Dear Students and Parents,
I hope everyone is as excited as I am to head out on Discover India! As classes will not be in session next week these notes will cover the period of November 11th - 23rd. The next newsletter will be published on Wednesday, November 23rd.
Please join me in congratulating our Theory of Knowledge students for completing their final presentation this week! They were incredibly poised and effective!
Congratulations to all the band and choir students for a wonder fall concert!
Celebrating CHEMUN X - A Note from Paula Peters Frampton
The Tenth Chennai Model United Nations was a resounding success! AISC HS delegates joined about 363 other young diplomats to represent 66 countries in a simulation of the UN. From the sounding of the first gavel, students drafted resolutions, sought signatories, lobbied in unmoderated caucuses and made amendments all in an effort to make progress while staying true to the country they represented. Highlights of the conference included: high levels of collaboration among students present, the engagement, enthusiasm and passion with which students approached negotiations, and the resulting fact that over 90% of AISC students were main submitters or co-submitters of resolutions. Lisa Martin, head of the THIMUN foundation-Qatar, present during the three days to audit the program, shared the following remarks on her departure: "I want to congratulate you on your wonderful conference! I was impressed every day by the organization, professionalism and overall upbeat feel of your event. I have seen many MUN conferences, and this is one of the best I’ve visited!"
We are proud of our CHEMUN X Leadership team and delegates and excited about the growth of the MUN program at AISC. In addition, we would like to thank the many students who gave their weekends to help run this conference, including student members of the Admin Team, the Press Team and the Note-Passers.
Discover India Is Here - a Note from Mr. McFarland
Discover India trips are upon us. Our groups have been meeting over the past few months and are nearly ready to depart. Please note that each trip has different needs but all need proper ID to travel and the one page waiver form. Many of our trips will be in areas where cell coverage is limited so communication to parents may be limited to the daily message sent out by the HS office just indicating that all is well. This document has the gathering and pick-up times as well as travel information and links to the trip plans. Your student should have detailed list for things to bring and other expectations. We look forward to an exciting week of discovery!
Exam Revision Starting December 6th
Exam revision begins December 6th. During revisions there are no summative assessment scheduled unless they represent an alternative assessment to an exam during exam week. By November 23rd all teachers will post on Moodle the following:
- The date/time of your exam
- The format of your exam (paper, alternative paper, alternative project, etc.)
- A review list/packet for your exam
Faculty Feature - Cary Stewart
Cary Stewart, our MS/HS Band teacher, grew up in the Southeast of the United States and started playing percussion in grade 6. By grade 7 he knew music was what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. One of the most exciting things Cary has done musically was to perform in front of 40,000 people and to feel them respond to his energy on stage. Professionally he loves to see his beginning students take to the stage for the first time - they walk on looking terrified but walk off looking strong and confident! Mr. Stewart is passionate about raising his daughter to be a tall, strong, self-sufficient, capable grown woman and while taking a break from this important job, he likes to camp, bike and have fun on the beach. You may not know that Cary cares a lot about what he puts in his body and while he used to eat with abandon, he now is very health conscious. If Mr. Stewart could trade places with someone for 24 hours he would choose an AISC student! He would love to experience the privilege and luxury of being a teenager despite the homework. Cary is at AISC with his daughter, Athena, who is in Elementary School.
Upcoming Skyward Update - Note the Date - Repeat Announcement
Today marks our next Skyward Update. By 4:00 pm teachers will have their marks as up to date as possible so that families know where students stand before heading off on Discover India. We will have one more Update before exams (December 9th). Should you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate reaching out to teachers.
Upcoming Parent Coffee - Date Change Pending - Repeat Announcement
Our next coffee was scheduled for Tuesday, November 29th at 8:45 am in the BBT and will be postponed. We have confirmation that our US Department of State sponsored admissions visitor will be in Chennai the first week of December. Once her schedule is firm we will set a college admission focussed coffee date/time with her as our main speaker. More as we know it!
Next Early Release Wednesday Coming- Repeat Announcement
On November 23rd, we will have our next Early Release Wednesday. Students are expected to depart campus in a timely and organized fashion. We appreciate your patience with traffic on these days. In preparation, please plan on allowing longer time for entry and exit to the school at release time. For our Middle and High School students, hot lunch will be served.
Sincerely,
Joelle Basnight
High School Principal