Senior Leadership Update 24th March 2022
CIS visit, Nurse’s office closed over Songkran, vaccines….
Dear Parents,
We have just over a week until the Songkran break and the energy in school is fantastic! You will remember that this time last year the school was approaching a full lockdown, and this year we seem to be pulling out of sustained lockdowns.
As you will all be aware, we continue to experience positive COVID cases in our community. We appreciate that some students unfortunately have experienced repeat class closures and high risk identifications. We ask parents to please be patient, as we know this can be frustrating, but we are confident as a school that our safety protocols are working. A friendly reminder that parents should not linger or socialise on campus after drop-off or after completing any appointments that they may have.
We’ve almost completed our CIS (Council of International Schools) virtual accreditation visit, which has gone smoothly. We were delighted to welcome a global visiting team who represent schools across Asia:
Ben Morgan – Singapore
Carol Walter – New Zealand
Rebecca Tupling – Hong Kong
Diedre Grimshaw – Vietnam
Meredith Lawson – Australia
Mark Schoemer – Vietnam
A special thank you to all the parents who gave up valuable time to speak with the visiting team. Cross Campus Principal Helen Thew has been working tirelessly on this important school accountability project and has left no stone unturned. We expect to receive a detailed report from the visiting team within the next two months. Details of the report will be sent to the community and hard copies will be available in all the school libraries.
All those students aged 5 – 11 years who were registered to receive a vaccine through the school, have been given the opportunity to receive their first dose and were given an appointment for the next dose by the hospital. We do not have a programme to receive more registrations for children, but vaccines are now easily obtained in Bangkok. The government has not allocated boosters (third dose) for children, and if this becomes available through the MOE (Ministry of Education), we will inform you. A reminder there are no vaccination mandates in Thailand, but the government is encouraging people to get their full doses and boosters.
As you make your plans for Songkran, a reminder to practice the 3Ws and follow all required protocols. Our wonderful nursing team will be taking a well-deserved break from 2nd April through to 15th April. If anyone in your family tests positive for COVID from 11th April onwards and has not recovered before the 16th, please contact nurse@patana.ac.th from Saturday 16th April onwards and follow the regular protocols.
We are still waiting to hear more details from the government as they prepare to declare COVID an endemic most likely from 1st July. We will keep you posted on any updates.
We have a wonderful Term 2 Patana magazine that will be sent home next week via the youngest sibling in all families. There is a wide array of articles including those on showing gratitude, the importance of role-modelling and the ancient art of storytelling.
We are looking forward to seeing the Year 13 celebrations next week as they bid farewell to the school they have known and loved for a very long time.
We wish you a very happy and safe Songkran, a very special time of the year in Thailand.
Best wishes,
Senior Leadership Team
