There’s more to a school than just its top-notch facilities and qualified teachers. After all, a school may only be as good as its students. To that effect, the students’ parents play a key role in shaping the tone of the entire school atmosphere as well. In the following interview, jingkids speaks to the leaders of the parent boards in Beijing’s top international schools to find out more about the work they do.
Q: How did you get involved with the parent board?
Eyal Kovo, Parent Link Chair, Western Academy of Beijing (WAB)
“When we first arrived, I volunteered to be the room parent representative of both my kids’ classes because I felt that this would be the best way to get involved and familiar with WAB and also meet new parents. After that, I was ‘WABed’ and kept my involvement at WAB. This year I was elected as PL chair.”
Shu Qi, PTA President,
Beijing City International School (BCIS)
“I joined BCIS-PTA in 2019 as a new parent after my family moved to the BCIS community, and was nominated as the executive to organize and manage the weekly book club of the PTA, which by the way is still going on greatly after three years. I was privileged to be nominated by other PTA executives and the school board after the previous president resigned.”
Dana Lattanzio, PTA President, International School of Beijing (ISB)
“This is our family’s fifth year at ISB. I was voted onto the PTA Executive Committee in 2019, where I served two years as VP of Events. Last year I served as one of the Elementary School reps. With these three previous years of experience, I felt confident in running for PTA president. I’m happy to say I am enjoying my role and the efforts we make for the school.”
Julie Zhu, FOD Chair, Dulwich College Beijing (DCB)
“Before I became the chair of Friends of Dulwich (FOD) three years ago I was parent representative for KS3 (Y7, Y8, Y9) for two years, and I applied to be co-chair with another parent, Susie, who became close a friend later. After she left Beijing, I continued to be the chair of FOD until now.”
Q: What is the objective of the parent board?
Kovo: Parent Link provides a link between parents and the school and aims to build a stronger community for the benefit of everyone: our children, families, and the school. We also support others who are less fortunate than ourselves through fundraising and charitable work. The last three years have been strenuous for parents, with online learning and uncertainty which forced us to find alternative ways of connecting the parents with WAB. That didn’t change our main calling, which is to bring our community together in support and connect the parents with the school.
Lattanzio: The main objective of the PTA is to be a positive conduit between the school and parent communities.
Qi: BCIS-PTA’s vision, mission, and strategic plans alter along with the growth and development of our school and community. The current mission statement includes but is not limited to promoting and enhancing the international character and values of the education offered at BCIS, and forging a unified, vibrant, caring community in support of student education.
Zhu: The Friends of Dulwich parent association aims to build bridges between families, the school, and our wider community, and by doing so, enhance the school experience for our children.
Q: What events/activities did the board organize in 2022?
Kovo: We were lucky enough to have several coffee mornings in which parents met with the PL team and the school’s leadership, as well as had time to socialize with other parents, new and returning. These events are important in connecting parents with school after a long period of online learning.
Lattanzio: In recent years while we navigate school life with Covid, our PTA has gotten more creative in how we can still fulfill our mission. Specifically, this semester the PTA held five different parent breakfasts off-campus. In addition to these popular breakfasts, we organized a dumpling cooking lesson and lunch at Din Tai Feng.
Qi: Terry Fox Run, Spring in the City, Christmas Bazaar, Roundabout Book Fair, weekly classes and clubs, and other outings.
Zhu: This past year we managed to run annual activities like fundraising to gift red packets to cleaning and security staff in the school before the Spring Festival. In the midyear, we organized a lunch for all the teachers, to show our appreciation to them. We also have the Culture Club that puts together activities like visiting historical places and hiking in the mountains. There were several parent coffee mornings/lunches, regular badminton and choir practices, and we even started a new dance club!
Q: What events/activities does the board hope to organize in 2023?
Kovo: We have several events planned for the coming spring/summer such as Staff Appreciation Day and the end-of-the-year fun fair, which is organized by Parent Link.
Lattanzio: Over the years, our parent community has enjoyed various art lessons (painting, jewelry making, etc.) and unique shopping trips around Beijing. We also hope to reschedule a visit to the Dewey Center for their featured art installment. In 2023, we hope to organize our annual Spring Fair.
Qi: We are aiming to organize more charity events, including silent auctions, parent talent shows, and interactive events among all our community members to provide more accessibilities for our community members to contribute their vision, perspectives, and talent to the amazing BCIS community.
Zhu: There are two major events that we hope to bring back in 2023: the Moonlight Madness, which is an outdoor picnic where student groups put on a show for their friends and parents outdoors, as well as the Founder’s Day gala, which is a big event that pulls in sponsors to raise funds for charity.
Q: What do you wish for the new school year?
Lattanzio summed up all our interviewees’ wishes in hers: “For the new school year, my wishes surely resemble those of other parents. We have a very solid parent community and we want to engage with them as often and as safely as possible.” She also added that “ISB’s PTA Executive Committee is a committed group of parents who will continue to offer creative opportunities to promote our school spirit. Go Dragons!”
This article appeared in the jingkids 2023 School Choice Guide
