AASSA NEWSLETTER

 

From Your Executive Director

Since our December newsletter, a number of very positive events have taken place which are featured in articles later in this issue; namely, Chapel School in Sao Paulo has celebrated its 60th anniversary, Frank Anderson has been honored by AASSA, a student at Graded School has been awarded the Margaret Sanders Scholarship Award, and the VANAS conference was a decided success. 

OSAC Grant Recipient

In addition to the above, I am pleased to announce that AASSA has submitted two grant proposals to OSAC, one of which has been approved.  The author of the grant is Keren Soriano of Graded School in Sao Paulo and her grant is entitled Preventing Reading Difficulties: A Guide to Early Identification and Intervention in Multilingual Classrooms.  This $60,000 grant is AASSA’s first OSAC grant in a number of years, and it with pleasure that I announce Keren’s success.

Approval of New Members

Two schools have been approved by the Board of Trustees as meeting the recently updated requirements for AASSA membership.  Both the School of the Nations in Brasilia and Fundácion Educacional Alberto Einstein in Quito have been approved as Invitational Members starting in July 2008.  I would like to welcome both institutions to our membership—bringing the total number of member schools to 53. 

Membership Quest

If there is a school in your city or host country which meets the requirements for admission in AASSA that you would like to recommend to become a member, please contact me with the head of school’s name and contact email.  One way to grow and strengthen our association is to increase membership with schools of quality which meet our standards. 

 The following are the requirements for membership in AASSA:

Schools must:
i.    be elementary and/or secondary schools
ii.    be led by a Chief Administrative Officer
iii.   have English as the primary language of instruction
iv.   be accredited by an organization recognized/approved by AASSA (i.e. U.S. regional accrediting agencies, CIS, or the IBO if the school is offering at least two of the three programmes and if they are being taught in English) if they are applying for Full Membership.

      Invitational Member schools who are not fully accredited may be approved by committing to achieving AASSA recognized accreditation within five (5) years.
v.   have governance characteristics similar to those described in U.S. regional accreditation association governance standards
vi.   agree to adhere to the principles, purposes and objectives of AASSA

 

Recruiting Fair 2007

The AASSA Recruiting Fair held in Atlanta in late November was a successful event with 36 schools in attendance and resulting in 53 of the 102 registered candidates being placed.

Two bits of good news are: (a) that the fees for both Full and Invitational Members will not increase for next year and (b) we are in the process of developing an on-line registration system for both recruiters and candidates which will provide the same technological capabilities that recruiters enjoy with any of the other major agencies.  This will provide a major leap forward in being able to search our candidate database and have access to candidates’ documents and references prior to the fair.

 

My Visits to Member Schools

I have had the privilege of visiting a number of our member and candidate schools in the first 6 months of my tenure, namely: Escola Americana do Rio de Janeiro, Our Lady of Mercy, Pan American Christian Academy, American School of Brasilia, Chapel School – Escola Maria Imaculada, and School of the Nations in Brazil.  I most recently went on a trip to Venezuela and got to see Escuela Campo Alegre, Colegio Jefferson, Colegio Internacional de Carabobo, and Colegio International de Caracas. In April I have plans to visit the following schools:  Uruguayan American School, Lincoln School in Buenos Aires, The International School of Nido de Aguilas, Colegio Franklin D. Roosevelt, Academia Cotopaxi, Alliance Academy International, American School of Quito, Colegio Americano de Guayaquil, Inter-American Academy of Guayaquil, and Fundácion Educacional Alberto Einstein.

I have been impressed by the high quality of the schools, the wide variety of programs offered (from AP and IB to dual-language and dual-diploma programs), and the wonderful welcome that virtually all of these schools have extended to me. 

2008-2009 AASSA Events

The following is a listing of upcoming AASSA events.

July 20 pm - 23                        Business Managers’ Conference, Miami
September 23 & 24                 Board Meeting and Strategic Planning
September 25 pm - 27             Governance Conference, Miami
December 4pm -7:                  AASSA Recruiting Fair, Atlanta
December 7pm - 9:                 Latin American Administrators’ Conference, Atlanta
March 18 and 19:                    Pre-conference, Bogota, Colombia  
March 20 & 21:                      AASSA Educators’ Conference, Bogota, Colombia

The October 2009 conference will be hosted by Nido de Aguilas in Santiago, Chile (dates yet to be determined), the October 2010 conference will be hosted by Escola Americana de Campinas, Brazil, and the October 2011 conference will be hosted by Academia Cotopaxi in Quito, Ecuador.  I would like to thank all of these schools for offering to host an AASSA conference and hope our member schools will support our association through participation in the various events which are being developed on your behalf. 

Paul Poore
Executive Director

Paul Poore
Executive Director

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Chapel School Celebrates 60 Years

 

 

To commemorate 60 years of service to the international community within São Paulo, Brazil, Escola Maria Imaculada celebrated with a week of events in December 2007 honoring our past, celebrating our present and anticipating our future”.
Sixty years ago, a small school, affectionately called “Chapel School,” gathered a handful of children together to begin a journey that has resulted in who we are today.  Founded by the Oblates of Mary Immaculate to serve the English-speaking Catholics of São Paulo, from the very first class of 5 students on December 5, 1947, Chapel has grown to 700 students in 2007.
In preparation for this anniversary, photo exhibits showing the student body, events and activities at the school from years past as well as a photographic time-line recognizing important news events in Brazil and the United States allowed students to reflect on all of the changes that have occurred since Chapel’s humble beginnings.

Not only were present students able to look back at hundreds of photos of their time as they have grown within Chapel, but they were also able to see the alumni who were in the same place over the decades.  For many of our students and staff, this means looking at pictures of parents and even grandparents.

Beginning with a Sunday Mass December 2nd and including a week of school tours, alumni luncheons and several evening events to celebrate specific aspects of Chapel’s history, the school recognized their achievements and history within the community. 
To commemorate this occasion, current staff and students worked with the artist Laíde Dutra Sarti over several months crafting a mural of the Brazilian flag to be displayed in the school’s welcome foyer, allowing each student and staff member to choose and place a square as a symbolic part of their contribution to the school.

The festivities got into full swing on December 6th, Chapel Day, which is celebrated every year by the students with a mass focusing on the school’s Catholic heritage and an afternoon of friendly competition and play between students and faculty.   This spirit of competition continued on late into the evening with a cookout hosted by Marcello Mauriz, our athletic director, to celebrate Chapel’s longstanding tradition in sports.  Students, teachers, parents and alumni had enjoyed friendly, if at times intense, competition over futsal, volleyball, soccer, wall climbing, basketball and softball.  

This mixing of past and present kicked off the weekend festivities with Blue & White Night, an evening of friendship, dance, laughter, food and drinks.  Parents, alumni and teachers from past and present returned to the halls of Chapel for an informal gathering to reminisce about the past and to celebrate 60 years of Chapel School.  The theme was Trojan colors, and the auditorium was bursting with blue and white school spirit.
By far the most highly anticipated event of the weekend was the 60th Anniversary Gala dinner.  People from all sections of Chapel’s history came together for a formal dinner and dance at Espaco La Luna.  Over dinner, attendees were able to hear about Chapel’s history, mission and future from valued members of the Chapel community such as Chaplain Father Brown, Oblate Representative Father Pippolo, Superintendent John Ciallelo and various treasured alumni. 
Sixty years of history, dedication and striving to educate all students to become well-rounded, moral, just and thoughtful human beings culminated with an Anniversary Mass and Brunch December 9th where members of the Chapel community enjoyed memories from the past and present including those recounted by Mr. Joseph Sieh, a member of Chapel’s first graduating class.
In a year of examining where we have been, students and staff presently enjoy looking to where we are going as an inclusive educational community of diverse individuals from different cultural, ethnic and religious backgrounds, learning and growing harmoniously in mutual respect.  

 

 

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AASSA INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION LEADERSHIP AWARD PRESENTED TO
            DR. FRANK ANDERSON IN ATLANTA

 

 

Dr. Frank Anderson was awarded the AASSA 2007 International Education Leadership Award in Atlanta at the AASSA Recruiting Fair in December.

Frank is only the second outstanding educator to receive this important recognition by AASSA.  Frank’s contributions to international education are a matter of record, but his love and dedication to our region is beyond description.  His many years of service in Venezuela at the Colegio Internacional de Carabobo qualify him to be known world wide as a leader dedicated to quality international education.  Also, his assistance to our schools in the accreditation process has been significant.

Congratulations Frank and well deserved!

Vanas Conference

On January 25, Colegio Internacional de Carabobo (CIC-Valencia) in Valencia, Venezuela, welcomed teachers and administrators from Venezuela and beyond to the VANAS 2008 Teachers Conference. The Venezuelan Association of North American Schools (VANAS) annually hosts this conference at one of three VANAS schools, and this year it was proudly hosted under the direction of Director Joe Houston Walker on the CIC-Valencia campus, an educational environment world-renowned for its beauty and grandeur.

Over 400 international educators from Venezuela, Paraguay, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Aruba, Curacao, and the USA came together to celebrate this year’s theme of “Embracing Our Connections.” All in attendance eagerly arrived looking forward to a day dedicated to connecting, relaxing, and learning together. It was a sunny joyful day that allowed teachers the time and opportunity to embrace their connections as international educators and share their learning and expertise with one another.

After a light and healthy breakfast that featured assorted sandwiches, pastries, fruits, juices, coffees, and teas, VANAS 2008 attendees were pleased to welcome keynote speaker Ms. Elsa Lamb, Executive Director of the Association for the Advancement of International Education (AAIE). Ms. Lamb’s keynote address was “Building a Global Society through International Education,” and she was remarkable in her ability to capture our changing world, the implications of that change, and how we as educators will play our part in our global society’s future. Her remarks prompted us to consider where we have been in education, where are, and where we will soon go.

VANAS 2008 was also honored to have Dr. William F. Johnston, Director of Academia Cotopaxi and President of AASSA (Association of American Schools in South America). Dr. Johnston provided an update on current educational research with three sessions throughout the day: “Schools, Change, and the Future” and a double session “Pulling the Research Together” that updated educators on effectiveness research in instruction, administration and other applicable areas. Dr. Johnston’s workshops were very well attended and offered a wealth of new information.

And VANAS 2008 presented a special welcome to Mr. Paul Poore, Executive Director of the Association of American Schools in South America (AASSA), who joined us and was amongst the many educational dignitaries and leaders of the Latin American world of international education.

The VANAS 2008 Teachers Conference could not have been nearly as successful without the support of Dr. William Scotti, our Regional Education Officer from the Office of Overseas Schools, US Department of State. We thank Dr. Scotti’s for his contribution. His care and leadership are immeasurable and greatly appreciated. And we express gratitude to Rick Gray, our TIE-Care representative, for his generous financial support and participation. Rick always has useful and up-to-date financial and tax information for the many who rely on his expertise year after year. He truly serves us and our needs as international educators.

Finally, the reason VANAS 2008 was such a success and the reason we connected so well: all the teachers and administrators who offered of themselves and their expertise through their various workshop presentations, essentially giving the conference its special meaning and essence. A very special thank you goes to you all! The connections that each of your workshops created is why our bonds were strengthened and why we will harvest better student learning well into the future.

Finally, the VANAS 2008 Teachers Conference is a labor of love. Many hours went into preparing for this event and it would be impossible to thank all the people in the CIC community who devoted their time and energy to its success. From the delicious lunch that featured beef, chicken, fish, salads, assorted side dishes, and “to die for” desserts to the wonderful decorations, exciting raffle, and exhilarating social event featuring sparkling live entertainment, it was a memorable day.

VANAS 2008 simply could not have accomplished all this without you and your dedication to serving others who in turn serve the students of today -- the leaders of tomorrow.

We thank you!

AASSA received applications from the following students in the region:

--Kushal Punjwani of the International School of Curacao, Netherlands Antilles
--Geraldine Galve of the Escuela Bella Vista, Maracaibo
--Juan Francisco Leon of the Academia Cotopaxi, Quito, and
--Maria del Mar Jáuregui of Graded School, Sao Paulo

All four applications were deserving of the scholarship therefore making the selection most difficult.  But, the outstanding application from Maria del Mar Jauregui of Graded School was selected.  Maria’s application was submitted to the Margaret Sanders Foundation as the AASSA candidate to now compete against other applications from other regions.

Some highlights of Maria’s application include:

--Participation in student government in grades 9 through 12
--Class President in grade 10
--Class Secretary/Treasurer in grades 10 and 11
--Columnist in student newsletter
--Captain of the Knowledge Bowl
--Active in community service and outreach program
--Student fund raising
--Leader of student leadership programs
--Student athlete leadership
--Member of basketball team

In addition to the above Maria is in the IB Program and has high marks in all of her classes.  Her contributions as a columnist in the student newspaper have been significant and have lead to school and community improvement programs.

Maria is a strong candidate for the award and AASSA wishes her well!