By early March, as it became increasingly clear that COVID-19 was going to seriously disrupt the running of the school, the country and the world, we asked ourselves what to do with Beyond King’s. We’d been working on the content of the magazine since November, and all of a sudden everything was overshadowed by the virus. Should we proceed with writing all the great stories about student and alumni achievements? Should we convert the whole magazine into a COVID-19 issue? Would we even be able to print and distribute the magazine?

We decided that we would feature the pandemic and its implications (see pages 36–43), but would not give up the chance to highlight the achievements of the rest of the year. This has been a year of beginnings and endings: we have a brilliant new head of school brimming with exciting new ideas (see pages 36–38); various key faculty are finishing their last year at King’s (see pages 10–13, 24–25, 68–69); and, as they grow older and increase in number, our alumni are doing more and more exciting things. How could we not share all this? But one thing is different. For the first time, we are launching the magazine online. Once conditions permit, we will print Beyond King’s, but for now, we hope you enjoy the online experience.

Before you start turning the pages, I’ll leave you with a few words about the name of the magazine. When we launched Beyond King’s in 2013, the plan was for it to be an alumni magazine, hence “Beyond.” As the years went by, it grew in scope and became a whole school magazine. For a while we wondered whether the name had become a misnomer. But as you read, you will see the amazing number of initiatives that go beyond the walls of our campus — from community service and outreach efforts to our COVID-19 symposium. We realized that Beyond King’s is still the right name, because everything we do has — or will have — implications beyond our campus. How apt for a school that, in His Majesty King Abdullah II’s words, aims
to “develop and empower young leaders who will drive change within and beyond their communities, and eventually across borders.”

Vera Azar