We were thrilled to host a successful Secondary Schools Issues Conference (SSIC) at the beginning of June, featuring about twenty International Baccalaureate coordinators representing sixteen US states. We had coordinators from California, Florida, Washington, New Jersey, New York, Colorado, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, South Carolina, Indiana, Mississippi, Idaho, and Rochester, NY! Counselors came from long-running IB diploma programs and new ones who just graduated their first class. Counselors were from urban, suburban and rural environments, schools serving only international students, and those serving their local communities. Counselors got a great sense of the University (and City) of Rochester, and had several opportunities to talk in depth about ways to offer the best service to their students in the IB program.
IB coordinators who attended SSIC
Our keynote speaker was Marie Vivas, University Relations Manager at the IBO. She gave an excellent overview of what's going on at the IBO these days and how they are working to make sure high school students around the world receive the recognition for the hard work they've done both in college and in the process of applying to college. You can watch her full address below!
The University of Rochester is proud to be an enthusiastic and active supporter of the IB program and the tools it gives students in the areas of internationalism, writing, critical thinking, research, and more. This year's SSIC program was a successful dialogue among IB coordinators and Rochester's college admissions staff. It really helped both sides understand more of what challenges the other side is facing as we move toward the mutual goal of providing the best opportunities for IB students as they graduate from the IB diploma program.