016 and provides a unique adventure of its own as the only actual international school in Alphaville. The school is growing year by year and thanks to our Alphaville family, steady and strong. In Alphaville as in Pinheiros we also have the certifications from the International Baccalaureate Organization.
During the last two years St. Nicholas has not stopped and has inaugurated a new educational block in Alphaville and a new building in Pinheiros. New educational spaces, ways of learning and more agency to our pupils, these new areas bring a new horizon to learning at our school. It does not stop here as, if all goes to plan, the secondary building will be finalized in Alphaville in August of 2022.
The years have passed and with it our educational mission has grown deeper. Developing the whole child has become much more than just our responsibility, it has become our vision. A unique adventure for every pupil is our goal and with it you will find much creativity, agency and challenge. A pupil’s life at St. Nicholas is a continuum of cultural awareness, international mindedness, care for his community amongst other primordial values that will make him a better person, citizen and influential member of his community.
It is with this solid foundation, visionary educational leadership, and our amazing “second family” that St.Nicholas has grown to become a fully fledged international school, recognized locally and internationally. We are proud of the school we have become and live daily by the love for what we do and care for whom we do it.
