From the School Principal

 Dear Students,

I am proud and happy to be greeting you, not only as young members of the Işık community, but as individuals who will safeguard Turkey's future. As all teachers and students do, I experience excitement at the outset of each new academic year, but this year is especially exciting and happy for me.

I joined the Işık family on September 1st 2002 as a German language teacher, and since then have worked as vice-principal at our Ayazağa campus (2004-2015) and as principal of the Erenköy campus.(2015-2018). These sixteen years as a member of the greater Işık family have been hugely satisfying for me as I shared in the work of fostering a generation that is enlightened by the principles of Kemal Atatürk, and I am now proud to address you as principal of the Nişantaşı Campus.

We will be spending a great deal of time together during your education here. As students of Işık, you are undoubtedly the Işık community's greatest asset, and to make our relationship meaningful, your determination and desire for success must always match your energy and efforts in your work.

We constantly research contemporary methods and ideas in the world of education, and share these with you through planning and devising activities that we believe will help you realise your social and academic potential, and become strong individuals equipped with a rational mindset and with a firm grounding in the principles of Atatürk.

Since its foundation as a secular school in 1885, FMV Schools has given itself the mission of illuminating society through pioneering actions in the field of education, and continues to do so within the framework of the principles of Atatürk and of the Turkish Republic. Central to our beliefs are the notions that knowing oneself and the society in which one lives, and having personal values are the building blocks of making a difference in this world. As in the past, our wish is to produce respectful, tolerant graduates who are aware not only of their responsibilities, but also of the need to stand by their decisions and experiences, who can make productive use of technology, who can engage in constructive criticism in order to help create solutions, and who place Atatürk's principles at the centre of their activities.

As educators, we strive to offer each of you the conditions needed for individual development, and in turn, I trust that you will commit yourself to fulfilling your responsibilities to yourself and your family by involving yourself in work and school activities, by making effective use of the opportunities we offer, and by appreciating the efforts of your teachers. Clearly determining priorities and using time well are central to success for all of us in our professional lives, and these begin in the classroom. In other words, make planning, self-discipline and sustainable study habits your goals, and these, in turn, will form part of your future success. We must understand that time can never be brought back to re-experience, so we must use the present well.

Atatürk told us that, 'There is only one thing we need to do; work hard', and with this in mind, I wish you all a healthy, peaceful and success-filled academic year as you develop the life skills and values that form the basis of your belonging to the wider Işık community. 

Respectfully, 

Hakan KULABER

Principal 
FMV Işık Nişantaşı Campus