As a part of Sotheby’s International Realty®, providing a global perspective to the growing Puget Sound region is an important part of what we do. Realogics Sotheby’s International Realty (RSIR) agents, employees, and the executive team all bring incredible passions that often relate to this global perspective.
For our Chief Sales Officer and Designated Broker Stacia Smith, it’s her deep ties to the French American School of Puget Sound (FASPS, or École Franco-Americaine Du Puget Sound) and the work it does. On Friday, as the school kicks off a series of events to celebrate its 25th anniversary, she will speak at the school’s Student Talent Show (5:45pm) & Retrospective Reception.
FASPS was established in 1995, and Stacia was a founding parent of the school, alongside 12 other families. Within the school’s first few years, she servered as the School Board’s treasurer, followed by taking on the role of Vice President.
The French American School of Puget Sound (FASPS) began as a small community of parents, teachers, and students with a powerful vision, and it is proud to have grown as much as it has while maintaining at its core the value of community. At FASPS students are challenged to excel academically and thrive in French, American, and international cultures; FASPS’s vision is to inspire the next generation of global citizens to learn, understand, and act wisely in a multicultural world.
“At the time school opened, it was unique—it was the only accredited French American School in the Puget Sound region and there were no other schools like it for French immersion,” says Stacia. “We brought over native-speaking French teachers, so not only did our students learn the language but they picked up the dialect as well. It was a labor of love for many of the parents, directors, and faculty who all put in long hours to see the school not only grow but thrive.”
“Stacia’s role in FASPS’s history has been critical,” says Kyle Lewis, FASPS Communications Director. Eventually, she also served as the PTSA Board and Head of Facilities Committee overseeing all facilities needs. Lewis says she was integral in locating the school’s current location, when it moved from its initial home Newcastle where it had started with just 13 students, to their permanent-and-still-growing home on Mercer Island.
On Friday, she plans to share the story of finding and securing the existing location. “It was not an obvious choice and it took quite a bit of vision and perseverance to make it happen.”
In the years since its founding, FASPS has grown from K-5 education to include a middle school, and there are continued hopes to eventually expand their curriculum to high school. And while Stacia’s family are now alums, their support for a global perspective from here in the Puget Sound continues. In fact, it’s part of the draw of being a part of the Sotheby’s network, too.
“Both the French School and Realogics Sotheby’s International Realty are about global diversity and connections that help make the world a better place for all. I love having even a minor part in that!”
The FASPS 25th anniversary celebration kicks off Jan. 31 and will continue through December 2020.
Friday, Jan. 31, 6–9pm, FASPS will kick off the celebrations with a Student Talent Show and Retrospective Reception at the Mercer Island Community & Event Center
Saturday, March 14, 5:30pm-midnight, FASPS will hold its annual Gala & Auction at the Grand Hyatt Seattle
May, FASPS will celebrate the end of the school year and the beginning of summer with its first-annual Walkathon and Ice Cream Social on Mercer Island
Late September and early October, FASPS will ring in the 2020–2021 school year with its annual Kermesse (Carnival) at the school
December, FASPS will close out its 25th anniversary celebrations with a Festival of Art and Culture at the Stroum Jewish Community Center (SJCC) on Mercer Island