The John F. Kennedy School is a primary and secondary school in Berlin, Germany offering integrated, bilingual education for both German and American children. Originally established in 1960 by the U.S. Military Government along with local Berlin authorities and parents, the school was initially called "Deutsch-Amerikanische Gemeinschaftsschule / German-American Community School" to provide elementary school facilities and to foster cultural exchange between young natives of West Berlin and children from U.S. Armed Forces families. The school was re-named in 1963 after the assassination of United States President John F. Kennedy. The present buildings were built by the Berlin Senate in the late 1960s. After Germany's reunification in 1990 and the withdrawal of the Allied Forces, the mission of the school was redefined. Originally the focus was primarily on reconciliation after the Second World War; today, the school is a model for bilingual schools in Europe. The John F. Kennedy School includes all grades from kindergarten through 12th grade. Students can choose to graduate after grade 12 with the Americanhigh school diploma as well as the German Abitur. The school has a modern campus with 135 classrooms, 9 science labs, 3 computer labs, 2 library centers, two gymnasiums, and a fine arts annex, spread out in and around its 6 main buildings. Situated in the locality of Zehlendorf in Southwestern Berlin, the school is conveniently close to bus routes, the S-Bahn, parks, and a district shopping area. The majority of the more than 1700 students are German citizens; 33% are American citizens and 10% are from a wide variety of other countries. The John F. Kennedy school employs 142 full-time faculty members and 32 part-time faculty members. Of the total 174 faculty members, 91 are German, 78 are American, and 5 represent other countries. The school caters primarily to United States Embassy staff, and dependents are entitled to guaranteed admission. Other non-German and German nationals are accepted according to available capacity, their academic qualifications and proof of English Language skills. The John-F.-Kennedy-School is a non fee paying, bilingual Elementary and High School, governed by a special Act of the Berlin Parliament, stipulating the administrative division of responsibility between a U.S. Principal and a German Director. Subsequent changes in the Act indicate the intention to further integrate the administration of the School within the German educational system. Attempts by the Berlin Senate to fully integrate the School were postponed in 2017 after parents' protests. The School Conference and the U.S. Embassy finally agreed to the full transfer when demands for added funding for school repairs and increased security expenses were promised. The JFK School is popular with diplomats as well as parents connected with industry, media, and politics, and is considered the preferred choice for the upwardly mobile strata of Berlin society. A further reason for the school's popularity is its situation in the high income, verdant suburb of Zehlendorf.
