By Michele Silbey
Special to the Reporter
In September of 2002, two-and-a-half year old fraternal twins Jacob and Josh Glant started their first day of school in large multi-room portable buildings adjacent to the Stroum Jewish Community Center on East Mercer Way, home of the then 7-year old French American School of Puget Sound (FASPS). They joined 190 schoolmates in preschool through grade five.
Now, 12 years later on June 13, they will graduate as trilingual eighth graders from the school, now home to 405 students. The school occupies the same location, but the portables are gone and have been replaced with a two-story building with 24 classrooms. This will be the school’s fourth and largest graduating class, with 21 students.
The graduates will go on to public and private high schools in the area. Jacob and Josh will head to Mercer Island High School.
But it is not just the students who are making a big change, but their parents as well.
“We will miss the friendships that we have made here, I hope that we’ll keep them up,” said Kristen Glant, the twins mother.
Throughout Jacob and Josh’s education, both parents have been very involved with the school. They have given generously to the school, primarily to fund construction of the current two story building, and there is a playground named in their honor.
“This will be a big adjustment. I will miss the school but we’re also looking forward to a new experience at Mercer Island High School,” said Glant.
“My kids are coming out of the school with an extraordinary experience and advantage: the ability to speak, to be virtually tri-lingual,” she explained.
I don’t know if they will use it in their careers or not, but even if they don’t, they still had a wider exposure to the world through this educational system, she said.
As for the boys, they have lots of memories from their years at FASPS.
“When they remodeled the old school, they added a second floor, and it was exciting because we got to cut the ribbon to the upstairs and we were the first people on the second floor,” Jacob said.
Before high school starts, the boys plan to relax and swim at the Shore Club over the summer. Jacob said he might get a summer job to start saving up for a car. Most important to Josh will be to keep in touch with his friends at FASPS.
“These are my best friends; these are kids I’ve known forever,” he said.
As for the transition to high school however, their opinions differ. Josh thinks it will be harder and Jacob believes it will be easier.
They’ll find out who’s right in just a few short months.
For more information about the school, contact Michele Silbey at micheles@fasps.org or 206-275-3533 ext289.
Twins Josh left and Jacob Glant pose with the French American School of Puget Sound sign on the eve of their graduation from 8th grade (contributed photo).
