From empowering students to growth and developing conscious global citizenship to embracing a culture of continuous improvement and fostering meaningful partnerships, ACS Athens sets the standard in progressive student-centered education. Business Partners reached out to ACS Athens President Dr. Peggy Pelonis to find out more about what it takes to shape the next generation of global citizens and leaders.
ACS Athens is one of the most respected American international schools globally. It has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (MSA) since 1983 and is the first K-12 institution abroad to achieve the Sustaining Excellence distinction. Every ten years, the school undertakes a comprehensive review that evaluates longterm school improvement and institutional impact, culminating in a colloquium—a public academic conference showcasing faculty-led research, innovative teaching practices, and the school’s strategic vision for the future.
In the runup to the ACS Athens Colloquium II, to be held on April 29-30, 2026, Dr. Pelonis reflects on the meaning of this milestone and the practices that keep the school evolving and improving.
ACS Athens is continuously growing and evolving. What does that mean for students and educators?
Growth in a school community takes many forms: academic achievement, increasing enrollment, the development of practical skills, and, just as importantly, the growth of social-emotional resilience. At the heart of this growth is confidence—the confidence students develop to apply their knowledge and skills thoughtfully to real world problems, recognize complexity, and take meaningful action.
At ACS Athens, students practice communicating across differences, listening with empathy, and working toward shared solutions. These experiences cultivate invaluable skills, teaching students not to be intimidated by difference but to embrace it. Our students do not retreat in the face of adversity. Instead, they adapt, persevere, and find alternative pathways forward.
Educators must also model these same qualities. Our teachers and administrators are reflective practitioners—curious, adaptable, and deeply committed to continuous growth. One way this commitment comes to life is through action research, where educators identify real challenges, study best practices, refine their teaching approaches, and gather evidence to evaluate the impact on student learning. This cycle of reflection and improvement ensures that every innovation serves a single purpose: better outcomes for students.
Sustaining excellence requires curiosity, partnership, and the willingness to continuously learn and adapt
How does ACS Athens nurture responsible leadership and conscious global citizenship?
Students are at the center of our educational institution. Every decision, every initiative, and every measure of success is grounded in their learning, growth, and wellbeing.
How societies educate their youngest citizens is crucial to longterm success across a range of areas and issues. In this sense, the future of primary and secondary education is inseparable from the future of global leadership.
By engaging students early with stories, examples, and perspectives drawn from real life and daily practice, teachers help them recognize how societies evolve and how individual actions connect to larger systems. This approach not only nurtures academic understanding but also cultivates humility, empathy, and critical thinking. Students learn to ask meaningful questions, to consider multiple viewpoints, and to approach problems with both curiosity and responsibility—essential dispositions for leadership that is thoughtful, ethical, and grounded in an understanding of human complexity. By teaching issues rooted in daily practice, educators lay the groundwork for students to grow into informed, resilient, and engaged global citizens.
What does Colloquium II signify in terms of the school’s commitment to excellence and longterm improvement?
The ACS Athens Colloquium is an integral part of the school’s accreditation and longterm development process, helping translate research, evidence, and shared learning into clear direction and sustainable improvement. This commitment to continuous reflection has already led to measurable outcomes, including the school’s recognition as a Top Global IB School 2025. It also underpins the school’s position as Greece’s leading K–12 institution for student entrepreneurship and innovation, where students are supported in transforming ideas into viable startups, working with industry experts and mentors and showcasing their solutions to universities and companies through professional networks and partnerships.
At Colloquium II, educators, parents, and business and industry partners will come together for presentations and discussions that connect education with real world innovation. The program will explore globally relevant themes—such as artificial intelligence, equity, global citizenship, and inclusive learning environments—and examine how these areas directly influence student readiness for future academic, professional, and entrepreneurial success. It will also offer insight into how ACS Athens develops future-ready thinkers, innovators, and leaders through intentional strategy and collaboration.
Above all, Colloquium underscores a shared belief: Sustaining excellence requires curiosity, partnership, and the willingness to continuously learn and adapt in a rapidly changing global landscape.
How do the school’s various collaborations and partnerships enhance learning and help bridge education, innovation, and society?
The school’s active engagement with a diverse range of organizations, including business and institutional partners such as AmCham Greece, connects learning to the real world and helps students understand how knowledge, values, and responsibility intersect beyond the classroom. By bridging education and industry, the school ensures that students are equipped to navigate the complex realities shaping today’s societies.
Students are exposed to real world perspectives on how technology, ethics, and leadership interact, and they begin to see that innovation brings both opportunity and responsibility—and that sound judgment, critical thinking, and ethical awareness are essential skills for the future.
These capacities are built early. Elementary education is where students first learn how to question information, engage in dialogue, and reflect on different viewpoints. By connecting classroom learning with insights from business and institutional leaders, ACS Athens helps students develop habits of curiosity, care, discernment, and reflection rather than passive acceptance, preparing students for leadership in an unpredictable and rapidly changing world. These collaborations affirm that shaping responsible, informed citizens begins early—and that schools play a vital role in strengthening the institutions and societies of the future.
Looking to the future, what are the school’s top priorities?
Our priorities in the years ahead are rooted in a deep belief that teachers are the architects of the future. Every day, teachers guide students in navigating disagreement, uncertainty, empathy, and responsibility—the very conditions future leaders will face. Supporting and empowering teachers is therefore not simply an educational goal; it is a profound investment in longterm global stability, progress, and hope.
Equity must remain at the heart of this work. Emerging technologies, particularly AI, can either widen existing divides or become powerful tools for inclusion. Our priority is to ensure that every child, regardless of background, has access to learning experiences that nurture their full potential. Through intentional classroom practice and strong partnerships with families, communities, and organizations, we work to develop leaders whose perspectives are shaped by diversity and whose decisions serve the common good.
Ultimately, the future will be shaped by the children sitting in classrooms today. It is in these early years that students first learn how to think critically, listen deeply, collaborate across differences, and act with integrity. In an age marked by AI, rapid change, and misinformation, investing in education is no longer optional—it is a strategic imperative. If tomorrow’s world requires wiser, more ethical, and more resilient leadership, then our highest priority must be to begin building that future now, through inspired teaching and purposeful partnerships that extend learning far beyond the classroom.
