Highest quality in educational programs

Experienced Team

International Accreditation and Memberships

It is of utmost importance to us to ensure highest quality in our educational programs. This is achieved through the implementation of rigorous standards and employing faculty and leadership with a long-standing experience and successful track record in international education. To continuously improve and innovate at United Lisbon, we measure ourselves at highest external standards set by leading global educational institutions such as:

Dukes Education Group: Dukes Education was founded by Aatif Hassan in 2015 and is a privately owned family of independent schools, colleges and nurseries, as well as a provider of summer schools and camps, and university consultancy services. The group has 40 brands operating across 62 settings, supporting more than 8,500 pupils and over 2,280 staff. The group’s rigorous focus on excellence in education is evident in academic performance of the children but also in producing happy and kind children who want to add value to this world.
The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO): United International School Lisbon is an IB World School teaching the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme for Grades 11 and 12. IB World Schools share a common philosophy- a commitment to high-quality, challenging, international education- that we believe is important for our students.
The New England Association of School’s and Colleges (NEASC): We have embarked on the process of receiving accreditation from NEASC. We are now a candidate school and we look forward to being accredited soon.
The International Primary Curriculum (IPC): United Lisbon International School is now the first international school in Portugal joining a group of more than 1000 schools in over 90 countries offering the International Primary Curriculum and the International Early Years Curriculum.
The Mediterranean Association of International Schools (MAIS): United Lisbon is a member of the network of international schools in the Mediterranean that fosters partnerships and creates opportunities for teacher engagement and student learning beyond the school itself.
ULIS is also a member of the CHESS association (Council of Heads of English-Speaking Schools). Initially established to organize sports events among international schools, CHESS has evolved into a dynamic association with a broader mission of promoting excellence in education and the values of international education and offering mutual support, assistance, and advice among its members.

The Founders – Roman and Chitra Stern

Roman and Chitra Stern have been entrepreneurs in Portugal since 2001. They are the founders of Martinhal, a group of high-class hotels focused on families in the Algarve and Lisbon. They are also involved in a series of real estate development projects in the Parque das Nações at Avenida Dom Joâo II, such as the new Ageas Headquarters and the Martinhal Residences – one of the first exclusive Branded Residences hotels in Lisbon.

Being an international family in Portugal, with four children of their own, Roman and Chitra have a passion for families and care deeply about the next generation growing up and being ready to make a difference in an ever changing world. In their various engagements and pro bono activities, including as an Executive Committee Member of “Portugal In” (a taskforce to promote Foreign Direct Investments in Portugal), they seek to support Portugal in its effort to further international outreach and grow economic perspectives.

In 2022, they decided to partner with the Dukes Education Group to take ULIS to the next level of growth. ULIS was the first international school partner with the Dukes Education Group outside of the United Kingdom. That first step into Europe with ULIS was the catalyst for further growth in Europe soon after – Dukes has since acquired other schools in Portugal, Switzerland, Ireland, Spain and in Central Europe. They have further plans to build their group in other countries in Europe.

Senior Leadership Team

José Azcue, PhD,, Head of School 2019-2024

Dr. José Azcue has more than 29 years’ experience in international education and is widely engaged with the IB (International Baccalaureate Organization). He holds a Masters from University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and a PhD from The University of Waterloo in Canada. José has served as Headmaster of an international school and held leadership and teaching positions at several international schools in Portugal. In 2000 he was awarded the Diploma of the Principle Training Center for International School Leadership. Jose has been actively involved in teaching, developing teaching material, running workshops and online teacher training. He has been an invaluable member of the founding team and has given ULIS its initial direction during its growth from pre-opening till the summer of 2024 when we had grown to 622 students across all grades till 12th grade. José will now be taking a senior advisory role with the Dukes Education Group’s schools in Portugal.

Martin Harris, Executive Director (appointed 2024)

Martin Harris, who joined us in the Spring of 2024, is a distinguished educator with 19 years of experience with boarding schools and day schools in the UK. Martin believes in holistic development for children during their years in school and especially believes in the importance of sports in schools.