Dragon News - 09.16.22
Principal's Message
We had a great start to the year with both the transition day for our new students as well as the first week of normal days. By now students know their way around, 6th graders are opening their lockers like old pros, and kids and staff alike are settling into a routine.
Part of that routine for students is working hard and giving their best to everything. Knowing that our students do this, my mind keeps going back to one of the events we had with staff during our inservice week before school started. Members of our Student Equity Leadership Team addressed the staff and spoke about their experiences here at ISB. A common theme was that ISB had a supportive community of both students and teachers. A few students also talked about both internal pressures and family pressures to get straight A’s, and the mental health challenges that result from this. A current 11th grader asked, “Why does a student need to collapse before a “B” is okay?”
I wrote last year in the Dragon News about the difference between the pursuit of excellence and perfectionism. One of the qualities of perfectionism is that your identity is tied to achieving external outcomes, and when these are not achieved it is seen as a personal failure. Striving for excellence means you can engage in the process fully, and you are able to walk away from the end of it, regardless of outcome, with your sense of self still intact.
Your child’s sense of self, their mental health, and their continued love of learning is far more important than straight A’s. At its core, the IB curriculum is an inquiry based course of study where students ask questions, take risks, make mistakes, explore, and reflect on their own learning as they grow. It will help your child tremendously (and probably also help your relationship with them) if your academic conversations are less about grades and more about the learning. Instead of asking them how they did on a recent test, or what grade they received on an essay, ask them to tell you about something new they learned in Physics class. Ask them about their thoughts on a novel they are reading in English class, or to describe to you the music they are working on in Band or Choir. Most of all, ask them how they are doing, how they feel about school and life, and what you can do to support them in their pursuit of excellence.
Andrew Gilford
Principal
Upcoming Events
- September 21 - International Day of Peace, Wear White Day
- October 6 - Community Picnic & Back to School Night; 5:00 - 8:30 pm
- October 11 - DP Parent Nights; 6:00 - 8:15 pm
- October 12 - FRISB General Meeting; 6:00 - 7:00 pm
- October 14 - Staff Development/Work Day, no students
International Day of Peace
On Wednesday, September 21, ISB will be celebrating the International Day of Peace.
We encourage all students and staff to wear white on this day symbolizing a dove of peace.
This year’s United Nations’ theme for Peace Day is “End Racism, Promote Peace.” ISB will be having lessons in advisory class as well as a short activity related to this.
Here’s a link to the ISB video from our celebration last year.
U.S. Senate Youth Program
Applications for the 2022-23 United States Senate Youth Program are now open. This program is both a $10,000 scholarship and an all expenses paid trip to Washington D.C. Go here for more information. Only one student can be nominated from each school, so interested juniors or seniors should see Mr. Gilford as soon as possible to be interviewed for the nomination.
PSATs
PSATs will be offered to all juniors on October 12 at ISB. Registration information can be found here. Turn in the fee and form to Ms. Meyer in the main office. If space allows, some sophomores may also be able to take them.
FRISB Annual Fundraiser
School Safety Updates
ISB administration and staff take school safety very seriously. We have some challenges here due to the layout of our campus, but have put various measures in place to ensure an ongoing safe environment.
All external doors are locked starting at 7:35. Students traveling between the outer buildings and the main building carry a key card to get in.
The grounds are routinely patrolled to ensure only ISB and BSD community members are on campus.
A daily morning inspection of the campus is completed by the time students arrive.
Parents must personally sign out students for students to leave early.
Students practice fire drills monthly and lock-down drills twice a year.
Students are taught that their eyes and ears are the most important tool we have on campus to ensure safety. We teach students to contact an adult with any safety concerns they have.
Students are taught about, and signs are posted directing individuals to the Safe Oregon tip line if they have any safety related concerns.
We will soon be hiring a campus supervisor to have another set of eyes specifically focused on safety on and around campus.
Please let us know directly if you have any concerns!
Students Driving to School
If your student drives to school, they must register their vehicle with the main office. Have them see Ms. Meyer for a parking form and a parking permit.
Traffic Safety on Blanton St. and Parking Lot Reminders
Morning drop-off and afternoon pick-up creates many challenges at ISB. Drive slowly both in the parking lot and on Blanton Street. Pedestrians always have right-of-way no matter where they are crossing. Stop when you see students in the street.
When dropping off in the morning, please don’t pull into the bus lane until after 7:15.
When you come into the parking lot at the end of the day, make sure you pull into an open lane and drive as far forward as you can getting as close as you can to the car in front of you. Do not remain in the entrance lane. This blocks traffic coming in off of Blanton Street creating gridlock as nobody can then leave the ISB parking lot.
Consider picking up your student at 2:20 so that the parking lot is nearly empty by the time you get here.
Meet the ISB Substance Use Specialist
ISB now has a social worker specifically dedicated to assisting students with issues of addiction and substance abuse. If you have concerns about your student, feel free to reach out to her at taylor_galloway@beaverton.k12.or.us.
Arabic Support at ISB
ISB supports mother-tongue languages as part of our international education by allowing students who are highly proficient to do Self Taught Literature in a native or heritage language. For our current group of juniors and seniors, we have students who are doing German, French, Spanish, and Arabic.
One of the requirements from the IB (International Baccalaureate) is that students are supported by someone who actually can read and write that language at the college level. We have volunteers for French, German and Spanish, but we are still looking for someone who can support our Arabic reading and writing students in their study of literature written in Arabic.
Volunteer tutors will:
Be comfortable with and confident in reading, speaking, and writing about literature at a college level in the target language
Meet with and be trained by the IB English teacher who supervises the Self-Taught Literature students regarding the requirements of the subject area
Be familiar with the nine works of literature in the target language
Meet with the students on a bimonthly basis / at least once per quarter to discuss ideas and evaluate the quality of responses to and interpretations of the literature
Respond to concerns and questions from the students as they arise outside of the designated meeting times
Regularly communicate with the supervising teacher regarding any issues that arise during the process of tutoring the students
It sounds like a huge commitment, but really it's maybe 4 times a year meeting at school with the students and becoming familiar with the literature itself. It also means registering with the Beaverton School District as a volunteer. Please consider this as an opportunity to support an Arabic-speaking high school student who wants to go deeper with their native language proficiency through reading and thinking literary works in Arabic.
Paying for College Webinar - Sept. 27 6:00 p.m
Wondering about your life after high school? Learn more about paying for your education, no matter your financial situation. Scholarships, grants, financial aid applications, college costs and more—we’ll discuss it and help you feel comfortable with your options. In addition to the webinar content, you’ll have a chance to chat privately with a financial aid administrator to get answers to your personal questions. Register for this FREE webinar at https://bit.ly/PFCOR2022
Seminario en Linea - Cómo Pagar la Universidad - 29 Sept. 6:00 p.m.
¿Está pensando en su vida después de la escuela secundaria? Obtenga más información sobre cómo pagar su educación sin importar su situación financiera. Discutiremos las becas, las subvenciones, las solicitudes de ayuda financiera, los costos universitarios y más, y lo ayudaremos a sentirse cómodo con sus opciones. También tendrá la oportunidad de conversar en privado con un administrador de ayuda financiera sobre sus preocupaciones personales. Regístrese para este seminario web gratuito en https://bit.ly/PFCS2022
Yearbooks for Sale
The yearbook team would like to let you know that the 2022-23 yearbooks are for sale! They are $40 now and $45 after Winter Break. Don't miss out on all the memories! You can bring cash or check to Ms. Meyer in the office or use the online payment portal to purchase your yearbook.
Also, we need sports, vacations, and volunteering pictures of your students to include in the yearbook. You can send them to andrew_ashkinos@beaverton.k12.or.us throughout the year.
Finally, CALLING ALL PARENTS/GUARDIANS OF SENIORS! Here are the links for information on Senior portraits and Senior Ads:
Everything is time sensitive as we create the yearbook. Please do your best to get us the photos/information as soon as you can.
Culture Corner
Hispanic Heritage Month - Sept. 15 - Oct. 15
Each year, Americans observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15, by celebrating the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.
The observation started in 1968 as Hispanic Heritage Week under President Lyndon Johnson and was expanded by President Ronald Reagan in 1988 to cover a 30-day period starting on September 15 and ending on October 15. It was enacted into law on August 17, 1988, on the approval of Public Law 100-402.
The day of September 15 is significant because it is the anniversary of independence for Latin American countries Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. In addition, Mexico and Chile celebrate their independence days on September 16 and September 18, respectively. Also, Columbus Day or Día de la Raza, which is October 12, falls within this 30 day period.
CONTACT AND FOLLOW US
International School of Beaverton
IB World School - MYP & DP
Andrew Gilford - Principal
Email: isb_communications@beaverton.k12.or.us
Website: https://www.beaverton.k12.or.us/schools/isb/
Location: 17770 SW Blanton St, Beaverton, OR, United States
Phone: (503) 356-3690
Facebook: facebook.com/isbdragons
Twitter: @isb_dragons
The Beaverton School District prohibits discrimination and harassment based on any basis protected by law, including but not limited to, an individual's actual or perceived race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national or ethnic origin, marital status, age, mental or physical disability, pregnancy, familial status, economic status, veteran status, or because of a perceived or actual association with any other persons within these protected classes.