It was another momentous week as Southville International School and Colleges (SISC) happily welcomed back the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) for its Mid-Cycle Visit from April 14-16, 2021.
WASC observers paid a visit to SISC in line with the institution’s halfway point evaluation as part of its 6-year accreditation that was granted in 2018. The 2-member Visiting Committee consisted of Chairperson Dr. Kelly Ridings, International K-12 Principal of Shanghai SMIC Private School in China, and Dr. John McGrath, Head of the Thai-Chinese International School.
WASC is a world-renowned organization that evaluates both private and public schools globally to verify if they are up to the international educational standards, and Southville has had the honor of its esteemed accreditation for 21 years straight since 2000. However, their recent visit was particularly more special than the rest.
Unprecedented between the two institutions, Dr. Ridings and Dr. McGrath evaluated SISC’s curriculum and facilities online. The visitors observed faculty members and students through Google Meet/Zoom calls instead of the usual on-campus in-person checks. Of course, this did not bar an engaging discussion about learning experiences with a focus group of student representatives from Grades 9-12.
David Ramos, Co-Founder and Vice President of External Affairs of Debate Club & Deputy Secretary-General of SISC MUN, feels that his interview with WASC was more casual than nerve-wracking as he got to be with his peers. He explains, “The WASC interview wasn’t really that hard to do. It felt like a conversation with my friends, since almost everyone there were people that were part of my clubs. But of course, with that being said, it's an honor to be chosen to represent Southville in such an important interview.”
Meanwhile, BasicEd Student Council Secretary & Creatives Team Head Tiffany Mae Cloa says that she was honored to participate in this seldomly-occuring event. She adds, “ The experience of being surrounded by fellow student leaders of the school and having the opportunity to talk to Dr. John was surreal. It was so interesting that everyone had the same thoughts about the school even though we were all from different levels and clubs!”
David, Tiffany, and many more student representatives showcased the pride and enthusiasm of a typical Southville student even in the online setup. This impressed WASC associates, with another student revealing their comments: “You are very wise students and SISC is lucky to have you” and, “You were the most vocal students I have met.”
Indeed, Southville is home to many outstanding students, but not without credit to the school administering excellent international education. WASC’s Mid-Cycle evaluation is a testament to the school constantly delivering a high capacity to implement, monitor, and accomplish the action plan aligned to the areas of greatest need impacting student achievement—a WASC expectation. But beyond those expectations, students have attested to a positively life-altering learning experience, even now in the face of a pandemic and the new learning environment of online classes.
SISC has been continuously accredited by WASC three times in 6-year intervals, and it hopes to continue this streak of success by the next evaluation in 2024 and the following years.
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