Impact Report 2020-21

SAS FOUNDATION

IMPACT REPORT

2020-21

EDITORIAL TEAM Crickett Kasper Aisling O’Brien Sarizan Ahmad Mariana Alvarado Jessica Haghverdi Cara D’Avanzo Clara Lim

CONTRIBUTORS Martha Began Crawford Jared Bildfell Ryan Bruce Jason Cone Kim Criens Darin Fahrney Carmine Filice Jennifer Foss Renée S. Green David A. Hoss Stacey Jensen Andrew Miller Tracy Nagesh Ian Page Matthew Rogers Jennifer Sparrow Tim Trainor Amy Zuber Meehan

contact sasfoundation@sas.edu.sg

Thank you for making a gift to Singapore American School You have made a difference.

SAS is grateful to our donor community which contributed more than S$3.3 million in gifts between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021.

As you will read in this report, philanthropy funds day-to-day initiatives as well as big-picture opportunities that support the school’s three strategic focus areas: Excellence Extraordinary Care Possibilities Because of this, philanthropy is vitally important to SAS and allows us to strengthen our position as a world leader in international education.

Thank you, again, for your generosity.

Join us in supporting the people, places, and programs that make SAS extraordinary!

To make your gift online, please go to www.sas.edu.sg/MakeAGift

THANK YOU!

THANK YOU

every GIFT MAKES A DIFFERENCE impact of your giving to singapore american school Thank you to our donor community, which made the 2020–21 school year a great success for philanthropy at Singapore American School. Your gift makes a difference! Over 1,100 families, including current and former parents, teachers, and alumni, made the choice to support our school in this way. Participation among parents in our annual giving program reached 23 percent, and almost 60 percent of faculty and staff participated by making a gift to SAS. Contributions to SAS are vital in supporting our community and helping us deliver the exceptional education for which SAS is celebrated. We hope you will take some time to read this report and celebrate the progress we are making at SAS with the support of your philanthropy. We also hope that you will continue to support the school by participating in annual giving. Together, the support of our entire community makes a difference at SAS. Our legacy of extraordinary care started with families like yours; today, it is your family that is at the heart of our community. Thank you!

TOM BOASBERG SUPERINTENDENT SINGAPORE AMERICAN SCHOOL

CRICKETT KASPER CHIEF ADVANCEMENT OFFICER SINGAPORE AMERICAN SCHOOL

G. Raymond ZAGE III CHAIR SAS FOUNDATION (SINGAPORE)

RUDolph MULLER president sas foundation (uNITED STATES)

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excellence

every student learns at high levels

excellence

every student learns at high levels Schoolwide Visitors-in-Residence We are so grateful to our donors for their support for the visitors-in-residence program at SAS. It was an extraordinary year for teaching and learning at SAS on every level. Under the circumstances, for a program featuring world-renowned experts, a pivot to new relationships and possibilities was necessary. While access to international artists and authors remained restricted, the challenges of 2020–21 provided a unique opportunity for us to showcase local talent and expertise.

Philanthropic support for the visitors-in-residence program gave our students access to hiphop artists, world-class authors, local poets, amazing musicians, mentor innovators, and threedimensional artists, to name but a few. Our offerings to our students remained robust. We were able to provide inspiring experiences, such as four days of movement and masks with Lian Sutton, artistic director of Nusantara Theatrical Combat; a month of middle school mime with Bill Bowers, acclaimed as the “mime of his generation”; and the opportunity for more than 100 students to study writing with author of The Floating Field (and SAS middle school teacher) Scott Riley.

The impact of this program on our students remains significant and extraordinary, particularly in this challenging year. In the history of SAS, it is hard to think of a moment when outlets for our students to express themselves creatively have been more important.

In a time when the world seems upside down for so many students, last year’s artists and authors grounded us. A second grade student recently asked me if I knew Mr. Riley the author. When she spoke about him, her eyes lit up and she said, “He helped me write, and you know what? I’m going to be an author someday!” As an educator seeking to embed inspiration into our students’ experiences, it doesn’t get much better than that.

Darin Fahrney Chief Academic Officer

Schoolwide Curriculum, Assessment and Data Specialists Our most recent Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) accreditation demonstrated the need to be more explicit and targeted in how our learning aspirations are taught and assessed at SAS. To this end, and thanks to the generosity of the Lim family, the school retained three curriculum specialists. The specialists allowed for more focus on strategic planning, as well as design and implementation work that had a direct impact on our students in terms of learning aspirations and competencies. Last year, 100 percent of SAS teacher leaders attended competency training and were assigned competencies. We also had 100 percent of the school board commit to the strategic plan.

Although we were unable to move forward with direct competency implementation last year due to COVID-19, our curriculum specialists used the opportunity to design a competency map based on existing curriculum. They also provided training and resources to teacher leaders in order to ensure the map is aligned with classroom experiences.

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Our SAS 2027 strategic plan explicitly called for us to implement our learning aspirations in the classroom.

Our work last year sets us up for strategic implementation of competencies in the classroom, and we are excited that the work is moving from planning and preparation to accountable implementation.

Elementary School Chinese Immersion Last year, with the continued implementation of our elementary school Chinese immersion program, programming needs across the grade levels continued to arise. Philanthropic support ensured that the program could provide necessary learning resources so teachers could deliver the highest-quality immersion experience for our students.

Funds were used to ensure quality literacy books were available to create individual classroom libraries for students from kindergarten to third grade. Additionally, funds were used to purchase culturally appropriate furniture and resources to create environments conducive to learning. Because of giving to SAS, our instructional assistants also received training on administering oral proficiency index assessments, strengthening the program even further.

Thanks to the generosity of our SAS families, the Chinese immersion program has continued to develop year after year. Our students have access to additional learning resources, and our faculty has benefited from professional learning and development opportunities.

Elementary School Classroom Literacy Books The elementary school classroom literacy book program supported and provided quality literature to all students from preschool through fifth grade. In addition to literacy resources in English, resources in Chinese and Spanish were made available in classrooms and in the elementary school library.

Donor funds were specifically used to support individual classroom libraries by providing enriching literature for all elementary school students. Additionally, the funds supported the enhancement of our Chinese and Spanish literacy collections within the elementary school library. In the early learning center, funds also supported the purchase of picture books supporting our focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Our students benefited from having age-appropriate, quality literature curated for our classrooms and library settings. Our students may select from a huge variety of literature covering a wide range of topics and genres. Giving by SAS families, educators, alumni, and friends supported our goals of ensuring our students become competent and enthusiastic readers and writers.

Elementary School Activities, Athletics, and Clubs Our activities, athletics, and clubs program provided opportunities across the elementary school for a variety of special events, as well as resources to support student activities. Each year our students have myriad opportunities to develop their awareness of themselves and others through the many activities and club events offered at school.

One of these activities was the marathon club for students in third, fourth, and fifth grades. Giving supported the program, enabling students to get excited about running and develop goal-setting skills for a healthy, active lifestyle. Philanthropic support allowed us to provide marathon club T-shirts for every participant; last year we had a record 538 student runners!

Participation in activities, athletics, and clubs benefited students and helped instill in them a sense of belonging to something bigger than their individual classrooms. They interacted and collaborated with others, developed the core values that support social-emotional well-being, and learned about accountability and working toward a goal.

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Eagle Dance We continue to be grateful for a generous gift from the Salim-Taira family that represents a significant investment in dance instruction and performance at SAS. Their gift allowed elementary school students to benefit from professional instruction in lyrical and hip hop style classes and kept the costs to families low, making the program accessible to a wider range of students in our community.

Introducing children to dance at a young age helps support their creativity, socialization, cognitive development, and physical coordination.

Giving allowed us to offer the elementary school Eagle Dance program, providing our students a more well-rounded artistic and physical education program. Eagle Dance classes were provided as an afterschool activity, led by professional adult dance teachers offering robust, technique-driven instruction.

The program’s combination of lyrical and hip-hop styles was designed to expose students to a mix of techniques and appeal to a wider range of students.

Eagle Dance has made a noticeable impact on the technique of our students. We see clear improvement in the abilities of students who have been enrolled consistently in the past three years of elementary school Eagle Dance. Donor gifts have helped create a stronger pathway for dance from the elementary years through middle and high school. We look forward to adapting and expanding the program to engage more students.

Keeping the program’s cost down has made it more accessible to the families in our community, allowing more student dancers to benefit from professional instruction in lyrical and hip hop style classes.

Tracy Nagesh High School Activities and Athletics Director

Middle School Dance Philanthropic support is essential to our dance program in middle school. Giving allowed middle school dancers to enjoy hip-hop dance enrichment and choreography from Danz People, supported three alumni dance interns who worked with students, allowed us to purchase new dance shirts for a performance, and paid for iTunes and Spotify streaming service fees so our students could challenge themselves with a variety of music.

Giving supported technique classes that exposed students to a variety of new styles, genres, choreography, and creative processes and focused attention on areas such as alignment, movement qualities, musicality, breath, and expression. We were also pleased to see dancers come from the donor-sponsored Eagle Dance program in elementary school and continue their artistic journeys in our middle school program.

These resources were vital in keeping our dancers safe, building their foundation as strong dancers, and engaging them in their passion for dance. These giving-funded resources were used extensively, with over 450 students benefiting from our strong dance program through 16 curricular classes and our extracurricular dance program.

Middle School Activities and Athletics Last year, middle school activities and athletics provided after-school opportunities to 968 middle school students. Programs varied from service, academic, and leisure club offerings to intramural and representative sports.

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Most middle school students were involved in at least one after school activity facilitated by our dedicated and knowledgeable faculty.

Gifts to Singapore American School and our program directly benefited our students. The funds allowed us to provide world-class programs with quality equipment and materials for our students.

The contributions made to our programs also provided membership fees for league competitions and supplemented the cost for student participants in special events. For example, we were able to purchase the Middle School of Rock musical equipment, a telescope for the astronomy club, and portable scoreboards for middle school athletic teams.

Philanthropic support for the program benefited the entire middle school community by allowing our students to interact with their peers and teachers in unique settings and developing lasting relationships and skills that will serve them in the future. Our students were able to enjoy meaningful experiences by participating in the activities they love.

High School Athletics, Activities, and Clubs With funds from donors, the athletics department was able to procure additional equipment to support our basketball program and cross country runners. Two Dr. Dish Basketball shooting machines and a polygon bicycle were purchased to help our coaches and students in their respective training programs.

Dr. Dish Basketball shooting machines are used by the best players in the world and are renowned as efficient, advanced, and user-friendly basketball training tools. The machines maximise shooting repetitions for players, enabling coaches to give prompt feedback to athletes and increase the efficiency and intensity of the training program. Over 70 athletes in our high school basketball program benefited from this new equipment, and coaching practices were greatly enhanced.

The department also needed a way to safely guide cross country runners through practices and races on varied surfaces, and the new polygon bicycle filled this need. Coaches used the bicycle to work with students on pacing, and Eagle Council student volunteers led athletes around race circuits to ensure they followed the course. The polygon bicycle allowed coaches, volunteers, and athletes to provide feedback to each other while running, rather than only at the start and end of each run.

High School Advanced Topic Singapore American School’s Advanced Topic (AT) courses were designed to foster the development of essential 21st-century skills and provide opportunities for students to showcase their knowledge in authentic ways. Our AT courses connect students with relevant experiences and expertise in their field, with a strong emphasis on production and real-world application.

Gifts to SAS supported the development and integration of unique college-level learning opportunities recognized by colleges as part of a rigorous and challenging course of study. Donor support was also used to facilitate opportunities for students to showcase their work in authentic ways, such as through the publication of their work. Because of philanthropy at SAS, we were able to offer over 20 AT courses in the Advanced Studies program, resulting in an estimated 700 year-long AT credits in student schedules.

Peak performance in AT courses was diverse, with students collaborating with visiting experts to publish books, learning Chinese history in Chinese, co-constructing historical inquiries and publishing op-ed collections, planning and producing their own performing arts exhibitions, and consulting for local entrepreneurs. We appreciate the support of our community in helping us to continue developing AT studies at SAS.

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HIGH SCHOOL AWARDS Traditionally, SAS holds a high school awards ceremony to celebrate the outstanding achievements of our students. Last year, the high school commemorated the event virtually with the following excellence awards. By honoring our students, we celebrate, spotlight, and reinforce the direction of the division.

In most cases, students who receive a named award are introduced by a faculty or staff member who knows the student well, while the Outstanding Graduate Award is announced by the high school principal at the awards ceremony and by the superintendent at commencement. The Connor O’Gorman Awards are given out at the high school’s pep rally.

Thanks to the support of generous donors, the following awards have been established, and awardees receive a monetary gift along with their award, which we hope will help them in their future educational endeavors.

Blair Sonnenberg Humanitarian Award Established in memory of Blair Sonnenberg, an SAS student who passed away in 1996, this award is given to the graduating senior who has embraced cultural competence by devoting time, energy, and talent to actively seek understanding and improve the quality of life of others. Last year, the recipient was Nur Aqilah Mohd Badrulhisham ‘21, who demonstrated extraordinary empathy by listening intently and ensuring that every voice was not only heard but understood.

Burdell-Wood Scholar-Athlete Awards These awards honor two graduating seniors whose academic and athletic careers have been exemplary, whose personal standards and achievements are a model to others, and who possess high levels of integrity, self-discipline, and courage. Last year, the awards were presented to Oliver Taylor ‘21 and Ella Boasberg ‘21, two students who consistently strove for excellence in their athletic and academic endeavours.

Chip Kimball Creativity and Innovation Awards These awards, established two years ago, honor two seniors who exhibit excellent problem-solving skills, explore new ideas, and challenge existing thinking. Last year, the recipients were Isabelle Trudel ‘21 for science and mathematics and Liberty Leggett ‘21 for the arts and humanities. These students were tireless in finding innovative solutions and displayed grit and courage in their daily activities.

Connor O’Gorman Awards These awards annually honor members of our SAS community—students, faculty, and staff—who live the Eagle Way. As Eagles, they model our core values of compassion, fairness, honesty, respect, and responsibility. Recipients are selected by the Student Council and announced to the entire high school student body. Last year’s recipients were Nina Antonio ‘21, Brittany Whitesides ‘21, Liam Murgatroyd ‘22, Rajveer Sidhu ‘23, Diren Gomez ‘23, Seyeong Namkoong ‘24, and Katie Walthall, high school teacher.

David Hevey Award This award honors the late David Hevey and his lasting contributions as an SAS film teacher and faculty member. This award celebrates a student who demonstrates creativity and communication skills through the photographic arts. Last year, the recipient was Alisha Bhandari ‘21, a committed filmmaker who modeled creativity and excellent communication through her quality production.

Outstanding Graduate Awards Along with our SAS core values, the class of 2021 modeled another value last year: resilience. As the pandemic unfolded, our seniors had ample opportunities to prove themselves resilient. Among a graduating cohort that displayed great personal fortitude and strength, the two recipients excelled academically and exemplified the highest qualities of both our learning aspirations and our core values. They were recognized with our Outstanding Graduate Awards thanks to generous support by SAS donors.

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The award recipients, Olivia Moody ‘21 and Mathias Katsuya ‘21, were honored at the SAS high school awards ceremony and at graduation. They were encouraged to use the funds toward their post-SAS education. Olivia, described as community-minded, hilarious, and intelligent, is a difference-maker who impacted her peers profoundly during her time at SAS. Mathias, a remarkable critical thinker with a passion for learning and great compassion, encouraged his peers to be their best selves.

We are so proud of our award winners for all they have accomplished at SAS, from academics to arts to service.

Much about last year was virtual, but their enthusiasm, grit, and optimism have certainly been real!

Amy Zuber Meehan HIGH SCHOOL Deputy Principal

SAS Advocate Award Our newest award was established last year to honor a senior who has embraced the SAS core values, demonstrated a deep commitment to equity, and inclusion for all, and whose advocacy and actions positively influenced our community. Last year, the inaugural award recipient was Ralen Bryd ‘21. A role model for all, Ralen was instrumental in creating safe spaces for traditionally marginalized groups and in facilitating meetings and focus groups to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) at SAS. Scott Seator Ambassador Award This award was established in memory of Scott Seator, class of 1987. It recognizes the senior who has demonstrated the kind of critical thinking needed to solve our world’s most difficult problems, been involved in other cultures, and contributed to making the world a better place. The award went to Ria Nakahara ‘21 for her impressive commitment to her research in limnology, which led to significant improvements to the SAS eco-garden pond.

Taylor Saich Arts and Creativity Award This award was established in memory of Taylor Saich of the SAS Class of 1999 and is given to a senior who enriches the lives of others through dedication to the arts or other creative pursuits. Last year’s recipient was Maja Christiansen ‘21, who displayed dedication to the arts as an officer of the National Art Honor Society and led the community through trying times with grace, dedication, and humor.

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EXTRAORDINARY CARE

EVERY STUDENT IS KNOWN AND ADVOCATED FOR

EXTRAORDINARY CARE

EVERY STUDENT IS KNOWN AND ADVOCATED FOR Schoolwide Compassion Fund Philanthropic funds from the community supported a number of SAS families who were impacted by the economic implications of the pandemic here in Singapore. Gifts to the SAS Compassion Fund allowed these families to remain in Singapore and keep their children enrolled at SAS. More than S$200,000 was disbursed to over two dozen families, including three families with seniors at SAS who were able to graduate with the help of these funds.

It is an honor to be able to share these anonymous words of gratitude with you, on behalf of some of the families who received tuition assistance.

Thank you for considering and responding to our application. We have been blessed with six wonderful years at SAS. Your grant for the 2020–21 school year will allow us to extend into a seventh year. Our dream is to find a path leading our son towards SAS graduation in 2023, and the tuition relief will be one important step in the right direction. We are truly appreciative of the assistance. We will proudly remain Eagles for at least another year. Thank you again for keeping our dream alive.

We can’t thank you enough for making this happen. It truly shows the spirit and compassion of an institution like SAS. We are beyond words and can only say that as our situation improves we will find ways to pay this forward. We’re so absolutely grateful.

Thank you so much for the financial support extended to our family. We really appreciate the quick response to alleviate our financial concerns.

It certainly is the only positive news we have received during this crisis.

We are relieved that our children can both continue their learning in the safe enclave of the SAS community.

And once we are back on our feet after this challenge, we hope we can reciprocate this support back to the SAS community in the future. On behalf of our family, we would like to express our sincere gratitude for creating this program and to the SAS community at large.

Thank you for your generous support of our family during this crisis. We are happy to be a part of this community and this gift among many others is the reason why.

schoolwide Professional Development Donor funds allowed 17 of our teachers to pursue their doctoral program at the University of Southern California (USC) last year. Funds were used to support scholarships for the teachers, who have committed to an additional three years at SAS. This arrangement helps us retain quality teachers for a longer period of time.

In addition, through funds from giving, SAS was able to customize the USC program to fit our curricular needs and include content more relevant to Singapore and the region. Furthermore, teachers who accept the scholarships are required to do their dissertations on issues relevant to SAS, such as flexible learning environments, cultural responsiveness practices, and acceptable math instructions. This creates a “pay it forward” situation for SAS, where philanthropy helps the USC student-teachers not only to have a premium education, but to help resolve issues in our own school community.

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Instructional Assistants’ Professional Development Last year was a breakout year for supporting our instructional assistants (IAs) in their professional learning and growth. For the first time, IAs had access to life-changing scholarships to unlock training, certificates, bachelor’s degrees, and even master’s degrees. This focus on IAs’ professional development was made possible by the generosity of SAS families, and we are truly grateful.

Funds from donors were used to provide training on how to give and receive professional feedback, Chinese language-specific classroom support, pilot IA certificate programs, and support certificates and degrees in learning support, DEI, finance, English language learning, and digital media. Fourteen IAs have started their work toward certificates and degrees, and we have received 23 applications from IAs to participate in pilot IA diploma courses. More than 100 IAs improved their ability to provide quality feedback in the classroom and in their professional lives.

Teachers, managers, finance professionals, and classroom practitioners are just a few of the career aspirations our IAs are pursuing because of donor funding. Opportunities to grow and advance are expanding for our IAs, thanks to this important funding provided by donations to SAS. And as our IAs grow professionally, our students become the ultimate benefactors. There has rarely been a more lifechanging effort at SAS than our IA and support staff development work.

SCHOOLWIDE Response to Intervention Response to Intervention (RTI) is a way of thinking about instruction and how to support students in their learning. Last year, the support services team conducted a review to understand how all teachers at SAS are approaching RTI. The review presented specific recommendations to improve interventions and progress monitoring.

Philanthropic support by SAS donors was used to deepen the review team’s understanding of RTI. Over 25 teachers and leaders attended an RTI conference for sustained learning over three weekends last year. We also started a pilot for tiered reading interventions and developed tools for student support under safe distancing. As a result. teachers were deepened their understanding of how to provide tiered instruction and interventions for all students. This has led to greater collaboration and partnership between the general education teachers and the learning support team. One bright spot of the pandemic was that numerous teachers could attend high-quality RTI training and implement the strategies with students the next day in the classroom. The broad impact of training opportunities extended the learning beyond our learning support teachers.

SCHOOLWIDE Social-Emotional Leadership At SAS, social-emotional learning (SEL) is embedded within services and programs to foster students’ relationships with their teachers and each other. In order to best support our students in this developing area, our educators have been building their own knowledge prior to initiating instructional plans. We recognize that the best approach to this study is as a collaborative effort.

Year-on-year, philanthropic funds enabled teachers, deans, and school leaders to obtain certificates in school leadership for SEL and character development through the College of Saint Elizabeth and Rutgers University. Last year, two educators completed a program on the strength of donations

by SAS families, educators, alumni, and friends. They collaborated to create advisory lessons and provided social-emotional instruction, and then shared the lessons with their peers at SAS. They expanded their knowledge of restorative practices, broadening the ways they support students with behavior needs.

Support for this initiative has fostered the collaboration necessary to create more consistency schoolwide in our approach to SEL. At each grade level, students now have a common experience in advisories or during responsive classroom meetings, putting SEL at the core of learning at SAS. 17

Teacher Leadership Development The most important factor in the quality of a child’s education is the quality of the school’s educators—our teachers, counselors, instructional assistants, coaches, and school leaders. Nothing matters more in terms of our students’ learning opportunities than the caliber of their teachers. That is why our most important focus is on how we attract and retain talented teachers and help them grow professionally in the complex profession of teaching.

Cultivating exceptional thinkers prepared for the future is at the core of what we do at SAS. To be successful, we need empowered teachers on teams committed to continuous learning and a culture of coaching and feedback. Studies conducted by the Aspen Institute and Bain & Company found that implementing this type of teacher leadership model positively impacts student learning and organizational culture. Professions from medicine to law to engineering also follow continuous learning programs that allow professionals to engage in their practice, receive feedback from experts, and have opportunities to reflect and adjust.

Teacher leadership is one of the cornerstones of our 2027 strategic plan for SAS. Gifts to SAS allowed for our first cohort of teacher leaders, now called professional learning community (PLC) coaches, to receive mentoring and training on effective implementation and practices. Our proud history of continuous improvement means that we are deeply committed to every teacher participating in DuFour-modeled PLCs. We continue to see growth in student learning across subjects and grades since adopting this model; our investment in PLCs to date has created the space for faculty collaboration focused on student learning.

Coaching provides one of the strongest opportunities for teachers to learn with and through others. It far outshines the regular professional development models teachers have been used to in the past.

David Hoss Elementary SCHOOL Principal

Giving to SAS allowed us to hire the services of teacher leadership expert Debbie Hearty, who brought years of experience implementing similar programs in hundreds of schools in the United States. At SAS, she served as a direct mentor to our school leaders and to the ten extraordinary educators who participated in our PLC coaching pilot. The funding was the essential ingredient to make our pilot-program planning a success. Our consultant’s work helped us shape the program, train the teachers, and support the school leaders who will run it. Our PLC coaching effort will impact every student and teacher at SAS. We are so excited to see these seeds bear fruit.

schoolwide Translation Equipment A vitally important aspect of community engagement at SAS is the translation of key messaging into the languages of several major constituent groups in our community. Gifts to the school were used to invest in translation equipment and provide real-time translation services for important messaging. The equipment allowed many non-native English speakers in our community to receive real-time messaging directly in their native languages.

As an international community, we often experience situations in which our audience includes speakers of many languages besides English. Using translation equipment is the most effective way to communicate the SAS message to community members in their own languages. We are so grateful for gifts to SAS that have enabled us to make use of equipment similar to that used in United Nations meetings and international business conferences.

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schoolwide Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) has always been important at Singapore American School. Last year, we looked for ways to bring the DEI conversation to the entire community, including all of our 700 employees. Gifts from donors were used to include speakers from around the world in our DEI exchanges, and all educators had the opportunity to reflect on their own identity and think about ways to make our community more inclusive.

With over 60 different workshops on race, gender, sexual orientation, (dis)ability, religion, language, age, and other markers of identity, participants deepened their knowledge of the impact of identity on individuals. Because of the DEI exchange sessions, all educators recognized that honoring diversity, promoting equity, and creating inclusion are at the core of our community’s beliefs.

Teachers examined their own practices to ensure equity in the classroom and they began bringing DEI conversations to students through advisory and other units of study.

The DEI sessions helped build background knowledge for educators on issues that are core to how we value each and every student in our school. After these sessions, teachers have started meeting in new groups to talk about how to apply the new learning to instruction.

Elementary School Recess Ambassador Assistants With the effects of COVID-19 continuing to affect daily life on campus, it was crucial to have additional assistants on our elementary school playgrounds. To bring over 1,800 elementary school students back to campus, the physical education team developed a recess plan that allowed students to have fun, be creative, and collaborate while staying safe and following government guidelines. Philanthropic funds was critical in enabling us to support 53 recess ambassador assistants, 24 of whom were recruited from our on-island alumni.

Due to the pandemic, elementary school recess was staggered by grade level, with 240 students in each level. The physical education team created zones and assigned students to different groups, each easily identifiable by colored wristbands. Whether playing simple tag games or more structured games like kickball, students had fun, got active, and learned skills like collaboration and cooperation. Thirty-two zones and 161 stations hosted all 1,800 elementary students each day.

Twenty-four SAS alumni partnered with instructional assistants to to keep students safe.

The additional adults provided sufficent levels of supervision during recess periods and ensured that our students remained safe and compliant with safe-distancing measures. They also allowed our educators to have a much-needed break for planning and preparation during the busy school day. The recess ambassador assistants implemented recreational activities that ensured all students were safe, engaged, and having fun during playtime. The assistants received training and supervision around exploration, critical thinking, problem solving, and cause and effect to help them find, highlight, and reinforce learning opportunities for students.

Middle School House and Advisory Students learn best when they feel known, cared for, and connected to their school. Last year, gifts to SAS helped support programs that ensured every middle school student experienced extraordinary care. SAS’s house and advisory systems are based on years of research into the most effective practices in education, and in particular on the benefits of social-emotional support for students and learning. The aim of the house and advisory program is to ensure that our students feel a greater sense of connection to SAS, to the faculty, and to each other.

The middle school house and advisory systems support our students by creating a stronger sense of belonging and community and making our big school feel smaller. Philanthropic support to SAS school, we were able to help advisors foster student connections by purchasing more than 550 19

board games for advisories. We also provided house socks so every student could display their house pride. In addition, seven middle school teachers received new house shirts.

These projects have helped to support the social-emotional learning of our students through the development of our advisory program. We continue to entrench the house system as an important part of our middle school community and a key foundation for our students’ sense of belonging.

HIGH SCHOOL House Donor funds provided social-emotional support through the high school house program and the personal academic counseling team. The heads of house team creates a sense of community in the high school through cultivating inviting and safe spaces. Philanthropic funds were used to provide safe-distancing stickers and tarps so kids could have lunch in a fun and safe way. We also used funds to create a welcoming environment for students and faculty by recognizing various holidays and hosting community-building events, including a three house Coffee Houses and our first Teen Wellness event last year.

One of the central goals of the heads of house was to make the house program more visible. To achieve that, we purchased and distributed house-colored socks and shoelaces to students who won house challenges, participated in house events, and wore house shirts on the designated Wednesdays. We also shared the socks and laces with our faculty and staff to thank them for their continued support of the house program.

Working in partnership with the middle school, the socks and laces helped our students identify housemates readily even though we could not gather in houses in person. We are so grateful to our SAS donors, who helped us spread joy while providing our high school student community more options and opportunities to show their Eagle pride!

During this pandemic, we haven’t been able to gather in our Houses, so we relied on apparel to help us identify other members of our Houses. We were able to give our community more options and opportunities to show their Eagle pride!

Renee Green HIGH SCHOOL Dean of Student Life

High School Advisory We truly appreciate the generous donations that have allowed us to develop our advisory program.

As a school, our goal is to ensure that every student feels cared for and connected to each other and to SAS. Small teams of faculty advisors meet weekly to plan their advisory meetings with students.

This group structure provides a network of support and accountability and ensures curricular consistency for our students.

Together, the advisory team develops specific social-emotional learning objectives based on teachers’ and students’ suggestions. Following a developmentally appropriate scope and sequence for ninth through twelfth grades, the advisory team developed lesson plans that advisors used to help students reach their objectives. End-of-study student surveys gathered feedback and evidence of student progress.

Last year, donor support allowed every junior to take the CliftonStrengths assessment and create a CliftonStrengths accounts with their result and relevant resources. This helped them reflect on their self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decisionmaking during and beyond eleventh grade advisory. Understanding their top five strengths helped 20

our 300+ juniors to have a greater understanding of themselves and others. This year, these students will continue to consider their strengths as they prepare to transition from high school to college, university, National Service, or gap year—and their lives ahead.

HIGH SCHOOL Counseling Supervision for Personal Academic Counselors Because of giving at SAS, school counselors benefited greatly in 2020–21 by having access to clinical counseling supervision. This involved a session with another trained professional who guided a thoughtful and reflective conversation around a counselor’s skills and practices. As the social and emotional counselors in the high school, we proposed identifying and engaging counseling supervisors in our community to help us improve our craft. All personal academic counselors participated, and local and online supervisors were engaged. The experience proved to be positive and insightful.

Discussing counselling sessions with a supervisor and receiving feedback helped counsellors to gain an objective insight into their own performance and skills. During a year that certainly placed increased demands on the counseling team, having an opportunity to stop and have someone else do the listening was greatly appreciated. We are so grateful for the philanthropic support of our community and for the benefits to the social-emotional health of our students.

The learning that emerged from these experiences has allowed us to think differently about some of the work and programming that we have traditionally done. This kind of self-care is important for our own wellbeing, as is modelling healthy habits for our colleagues and students.

Carmine Filice Personal Academic Counselor

HIGH SCHOOL Executive Service Council The Executive Service Council manages service learning clubs and projects that raise awareness of global issues, poverty eradication, help for the disabled and ill, and social justice. Service learning builds skills, empathy, and an appreciation of diversity in the communities and natural environments to which students voluntarily contribute.

Because of gifts to SAS, service scholarship applications granted last year totaled nearly S$13,000 and supported myriad service projects. Wish4Kids shipped donated clothes and toys to the Philippines while SEED club bought materials and equipment for the new rooftop garden. Robotics, Photo, SAGE, Ambition, Billion Bricks, SAVE, Global Issues Network, and BPI clubs have also benefited from the funds. In total, we had more than 65 service clubs and projects last year, and more than 80 percent of high school students participated.

Although the pandemic limited travel and some direct service opportunities, what mattered was that students’ contributions were authentic and meaningful. Funds to support civic education through service learning really matter. Social-emotional awareness, tolerance for diversity, cultural literacy, and the development of the whole person are greatly influenced by participation in service work. We are grateful that service learning continues to thrive at SAS.

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EVERY STUDENT PERSONALIZES THEIR LEARNING

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EVERY STUDENT PERSONALIZES THEIR LEARNING Schoolwide Robotics The robotics program continued to expand its offerings and opportunities for students at all grade levels. Last year, through the support of our donors, we purchased new robotics kits for all divisions.

These were used in robotics courses to provide exposure to more SAS students beyond the afterschool activities and competitive programs. Philanthropic gifts to SAS also supported the expansion of our 3D printer fleet, the maintenance and repair of 3D printers, and the purchase of 3D printer consumables.

In the elementary school, giving to SAS enabled the provision of new robotic kits for the robotics club, which supported growth in participation and the upgraded standard and format for robotics competitions. Giving also covered registration costs for participation in competitions. Funds were also used for programmable robotics, microbit and edubit hardware, coding and micro computer engineering kits for elementary students, and materials and supplies for the creativity center.

Donor funds were used to purchase a complete set of VEX robotic kits for technology elective courses for middle school students. This aligned the elective curriculum and experience with the competitive club and activity pathway. Funds were also used for materials, hardware, maintenance, and supplies for the competitive middle school and high school robotics clubs.

Schoolwide Making, Engineering, AND Coding Students at all grade levels were given opportunities to create, design, code, engineer and produce as part of our whole-school approach to STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). One way that students experienced the complete design, create, and production cycle was through the use of 3D printers and 3D CAD software. Each year, we increase the SAS fleet of 3D printers, replace parts, and maintain, repair, or purchase new filament for printing. All of these expenses were covered by gifts to SAS. In addition, last year we also purchased two high-quality carbon 3D printers. These 3D carbon printers are used to design, create, and manufacture parts and pieces specifically for high school robotics team competitions and also for other practical needs across the school.

Schoolwide SAS Speaker Series Giving funds the Speaker Series at SAS, which hosts international and local speakers, researchers, psychologists, authors, and other experts who address important topics on parenting, child development, and family life. Though COVID-19 presented unique challenges for this program, gifts to SAS allowed our parent community, students, and educators access to a much-needed positive perspective on how to succeed during a pandemic.

The chance to learn from Dr. Lea Waters, one of the world’s leading experts in parenting and positive psychology, was both valuable and timely. Dr. Waters shared with families how to stay strong together in the face of uncertainty. Hundreds of parents attended this free webinar, and parents, students, and educators all directly benefited from the wellness lessons she shared. The message was clear: we can continue to survive and even thrive during the pandemic by supporting ourselves and each other.

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Schoolwide Innovative and Creative Teaching Philanthropic funds were used to enhance pedagogy. Giving provides annual support for licensing the highest quality, professional-level software for students and teachers. SAS was able to provide Adobe Creative Suite across the entire school, enabling students and teachers to design and create digital artifacts. The generosity of our community also supported the purchase of digital tablets (iPad Pros) for teachers and students in our high school digital art program.

Schoolwide Mountainfilm Festival Giving to SAS supported the Mountainfilm Online festival, which impacted students schoolwide last year. Our librarians previewed and curated lists of short films with appropriate themes and content for each age group. The access to Mountainfilm enhanced our robust curriculum and provided opportunities to connect and reflect on multiple themes and learning aspirations. Some classes then delved deeper into the films that they had watched and discussed social issues during social studies classes. Others applied their learning on technique in filmmaking during their videography classes.

Schoolwide Rainforest and Eco Garden Giving to SAS enabled us to continue our conservation efforts for our on-campus rainforest. With at least 53 tree species, our 1.58-acre rainforest brings educational opportunities to students as a living laboratory for science classes.

Donor support also allowed us to maintain and restore our eco-garden, located in the midst of our science labs. Our environmental science classes monitored the health of the garden’s pond and observed the ecosystem within the school, so that students could learn through interacting, observing, and problem-solving. The eco-garden was also where senior Ria Nakahara ‘21 conducted her yearlong investigation of a phytoremediation protocol to reduce algal growth in the pond through aquatic plants.

Elementary School Creativity Center Thanks to the continuous funding and support from our SAS donors, last year gifts to SAS allowed the creativity center to purchase stationery supplies and craft materials and to offer elementary school students hands-on activities such as building blocks, construction toys, games, brainteasers, books, piano, sewing, painting, upcycling, and arts and crafts.

Students worked on individual passion projects as well as large-scale elaborate builds, interactive exhibits, and themed workshops. With hundreds of student visits each day, the wide variety of materials and activities offered and the warm, inviting atmosphere clearly inspired interest, curiosity, and exploration. Students practiced valuable design and team-building skills, such as communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and problem-solving. Additionally, they formed friendships while working together over recycled creations and block structures.

The creativity center is a maker space unlike any other because it teaches creativity with socialemotional wellbeing at the heart of every endeavor. This would not have been possible without the generous support of the SAS community.

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Middle School and High School Academic and Experiential Learning Last year, philanthropic support allowed SAS to fund academic and experiential learning for students in middle school and high school. Specifically, students from the Global Issues Network club in high school participated in the National History Day Competition, competing against other students in the Southeast Asian region. Students were exposed to skills such as creating websites, displays, and write-ups of topics centering around the subject of history. Such activities were aimed to sharpen the students’ critical thinking skills and inspire them to learn in meaningful and authentic ways. Due to the pandemic last year, the National History Day conference was conducted online. Students focused on topics affecting the world that they wished to solve.

It’s a great way for our kids to be able to really focus on critical thinking, creativity, and communication skills. They get to achieve their learning aspirations in a very authentic way, and that is not always seen in a regular history classroom.

Jennifer Sparrow Deputy Superintendent

High School Digital Microscopes Giving supported the high school science department in purchasing a new set of digital microscopes and imaging hardware, allowing students to investigate and capture high-quality images and video of microscopic objects and structures.

High School SpaceLab Program SpaceLab is a student-led, after-school program where students have the opportunity to design, build, launch, and operate an experiment on the International Space Station (ISS). With the help of technical mentors, students conceived, designed, and built custom hardware to house their experiment in a mini-laboratory. Gifts from donors enabled us to purchase project materials for students, such as Parallax Electronic Kits, printed circuit boards, a McMek motherboard, digital color camera, pumps, and digital electronics.

We’ve had a number of students who have greatly benefited from the SpaceLab program.

Each year the teams got stronger and stronger as the past team members became mentors and shared their knowledge with their successors.

Ian Page High School Physics Teacher

Our students programmed a microprocessor to operate the experiment and collect data while on the ISS. A second identical ground experiment was run on earth, here at SAS. Students then had the opportunity to publish their findings in a scientific journal, along with participating in the American Society for Gravitational and Space Research. Each student on the team worked on different aspects of the payload and took on various roles. We have progressed to new heights, with our electronics team designing a printed circuit board and our payload and design integration engineering team creating amazing mechanical 3D design models, 3D printed with our new 3D filament and resin printers.

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The SpaceLab program provided an exciting space project where students could apply their math, science, and engineering skills while learning about career opportunities in the STEM field. The program intrigued, inspired, and engaged students as they learned to create and operate science experiments in a microgravity environment, developing technical, management, and teamwork skills in the process. We are deeply grateful to the families, alumni, educators, and friends of SAS who give so generously to support our school and make programs like SpaceLab possible.

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SAS OFFICE OF ADVANCEMENT 40 Woodlands Street 41 Singapore 738547 • +65 6360 6334 • sasfoundation@sas.edu.sg • www.sas.edu.sg/giving CPE Registration Number: 196400340R • Registration Period: 22 June 2017 to 21 June 2023 Accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC)