At NIS, we instill the value of international mindedness in our students by embracing diverse opinions and cultures, caring for local and global communities and the environment, and taking action to make positive changes in the world we share.
To achieve our goals as a community, we must work in partnership with our wider community that comprises educators, parents, students, friends and businesses. NIS parents play an essential role in making our community as supportive and nurturing as possible, which is why we are committed to building a positive parent-school relationship.
Parents not only support students and the school community through Parent Teacher Association (PTA) related activities and events but also by providing diverse windows into cultures and communities to which the school otherwise would not have access. Ultimately, a positive partnership between parents and the school helps NIS stay relevant to the children we serve.
At NIS, we have established a ‘Parent Partners’ program to help build positive partnerships between teachers and staff, and our parents to achieve common goals. This program consists of a diverse team of volunteer parents who use their own personal skills, circumstances and abilities to support our community by building positive partnerships with everyone in our community. .
NIS parents also have access to an online networking tool called “Classlist” as a key method of communication for our parent community. This Classlist group is only accessible to parents, and once a student is enrolled, parents are invited to connect. You can learn more about what it means to be an NIS Parent Partner through this story.
Parents that are interested in supporting the learning through building a positive partnership within the NIS community can do so through the three strands of the PTA that are listed below.
Outreach team members, known as the Outreach advocates, consist of parents responsible for spreading the word about NIS throughout their community memberships or networks. Spreading the word about NIS includes the following responsibilities:
Transition team members are recognized as Transition Buddies. This team of volunteer parents is responsible for supporting new families that are considering moving to NIS. Volunteer members that share traits such as language, age, background, etc., are paired with transitioning families with the responsibility of contacting and offering support to the new family.
The intention is to provide new families with the support they need to make the best decisions for their children and help them transition into our community if they decide to join NIS. Some Transition Buddies may also offer to be tour guides for the new families.
The PTA's third and very important strand is the “PTA volunteers”. The previous two strands are mainly responsible for the outreach and transition of new families to NIS; the third strand takes over the duties and responsibilities that come after.
Although all staff and parents automatically become members of the PTA and able to attend PTA events, our group of PTA executives and volunteering members step up and take an active role in organizing and running these events.
The NIS Parent Partners continue to play a key role in helping us deliver our mission for our children through a positive relationship with our community.
Some of the many things they have helped us achieve over the years include helping us formulate the NIS tagline — Inquire, Inspire, Impact — organizing workshops to help new mothers learn more about international education options in Japan, connecting new families interested in NIS and much more.