President Atatürk's Visits to İzmir High School for Boys

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, made two notable visits to İzmir High School for Boys, leaving a lasting impression on its students and faculty. His first visit occurred on October 15, 1925.

During this initial visit, Atatürk entered a French class where he called upon a student, Ali Rıza Berkem. Berkem, who later became a chemistry professor, recalled Atatürk asking him to read and translate a French phrase written on the board: "Dans la nature rien ne se perd, rien ne se crée" (In nature, nothing is lost, nothing is created), attributed to Lavoisier. Atatürk then emphasized the importance of chemistry, urging Berkem to study the subject diligently.

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In nature, nothing is lost, nothing is created.

Atatürk's second visit took place on February 1, 1931. Having learned about the successful academic performance of İzmir High School students in a nationwide exam, he returned to observe classes. He attended French, mathematics, and Turkish literature lessons. In the literature class, where Ziya Gökalp was being studied, Atatürk asked a student to recite a poem and explain its meaning, expressing his satisfaction with the student's understanding and offering his own insights on the poet.

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Chemistry is very important in our time, and there is no doubt that it will take on a much more important role in individual and societal life in the future. Accordingly, chemists will have very important duties. You should study chemistry very hard.