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Vision & History

Founding & Development

Smyrna - American College for Girls

1875

Smyrna - American College for Girls

The American College for Girls was founded in 1875 when the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions from Boston commissioned Miss Maria West to establish a school for the education of Christian communities (Armenians and Greeks).

In 1922, the year of the Asia Minor Catastrophe when Smyrna was completely burned, the College was at the height of its popularity, offering all levels of education (Primary, Secondary, Lyceum, and College department), and a comprehensive program of systematic teaching, cultivation, and skill development with 300 students, a choir, library, cultural and philanthropic events and activities.

Palaio Faliro – American College for Girls

After the Asia Minor Catastrophe, the American College for Girls, at the urging of the Greek authorities and Eleftherios Venizelos personally, was relocated to Greece, to rented buildings in Palaio Faliro, offering two levels of education: Secondary and College.

Out of the 88 registered students in its first year of operation in 1923, 73 were refugee girls from the Smyrna area, with others from Constantinople and the Greek islands, as well as one American. The college "faithfully mirrors American Colleges," its language of instruction is English, and it teaches, in parallel, Greek and French language and literature.

Palaio Faliro – American College for Girls

1923

Self-Government Group and Student Organizations

1927

Self-Government Group and Student Organizations

In 1927, the College nearly doubled its number of students (154) and included 8 different nationalities (Greeks, Armenians, British, Americans, Germans, Albanians, Canadians, and Jews) among its students. In addition to its curriculum, it developed significant extracurricular activities and encouraged the creation of numerous clubs: a club for the Christian Young Women's Association (CWW), a scientific club, a Greek association, a club for the magazine Sunny Days, a theater club, and a sports club.

That same year, the Student Self-Government Council was established with elected presidencies, with the purpose "of fostering a sense of responsibility and developing solidarity." This institution remained pioneering for many years, and during this period, it was the only student organization in Greece.

State Recognition - Classical Lyceum

In September 1931, the College's Lyceum was officially recognized by the Greek state as a "Greek Private Classical Lyceum," and its students gained the right to take the state exams for admission to Greek universities.

A significant role in this development was played by Elli Lampridi-Stilianopoulou, a distinguished Greek educator, philosopher, and author, and Koralia Krokodilu, originally from Constantinople, who, as heads of Greek language studies at the College, laid the groundwork for this recognition from the very moment the school was established in Greece.

State Recognition - Classical Lyceum

1931

The Establishment in Athens

1932

The Establishment in Athens

The new facilities of the College in Elliniko, designed by architect Stuart Thompson from the Thompson & Churchill office in New York, must have been the first example of an educational institution in 1930s Athens. Spanning 152 acres, the campus included buildings and spaces for a variety of functions: athletics fields, locker rooms, dormitory, classrooms, laboratories, an amphitheater, dining hall, vegetable gardens, and ornamental plant gardens.

Renaming - Pierce College

In 1936, the College, to honor the memory of Orlinda Childs Pierce, the wife of the College's major donor William Pierce, adopted the name it still carries today, Pierce College.

Renaming - Pierce College

1936

The College Moves to the Center of Athens

1940

The College Moves to the Center of Athens

During World War II, the College was used as a military hospital, while members of its teaching staff established the "Girls' Educational Institute" on Mavromichali Street and continued lessons as much as the war allowed, both in the main building and in private residences.

Return to Elliniko

After the war, the College returned to Elliniko. In August 1946, the then-president of the College, Dr. Katherine McElroy, succeeded in reopening the College with 550 students and 57 faculty and administrative staff members.

At that time, the College’s Dormitory was reorganized, with Flora Haniotou (1948-1979) as the director. She had come from Smyrna after the catastrophe and was one of the founding members of the Christian Young Women's Association (CWW, 1923), which also assisted with the College’s Social Welfare activities.

Return to Elliniko

1946

Equivalence with Public Schools

1963

Equivalence with Public Schools

By 1963, the College's secondary education was granted equivalence with public schools.

During this period, as part of the curriculum and through numerous extracurricular activities, the College's students had the opportunity to come into contact with a significant number of artists, scientists, and intellectuals of the time.

Some of the names of professors during this time at the College who marked the upward trajectory of the institution and left an indelible imprint on the hearts of hundreds of children include: Elli Giotopoulou (Art History), Giorgos Moschos (Arts, Etching), Emmanouil Zormalias (Mathematics), Elli Orfano (Arts, Painting), Konstantinos Ftyaras (Literature), Minos Dounias (Music), Olympia Karagiorga (Literature, Language), Sofi Meria (Language), Ismini Filaktopoulou (Biology), Marika Strompouli (Literature).

The College Moves to Agia Paraskevi

With the creation of the airport in Elliniko, the College was forced to move to Agia Paraskevi, to new facilities designed by the renowned architect and urban planner Konstantinos A. Doxiadis. These facilities featured an equally innovative design for the time, with classrooms, laboratories, sports fields, a dramatic arts theater, library, internal courtyards, dining and relaxation areas.

The College Moves to Agia Paraskevi

1965

Deree and Pierce

1973

Deree and Pierce

In 1973, the College department became a separate entity with its own facilities, taking the name of the great Greek-American donor William S. Deree (Socrates Vasilios Derehanis). From then on, the name Pierce was used exclusively for secondary education.

The American College of Greece

In 1979, the American College of Greece was established, incorporating both offered levels of education: Pierce (secondary) and Deree (college).

The American College of Greece

1979

Pierce Welcomes Its First Boys

1984

Pierce Welcomes Its First Boys

In 1984, with the change in Greek legislation, coeducation became mandatory in secondary education. The College welcomed its first boys into the classrooms.

Award from the Academy of Athens

The president of the College, John S. Bailey, receives an award from the Academy of Athens for the contribution of the American College of Greece to education.

Award from the Academy of Athens

1986

New Facilities

1993

New Facilities

In 1993, an Olympic-sized swimming pool was built on the College campus, while throughout the 1990s, a series of new projects were completed, which were also accessible to Pierce students: renovation of sports facilities, new tennis courts, an open-air theater, and the Temple of the Three Hierarchs.

Restart and Strategic Planning

In 2008, the new president of the American College of Greece, Dr. David G. Horner, redefined the strategic goals of the College and its role as a unique center of excellence and social contribution in Greece. The new goals became milestones in the College's development and had a direct impact on the growth of all levels of education.

Restart and Strategic Planning

2008

Launch of IB Diploma Programs

2016

Launch of IB Diploma Programs

As part of its commitment to academic excellence and continuous development, Pierce is authorized to offer the International Baccalaureate Diploma (IB).

Pierce College American Accreditation

Pierce is the first school in Greece that, while following the national curriculum, also receives American Accreditation from the Middle States Association (MSA).

Pierce College American Accreditation

2022

East Campus: Kindergarten and Elementary School

2022

East Campus: Kindergarten and Elementary School

The College adds two new levels of primary education to its offerings: Kindergarten and Elementary School at the East Campus in Spata.

In this way, as it approaches the 150th anniversary of its founding in 1875 in Smyrna, it restores the full range of educational levels it originally offered during its early years. The College now provides an upgraded, inclusive, and innovative educational program designed to meet the modern needs of society.

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