The International Schools Review Forum

Hi there!
Does anyone have experience in working for the Luanda International School? Was your experience positive or negative? Is it fairly safe to live there? Any information from someone who has been there recently would be appreciated. Thanks!
Amanda

Hello Amanda,

I just checked and there are a number of reviews of this school in the member's area of international schools review.com Invest $29 a get the answer to your question. You'll be very glad you did.

Tim

I agree....I recently paid my 29 dollars and it is WORTH it !!!

(It took me one year to decide too !!)

Whichever reviews about LIS you decide to side with when you read them, it is certainly clear from the exreme contrast, that it is at the very least unstable. Wait a couple of years until the current director and principal leave and then check into it again. If you think you can put up with anything for the money they're offering, think again. The money should still be good in a couple of years.

I saw on the Search website that Luanda International School is seeking a new Director to start effective July 2007.

Be wary about what you read though. I have spoken to people who have worked with the current primary head in Istanbul and have given her rave reviews. They were genuinely shocked to hear that she had not been well received on this site. You never know for sure who to believe, but these teachers were convincing when I spoke to them in person.

I also spoke to people who had worked for the director and principal in Istanbul before I signed my contract for LIS. I agree--they were convincing--that's why I signed. And a year was a year too long. I can't say anything else to convince people not to work for them--most of the crazy things that happened (that can actually be articulated) have already been said on the site. A couple of people who worked with Ken Hillman and Eileen Freely-Baker in Istanbul now work for them in Luanda. Notice there are two camps in the reviews written. Which one is larger?

DON'T DO IT!

Having worked at LIS, I can confirm that every one of the negative comments in the school review section is correct, sadly. By and large, the teachers and support staff are a good collection of people, devoted to their various tasks, and Angola itself is a splendid, if battered place to live and work in.

However, the two current chief functionaries (the lovely Ken and Eileen) are totally unbearable to work for, as you will have gathered.

As a school it is a pleasant little school, the kids are fine to work with, and most of the facilities are OK, given a decent administration it has the makings of a good school both for the staff and the kids. But keep away from it until Ken and Eileen have finally left - hopefully to a dim and sad retirement on a rocky island near to the North Pole.