International Academy of St. Petersburg (IA)

The International Academy of St. Petersburg (IA) is committed to providing quality international Christian education in English. IA educates the whole student based on a foundation of Biblical truth in an international and nurturing environment, developing students spiritually, academically, and culturally. International Academy seeks to develop its students in the following areas:

• To grow in the love of Jesus Christ and knowledge of Biblical principles that govern their relationships with others; and to apply their faith to the realities of living in the secular world
• To establish a passion for learning, and a desire to explore and investigate, using the skills of critical reasoning and creative thinking.
• To cultivate skills to thrive cross-culturally as they learn to respect, appreciate, and evaluate their own culture, the host culture, and other cultures around the world.

IA provides private educational services for international students in grades K-12 living in St. Petersburg, Russia. The school serves families in business, diplomatic service, and Christian ministry.

The school is housed in one building containing 13 classrooms, a science lab, a mixed media/fine arts room, and a cafeteria. School technology is on a one-to- one basis with each student having their own tablet. The school rents a local gymnasium for physical education classes.

IA offers an American-style college preparatory program. Upon graduation, students receive a high school diploma that corresponds with college requirements in the United States. Full credit classes meet four times a week for 60 minutes per class and half-credit classes meet two to three hours per week; a credit correlates to 120 academic hours. All classes meet for the entire school year. During the 2018-2019 year IA offered AP courses in: Biology, Art History and Calculus. Extracurricular activities include: Model United Nations, Soccer, Basketball, ACSI Honors Choir, and Worship Team.

St. Petersburg, the cultural capital of Russia is a center for music and the arts. The city is also a base for international businesses and consulates. Classes at IA engage with the cultural heritage of St. Petersburg through experiences at places like the Hermitage Art Museum and Mariinsky Theater.

Semester course grades are reported numerically on transcripts. These are used to determine GPA on a four point scale. Semester grades are used to calculate the cumulative GPA. Only grades earned at IA are used to calculate a student’s GPA. IA does not rank students because the majority do not attend IA during all of their high school years and they come from varied educational backgrounds including international schools with different grading scales.