DHSZ unveils its new house names

The final choice of Dulwich International High School Suzhou’s new house names has recently been released, Curie, Mandela, Soong and Turing won out of 12 possibilities and have replaced the precedent Grenville, Fan, Raleigh and Spencer respectively.

The origins of the house system date back to the foundation of our parent School Dulwich College in London. In recent years house systems were brought to public attention in the Harry Potter books by J.K. Rowling.

It provides opportunities for students to grow and learn, in terms of personality, morality, creativity, knowledge and skills. The system promotes the values of fair play, teamwork, citizenship, mutual responsibility, as well as self-discipline, initiative, perseverance, and resilience.

The change in the history of DHSZ’s house system is an attempt to help students to embrace change in positive manner and lead to exciting opportunities for new ideas to develop.

Curie House

Named after Marie Curie, (born November 7, 1867, Warsaw, Congress Kingdom of Poland, Russian Empire—died July 4, 1934, near Sallanches, France), Polish-born French physicist, famous for her work on radioactivity and twice a winner of the Nobel Prize. With Henri Becquerel and her husband, Pierre Curie, she was awarded the 1903 Nobel Prize for Physics. She was the sole winner of the 1911 Nobel Prize for Chemistry. She was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, and she is the only woman to win the award in two different fields.

Mandela House

Named after Nelson Mandela, (born July 18, 1918, Mvezo, South Africa—died December 5, 2013, Johannesburg), Black nationalist and the first Black president of South Africa (1994–99). His negotiations in the early 1990s with South African Pres. F.W. de Klerk helped end the country’s apartheid system of racial segregation and ushered in a peaceful transition to majority rule. Mandela and de Klerk were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1993 for their efforts.

Soong House

Named after Soong Qingling, who held several prominent positions in the Chinese government. She founded the China Welfare Institute and was the Honorary President of the People’s Republic of China in 1981. She was known to fight for human rights and for helping the impoverished, and much more.

Turing House

Named after  Alan Turing, a brilliant British mathematician who took a leading role in breaking Nazi ciphers during WWII. He is considered as the father of computer science and artificial intelligence. In addition to that, he is one of the most outstanding scientists of the twentieth century. He was a mathematician, logician, cryptanalyst and a philosopher.

House activities at Dulwich show how holistic learning is possible in any context!