History

When Singapore American School (SAS) was founded in 1956, it welcomed 105 students on its first day of school. Today, almost 70 years later, SAS is home to 4,000+ students from 70 countries and 700+ staff. SAS has developed a reputation as one of the world’s top international schools by attracting the best teachers and focusing on dynamic teaching and learning. As an international schools consultant, SAS was at the top of my list to visit on Adventure Year and I’m so glad that I did! 

Background

While helping me refine the list of schools to visit on Adventure Year, Dr. Tim Stuart made it clear that SAS is a ‘can’t miss school’. Tim knew what he was talking about because he served at SAS from 2010-2017 as High School Principal and Director of Strategic Programs (which has to be one of the most unique roles an international school can have).

With that information in mind, I reached out to Jason Son, who served at ICS Bangkok before my time and is now at SAS. Jason is a purpose-driven High School Math teacher with a heart for his students. He kindly offered to bring me on campus and make connections with his colleagues. His wife, Joanne, toured us around the school and shared her expertise as the school’s Communications Specialist. 

Incredible Staff

Jason set up meetings with some incredible colleagues like Sean Pang, a High School English teacher who has led the development of ‘Grade 9 Learning Communities’. Learning communities are effectively lounges with a variety of flexible seating which includes sound proof plexiglass pods, these allow students to collaborate or work independently. 

Next I met with Secondary Deputy Principal, Anthony Poullard. Anthony is a joyful and purpose-driven leader whose expertise is in school culture improvement. He is working toward his doctorate at the University of Texas which focuses on teacher wellness. I know from my own experience in a doctoral program that more international school research is needed. I’m looking forward to reading his findings he’s finished. 

The last meeting of the day was with the multitalented Dr. Anne Wenstrom. Anne has served at SAS for 20 years in numerous capacities. Her current role is a multifaceted mixture of teaching physical education, instructional coaching, and a bespoke program that she created called “Working on Wellness” (WOW). In her doctoral research at USC, Anne noticed that motivation, not knowledge or skill, was the limiting factor when it came to international school staff wellness. To help with this issue, Anne developed WOW, which is a program dedicated to fostering faculty wellbeing. 

Are you ready for one of the most amazing statistics of the year? Anne offers 1,000 programs each year through WOW, from concert tickets to cooking classes and circuit training to conferences. Isn’t that phenomenal!? 

Staff Longevity

SAS has over 700 teachers, 79% of which have a master’s degree (read that again). Their status as one of the world’s top international schools attracts some of the best teachers in the world, with average applications having over 200 applicants. Not only do they recruit the best, they keep them too. SAS’ average staff longevity is 7.7 years, globally the international school average is just 3.5 years.

A High Profile School

Throughout the years, SAS has also become a magnet which attracts world class experiences for its students. The list of celebrities who have visited includes Jane Goodall, Muhammad Ali, the cast of Wicked the Musical, and former president of the United States, George Bush Sr. Oh and for all you Swifties out there, Taylor Swift’s mom, Andrea attended SAS in elementary school.  

Top Notch Facilities

There are schools with high quality facilities, then there is SAS. Here are a few of the exceptional facilities on the 36-acre campus: 3 swimming pools, 4 theatres, 6 gymnasiums, 9 tennis courts, a state of the art fitness facility (run by the wonderful Larry Gile), multiple turf football fields, baseball fields, an all-purpose track, and some of the most sprawling playgrounds you can imagine. 

After visiting SAS, I can indeed confirm that it is one of the best international schools in the world. And yes, it has the best facilities in the world, great branding, and superb programming. But you know what? Though valuable, not a single one of those things actually makes SAS the best. What makes them the best are the people; the students, staff, parents, and admin. It’s easy for the big and shiny elements of schools to distract us from this reality: schools are always about the people. 

3 Key Takeaways

• Healthy School Culture is Carefully Constructed: Strategically build school culture on a foundation of staff wellness and student connection. Do you know how healthy your school culture is? 
• Never Stop Working On Wellness: Investing in staff wellness is central to both the student experience and healthy school culture. Who on your team could spearhead a ‘working on wellness’ group at your school?
• Learning Layouts: Provide dynamic and flexible spaces to support personalized learning and building community. Reimagine one space in your school that can be a designated learning community. What would it take to reimagine the space and bring your vision to reality? 

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

Stay tuned for more international school visits – up next International Community School Singapore!

Peace & Blessings, 

– Josiah