Friday was a big night for celebrating academic milestones at Flathead High School — the 10-year anniversary of the International Baccalaureate Programme and the inaugural induction of people into an Academic Wall of Excellence.

Fifty-nine people were inducted, including the pioneers who brought the International Baccalaureate Programme to Flathead, the first International Baccalaureate graduates in 2006 and students who graduated with a full International Baccalaureate diploma while maintaining 4.0 grade point averages. 

Graduates who achieved International Baccalaureate test scores of 40 points or more were also recognized. Less than 6 percent of students earn 40 points, according to Kelli Higgins, Flathead’s International Baccalaureate coordinator. Flathead alumni Dan Browne was also inducted for his perfect 2400 SAT score during the 2006-07 year.

The International Baccalaureate Programme is a rigorous curriculum with a world-view perspective. Classes are a mix of seminar- and lecture-style instruction involving inquiry-based learning.

Students of the full diploma complete six International Baccalaureate courses in math, arts, sciences, studies in language and literature, language acquisition and individuals and societies. Students are also required to take a theory of knowledge course, complete independent research that culminates in a 4,000-word paper, take intensive assessments and participate in community service projects.

To achieve a 4.0 grade point average and full diploma is a tremendous achievement, Higgins said. One of those former students, presenter Elena Musz, a 2012 graduate, thanked all her teachers and highlighted her art class with teacher Susan Guthrie.

 “This class taught me the most valuable skill I carried into college — how to self-study intensely and daringly,” Musz said.

Musz is now a junior at Stanford University studying comparative literature and modern languages. After the ceremony, Musz said that Stanford was a wild-card school for her and that she wouldn’t have been accepted had she not earned a full International Baccalaureate diploma. 

Flathead was the first school in Montana to become an authorized International Baccalaureate school, but the path to get there was a long one.

A fire was lit in the mind of Flathead English Department Director Sue Brown in May 1989 when she first learned about the program at an honors conference in Washington. In the 1990s, a group of teachers, Principal Cathryn McDevitt and Superintendent Bill Cooper began seriously exploring the program.

 It took more than one school board vote to finally approve the program in 2002. Mary Kaplan was chairwoman of Kalispell Public Schools board of trustees at the time.

“It’s a costly program and that was probably the greatest hesitation. It was also a new program and most times boards have to get information and let it marinate a while,” Kaplan said, noting it ended up being a great investment. “By the second try everything was pulled together because of the preparedness of Sue Brown and her team. It was a magic moment. If you want to see public education at its best and kids having opportunities to get an international education, this IB program and being the first IB program in the state of Montana was phenomenal.”

 By 2004, Flathead moved from candidate-school status and became an authorized International Baccalaureate Programme school with the first testing session in 2005.

“Nearly 800 students have graduated with IB certificates or full diplomas with college credit,” Higgins said, noting that many students enter college with sophomore status and are well-prepared for the transition.

Brown said that in the early years, Mike Miles, director of the Montana State University Honors Program, was integral in helping educate the public about International Baccalaureate. 

Miles was the keynote speaker Thursday night.

“It was Mike who really gave legitimacy to the FHS IB Programme in Montana,” Brown said. “It was Mike who approached the MSU vice president of academic affairs and succeeded in getting MSU to adopt a system of granting university credit for IB certificates, and for full diploma holders, sophomore standing and admission to the honors college at MSU and it was Mike who would call me to make sure our IB candidates were planning to apply for the prestigious president’s scholarship. FHS owes great debt to Mike Miles for putting IB on the map.”

Miles spoke about the imagination and wonder that teachers inspire. He also talked about how the interconnected nature of International Baccalaureate studies equips students with an understanding of a complex world.

Miles described how U.S. culture too often measures education in terms of its economic value. 

“This is a gathering tonight to celebrate education for education’s sake,” Miles said. “I don’t know if you recognize how beautiful that is.”

He reminded teachers, alumni and students to trust in themselves.

“Trust in your personal gifts enough to be willing to risk and lift them up and live up to them,” Miles said.

Brown was surprised when she was the final inductee of the night and received a Lifetime Achievement Education award. Brown, held her hand over her forehead with self-conscious surprise as Flathead Principal Peter Fusaro went down a long list of Brown’s achievements and awards in education.

“You’ve inspired thousands,” Fusaro said.

Brown walked up to receive her award to a standing ovation.

At the ceremony’s conclusion, Clelia Leopold, part of the group of seven inaugural International Baccalaureate graduates in 2006, gave her former teacher a hug. Leopold, who flew in from Baltimore just hours before the ceremony, recently earned a master’s degree in engineering management from George Washington University. Leopold said she took the plunge into trying the new program because she wanted a challenge.

“I’d always sort of been pursuing something more rigorous to push myself academically, so it was an easy decision. I don’t think any of us had expectations. We all plunged into it together. I loved it. It was fantastic I went to college feeling really well prepared,” Leopold said, a sentiment echoed by other alumni. “It’s not just the teaching methods, it’s the full experience — growing through the process together. I think out of the seven of us, four of us keep in touch regularly.”

Brown reflected on what the program has become in 10 years.

“It’s everything I had ever hoped it would be and more and I guess one thing that didn’t get hit on enough tonight was the role that our administrators and board played. It was a risk for them to take and yet they took it and the community is so much the better for it,” Brown said. “It’s pretty cool.”

Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 758-4431 or by email at hmatheson@dailyinterlake.com.