Lord Byron School #20 was founded in 1988 in Gyumri

Gyumri

Gyumri is the capital and largest city of the Shirak Province in northwest Armenia. It is located about 120 km from the capital Yerevan, and, with a population of 168,918 , is the second-largest city in Armenia.The name of the city has been changed many times in history...

 (formerly Leninakan) following the Spitak earthquake that devastated the city, by funds provided by the British Government as well as donations raised by the British people. A carved stone cross called a Khatchkar was placed in a British school by the Armenia

Armenia

Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...

n government in thanks for the rebuilding of this school following the 1988 earthquake.

History

The school was originally built in 1950 and was named after the Armenian playwright Gabriel Soundukyan. The 1988 earthquake not only devastated buildings but the people as well. The quake occurred at 11:41 local time when most people were either at work or at school.

Unusually the Soviet premier Mikhail Gorbachev

Mikhail Gorbachev

Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...

 asked for international assistance from the world in general. Despite this the media did criticise the government for having no contingency plans in place. The final death toll from the quake was 25,000 and the school lost over 40 students and staff.

The school was opened by then United Kingdom Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...

 on 10 June 1990 on her first trip to the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

. Since then there has been support from Armenians living abroad. A new boiler-house was constructed and a playground were paid for by the Armenian General Benevolent Union

Armenian General Benevolent Union

The Armenian General Benevolent Union abbreviated as AGBU, is a non-profit Armenian organization. It was established in Cairo, Egypt in 1906...

.

After the building a partnership was established between Lord Byron School and a school near to Byron's resting place near Nottingham

Nottingham

Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...

. As a symbol of thanks the government arranged for a khatchkar (traditional Armenian carved stone cross) to be placed in the British school's playground.

Layout

The design for the school was made by British architects. In fact not only was the design British but all the materials and the furniture and all the labour required to construct the school was exported from the United Kingdom. There are basically six low rise buildings and each of them was assigned a role. The six buildings were arranged in a two by three grid and the main entrance approached one of the two central buildings. Behing the central building was the craft and dining building. To the left of the administration building was a primary building and behind that a gym. To the right was a building for language study and behind that a combined building for maths and science.

Curriculum

From the outset the Lord Byron school had a building dedicated to the study of languages and the school specializes in the study of English in particular. Since the school has been formed however the school is also known for its use of computers and for its access to the Internet.

Every January 22nd the school celebrates Byron Day.

Partnerships

• Canajoharie Central School
  Canajoharie Central School District
  Canajoharie Central School District is a school district in Canajoharie, New York. It includes a high school, a middle school and an elementary school....
  
  , Canajoharie
  Canajoharie
  Canajoharie was the name of a Mohawk village.It may also refer to:* Canajoharie , New York* Canajoharie , New York* Canajoharie Central School District* Canajoharie and Catskill Railroad...
  
  , New York
  New York
  New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
  
  
• Holgate School
  Holgate School (Hucknall)
  Holgate School is a specialist "School of arts" in Hucknall, Nottinghamshire, England, a former mining community north of Nottingham. The school has a centre for deaf students and the sixth form serves both the secondary schools in Hucknall...
  
   near Nottingham. This partnership arose because of Lord Byron. He was a famous British poet who had shown an affection for Armenian culture when he was a guest of the Mekhitarist Order in Saint Lazarus Island, Venice
  Venice
  Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
  
  . A partnership was formed between Lord Byron School and Holgate School, another secondary school which was close to Byron's final resting place in Hucknall
  Hucknall
  Hucknall, formerly known as Hucknall Torkard, is a town in Greater Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England, in the district of Ashfield. The town was historically a centre for framework knitting and then for mining but is now a focus for other industries as well providing housing for workers in...