A Word from Your Principal

“Whatever you want to do, or dream of doing, begin now.” Seneca simply wanted to say that results can only be achieved through the efforts we put in. The Lycée Claudel epitomizes this spirit, asking its students to strive for excellence from the moment they step inside the establishment.

Every student arrives here with their own personality, their strengths and vulnerabilities, their efforts and progress, their achievements and challenges still to be met. In this school, there’s a place for everyone, and our duty is to help them all grow.

Attending the Lycée Claudel means choosing to study French and to be educated in French, to practise the language in all circumstances. It also means to develop a spirit of critical thinking inherited from the Age of Enlightenment and to promote this spirit internationally, to be both demanding of themselves and kind to their peers.

We often forget to mention how fleeting these school and Lycée years are on the scale of a lifetime, even if in our students’ minds the road seems never-ending. Yet within these few years, the Lycée Claudel can have a lasting impact on its students’ lives, through the quality of its teaching, the strength of the encounters made with others, its spirit of open-mindedness, the friendships forged here, and the memory of a key moment that could well have determined their future. Our former students are our most eloquent examples representing the breadth of this experience and the values of the Lycée Claudel.

To the students who are entering our fine establishment, with its noble and strong history dedicated to defending the French language and culture, I encourage you to read and speak French as often as possible within these walls. And, as Seneca invites you to remember, this effort begins with your will only.

Dear students, no one can control the destiny that awaits you, but I wish you fair winds on the journey you’re about to embark on. Whether the road you’ve chosen is straight or winding, always hold on to the hope that it will lead you to your dreams.

Your Principal, Damien GANIER