Returning Home

Here’s a situation that we’ve all experienced, the relieving feeling of returning home after being away. That’s exactly how it felt to return to International Community School Bangkok (ICS). When our family drove through the gates of the ICS campus (after a 36 hour journey from Canada – friends, I can attest that the cheap flights aren’t always worth it) I felt like I was right where I belonged. For those who don’t know, I served under the phenomenal Karen Conwell at ICS from 2016-2019 as a middle school science teacher, while my wife Tami worked with organizations in Bangkok to support refugees and sex workers. Our time in Bangkok was, although quite a while ago now, full of relational and professional growth. At the time Bangkok did and indeed still does feel like our second home. In this article I’ll share the history and highlights from my favorite international school, ICS Bangkok.   

History

The origins of ICS date back to 1981 with the establishment of an education co-op for expat families interested in Christian education. In 1993, ICS officially opened its first campus in the Sathon area of downtown Bangkok with 120 students. In 2004, their current campus was opened in Bangna, Bangkok. Throughout its history God has continued to bless ICS with tremendous leadership, faculty, and families. Today the school is home to 1,200 students from 34 countries. ICS is a school of choice in Bangkok, known for its high level academics and being the top AP school in Thailand. 

Community Hub 

ICS isn’t just a top tier international school, it’s a community hub. Parents show up for the start of the school day and stay for hours after drop off having coffee in one of the campus coffee shops or talking on the school’s front steps. Likewise, at the end of the school day, parents and students are welcome to enjoy the playgrounds, picnic tables, and cafe food service, all of which were purposefully designed to build community. Most days, when campus is closing at 5 PM there are numerous families still on campus. 

Facility Improvements

ICS is an oasis in the hustle & bustle, noise, and humidity that is Bangkok, Thailand. ICS boasts beautiful facilities for students, shaded playgrounds for after school play, and ample seating for community connections. Like Jeff Henderson would say, ICS is FOR the child!! The campus looks noticeably different since I last visited ICS in October, 2019. Some improvements include: upgraded branding, beautiful murals painted by students, plaques which showcase graduating award winners, modernized secondary building courtyard space, new gym for elementary physical education, and 4, count ‘em, 4 new playgrounds. 

3 Statistics Which Indicate Positive School Culture

These 3 statistics paint a picture of a school with a very positive school culture (from ICS’ 2024-25 Annual Report): 

• Parent Satisfaction: 100% of surveyed parents would recommend ICS to their friends. 
• Staff Longevity: The average staff longevity is 8.7 years. In contrast the global international school average is just 3.5 years.  
• Student Achievement: The 4 most recent student body presidents have been accepted to Yale University.

Sharing My Research 

It was an absolute joy to share my doctoral research from the University of Toronto about how leaders improve school culture and my experience visiting the top international schools in the world with the ICS leadership team. It was a thrilling full-circle experience to share with the mentors and leaders who have meant so much to my journey in education. A key component of my time with the team was sharing my gratitude for the parts they played in sparking my passion for supporting schools by improving their school culture!  

5 Key Takeaways

• Servant Leadership: Develop a heart for serving your faculty, staff, and families. Members of the ICS leadership team have been known to show up first in times of need and be the last to go home after cleaning up staff parties. 
• Locked in Leadership: The sky is the limit for school culture improvement when schools have longstanding leadership that sets the course based on meaningful mission, vision, and values. 
• Supported Staff Stay Longer: Invest in teachers and their families, they’ll stay longer, this is absolutely essential for strengthening your school culture. 
• Take Care of Your People: Endeavor to holistically care for your staff, professionally, financially, personally, spiritually, and socially. Healthy staff are an indication of healthy school culture. 
• Crunch the Numbers: Do your research on the costs, logistics, and timelines of facilities projects and have them ready to execute when the funds are available. 

Build culture, unlock potential. Visit my Connect Page or send a message on LinkedIn. 

Stay tuned for more international school visits – up next ICS Udon Thani!

Peace & Blessings, 

– Josiah