ISB All School eNews – Wishing you a Happy Songkran Festival
The word Songkran comes from a Sanskrit word meaning ‘passing’ or ‘approaching’, and Thailand’s famous Songkran Festival marks the beginning of the traditional Thai New Year. We wish you all a Happy Songkran and hope you all have a restful holiday.
IASAS Baseball & Softball Championship This Weekend!
The IASAS Baseball & Softball Championships hit campus this week, and it’s guaranteed to be a home run! Come out and support our Panthers as they take on the best of the rest of IASAS over three electric days on the diamond.
Don’t miss all the food, fun, Songkran holiday vibe, intense competition and immense school spirit, rounding third and headed home to ISB!
GO PANTHERS!
IASAS BASEBALL & SOFTBALL PROMO VIDEO by: Ashley Bremner
Elementary School Spring Concert: “Child of Song”
Wednesday, May 1st at 6:30 pm in Chevron Theatre
On May 1st, the ES String Ensemble, Orff Ensemble and Panther Choir will demonstrate how they are children of song in their final concert of the year. The concert will be a collaborative event between our three Elementary School ensembles, and will also include guest artists from the Middle School choir and the High School jazz band! Join us for this celebration of song on. Entrance is free.
Follow the IASAS Championships in Taipei and Jakarta
Go Panthers! Our ISB teams take off this week for their season-ending championships in Taipei and Jakarta. You can follow all of the results and updates, plus watch the competition via live stream and through the websites linked below:
Good luck to all of our athletes, teams, and coaches!
GO PANTHERS!
BOT Nominations Close on Friday, 12th
Please be reminded that the deadline for submission of BOT Nomination Forms is Friday, April 12, 2019 at 12 noon. Download the form here.
Forms must be submitted in 2 formats:
1) by email to Board Secretary, Joy Davy at joyd@isb.ac.th (with your name as subject line) and
2) hard copy with Khun Oor, at the Head of School office.
Why join the Board of Trustees?
The ISB Board of Trustees is currently composed of eleven elected positions and up to four appointed positions. This year there will be eight open seats on the Board to be filled by election. Newly elected trustees will serve a two-year term, beginning August 1, 2019.
Guardians of the School
Candidates for the Board of Trustees (BOT) should be aware of the many rewards and responsibilities of serving on the Board. The Board is the guardian of the school’s mission, and as such sets policy, focuses on school governance and addresses long-term, strategic issues. The Board is not involved in day-to-day school management. The full Board meets once a month in an open regular session, followed by a closed executive session. Board meetings occur in the evenings at ISB and last approximately two-three hours. In addition, trustees attend an annual retreat in August.
Valuable Committees
Trustees also serve on one or more committees corresponding to their skills and interests. Current committees are the Business Committee, the Committee on Trustees, and the Strategic Improvement and Learning Committee. Committees meet once a month for one-two hours and are the working groups of the Board. Subjects such as financial stability, budget oversight, stewardship of ISB’s educational program, evaluation and training of the Board, and future strategic improvements in alignment with the mission of ISB, are examples of issues addressed by the committees.
No specific professional background needed
Trustees are charged with the responsibility to represent ISB and the ISA as a whole, rather than any one constituency within the community. No specific professional or personal background is needed, other than ISA membership, a positive attitude, the ability to commit to the time requirements, and a deep interest to maintain and further enhance the excellence of ISB. The rewards of Board service include the opportunity to interact with our dynamic school leadership team, and the opportunity to understand and help shape ISB’s future growth and direction.
ISB Board of Trustees Annual Election
The ISB Board of Trustees annual election will take place on Tuesday, May 14, 2019, the day of the International School Association (ISA) Annual General Meeting. (The ISA is comprised of all ISB parents and guardians and is the license holder of ISB.) Election results will be announced that evening at the 7:00 pm AGM.
For more information, please contact Henrietta Bullinger at 092-249-0937 or hbullinger@gmail.com
Korean Community Annual Meeting: Wednesday, April 24th
Wednesday, April 24th at MPB 1&2 (9:30am-11:30am)
We are pleased to invite all Korean parents to the annual meeting. It will be held on Wednesday, April 24th from 9:30 to 11:30AM in the MPB 1&2.
This is a great opportunity to look back what our PTA members did during this school year. Simple snacks and some drinks will be served. We hope to see you all there.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact to us, isb.koreanpta@gmail.com.
Eunchu Lee & Sunghee Ahn
Korean PTA Co Representatives,
2018-2019
Do you have band instruments to sell?
Next year’s grade 6 band students will soon be hoping to purchase instruments. Some will be looking for second-hand instruments to purchase.
If you have band instruments in good condition that you wish to sell (flute, oboe, bassoon, clarinet, alto/tenor/baritone saxophone, trumpet, French horn, trombone, euphonium/baritone, tuba and/or percussion kit), please contact <kentarou@isb.ac.th> and bring your instruments to the Middle School band rooms (#119 or 107, first floor in the Cultural Center) before Friday, May 10 for us to evaluate and give an estimated price. We will then send a list of available instruments to parents who are interested in purchasing second-hand instruments.
Please be advised that we are not able to guarantee that all instruments will be sold due to the condition or interested buyers.
If you have further questions, please feel free to write to <kentarou@isb.ac.th>.
Kentaro Udagawa and Brent Poling, MS Band
Parent letter Developmental Assets Profile Questionnaire
Dear Parent/Guardian,
At ISB we care deeply about the well-being of our students. To help us meet our mission to support them in leading healthy, active and balanced lives, we will pilot the administration of the Developmental Assets Profile to students in grades 4 through 12 in late April. This is an anonymous survey to help us gather information on the successes and areas of continued improvement for the Culture of Care at ISB which has been a strategic school initiative for the last 3 years. This norm referenced survey is used extensively in the US and with many International Schools as a prosocial measure of student wellbeing.
Why is the questionnaire being administered?
The purpose of this questionnaire is to:
- Discover the strengths and supports that our ISB students identify related to well-being.
- Listen to the perspectives of our students and their perceptions of support, empowerment, commitment, positive values, social competencies and positive identity.
- Gain a road map to guide ISB in proactive and focused planning to increase positive outcomes and support for our students.
How and when will the questionnaire be administered? The survey will be administered the week starting 22nd April to students grades 4 through 12. The online questionnaire will be taken in class and will take approximately 10 minutes to complete. Your child’s participation is voluntary.
How will the results be used?
- The data collected will be managed, analyzed, and reported by an ISB team including the school counselors and the ISB leadership team.
- Individual student responses to the questionnaire are anonymous. However, the questionnaire will collect identifiers such as grade, ethnicity and gender to support targeted follow up, and our ability to analyze overall trends to help improve student support at ISB.
- The questionnaire process has been designed to identify student perceptions of support, empowerment, commitment, positive values, social competencies and positive identity.
- Key findings will be shared with teachers and parents.
Does my child have to complete the questionnaire?
No. As a parent or guardian, you can opt out of having your child complete this questionnaire. Students will be informed that they may choose to skip any questions that they do not feel comfortable answering.
Parents/Guardians who do not want their child to take the survey should let their child’s school counselor know by phone or in writing no later than the 19th of April. ISB will assume parent/guardian consent to their child participating unless the school counselor has been notified. Parents do not have to do anything unless they do not want their child to participate.
Thank you so much for your support with this important project.
With gratitude,
Colleen Coady (colleenc@isb.ac.th) MS Counselor
Andy Vaughan (andyv@isb.ac.th) HS Dean of Students
Bronwyn Weale (bronwynw@isb.ac.th) PK12 Curriculum and Learning Specialist
Doug Williamson (douglasw@isb.ac.th) ES Grade 4 & 5 Counselor