My first Publication 1926874721_Alumni_Magazine_June_2010 | Seite 15

Issue 3, June 2010
Former Faculty Pages
Roger and Susan Whitaker:
In It Together
Dr. Roger Whitaker was the first President of the re-opened American College of Sofia. Together with his wife Susan, who taught ESL at the College, he
stayed at ACS between 1992 and 1994. He kept his close connection to the school after he left as a member of the ACS Board of Trustees where he is now
Vice-Chair. We have always wanted to publish a detailed version of the re-opening story from someone as involved in process as they were and are extremely
happy to be able to do so on the pages of this very issue. Here it is!
different reasons. That is why it was
an adventure. For Susan and me, our
commitment to be a part of the team to
re-start the College drew on two special
factors:
First: We and our two young children
lived in Bulgaria (Gorna Banya) for
nearly a year in the mid-1970s while
I conducted research for my Ph.D.
dissertation. I returned to Bulgaria many
times between 1976 and 1992 for various
academic conferences and we maintained
relationships with many good friends in
Sofia. Taking a leave of absence from my
job at Boston University and returning
to Sofia in 1992, while complicated,
was informed by our prior experience.
We had a pretty clear idea what we were
getting into, at least in terms of everyday
life in Bulgaria.
On 2007 Roger Whitaker came to the 10th
anniversary re-union of the Class of 1997,
the first graduating class after the school’s re-
opening
Dr. Whitaker, you were the first
President of ACS after its re-
opening, in the ground-breaking
years of 1992-1994. We know you
and those first dedicated teachers
and administration members had
to go through a lot of adventures to
actually manage re-opening of the
school after 50 years of forced non-
existence. What made you believe in
this adventure in the first place?
Well, I suppose one never really knows
why you start an adventure until you
look back on it. I also suppose that all
of the courageous people who made up
the initial group in the first two years
(Americans and Bulgarians) probably
took to the challenge for somewhat
Second: We were drawn to the
adventure because we were thrilled to
see the winds of change sweep through
Eastern Europe. It was an exhilarating
time for the region, filled with exciting
assumptions that change would be clear,
purposeful, quick, and fun. The start of
major societal change is often celebrated
with premature enthusiasm and
excessive rhetoric and to some extent
that was the case in Bulgaria in the early
90s. But, all of us – parents, students,
teachers, staff, administrators, trustees
– brought unbridled enthusiasm to our
sense that we were part of something
special. We believed that the challenges
of an emerging democracy required an
educational system to support Bulgaria’s
new social, economic and political
aspirations. We believed the restoration
of the American College -- with its
grand tradition and supported by its
loyal alumni -- could serve as a model
secondary school integrating the best
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practices of American-style education
with the well-established traditions of
Bulgaria’s commitment to educational
excellence. We believed we could help
prepare the next generation for Bulgaria’s
pending transformation. We still believe
that.
When were you most doubtful that
you would ever succeed?
Successful new ventures require
optimism; whether it is justified is another
matter. Our team assumed the College
would be successfully reopened. We had
to assume this because discouraging and
frustrating developments hit us every day.
During our darkest moments, I thought
the barriers to success were intentional.
In fact, I think it is fair to say that there
were Bulgarian officials who did not
want us to open. I encountered many
of them and on many occasions. When
a government’s leadership changes, it
does not mean that the attitudes or
preferences of government workers
necessarily change. We all know that.
So, there were ornery meetings, personal
challenges, passive-aggressive minor
officials and political naysayers who
did their best to frustrate our efforts to
establish the school. At times, I felt like
an ACS piñata, waiting for the next hits
from blindfolded bureaucrats.
I remember in the summer of 1992
the Minister of Education sending me
a personal note delivered on the Friday
afternoon before our admissions test
was scheduled for Sunday. He warned me
not to go ahead hosting the admissions
examination, arguing it would be illegal
because we had not yet been approved
by the Council of Ministers. Over 3000
students were waiting for the exam we
had prepared in the States and that I