Twin sisters, Inzhu and Aizhan T. came to AIS-Salzburg in September 2020 as grade 10 students and did not get off to a good start. In their first year, the sisters soon realized after arriving at the school that they did not want to be there. Their response to this was to put no effort into their academics or any attempt to integrate into the community. Early on, teachers were not optimistic that the girls would make the necessary adjustments to find success at AIS-Salzburg.

“They were a nightmare when they first came. They were rude to everyone and their grades were bad because they didn’t do any work. It was a constant battle to get them to do anything during study hall or even to keep them awake,” reflected Dorm Parent Ms. Clarke.

“Their biggest problem was their attitude. They didn’t make any effort to fit into our community,” said Mr. McLean, their U.S. History teacher in their first year. 

However, with time, the twins slowly came around and made notable GPA gains in their junior and senior years.

“I think once they realized it wasn’t so bad (at AIS-Salzburg) they decided to make a go of it and let people in. Their mindset altered,” said Ms. Clarke. “Once we put it a little bit of effort in, it was quite easy to adapt, to be honest,” said Inzhu in the video interview below. “I started visiting Mr. Lichty after school for extra help and would come to Mr. Leicher in the morning sometimes.”