Category: school

Parent Meeting – Wednesday, April 10 in the ASW Theater for all parents…

In a couple of previous Zimplicity articles, I suggested that we should all be diligent in combating the issues that our children are facing.  Articles on sleep and, more recently, electronic cigarettes were well received.

As part of our ongoing commitment to prevention and wellness, we have invited prevention specialists from FCD Prevention Works to join our community during the week of April 8-13. A part of the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation, FCD (Freedom from Chemical Dependency) is a non-profit organization that provides substance abuse prevention services for schools. Since 1976, they have taught over a million students of all ages. Their mission is to:

• Encourage and support the non-use of alcohol and other illegal or illicit drugs during the growing years.
• Empower young people to make healthy, responsible choices regarding alcohol and other drug use
• Teach students and adults how to recognize the early warning signs of substance abuse and to intervene appropriately
• Educate students, parents, teachers, and administrators on the physiological and psychological effects of alcohol and other drugs
• Promote awareness of drug addiction, including alcoholism, as a progressive, chronic, and often fatal disease
• Provide educational communities with the guidance and training necessary to implement comprehensive, effective approaches to substance abuse prevention

FCD prevention specialists are highly trained professionals who have achieved healthy recovery from alcohol or other drug addictions. This unique perspective enhances the credibility of their message and provides students with role models for happy, healthy, drug-free living.  The FCD prevention specialist will present a parent workshop to offer support and guidance in helping your children enjoy drug-free adolescence on Wednesday, April 10 at 6:00 p.m. in our ASW Theater. This is appropriate for parents of children of all ages.  Some of the topics to be addressed include:

• Effective ways to communicate with your child about drugs and drug use
• Up-to-date facts about current drug use and trends
• What to say about your own experiences with alcohol and/or drug experimentation
• How to spot early warning signs of use and effective ways to respond.

This program presents a perfect opportunity for discussing alcohol and other drug-related issues with your children. Parental involvement is crucial to our efforts to reduce the risks teenagers face. We want our students to hear from both school and home that we are concerned about alcohol, nicotine, and other drugs use by adolescents, and that we are committed to keeping our children safe.

See you all there!!

Board Member Application/Nomination

This is a reminder that your applications are due this Friday if you want to become a member of the Board of Trustees. You can find more information about the BoT, including the composition of the board and qualifications at the following link:

https://www.aswarsaw.org/community/board-of-trustees

The link to our form is here:

https://goo.gl/forms/3Vg4LemowAyfBTNA3

Serving the students of our school in this capacity is a truly rewarding experience.  Please consider whether you can potentially contribute and fill out our simple application form today.  We’ll be in touch with you shortly thereafter.

Spring Forward

It’s our turn to push clocks forward this weekend, catching up with most states in the U.S. and other countries that observe this strategy.  At 2:00 a.m. on Sunday morning, all clocks will “spring forward” to 3:00 a.m.  Suggest you get to bed early to avoid the sleep loss!

Shuttle Service

We are coming up on your last chance to try the shuttle bus service before our deadline of March 29.  Numbers are currently low and it is not clear whether we price and continue the service.  If you haven’t had a chance to ride it yet, this would be the week to try it and give us an indication of interest by doing so.

Each year, about this time, we sum up the recruiting season and update the community with the pending changes for the next school year. It’s that time of the year again and you will find our page of departing and new staff updated and ready for your review. The nature of international schools is the constant movement of our population in and out of the school at all levels. For students, we average about 10-12% turnover each year. Staff turnover is about the same with age and adventure calling to some in our midst to take on either retirement (or reinvention) or a new challenge somewhere in the world. On our page of updates, you’ll also find a few shifts of current staff into new roles for next year and we are excited for their interest in taking on a new responsibility and their growing as leaders in the process.

Our update page is here: https://zimplicity.org/?page_id=370

We have a wonderful team of recruiters here that have scoured the planet for our new colleagues. My thanks to their diligence and talent in this regard. We look forward to welcoming all of our new Warriors in August. Similarly, in June we will bid farewell to some of our current Warriors. But, in the midst of our tears, we’ll remind them as we always do – Once a Warrior, Always a Warrior!!

Aspiring Board Member Training

A final reminder about our training session tomorrow! There is still time to sign up and join us. Will take place as follows:

Thursday, March 21, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. in the TLC

If you would like to participate, you can sign up by clicking here:

https://goo.gl/forms/ICzpzehhgO3y5qLg2

Personal Project

Please note the information further down in the Upper School section regarding the Personal Project Expo on Tuesday evening, March 19 from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m.  This is a culmination of a year of work for our oldest MYP learners and constitutes a tremendous cross-disciplinary journey of planning, learning, and reflection.  We saw a waypoint of this during an earlier showcase, but this is, as Mr. Sheehan noted, the Red Carpet event that will provide an opportunity for students to share their insights into selected areas of study.  This is not just an event for Middle School, but one that may be good for some of our upper elementary students to introduce them to activities on their horizon. The IB, in founding documents suggests the following:

Interdisciplinary teaching and learning builds a connected curriculum that addresses the developmental needs of students and prepares them for further academic study and life in an increasingly interconnected world…. The personal project encourages students to practise and strengthen their ATL (Approaches to Learning) skills, to connect classroom learning engagements with personal experience, and to develop their own interests for lifelong learning.

This is fun for the whole family and a great way of understanding the rich insights that students have gleaned from their deep dive.  Join us.  Take a look. Celebrate accomplishment!

#MyFreedomDay

Recently on CNN, a project that started at Atlanta International School was showcased. I’m connected to multiple organizations that support this effort and it has been growing now since its inception. I encouraged students to consider participating on their own this year, in hopes of inspiring student involvement and planning towards next year.  Please take a look at the following links and watch what transpires during the day tomorrow. This activity has the potential to have some strong correlations to our mission, vision, and core values.

#MyFreedomDay– Thursday, March 14, 2019:

• https://edition.cnn.com/specials/world/myfreedomday
• http://cdn.cnn.com/cnn/2019/images/01/30/myfreedomday2019.pdf

You can watch our work via two hashtags: #MyFreedomDay and #ASW_Warsaw

Aspiring Board Member Training

A reminder to mark your calendars for the next session of the New and Aspiring Board Member training in advance of our appointments and elections this year.  I’ll be leading a session on School and non-profit board membership. If you have an interest in a position on the ASW board, as a leader in PTO, or if you are looking to serve on other non-profit boards in the future, this training will help provide some of the key understandings associated with good governance in a non-profit setting.  The content of this training includes insights into ASW specifically.  We’ll explore selected ASW Board documents and will give some insight into ASW structures and policy.  Our session will take place as follows:

Thursday, March 21, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. in the MPR

If you would like to participate, you can still sign up by clicking here:

https://goo.gl/forms/ICzpzehhgO3y5qLg2

Next week, ASW welcomes the 29th Annual CEESA (Central and Eastern European Schools Association) Conference to our fair city.  We will be welcoming 500 participants representing 70 schools from our region and around the world. Included in this mix is our own consultant, Ewan MacIntosh, along with a wide range of other key presenters on strategic planning, change management, leadership, literacy, service learning, exceptional talents, sports, activities, design, STEM, and a full range of educational innovation.  Presented by outside speakers and a range of both regional and members of our own faculty, it is a robust two-day experience that forms the foundation of our regional and global collaboration.  If you want to learn more about our activities next week, you can see more conference information here:  https://www.ceesaconference.com/2019/

We’ll have many of these participants at school on Thursday for Pre-Conference sessions.  A variety of guests touring our classrooms will be part of our sharing of programs from Early Childhood to Design Center to MYP/DP programmes.  And, of course, we have a previously scheduled Professional Development day on Friday, March 15, with no school for students so that all staff can participate in the conference on both Friday and Saturday.

We’ll also be welcoming our representatives from the United States State Department, including our Regional Educational Officer, Mary Russman.  Mary will be in meetings on campus and at the Embassy during her time here as well as participating in the conference.  Please look for us on Monday through Thursday as we tour her around the building, giving updates on our various programs.  She’ll have other officers of the State Department joining her at different times as well.

Message from the Chair of the Board of Trustees:

February 27, 2019

Dear American School of Warsaw Community,

Congratulations on the successful completion of the first semester of this school year! I hope you all had plenty of time with your family and friends over the mid-winter break. The Board of Trustees (BoT) has also been busy. We have launched a Corporate Sponsorship Program, improved sustainability of BoT’s governance, and adopted a new mission and vision statement based on our core values.

Similar to last year, the BoT is seeking candidates for Trustees (U.S. citizens and Non-U.S. citizens) who will begin serving in the 2019-2020 school year. This process, overseen by the BoT Governance Committee, begins now with a call for both applications for appointment and nominations for election through a unified form completed by March 29, 2019. The link to our form is here:

https://goo.gl/forms/3Vg4LemowAyfBTNA3

The Board is currently seeking community members with experience in fields like human resources, fundraising, development, and strategic planning. We are also seeking members with strong social networks within both ASW and our host community. Most importantly, the BoT needs parents who are committed to the values, mission, and vision of our community and the long-term wellbeing of our school and its students.

You can find more information about the BoT, including the composition of the board and qualifications at the following link:

https://www.aswarsaw.org/community/board-of-trustees

I want to thank all of you who have volunteered to support our school this year. Whether hosting visiting students, serving as room parents, or by supporting the PTO, your efforts are key to making ASW a community that changes the world for the better.

Ray Banks
Chairperson, Board of Trustees

Additional Note: Shuttle Bus Update

Our new collaboration with TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRUCTURE MANAGEMENT Sp. z o.o., which began on Tuesday, is off to a good start with a number of riders. The picture included here is the shuttle ready for an afternoon run.

Please note we have an updated bus schedule that provides for adjusted times on Wednesday mornings, as would be expected for our weekly schedule for students.  This schedule is available at the front reception desk and at the following link:

Shuttle Bus Schedule

SEE RECENT UPDATE AT BOTTOM

While we are not sending eNotes this week, I’m writing a note to announce the tremendous sadness that many of us are feeling at the announcement early this morning of the sudden passing of Richard T. Krajczar, longtime Executive Director of EARCOS and past school head at a number of international schools throughout the world.  Dick was 75 years old.

Dick is known to many of us in the international education community.  I enjoyed a longstanding friendship with him that stretches back to 1995 and my first EARCOS Conference as a young Vice Principal.  My most fervent memories of Dick are from my time in Shanghai, during the years where he was a partner in establishing and developing the Learning 2.0 conferences that were originally co-sponsored by ACAMIS and EARCOS along with a collaborative of schools in Shanghai and beyond.  But, I also hold fond memories of many EARCOS conferences and the sound of the bell under Dick’s hand announcing the start of each session herding administrators throughout their days together.

I count Dick as one of my best friends and I recently enjoyed his company at the AISH Oasis meeting in San Francisco and throughout the AAIE Conference just two weeks ago.  As luck would have it, Dick was the first person I encountered in the lobby of the hotel as I arrived at check-in before the buses left to the AISH retreat.  I sat at a table with him discussing diversity and tolerance at Oasis along with other stalwarts, Ellen Stern, Rick Spradling, and Dave Toze.  I count myself lucky that he also wished me well as we parted at the end of the AAIE conference and my soul was always energized whenever we spent time together, however brief.

I also had a special dinner out with Dick back in November 2017 in Shanghai when I attended the Learning2 conference, taking the reins from him as Board Chair and returning to the group that collaborated together back in 2007.  In a mall near the school, we found a small restaurant to relax in after a hectic day observing the wonderful interactions at another Learning2 conference and sharing our courses and hopes for the future.  It was like so many meals we had shared over the years, reminiscing and connecting on our common beliefs about the future, catching up on family, and checking in on various friends and where some were headed next.  At this dinner, I remember with fondness that we shared reflections on the life journey of international educators and the importance of friends and family.  While the journeys are sometimes arduous, there is always home when loved ones are close at hand – not the location, but the people.  We chuckled at this together, both knowing what life has brought us — great measures of opportunity and engagement sprinkled with the occasional challenge, distance, and isolation.

EARCOS has published a Memoriam for Dick and I’m sure more information will follow in the days ahead as the world comes to grips with this tremendous loss.  AISH followed suit with an update late today:

It is with profound sadness that we learned that Dr Dick Krajczar, Executive Director of EARCOS, passed away Feb 19 in Manila at the age of 75.

Dick developed a cough in San Francisco and was diagnosed with pneumonia when he returned to Manila. In the hospital, he had a minor heart attack and then continued to have difficulty breathing.

As many of you know, Dick and his wife Sherry planned to retire in Wyoming. He told me just two weeks ago that he was excited to use, for the first time. the bamboo fishing rod that my husband gave him 15 years ago.

Dick and Sherry have two children, Morgan and Josh, who are international educators at International School Beijing and Sri Lanka.

We will pass on information when we know more about arrangements. Dick was a true friend and the international school world is a better place because of his influence.

Deb Welch
AISH Executive Director

I, for one, will struggle with this in the days and weeks ahead, mourning the loss of a close friend and collaborator.  We can only hope that his inspiration and enduring spirit will be remembered through our continued commitment to the children and the profession he served — and that we all serve together.

Update from EARCOS:

We would like to invite everyone to two occasions to honor the memory of + Dr. Richard Krajczar.

*Saturday, February 23 from 10:00AM – 2:00PM in Chapel 5, Heritage Park, Bayani Road, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City,Philippines

*Wednesday, February 27 at 3:00PM a Requiem Mass will be said in the Chapel of Brent International School Manila, Brentville Subdivision, Mamplasan, Binan, Laguna, Philippines.

Click here to write your message of condolences.

Note: In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Hug Project, c/o the EARCOS office. This organization works to alleviate child trafficking in Thailand. » click here

Last week I was privileged to attend the Association for the Advancement of International Education (AAIE) conference in San Francisco.  This is an annual gathering of Heads of School from around the world and it was a wonderful opportunity to connect with colleagues and hear from key speakers and leaders sharing insights into the challenges we all face around the world.  Many of my dearest friends took to the stage to share successes in their leadership journey including Charles (Chip) Barder, past head of school here at ASW from 2002 to 2008.  The leadership conversations were rich and inspiring as we all continue to refresh our approaches and improve our skills to match the growing challenges of education in an ever-evolving global dynamic.  We connected with key supporters and researchers.  I particularly enjoyed the current work of Will Richardson, who was a key mentor when he joined a conference I organized in Shanghai back in 2007.  His work with key principles for schools in the current age helped me assess our work in Core Values and confirmed that we have captured the right framework for our strategic work going forward.  He inspired us to consider the key drivers of education in the information age and challenged us to focus on self-determination and engagement as key factors in meaningful education that is enduring.  To quote him from his website:

It’s an absolutely amazing time to be a learner.

But what we know about how kids learn most powerfully and deeply isn’t what we practice in our schools.  Today, more than ever, that has to change.

Reminder

Remember to always be wearing your parent badge at school at all times.I reminded everyone back in November and need to remind you again. Thanks for the fun interactions in the cafeteria when I remind you.  Appreciation to all our parents who are remembering to wear their badges at all times.  Don’t leave them in your cars.  Please make sure they are visible.  Always good to refresh our practice occasionally!!

In recent weeks and days, we have started our annual process in earnest preparing for the next school year.  You received via email a message from our distinguished board chair, Ray Banks, regarding our decisions on fees for the coming year and our work to set fees and structures.  With many grade levels full and waiting lists beginning to form, we must first and foremost prepare the path for our returning students through our normal process.

This year, we’ve changed this process to make it more efficient for all and will forgo the usual pre-survey process in favor of a simple one-step invoicing process.  All families should receive notification of and directions for accessing your invoices via PowerSchool.  Your one and only task this year is to submit your seat deposit before the due date of Friday, March 1, 2019.  This will confirm your intention to return next year and hold your seat during the upcoming admissions process.  Please notify the Business Office at +48 (22) 702 8596 or businessoffice@aswarsaw.org if you have any needs or concerns relative to this process and we’ll happily assist you.

Later in March, we will be confirming the first round of new admissions from our extensive pre-registration list, so we appreciate your confirmation of continuing with us next year at the earliest opportunity.

One additional item: Grounds – Landscaping and Maintenance

ASW is always seeking to improve and update our services and one area that was identified in our recent accreditation for review was a refresh of our grounds and landscaping services.  Our longstanding company has done well, but certain areas identified for improvement have suggested we look for other potential partners in providing grounds maintenance services to keep our facilities prepared for the robust range of activities on campus throughout the year.  If there are parents in the ASW Community have insight into potential companies who would be interested in providing these services, our request for proposals is available from our Business Office.  Thanks in advance for your consideration and for passing along this message to potential providers!

Since there was such a wonderful display of learning through Personal Projects last night culminating a key component of the Middle Years Programme (MYP), it’s a good time to remind us of some of the key reasons why we affirmed our commitment to the International Baccalaureate by adding both the PYP and MYP to our continuum of study.  In a nutshell, education in IB schools focuses on some key tenets (from the IB website):

•  centres on learners
• develops effective approaches to teaching and learning
• works within global contexts, helping students understand different languages and cultures
• explores significant content, developing a disciplinary and interdisciplinary understanding that meets rigorous international standards.

In essence, the integration of content through dynamic cycles of inquiry, action, and reflection serves to develop approaches to and disciplines of learning.  Think about how this matches our core values of Bounce Back (self-reliance) and Step Forward (Agency and Action).  Our other values are seen as well through collaboration, relevance, and an international perspective.  Truly, the programme matches both our qualities and our aspirations.

IB programmes are about working closely with students to empower them to construct meaning from their learning and, in the process, build skills of independence in both learning and doing that will last a lifetime.

Much applause to the mentorship of teachers and the capability of our 10th graders in their presentations last night.  For our first iteration of the capstone event, we can all be proud of the accomplishment!

Studniowka

First,  a great thank you to all of our parents on the organizing committee for Studniowka. It was a brilliant event that was enjoyed by all of our families, staff, and administration in attendance.  The students thrilled us with their nimble talents on the dance floor with the Polonaise and a wonderful waltz!  What a wonderful way to capture some host country culture in a splendid traditional event that is an important waypoint for your seniors, just 100 days before their exams.  Many thanks to all involved for making it a special night!

Raising Your Awareness

Please be advised that we have seen an uptick in the presence of vaping amongst students including a few recent disciplinary events related to this new trend.  To be clear, vaping is an alternative form of smoking using a small electronic device to create the smoke that is inhaled.

Vaping monikers include: vape pens, pod mods, tanks, electronic nicotine delivery devices (ENDS), e-hookahs, e-cigarettes

There are many articles on this new trend and around the world health professionals and educators are trying to help students see this new trend as equivalent to tobacco products and the associated health risks for young and growing students are profound. The unfortunate result of the quick marketing of these products is that most students believe that this new form of smoking is safe and this couldn’t be further from the truth.  Please see the following articles for help in understanding the risks:

• https://medicalxpress.com/news/2018-09-teen-underestimating-health-vaping.html
• https://www.newportacademy.com/resources/substance-abuse/teen-vaping-health-risks/

Our policy is clear on the matter and we have included vaping in our handbooks as not allowed on campus, by students nor adults.  We continue to be a smoke-free campus in all forms including both tobacco products and vaping.  Please talk with your children about the health consequences of vaping and let’s work together to try and steer them away from this habit in all its forms.

PTO Quiz Night

Please join your fellow community members for our annual Quiz Night, this year at the Sheraton Hotel (The Olive Restaurant) on Saturday, January 26, starting at 7:00p.   Tickets are on sale at the PTO Store for this adults-only event and the price is 75 PLN per person with finger foods and beverages provided.  Come and join!!  Fun for all!!

Gda?sk Mayor, Pawe? Adamowicz, who served the public for over 20 years, was lost to us in a brutal attack at the culmination of a celebration of life and charity in the Great Christmas Orchestra charity event last weekend.  This charity was announced at our High School assembly on Monday as highly successful in our own community with contributions of over 30,000 PLN.

Many of us are still reeling and trying to understand how someone who was such a defender of those who would be marginalized or who were less fortunate should fall to such hatred.  As always with a loss of this nature, we are sensitive to the feelings of our students and the broader community.  We will provide, as always, a safe harbor for their expressions in the context of this tragedy.

A national day of mourning is planned for the coming weekend, beginning at 5pm on Friday and continuing until 7pm on Saturday.  In the shadow of this horrible loss, I hope for light in the memories that remain.  Let’s find an opportunity to discuss, as families of many nations, our commitment and earnest attention to modeling peace and harmony for our children.  Speaking for myself and for all who are guests in this wonderful, warm, and welcoming country, I offer my sincere condolences to the Polish people, hoping that, together, we find peace and harmony in the midst of our shared sorrow.

Welcome to 2019!

Hoping you are all finding your return from the holidays both refreshing and renewing as we consider the path that lies ahead. As we move into the final days of the semester, which officially ends on January 25, we have clarity on goals and aspirations for the remaining days of the school year. We are also fully engaged on planning for next year. As we consider 2019 a critical year of key operational work bringing accreditation goals into central focus, we are looking ahead to 2020 as a year of clarity that will build on this work of refining and development. May your planning for goals and accomplishments in the year ahead be equally engaging and fulfilling. January has always been a time of looking back to look forward, setting goals and resolutions of ever greater accomplishment. Happy that we can collaborate on helping our students to consider their goals similarly, assuring them of future success.

Calendar Survey

Reminder to complete our calendar survey.  We are taking input on the school calendar for 2020-2021, consistent with our methodology of planning out two years in advance.  Board will make their final adoption in late January, but you have a chance now to give us feedback.  Other adopted calendars are viewable on our website at http://www.aswarsaw.org/. We’d like your feedback by January 14th at the latest. This is the final call for submissions. We encourage all staff, students, and parents of ASW to join us in giving your input to this process:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/6V5SRW2

Cafeteria Survey

It has now been 4 months since we selected our new cafeteria provider,
Solivoda. There is still time to get your feedback in order to prioritize our expectations for continued refinement of their service during the remainder of this school year.

You can access the open survey at the following link:

https://aswarsaw.limequery.net/191883?lang=en

We are looking to get your input by January 14th at the latest. This is your final reminder. Thanks in advance for your participation!

Ho Ho Ho!!

And what a joyous holiday it has become!  Voices were raised in song yesterday at the Grade 2, 3, and 4 Holiday concert.  Tremendous praise to our elementary team for their work in helping the kids raise their voices in harmony, a wonderful reflection on the spirit of the season.  Ms. Andrews and Mr. Minasz – thank you for framing the season!!

We have but a few hours remaining before we head off into an extended break.  When we return it will be 2019, the last year for a very long time that will have -teen on the end.  I have to pause and wonder what things may look like in 2113, when the -tweens return.  It brings back memories of the turn of the century in Y2k when we all concocted our predictions of what this century would hold for us.  And, flash forward, almost 20% of the century is gone.  How are your predictions going?

It is hard sometimes to find ourselves trapped in the current moment, and we should live in the moment when spending time with family and friends.  But, with much acrimony around us, it can be challenging and stressful at times.  I hope that this holiday season brings you two unique opportunities.

First, I hope for you time to pause in the moment with loved ones all around.  May your days of celebration and cultural connection bring you joy and renewal.

Second, I wish for you some time to dream, stepping out of the moment as the new year approaches and wonder with intention about what might be made of the year ahead.  This is not the fodder of resolutions, but more the territory of what could be possible if we take the love and kindness of the moment and use it to craft our way forward.  The most important thing we do in school is to ask students to be mindful of their intentions before taking on a challenge.  I wish for all of us, and particularly our students, and opportunity to make these dreams come true.

Whether traveling or relaxing into home here in Warsaw, I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

Calendar Business

One bit of business and I’ll remind you in January as well.  We are taking input on the school calendar for 2020-2021, consistent with our current methodology of planning out two years in advance.  Board will make their final adoption in January, but you have a chance now to give us feedback.  Other adopted calendars are viewable on our website at http://www.aswarsaw.org/

Here’s the link to our survey.  We encourage all staff, students, and parents of ASW to join us in giving your input to this process.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/6V5SRW2