Meet Barry Parsons

Learn more about Barry Parsons, ISL Parent

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your family?

We’re a family of 5 (plus a dog!), all Canadian citizens (except for the dog - he’s from Spain), although only one of the children has ever lived in Canada at all.  Jen and I are both mechanical engineers by education, we spent most of our careers in upstream oil and gas which led to our expat lifestyle since we left Canada in 2005.  We moved countries shortly after the birth of each of the children - Sophie born in Canada before we moved to Norway, Nicolas born in France before we moved to the US, and Anna born in Australia before we moved to the US (again).  We came to Luxembourg as a result of my employment in the aviation sector, I’ve since moved across to a company supporting offshore renewable energy construction.

How many children do you have at ISL, and in which grades are they currently in?

Our 3 kids have all attended ISL since 2019.  Sophie graduated in 2022 and is now completing a B.Sc. at University of Maastricht, Nicolas is now in grade 9 and Anna in grade 5.

How long have you been a parent at ISL? 

Since August 2019, when we moved to Luxembourg.

When you were looking for a school in Luxembourg, what factors or aspects of ISL made you choose it for your children?

Actually, we had a lot of flexibility in where we would move when we decided to leave the US in 2019.  We ultimately chose Luxembourg due, in part, to the offering at ISL.  While Sophie had some basis in French when we arrived, we really needed an English-speaking option for schooling.  We had quite a lot of experience with schools in several other countries so we had a fairly “seasoned” view of what we were looking for - the diversity of students and teachers, access to the community that surrounds the school, and a substantial sporting/recreation offering were all top of mind.  ISL fit the bill on all counts.

Have you had any previous experience with international schools before ISL? If so, could you share what sets ISL apart from other schools?

Our kids attended international schools in Norway, France, and Australia as well as attending the public system in Texas before arriving in Luxembourg.  I had the opportunity to support the International School of Western Australia as a Board Director during our time there.  I think ISL uniquely offered us both the diversity of students and staff and “expat community” while also offering the substantive sport and recreation programmes and facilities that we really enjoyed in the Texas public system.  In our experience, other international schools often had little to no sporting program (mainly due to scale), while the public system in Texas was decidedly local and didn’t give the children quite the diverse perspective of the world we live in.  ISL really offered us the best of both and has been a really good fit for us.

Could you share some of the most important skills or experiences your child has acquired while attending ISL?

Despite the challenges during the pandemic (our first years at ISL were the lockdown years), our experience at ISL has been very positive.  The focus on Resilience at ISL has always resonated with me and is at the heart of how I see the benefit of an international, multi-lingual, culturally diverse education.  I can think of numerous examples of how the normal daily experiences of the kids have been impacted by that focus on Resilience.  Beyond the day to day, opportunities to travel with school events or NECIS sport have been fantastic and has really leveraged the most unique opportunity that international schools in Europe can offer to an expat family.

What advice would you give to new families who are just starting their journey at ISL?

Prioritise personal connections with other international families as well as with teachers and administrators at school.  Although Luxembourg is a relatively easy place to “find your way” as an expat, there is nothing more valuable than having access to a trusted network of people who have solved the same problems that you’re trying to solve as your family transitions to this new place.  At the same time, the smoothness of your kids’ transition into the new school is critical - having that open channel to key teachers and staff will help you see challenges before they become problems and support your kid through it.

Do you volunteer with the school in any capacity, and if so, could you share your experiences as a volunteer?

I really have not.  While we live here in Luxembourg, my regular office location is in London so my travel schedule can be somewhat aggressive and fluid, making volunteer commitments more difficult than I’m used to.  My wife is a very active volunteer at school: on the PCG, as class parent, supporting specific events - her time and dedication to supporting ISL hopefully makes up for my absence from that scene!  I took the opportunity to volunteer at schools in previous countries, in both ad hoc and Board level capacities, and it’s something I’d like to do more of at ISL.

From your perspective, do you feel there are enough opportunities for parent involvement within ISL, or do you have suggestions for improvement?

I think so - there’s quite a substantial amount of engagement with parents in general: information sessions, invitations to support events, WhatsApp groups, etc.  If I had to point to an opportunity to improve, I sometimes find that, despite the very good volume of communications from school to parents, sometimes the content of the communication is hard to follow (especially the more transactional communication - regarding fees/payments, etc.).

When recommending ISL to a new family, what first comes to your mind as the strongest reason to choose our school?

I suspect any family looking at ISL will be looking for the multi-lingual, culturally diverse experience, with primarily english-language learning.  Beyond that, I’d suggest that the scale of the expat community (ISL is quite a large international school) and the scope of sporting and extra-curricular programmes on offer are compelling reasons to choose ISL.

Can you describe ISL in five words that, in your opinion, best capture its essence and strengths?

Great community, lives its values.