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= Colegio Andrews (Andrews School) = Colegio Andrews (Andrews School) is a private school located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The school offers all levels of basic education, including kindergarten, preschool, elementary and high school. Founded in 1918, Colegio Andrews has recently turned 100.

Education in Brazil
The educational system in Brazil is divided in 5 levels: pre-primary, primary, lower secondary, upper secondary and post secondary. Colegio Andrews offers all 4 previous levels of education to their students, as well as, training for ENEM, the entrance exam used by most Brazilian colleges and universities in their admission process. Public education is free at all levels in Brazil, however there are issues with coverage and quality. Brazilians that are part of the upper and middle class will often turn to private education for schooling. Entrance to post secondary education often requires the student to do well on examinations, which includes ENEM and individual exams created by Universities, both private and public. As a result, private schools often offer a better quality of education to students in Brazil, as 9 out of the 10 best ENEM grades in 2017 came from private schools.

Early Years
The school was founded in 1918 by Isabel Andrews, an English teacher. Two years later, she asked her friend Alice Flexa Ribeiro, a French teacher, to join her in the project. Colegio Andrews was one of the first private schools in Rio de Janeiro to allow boys and girls to study together in the same school. The institution also differed itself from other schools for not having any religious roots, which allowed it to accept students from divorced families with no type of discrimination.

After its first 25 years, the school had 1500 students from primary to upper secondary level. At that point, Andrews was already training boys and girls to become doctors, lawyers, engineers, as well as, to have a career in the army and navy.

The Flexa Ribeiro family would later on take on the project of managing and owning the school. Carlos Flexa Ribeiro was in charge of the school for many years and continued his path in the education system by taking the role of Secretary of Education of Rio de Janeiro for 4 years. Carlos Roberto and Vera Flexa Ribeiro still follow the school’s daily activities, but Pedro Flexa Ribeiro and Ana Carolina Flexa Ribeiro are currently running the school. They are the fourth generation of Flexa Ribeiros to be in charge of Colegio Andrews, carrying the legacy of their family with them.

Today
In 2019, Andrews continues its operation in its Humaita location, in Rio de Janeiro. In 2017, the school went through renovations, modernizing its installations and equipment. New rooms for arts, music and Judo were inaugurated, as well as, a new multifunctional sports arena. The school has also invested in their technological facilities, including two new Media Laboratories and one photography/video studio. The photography/video studio has an acoustic room, lighting equipment, a backdrop and three computers for editing. The room allows students to develop skills in the media department, culminating in FINCA – Festival Identidade e Narrativa de Curtas do Andrews (Andrew’s festival of short films about identity and story). It is a short film festival organized to exhibit the projects of grade 11 students.

Academically, the school has a good history in the ENEM examinations. In 2017, the school placed 65th in Brazil and 14th in the state of Rio de Janeiro, with an average of 668.4/1000 in the multiple choice component of the exam and 730/1000 in the writing component of the exam. The school’s academic excellence ranks as one of the top reasons for parents when choosing Andrews. Its infrastructure and liberal roots come next, as many of the private schools in Rio de Janeiro that offer the same level of academic excellence are catholic.The school’s goal is to support families that have education as a priority. It’s two most important values are democracy and freedom of thought. According to the school, their objective is to provide a wholesome educations to its students. In their website, Colegio Andrews claims: “It is the objective of Andrews, in partnership with the families, to promote the construction of lives that have academic excellence and personal goals in harmony.”

Extra-curricular Activities
Extracurricular activities have always been a priority for Colegio Andrews. These activities are offered on an annual basis and cost an extra amount on top of tuition. In 2019, the school was offering a total of 31 extracurricular activities including:


 * Astronomy
 * Ballet
 * Capoeira
 * Cinema and Visual Production
 * Design Thinking
 * Electronic Music
 * Gaming Development
 * Games
 * Google Platform and Digital Culture
 * Gymnastics
 * Homo Sapiens and Civilization (Philosophy)
 * Jazz
 * Judo
 * Karate
 * Music
 * Music – Rhythmic instruments (Batuque Digital)
 * Music – Piano
 * Music – Guitar
 * Music – Violin
 * Photography
 * Planet Earth Dynamics (Science)
 * Rhythmic Gymnastics
 * Robotics
 * Skateboarding
 * Soccer (for Females and Males)
 * Sound Design
 * Tchoukball
 * Theatre
 * Visual Arts
 * Volleyball

Theatre (TACA and mini TACA)
Theatre has had an important part in the history of Colegio Andrews. TACA, which stands for Teatro Amador do Colegio Andrews (Andrews School’s Amateur Theatre) has been an extra-curricular activity in the school since the 1960s. As TACA was only available for upper secondary (or high school) students, miniTACA was created for students as young as 6. The newest edition of the extra-curricular activity is preTACA, for young adolescents between the ages of 10 and 13. Roberto de Cleto was the first director of TACA, in the 1960s. Maria Padilha and Miguel Falabella, school alumni, took over in the 1970s and 1980s. Both instructors went on to become big names in theatre, television and film in Brazil. In the 1980s, TACA put on famous musicals such as “Rocky Horror Picture Show” and “Cabaret”, as well as, Shakespeare’s “Midsummer Night’s Dream”. From the 1990s on, TACA has been under the direction of Gustavo Garparani, also school alumni. Most recent musicals presented by the school include “Hair” and “Spring Awakening”.