Beirut, Lebanon (June 2019): Under the patronage of Mr. Akram Chehayeb, Minister of Education and Higher Education, the Collège Protestant Français inaugurated its new Cultural and Sports Center in Ras Beirut, Koreytem district, Rue Madame Curie. The inauguration ceremony, followed by a cocktail party in the gardens, gathering the entire CPF community, took place on June 18, 2019, in the presence of Mr. Bruno Foucher, Ambassador of France in Lebanon, Mr. Olivier Brochet, Director of the Agence pour l’Enseignement Français à l’Etranger, Mr. Anis Nassif, President of Présence Protestante Française au Liban, as well as the members of the Board of Trustees.
Always committed to improving its learning environment, the CPF inaugurated its new building which will include a gymnasium, a swimming pool, an art room, a music room and a cafeteria, keeping at heart its motto: “the best for our students”.
On this occasion, Mr. Bruno Foucher, Ambassador of France in Lebanon, said: “France has always supported Lebanon’s efforts to develop its educational system and promote culture. We are here today to celebrate the inauguration of the new cultural and sports center and to offer all our support and encourage this great initiative which contributes to student development and a better tomorrow.” Mr. Foucher took the opportunity to salute the excellent management of the CPF, an exemplary institution both at the local level and within the AEFE network, under the leadership of the current principal and PPFL.
After recalling his attachment to the values of CPF, Mr. Anis Nassif, President of the Présence Protestante Française au Liban, said: “I would like to thank all the companies and consultants who contributed to the realization of this building. Thank you to all CPF teams who participated in this endeavour, with patience and devotion. I would also like to thank the Board of Trustees who are all present today and who validated and carried out a very ambitious project, intended solely to improve the learning conditions of our students. I would also like to mention that we could never have done this project without the support of the parents’ committee. All this has likewise been possible thanks to the help of the AEFE, which has given us a substantial grant, as well as the many donors and friends who believe in our mission.”
Since its creation in 1927, the CPF Beirut has been able to spread its own values in the Lebanese educational system, values carried by thousands of alumni around the world. Discipline, the sense of duty and responsibility, critical judgment, tolerance and open-mindedness, all of which Protestant values par excellence, have become essential in local education. By taking over Montana International College, which will become CPF Montana, the CPF wishes to use its experience and know how to create and strengthen other institutions. Mr. Nassif also announced that Mr. Bruno Jacquier, current principal of the CPF, will become the principal of the CPF Montana as of the beginning of the new school year 2019.
With the inauguration of this new building, it is a new chapter for all students seeking excellence and success.