Истории Stembridge School

Эта страница — наш живой дневник. Здесь мы собираем истории учителей Stembridge School: о школе и о жизни, о трудностях и радостях, о том, что вдохновляет нас и чему мы учимся у детей. Мы верим, что эти тексты помогут вам почувствовать нашу школу ближе.

Zahra Ali

International Schools Quality and Compliance Coordinator

When Courage Comes Before Certainty

I began my journey in education in 2019 — not with certainty, but with courage.

At that time, I was a single mother to a five-year-old son. My days were split between lesson plans and bedtime stories, between professional dreams and very real responsibilities. It wasn’t easy. There were moments of exhaustion, moments of doubt — but also a quiet, persistent belief that education has the power to change lives. Sometimes the first life it changes is your own.

I started my career as a Montessori teacher, learning alongside my students while completing my postgraduate diploma — all while working full-time and raising a child alone. Growth didn’t come from perfect conditions; it came from consistency. One class at a time. One child at a time. One day at a time.

And slowly, something shifted.

I grew into leadership roles — academic, administrative — supporting teachers, parents, and learners. But I made a conscious decision: I would not pause my own growth while helping others grow. That decision led me to pursue my Master’s degree in Vilnius. Studying, working, and parenting simultaneously taught me something no textbook ever could — resilience with purpose.

But the hardest chapter wasn’t academic.

Moving to Lithuania was one of the most defining decisions of my life. I come from a male-dominated society where survival as a single mother often requires protection, reassurance, and constant negotiation of your place in the world. Leaving meant stepping away from familiarity — and stepping toward freedom.

During that time, my greatest support came from my father — a self-made man whose life was built on conviction and hard work. Even from afar, his faith in me anchored mine. My siblings supported me through the uncertainty of relocation, giving me the stability to rebuild.

That’s when I learned something essential:

Home is not always a place. Sometimes, it’s a direction.

In emigration, I discovered that home can be purpose. It can be resilience. It can be the courage to begin again.

Today, I work in a school that is, in many ways, a school in emigration itself. Our students and colleagues carry complex stories — of relocation, loss, rebuilding, hope. That environment reshaped how I lead. I listen more. I design systems that serve people, not just processes. Because education is never only about academics. It’s about belonging. Dignity. Hope.

Being a lifelong student keeps me grounded. During my master’s program, I worked as an International Student Coordinator, supporting young adults navigating life in a new country — while at the same time working with primary and secondary students who were also migrants, each with their own story. Learning across generations taught me humility — and clarity.

Education didn’t just give me knowledge.
It gave me perspective.

There were moments — quiet ones — when giving up felt easier than continuing. When exhaustion outweighed ambition. But I stayed. Because stopping would have meant abandoning a future I had already started building. I learned that discomfort is temporary — growth is lasting.

If my journey offers one lesson, it is this:

Circumstances do not define limits. Mindset does. When passion meets perseverance, growth is inevitable.

And sometimes, courage doesn’t come after certainty.
Sometimes, courage comes first — and certainty follows.

Миссия школы

Мы каждый день создаем школу, в которой дети хотят и
учатся учиться, конструктивно мыслить, экологично и
ответственно взаимодействовать с миром вокруг, знать себя и быть счастливым!

STEMBRIDGE начало

Открытие школы Стембридж в Минске (2018 г.)

История школы

Группа энтузиастов собралась весной 2018 года и решила: школа, в которой дети и взрослые каждый день говорят: «Хочу в школу!», - реальна. Потому что она – о человеке и для человека. Она в моменте творит будущее. 20 июня 2018 года Минским горисполкомом было зарегистрировано Частное учреждение образования «Средняя школа Стембридж». В сентябре 2018 года школа открыла свои двери для первых 50 учеников и учениц. Спустя 3 года нас уже более 300 стембриджеров, учащихся в форматах очной школы, индивидуального плана и в онлайн-школе Фиджитал.

В 2022 году Стембридж, первым среди беларусских школ, получил аккредитацию IB-школы (International Bacalaureate – Международный Бакалавриат – международный стандарт школьного образования).

В сентябре 2021 г школа “Stembridge LT” зарегистрирована в качестве юридического лица в Вильнюсе и открыла двери для своих первых учеников и учениц. С января 2022 школа “Stembridge LT” зарегистрирована как общеобразовательная школа Литовской Республики.