The 12 year old son of a former Head Boy at Concord has been attending summer school in July to improve his English and he hopes to return and emulate his father in the future.

Emre Ekim dreams of becoming Concord’s head boy in 2016/17 – 28 years after his father Mehmet was only the second Turkish student to hold the position at the college. There hasn’t been another head boy from Turkey since – so Emre could be only the third in Concord’s history. “I am very proud of my father’s achievement and would like to follow in his footsteps,” said Emre who only started learning English at the age of 10.

Although he is from Istanbul, due to his father’s job as a construction manager he now lives in Dubai and English is one of the subjects he is studying at junior high school. However, he believes his English has improved by fifty percent since he received an invitation to study at Concord’s summer school.

Former Principal Mr. Tony Morris was at Concord College when Mehmet was Head Boy and he met the family on a recent visit to Dubai. Said Emre: “Afterwards Mr. Morris sent a memo suggesting I attended the summer school and my father agreed. He had told me all about Concord – and it really is awesome. I have enjoyed meeting students from many other nationalities and taking part in football, basketball and swimming activities. As well as the learning, it has also been great fun.”

Summer school Director Kari Butler said that on the July summer course there were students from many parts of the world including Russia, China, Spain and Italy. Emre had mixed with all the nationalities. “He is a very bright and confident young man – and a great character. His English was exceptional when he arrived and with his participation in all the activities at Concord, I am sure it will get even better.”