Aiglon College is a private

co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...

in the canton of

Vaud Vaud ( ; , ), more formally Canton of Vaud, is one of the Cantons of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of Subdivisions of the canton of Vaud, ten districts; its capital city is Lausanne. Its coat ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. Founded in 1949 by former

Gordonstoun School Gordonstoun School ( ) is an elite co-educational private school for boarding and day pupils in Moray, Scotland. Two generations of British royalty were educated at Gordonstoun, including Prince Philip and his son King Charles III. Musician Davi ...

teacher John C. Corlette, it is in the alpine village of Chesieres, close to the ski resort of

Villars-sur-Ollon Villars-sur-Ollon, commonly referred to as Villars, is a village in Switzerland in the canton of Vaud, part of the municipality of Ollon. Description Geography and skiing network Villars overlooks the Rhône valley from an altitude of . Th ...

, 58 kilometers from

Lausanne Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, city of the Swiss French-speaking Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway bet ...

. The school prepares its students for

IGCSE The International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) is an English language based secondary qualification similar to the GCSE and is recognised in the United Kingdom as being equivalent to the GCSE for the purposes of recognising ...

exams and the

IB Diploma The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year educational programme primarily aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds in 140 countries around the world. The programme provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry int ...

, and is also known for its program of

outdoor education Outdoor education is organized learning that takes place in the outdoors, such as during school camping trips. Outdoor education programs sometimes involve residential or quest, journey wilderness-based experiences which engage participants in a v ...

and prowess in winter sports. All students are required to take part in expeditions. These include hiking, camping, mountain biking, kayaking, rock climbing, ski mountaineering, and other outdoor challenges.

History

Early history

John Corlette opened the school in 1949, with six pupils. A former teacher at

Gordonstoun Gordonstoun School ( ) is an elite co-educational Private school (United Kingdom), private school for boarding and day pupils in Moray, Scotland. Two generations of British royalty were educated at Gordonstoun, including Prince Philip, Duke of Ed ...

, Corlette had sympathised with the theories of its founder,

Kurt Hahn Kurt Matthias Robert Martin Hahn (5 June 1886 – 14 December 1974) was a German educator. He was decisive in founding Stiftung Louisenlund, Schule Schloss Salem, Gordonstoun, Outward Bound, the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, and the first of the U ...

, and began to think about opening a school of his own. Corlette suffered from ill health as a child and was never physically robust. This spurred a personal philosophy emphasizing stamina and toughness upon which the principles of Aiglon were founded. Corlette's decision to open a school in Switzerland was likely inspired by his own experience: he left Stowe at 16 to finish his education at Alpine College, having been sent there for the benefit of his health. Following a financially precarious beginning, during which it rented various chalets, the school acquired its first permanent building with the purchase of the Hotel Beau-Site in 1955. Though founded as a school on the British model, by 1957 half the student body were American nationals – British parents at this time were put off by a combination of high fees and a weak pound. In the late 1950s, another idea borrowed from Gordonstoun, the 'rank system', was implemented. This ranked boys according to merit, academic or otherwise, with extra privileges awarded to the higher ranked. Though founded as a boys' school, Aiglon had occasionally admitted girls under exceptional circumstances; a female student,

Marsi Paribatra Marsi Sukhumbhand Paribatra (; ; 25 August 1930 – 9 July 2013) was the only daughter of Prince Chumbhot Paripatra, Prince of Nakhon Sawan. She was also an artist. Her style was Mom Chao Ying (HSH). Early life and career Princess Marsi Pariba ...

, was enrolled in 1949. In 1968 the school became

and 22 girls arrived that September.

Modern history

By the 1970s Aiglon had drawn some criticism for its long hours, with the working day running from 7:00 a.m. to 8:45 p.m. for the youngest children, and up to 11:00 p.m. for the oldest; the school maintained this was necessary to " develop the whole child" and set this against long vacation times, which lasted up to 11 weeks in the summer. American author Allen Kurzweil recalled the eccentricities he encountered when he was sent to Aiglon in 1971. In line with the aims of its founder, school culture "placed a premium on stoic self-reliance" and injuries were a fact of life. During the academic year Kurzweil attended, one student lost the tips of two toes to

frostbite Frostbite is a skin injury that occurs when someone is exposed to extremely low temperatures, causing the freezing of the skin or other tissues, commonly affecting the fingers, toes, nose, ears, cheeks and chin areas. Most often, frostbite occ ...

, another almost died after falling into a

crevasse A crevasse is a deep crack that forms in a glacier or ice sheet. Crevasses form as a result of the movement and resulting stress associated with the shear stress generated when two semi-rigid pieces above a plastic substrate have different rate ...

, and a girl was permanently disfigured on the local slalom course after taking a bamboo gate too closely. In 1972, Corlette stepped down as Executive Headmaster and took on the new title of Director and Founder. The school continued to grow, and during the 1983 academic year numbers reached approximately 250 pupils, made up of 142 nationalities. Aiglon has long been among the world's ten most expensive boarding schools; as of 2022, annual fees were $135,000 (US). Yet, a 1995 ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly news magazine based in New York City. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century and has had many notable editors-in-chief. It is currently co-owned by Dev P ...

'' profile noted that high fees did not "buy luxury" at Aiglon, and student dormitories were surprisingly modest. Such "unpretentious surroundings" were said to be popular with wealthy parents who did not want their children to be living in too much comfort.

Campus

Aiglon's campus consists of approximately 40 different buildings and chalets spread across approximately 60,000 m². The school has eight senior boarding houses and two junior houses. The village campus is a combination of existing chalets and renovated hotels joined with purpose-built buildings.

Administration and organization

Aiglon College Junior School caters to boys and girls in years 5 to 8 (US grades 4–7). The Senior School caters to students in years 9 to 13 (US Grades 8–12). Students are prepared for

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...

and

examinations at the end of year 11 (Grade 10) and for the

International Baccalaureate The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), more commonly known as the International Baccalaureate (IB), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the I ...

in the final two years. Throughout the school, the curriculum is taught in English, with the exception of languages and literature. The school is run by a volunteer board of directors, which oversees the school's strategic direction and continued alignment with its founding principles. The school's senior management team responsible for its day-to-day management is called the School Council and is led by the Head of School. In 2019 Nicola Sparrow became the first woman to lead the school.

Notable alumni

Shaun Agar, 6th Earl of Normanton Shaun James Christian Welbore Ellis Agar, 6th Earl of Normanton (21 August 1945 – 13 February 2019) was an Irish and British peer, soldier, landowner, and powerboat racer. From birth until 1967 he was known by the courtesy title of Viscount Some ...

(1946–2019), British cavalry officer, professional powerboat racer, impresario and entrepreneur * David A. Anderson OC (Hon.), Canadian Member of Parliament, Queen's Privy Council (Ret), Olympian (silver medal, rowing, 1960) *

Abhishek Bachchan Abhishek Bachchan (; born 5 February 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer known for his work in Hindi films. Part of the Bachchan family, he is the son of actors Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan. From 2012 to 2016, Bachchan appeared in ...

, Indian actor, co-owner Chennaiyin F.C., member of the

Bachchan family The Bachchan family is a prominent Indian family associated with and involved in the Hindi film industry and Indian politics. Notable members of the family include actor and former politician Amitabh Bachchan, his nephew, Bhuvanesh Tripathi, ...

* Marcus de la Poer Beresford, 7th Baron Decies, Irish solicitor, Chairman A&L Goodbody. * Martha "Sissy" Biggers, American television personality * Alfonso de Orléans-Borbón, Duke of Galliera, Spanish racing driver, founder of

Racing Engineering Racing Engineering is a Spanish racing team founded in 1999 by Alfonso de Orléans-Borbón that currently competes in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series. The team's headquarters are located in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, near Jerez, where all car prep ...

* Eric J. Boswell, United States Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security and Director of the Office of Foreign Missions * Enrico Marone Cinzano, Italian artist and furniture designer * Coles Jeremy Child (1944–2022), British actor *

Alastair Crooke Alastair Warren Crooke CMG (sometimes misspelled as Alistair Crooke), born 30 June 1949, is a former British diplomat, and is the founder and director of the Beirut-based Conflicts Forum, an organisation that advocates for engagement between p ...

CMG, British diplomat, founder and director of the Conflicts Forum *

Andrés Duany Andrés Duany (born September 7, 1949) is an American architect, urban planner, and a founder of the Congress for the New Urbanism. Early life and education Duany was born in New York City but grew up in Cuba until 1960. He attended The Choat ...

, American architect and author * Annabel Fay, New Zealand pop singer, daughter of Sir Michael Fay * Roger C. Field, British inventor; inventor of the Foldaxe folding electric guitar. * Ben Freeth, MBE, Zimbabwean farmer and human rights activist. *

Michel Gill Michel Gill (born April 16, 1960), also known as Michael Gill, is an American actor best known for playing President Garrett Walker in the Netflix series ''House of Cards'' and Gideon Goddard on ''Mr. Robot''. Early life Gill is a first generat ...

, American actor *

Faris Glubb Faris Glubb (19 October 1939 – 3 April 2004) was a British writer, journalist, translator and publisher. Early life He was born in Jerusalem, British Mandate of Palestine as Godfrey Peter Manley Glubb. He was the son of British officer Sir Jo ...

(1939–2004), British-Jordanian journalist and political activist * Sheherazade Goldsmith, British journalist, environmentalist and jeweller * Barry Golson, American author, former editor ''TV Guide'' and ''Playboy'' *

François Grosjean François Grosjean is a Professor Emeritus and former Director of the Language and Speech Processing Laboratory at the University of Neuchâtel (Switzerland). His specialty is psycholinguistics and his domains of interest are the perception, compr ...

, French psycho-linguist, academic and author *

Patricia Gucci Patricia Gucci (born 1 March 1963) is an Italian businesswoman and member of the Gucci family. She is the only daughter of Aldo Gucci and granddaughter of Guccio Gucci who founded the company in 1921. Biography She is the daughter of Aldo Gucc ...

, British businesswoman and author, daughter of

Aldo Gucci Aldo Gucci (26 May 1905 – 19 January 1990) was an Italian personality and the chairman of Gucci from 1953 to 1986. He was the eldest biological son of Guccio Gucci, who founded the company bearing the family name in 1921. Early life and fami ...

Laura Harring Laura Elena Harring (' Herring Martínez, formerly Gräfin von Bismarck-Schönhausen; born March 3, 1964) is an American actress and beauty pageant titleholder who won Miss USA 1985 and later began acting in television and film. She is best kno ...

, Countess von Bismarck-Schönhausen, Mexican-American actress, first Hispanic woman to be crowned Miss USA *

Anthony Hickox Anthony Hickox (30 January 1959 – October 2023) was an English film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter. Hickox was best known for his work in the horror genre, with films like '' Waxwork'' and its sequel, '' Waxwork II: Lost in Ti ...

, British film director, producer and screenwriter * Sir David Hoare, 9th Baronet, British banker (Hoares) *

Ken Howard Kenneth Joseph Howard Jr. (March 28, 1944 – March 23, 2016) was an American actor. He was known for his roles as Thomas Jefferson in ''1776'' (1972) and as high school basketball coach and former Chicago Bulls player Ken Reeves in the televisi ...

(1939–2024), English songwriter, lyricist, director and philanthropist. Co-founder Sophisticated Games. * Bruce P. Jackson, American political strategist, founder and president of the Project on Transitional Democracies. * Geoffrey James, Canadian photographer and journalist *

Elisabeth Jensen Elisabeth Jensen is an education advocate and the Democratic Party nominee for Kentucky's 6th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives elections in Kentucky, 2014. Early life and career Elisabeth Jensen was born in In ...

, American education advocate and politician * Terence Kearley, 3rd Viscount Devonport, British architect *

Shaygan Kheradpir Shaygan Kheradpir (; born December 19, 1960) is an American businessman and technology executive. Kheradpir holds a bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree in electrical engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline co ...

, American technology executive, former CTO of Verizon, former CEO of

Juniper Networks Juniper Networks, Inc. is an American multinational corporation headquartered in Sunnyvale, California. The company develops and markets networking products, including Router (computing), routers, Network switch, switches, network management so ...

* Simon Kidston, British classic car dealer, commentator and car collector *

Karl Kirchwey Karl Kirchwey (born February 25, 1956) is an American poet, essayist, translator, critic, teacher, arts administrator, and literary curator. His career has taken place both inside and outside of academia. He is Professor of English and Creative ...

, American poet * Bill Koch, American Olympian (silver medal, cross-country skiing, 1976) * Allen Kurzweil, American novelist, journalist and editor *

Leka, Crown Prince of Albania Leka, Crown Prince of Albania (Leka Skënder Zogu; 5 April 193930 November 2011) was the only son of King Zog I and Queen Geraldine of Albania. He was called Crown Prince Skander at birth. After his father's death in 1961, Leka was the pretende ...

(1939–2011) * Andrew Leslie, CMM MSC MSM CD, Canadian Member of Parliament, Canadian Forces Lieutenant-General, Chief of the Land Staff (Ret) * Lukas Lundin, Canadian businessman, Chairman Lundin Mining, Denison Mines, Lucara Diamond, NGEx Resources, Lundin Gold etc. *

Richard Marcus Richard Marcus (born September 19, 1945) is an American actor who is best known for his roles in ''St. Elsewhere'', '' Tremors'', and '' The Pretender''. Actor Richard Marcus' first role was on the television show '' The White Shadow'', guest sta ...

, American actor *

Alan Merrill Alan Merrill (born Allan Preston Sachs; February 19, 1951 – March 29, 2020) was an American vocalist, guitarist and songwriter. In the early 1970s, he was one of the few resident foreigners in Japan to achieve pop star status there. He wrote t ...

(1951–2020), American composer and recording artist *

Henry Milles-Lade, 5th Earl Sondes Henry George Herbert Milles-Lade, 5th Earl Sondes (1 May 1940 – 2 December 1996), styled Viscount Throwley between 1941 and 1970, was a British peer. He inherited the title upon the death of his father in 1970 and the peerage became extin ...

(1940–1996), British businessman (agriculture), Chairman Gillingham FC *

Hamid Moghadam Hamid Moghadam (born August 26, 1956) is an Iranian-American business executive and philanthropist. In 2011, Moghadam orchestrated the combination between AMB, a firm he co-founded in 1983, and ProLogis to create Prologis, the largest logistics r ...

, American philanthropist and businessman, chairman and CEO

Prologis Prologis, Inc. is a real estate investment trust headquartered in San Francisco, California that invests in logistics facilities. The company was formed through the merger of AMB Property Corporation and Prologis in June 2011, which made Prologis ...

Megan Moulton-Levy Megan Moulton-Levy (born March 11, 1985) is a Jamaican-American former professional tennis player. Her career-high singles ranking is world No. 237, which she reached on 6 July 2009. Her career-high WTA doubles ranking is 50, achieved on 22 July ...

, Jamaican-American professional tennis player * Princess

of Thailand (1931–2013), artist, art historian and author * Brendan Parsons, 7th Earl of Rosse, Irish diplomat (United Nations), owner

Birr Castle Birr Castle ( Irish: ) is a large castle in the town of Birr in County Offaly, Ireland. It is the home of the 7th Earl of Rosse and his family, and as the castle is generally not open to the public, though the grounds and gardens of the deme ...

, sponsor of the Irish Manuscripts Commission *

Cecilia Peck Cecilia Peck (born May 1, 1958) is an American film producer, director and actress. She is the younger of two children of actor Gregory Peck and his second wife Veronique Passani. Career As an actress, Peck was nominated for the Golden Globe Aw ...

, American film producer, director, actress * Edoardo Ponti, Italian director/writer *

Roger Sanders Roger Cobban Sanders (born June 17, 1936) is an American doctor specializing in Ultrasound and Radiology. Originally from the United Kingdom, he obtained a degree in physiology at Oxford University, from the Oxford Clinical Medical School. In 1970 ...

, British-American radiologist and author, pioneer of

ultrasound Ultrasound is sound with frequency, frequencies greater than 20 Hertz, kilohertz. This frequency is the approximate upper audible hearing range, limit of human hearing in healthy young adults. The physical principles of acoustic waves apply ...

technology *

Susan Schwab Susan Carol Schwab (born March 23, 1955) is an American politician, who served under President George W. Bush as United States Trade Representative from June 2006 to January 2009. She is not related to Charles R. Schwab Sr., founder of the Charle ...

, American politician *

Rohan Sippy Rohan Sippy is an Indian film director and producer, he worked as a director in films like ''Kuch Naa Kaho'' (2003), ''Bluffmaster!'' (2005), ''Dum Maaro Dum (film), Dum Maaro Dum'' (2011) and ''Nautanki Saala'' (2013). Early life He is the ...

, Indian film producer and director * Paul Stewart, Scottish racing driver, son of Formula 1 driver Sir

Jackie Stewart Sir John Young "Jackie" Stewart (born 11 June 1939) is a British former racing driver, sports broadcasting, broadcaster and motorsport executive from Scotland, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "the Flying Scottish people, Scot" ...

, co-founder

Stewart Grand Prix Stewart Grand Prix was a Formula One constructor and racing team founded by triple Formula One champion Jackie Stewart and his son Paul Stewart (racing driver), Paul Stewart in 1996. The team competed in F1, as the Ford Motor Company, Ford works ...

(now

Red Bull Racing Red Bull Racing, currently competing as Oracle Red Bull Racing and also known simply as Red Bull or RBR, is a Formula One racing team, List of Formula One constructors#Team's nationality, competing under an Austrian racing licence and based in ...

) *

Princess Tatiana of Greece and Denmark Princess Tatiana of Greece and Denmark (born Tatiana Ellinka Blatnik, 27 August 1980) is a Venezuelan entrepreneur, author and philanthropist. She was a member of the non-reigning Greek royal family and the extended Danish royal family as the wi ...

James Thackara James Thackara (born 7 December 1944, in Los Angeles) is an American writer who has lived in the United Kingdom since 1971 and became a British citizen in 2007. He has published three novels – ''America's Children'' (1984), ''Ahab's Daughter' ...

, British-American novelist * Dean Young, American cartoonist ( Blondie)

References

External links

Aiglon CollegeGood Schools Guide International
{{Authority control International schools in Switzerland Private schools in Switzerland Boarding schools in Switzerland Round Square schools British international schools in Switzerland International Baccalaureate schools in Switzerland Education in Villars-sur-Ollon