Director's Welcome
November 10, 2026
Dear Students and Parents:
I am honored to begin my service as Director of The Guivy Zaldastanishvili American Academy of Tbilisi. This year, GZAAT celebrates its 25th anniversary, and over that time the Academy has earned a reputation for academic excellence and, more importantly, for establishing a culture where students receive the attention and care they need to discover their interests and their talents and to reach their potential. Throughout its history, the Academy has prioritized an approach to learning that gives students a sense of purpose and direction and provides a moral framework to guide the many choices that await them as they move first to university and then into adult life.
In 2001, Georgian businessman Guivy Zaldastanishvili, American educator Donald Thomas, and a small group of others dedicated to creating an honorable society and a prosperous future for Georgia opened the gates of the American Academy with the commitment of setting the highest possible standard for secondary education throughout the country. Over the past 25 years, the founders’ vision has become a reality as the graduates of the Academy have taken leadership roles in Georgian society, built strong businesses and tight-knit communities, and raised a new generation of proud and capable citizens who will guide Georgia into the future.
As we go forward, we remain committed to the principles and the methods that have changed so many lives for the better and have established the Academy as a leading educational institution in Georgia. Our motto, “Enlightenment & Goodness,” contains within it the promise that our students not only gain knowledge through their studies, but we cultivate in them wisdom, empathy, and kindness to ensure that knowledge is directed to good ends. As our Core Beliefs state, we develop well-rounded individuals with sound values and sound minds. We provide a space where students can be happy, make good friends, discover their passions, hone their skills and grow into adults committed to changing the world for the better.
Our pedagogy derives from a commitment to small classes and to the Harkness method, which was introduced through extensive training of our founding teachers at Phillips Exeter Academy. Twelve students and a teacher sit at an oval table, and the classroom comes alive through conversation. Students examine texts, listen to each other’s remarks, consider different perspectives, challenge others’ ideas, and thereby learn to develop and defend their own thinking. The teacher guides the discussion as the students take the lead role in shaping and directing conversation. Our approach ensures that every student plays a key role in the success of every class, feels known and heard, has a full opportunity to participate, and gets the support they need to be successful.
Above all else, our students learn how to learn, and they make deep and trusting connections with classmates and teachers. For 25 years, our students have explored science, mathematics, history, philosophy and literature under the guidance of a distinguished faculty whose depth of knowledge, enthusiasm for their subjects, and a level of care are uncommon in a high school setting. We have a deep faith that by having expert teachers introduce our students to the great minds of the past, thinkers such as Homer, Plato, Dante, Shakespeare, Galileo, Newton, and Einstein, among many others, we will build a sturdy bridge to the future. For our students, this is both a safe and invigorating journey. We can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings!
Joseph M. Campana
Director
