Arsakeio (Αρσάκειο) is the general name of the Arsakeia – Tositseia Schools, a group of co-ed private schools in Greece, administered by the Philekpedeftiki Etería (Φιλεκπαιδευτική Εταιρεία, Society for Promoting Education and Learning [SPEL]), which is a non-profit educational organization. The Arsakeio comprises six schools, with campuses in Psychiko [Attica], Ekali (Tosítseio campus) [Attica], Thessaloniki, Patras, Ioannina, and also Tirana, Albania. The school has more than 6.500 students and 700 educators.
The Philekpaideftiki Etaireía was founded in 1836 by three eminent scholars (Ioannis Kokkonis, Georgios Gennadios, and Michail Apostolidis). What these men had conceived was profoundly innovative, given the fact that back then the Greek nation was still struggling in terms of social and political aspiration after turbulent centuries of enslavement and the harsh Greek War of Independence (1821-1829; Greece became an independent state in 1830). The fundamental principles of their philosophy were that it was imperative more and more Greeks receive at least basic education and a gradual progression of setting up schools all around the country be organized. This being their ultimate goal, they developed a school where young girls could be educated, who, on graduation, would be sent all over Greece. The young teachers were expected to inspire and educate children, thus preserving the Greek language and culture as well as encouraging literacy among the people. This grand idea was well respected and shared by seventy eminent Greek personalities of that period, who formed the first Board in the spring of 1836.
Initially and according to the original act, it was a girls-only boarding school located at Panepistimiou Street in downtown Athens. The foundation was financially supported by august patrons of charity with magnate Apostolos Arsakis being one of the most significant. The school was named after him in his honour. Following Arsakis' death, there was further endowment by Michael Tositsas, a wealthy aristocrat and great benefactor of Greece. His widow, Helen Tositsa followed suit and continued donating after his death (the Schools in Ekali were named after them Tositseia).
Combining a tradition of educational excellence along with an appeal to more affluent families, the school flourished and created campuses in Patras (1891), Psychiko (1933), Thessaloniki (1936), Ekali (1972) and fairly recently in Ioannina (2009). The schools started enrolling boys in 1982. The original building in Panepistimiou Street now houses the Council of State.
The campus in Tirana, Albania was inaugurated in 1999, which has been further expanded with class and dormitory space.
Arsakeio has several Departments and Services. The pedagogical system and the curricula are supervised by the Supervisor (Επόπτης) aided by a board of Coordinators. Each Coordinator overviews and guides the educators of a set of subjects (i.e. languages, physics, maths, informatics, etc.). There are three FL departments (English, French, German). The Counseling Services (psychologists and career counselors) have offices on all campuses and run relevant programs. The Cultural Programs Service organizes various cultural events, educational programs and guided tours to museums and archaeological sites for the students. In Arsakeio there are a Junior Achievement - Young Enterprise Europe Group, and active groups of robotics, STEM, and F1 in Schools. The Arsakeio digital Program Department runs and supports the digital school e-arsakeioTM. Arsakeia schools at Patra organize yearly a MUN conference (ATS MUN). The Supervisor and her assisting board organize every year a two-day student conference, Arts and Letters Contests, day-conferences and competitions on Mathematics and Physics, meanwhile the Arsakeio's students participate in various European programs (Erasmus+, Forensics, European Youth Parliament, etc.) and in national and international competitions (F1 in Schools, MUNs, Olympiads of Physics and Mathematics).
On Arsakeio campus at Psychiko there is a Natural History Museum which runs educational programs and an Analogic Devices Museum. In Arsakeio – Tositseio at Ekali there is an innovative archaeological area for excavation educational programs (“Little archaeologists”) and a room for such programs on Greek history and art with maps and replicas of ancient Greek artifacts and famous statues.
Arsakeio is the biggest educational organization in Greece. The administrative board consists of 11 eminent persons of the Greek society. Since 1988, president of the board is Georgios Babiniotis, emeritus Professor of linguistics, ex dean of the University of Athens, and ex-Minister of Education. Under his administration two new schools in Ioannina and Tirana (Albania) were founded, as well as a new modern campus in Patra, and the “The Book's Archway” (Στοά του Βιβλίου) in the premises of the original Arsakeio building downtown Athens, where many bookstores are hosted in the area of the old arcade. The Book’s Archway has become a very active institution which hosts cultural events and facilitates the “Free University”, a lifelong learning institution. In 2013 G. Babiniotis and Professor Gregory Nagy, Francis Jones Professor of Classical Greek Literature and Professor of Comparative Literature, Harvard University and director of Center for Hellenic Studies-Harvard University, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for close collaboration of Philekpaideftiki Etaireia and CHS-Harvard (joint conferences, educational exchanges, etc.).
