Ideals
The image of the three
pillars, each with one of the school's values ("scholarship",
"global responsibility", "self-expression"), together
holding aloft a pediment, represents the school's three foundational values and
the construction of an educational edifice that will withstand the tests of
time.
Our Namesakes
Octavio Paz (1914-1998) was a Mexican writer, poet, and diplomat, who exemplified the three pillars of the International Institute. Paz was an extraordinary scholar, having both received the Guggenheim Fellowship to study at the University of California-Berkeley and taught poetry at Harvard University for four years (he also received honorary doctorates from Harvard University and the National Autonomous University of Mexico). Having won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1990, Paz was an internationally renowned artist who used his extraordinary talent for expression in not only the surrealist and existentialist movements, but also to write on topics such as Mexican politics, economics, culture, international human rights, and communism. Paz’s extensive political career included over 20 years in Mexican diplomatic service and a term as Mexico’s ambassador to India, showing a deep sense of global responsibility.
Alfonso García Robles (1911-1991) was a Mexican politician and diplomat who also exemplified our three ideals. A scholar first, he was trained in law at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), then completed graduate study at both the University of Paris and the International Law Academy in the Hague. Because of his sense of global responsibility, García Robles served as a delegate to the 1945 conference which helped found the United Nations, and served in various positions afterward, including Ambassador to Brazil and representative to the United Nations and the Committee on Disarmament. García Robles' talent for expression led to authorship of more than a dozen books, and perhaps most notably, persuading the Mexican government and 22 other Latin American nations to bar nuclear weapons from their territories, leading to his receipt of the 1982 Nobel Peace Prize in 1982.
Logo
The school logo includes a globe, a book, and musical notes,
representing the interrelatedness of the three pillars: scholarship, global
responsibility, and self-expression. The globe symbolizes a global
responsibility to the world and a global awareness, which we seek to foster in
the students. The transparent, open book signifies scholarship and the
way in which the students' experience of the world is informed by their
learning. The surrounding ring of musical notes characterizes the way in
which self-expression encompasses the one’s experience of the world.
Mascot
The school mascot is the owl in flight, exemplifying wisdom in action. The image of the owl with wings outstretched, carrying a quill, with the sun at its back is a strong image of wisdom. The quill represents writing and scholarship, while the sun represents the light of learning. This is a symbol not just of wisdom, represented by the owl, but also of a wisdom that is being put into action in the world.
