Welcome from Our Head of School

From Benjamin Hebebrand, GISC Director

It’s my privilege to introduce you to the German International School Chicago, where we provide students from preschool through 8th grade with an international, bilingual education in German and English.

Since GISC was founded in 2007 as a small early childhood education center for a tight-knit community of German speakers and internationally-minded parents, we have grown into a full-time school of around 200 students. At GISC, we are focused on growing the school in order to provide our students with the very best resources and opportunities, while retaining our nurturing, supportive atmosphere.

You will of course find a great deal of German, Austrian, and Swiss culture within our halls, but you will also discover student materials and projects representing all nations and cultures. We are an international school, and our community represents over 40 nationalities, with more than 25 languages spoken at home. Walking through our halls, you will hear firsthand how exciting and unique our multilingual environment is as students, teachers, and parents switch effortlessly from German to English, and then to third and fourth languages. I believe this is a shining example of our motto: “Give your child the world.”

At GISC, our mission is to provide students of all backgrounds with a rigorous, dual-language education, enabling them to become well-rounded, creative, and responsible global citizens. Students who have graduated from GISC, fluent in both German and English, will have the necessary tools to succeed academically, professionally, and socially in the US, Germany, and beyond.

I hope to welcome you to GISC soon.

Sincerely,
Ben Hebebrand, Director

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Meet Our Director

Before joining GISC as Director, Ben most recently served as the Director of Administration at the German International School Washington, DC. Prior to that, Ben held several leadership positions at US-based private independent schools, including headships at Madison Country Day School, an authorized IB World School, and at Quest Academy, a gifted education school in the Chicago suburbs. Ben’s career in education began at the Atlanta International School where he started as a German and History Teacher and eventually became Head of Middle School, a position in which he helped the school earn authorization for the International Baccalaureate’s Middle Years Program. He holds undergraduate degrees in English and Intercultural Studies, a graduate degree in Communications, and a master’s level certification in gifted education. Ben grew up in Munich, Germany, is bilingual, and also has additional proficiency in Spanish and French. He and his wife Joy have five children, three of whom are currently in college and law school.