St. Stephen’s SchoolRome · Since 1964
Awards & Recognition
In the heart of Rome since 1964, St. Stephen’s has been a school of firsts and a place the world takes note of. Every credential below is real and traceable to an outside source.
In 2024, Architectural Digest named St. Stephen’s one of “The World’s 9 Most Beautiful Boarding Schools” — a converted convent and villa at the foot of the Aventine Hill, and the only international school set within Rome’s historic centre.
Every item below links to the source behind it — a magazine feature, the accrediting bodies, published IB results or St. Stephen’s own record. Nothing is inflated to fill space.
Architectural Digest named St. Stephen’s one of “The World’s 9 Most Beautiful Boarding Schools” in 2024 — a converted convent and villa at the foot of the Aventine Hill.
In 1975, St. Stephen’s became the first school in Italy to adopt the International Baccalaureate — a pioneer of the diploma the country now knows well.
The Class of 2025 earned an average IB score of 36 — against a global average near 30 — with nearly 20% scoring 40 or above and almost half awarded the bilingual diploma.
St. Stephen’s is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges and the Council of International Schools, authorized by the IB Organization and registered with the US State Department.
Recent graduates have gone on to Stanford, the University of Pennsylvania, Cornell, Georgetown, UCL, King’s College London, Bocconi and Sciences Po — among others worldwide.
Established in 1964 by Dr. John O. Patterson, former Headmaster of the Kent School in Connecticut — an American international school in the heart of Rome ever since.
Over the last five years St. Stephen’s has sustained an average IB pass rate of 98 percent — a record of consistency, not a single strong year.
St. Stephen’s is the only international school set within Rome’s historic centre — the city itself an extension of the classroom, from the Circus Maximus to the Roman Forum.
A featured affiliate partner of K12 Academics, the education-resource network online since 2004 and reaching families in 185 countries every month.
The credentials follow the life of the school: a global community learning at the heart of Rome, taught with rigor and curiosity — excellence, done differently.
A pioneering IB World School, internationally accredited, celebrated for its setting and proven by its results — six decades of excellence in the heart of Rome.
Class of 2025, vs ~30 worldwide.
Five-year average.
To adopt the IB Diploma.
Architectural Digest named St. Stephen’s among “The World’s 9 Most Beautiful Boarding Schools” (2024). Its 1964 founding, 1975 first-in-Italy IB adoption, NEASC and CIS accreditation, and Class of 2025 IB results (average 36; 98% five-year pass rate) are documented by Wikipedia, Rome Schools, The Good Schools Guide and the School’s own published results. University destinations are examples drawn from the Class of 2025, not a complete list.