Dear Parents, World Cultural Month comes to a close on April 29, with a big event planned on the field. Please come, host a booth, dress up and share the fun. This week has also made me realize how much the students in the Elementary School do toward helping others. Whether it is raising money for those in need, or giving up time to play with children from less well-off backgrounds, there are examples throughout the school. Many of these initiatives come from the students themselves, and this gives a great foundation for their involvement in such activities through their school lives and beyond. Other notes: 1. World Cultural Month Final Day!: Please remember that the final day of World Cultural Month is the big day! We have two requests for you; the first is to consider running a booth; these will share information about your country, and the children will visit them all with their special "booth passport". If you would
like to run a booth, please email Mr. Gaucher at gaucher@isd.sn. The second is to consider dressing up in clothing of your cultural background and being part of our Fashion Show. Next week, there will also be a basket maker in residence, and an Arts Fair will run outside the pagoda on Thursday and Friday. 2. Annual General Meeting: This will be held at 6:00 on Tuesday April 26 in the Gym. There will be a tour of the construction site at 5:30 with Wayne, reports from the school at the meeting, voting for new board members and wine and cheese to follow. If you cannot attend, absentee ballots for voting are available in the office. WE NEED YOUR VOTES!! The following three candidates are running for the positions on the board: INTERNATIONAL CANDIDATE Thiaba Camara Sy I am happy to present my candidacy to ISD's board of trustees. I am a mother of three and Jamil, my youngest son is in second grade (the other two are currently studying in Boston). Jamil will hopefully spend all his school time at ISD since we are Senegalese and living here permanently. That is my main motivation for joining the board as I feel it important to participate in shaping and securing the future and high standards of my son’s school. I am a Senegalese Certified Public Accountant and my relationship with ISD dates back to 1998 when my firm was appointed as the school’s auditor for two years. We then moved on to serve ISD as accountant and financial advisor until 2008. I joined the board on September 2010 and am currently serving as treasurer. I am having a very exciting time working with particularly skilled, enthusiastic and hardworking board members all dedicated to a strong and steady development of our school. I hope you will confirm my appointment as a trustee. Thank you. AMERICAN CANDIDATES Phyllis Stinson Statement of Interest for the Board of Trustees Thank you for considering me for ISD’s School Board. I have been a board-appointee since January of this year and, if elected, look forward to continuing my service to the school. I have two daughters at ISD. Maeve is in Ms Gina’s Kindergarten class and Agnes is in 3rd grade with Mr. Donauer. I also have a 16 month-old son, Edward, who keeps me busy at home. We have been in Dakar since September 2009. My work before coming to Senegal was focused on tax policy. I worked at The Brookings Institution and AARP doing private pension reform and asset building. In addition to professional experience with public finance, I have several personal experiences that would be helpful to the board, specifically as it looks to expand the school. First, I led a diverse team of stakeholders in an effort to expand the Montessori program housed in our neighborhood public school in Washington, DC. I worked for over a year with the teachers, local school administration, DCPS administration, and parent group to define and propose the expanded program. The effort was successful and DCPS granted the expansion last year. The new school will serve children from PK 3 to 8th grade and will have its own building on Capitol Hill. Lastly, well before I came to Dakar to live in the diplomatic community, I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Central Africa. I am fortunate to have a perspective on living and working in Africa that helps me to this day. I understand the importance of crossing cultures and that living and working in another culture has particular challenges that require patience, critical thinking, and humor. Kristin Stewart Statement of Intent I am pleased to run for a full term as an ISD Board Member. For the past several months, I have had the opportunity to serve as a board appointed trustee. I have learned a great deal about this wonderful school and ask for your vote to be able to continue on as a board member to help see us through this period of rapid growth. Like most of you, I am part of a multi-cultural, multi-national family. My daughter Anna is currently in P-4 and will advance to Kindergarten next year. My family and I truly appreciate the diversity of students and faculty at ISD and I plan to continue supporting efforts to further mutual understanding among everyone. Top issues I would like to work on include: quality teacher recruitment and retention, maintaining a strong extra-curricular program of arts, sports and music and helping encourage completion of the building project. I feel that my skills and academic background are best suited to the Policy Committee of the Board but, I am happy to serve in any capacity as needed. Brief Biography Kristin Stewart has been a career member of the US Foreign Service since 2002. She currently serves as the Cultural Affairs Officer at the US Embassy in Dakar and will be posted here until June 2013. She has been posted to US Embassies in Colombia, Mexico and Nicaragua. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, she worked as a Study Abroad Advisor for Spanish Language Programs at the University of Michigan’s Office of International Programs. She has a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University and a Master of Public Policy from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She is a native English speaker as well as fluent Spanish and French speaker. 3. WCM to Date: Here are some photos of some WCM activities to date: 4. Earth Day Pledges: When we thought ahead in homerooms to our responsibilities as global citizens, there were many ideas for sustainability that the classes suggested. These can be seen on the wall of the Pagoda. Please take time to have a look after Earth Day (April 22). 5. Scholastic Book Order: You may have received some of the books your child ordered. The PTO wished to send the books out that have arrived. Unfortunately, some a still waiting for customs clearance, and all is being done to release them and forward them to the classes as soon as possible. 6. Transitions from ISD: This is the time when the transition process to new countries begins for many, and we would like you to know that we at ISD are aware of the pressures many children feel at moving away or having friends move away. While the frenzy of the move often leaves we adults with little time to think, please let us know at school if there are stresses that become apparent with your children at home. 7. Japan Fundraiser Donation: The monies raised from the fundraisers toward helping those affected by recent events in Japan were handed to the Japanese Ambassador yesterday: 8. DELF Exams: These French examinations are upcoming for some of our students, and Ms. Faye will communicate dates with parents. 9. Jappale Thanks: Thanks to those of you who turned out for the Jappale performances. The donations for the night were added to by Mr. Donaeur's class, who managed to raise 36,000cfa at their 3rd Grade Garden Farmer's Market. Regards, Ian Clark Ian Clark Ed.D. Elementary School Principal International School of Dakar |
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