International School Manila For ATTENDANCE concerns,

please contact the HS Office

(Sam Ramos or Laurie Atilano)
Tel: 840 8650 / 840 8653
or email HSOffice@ismanila.org

For GUIDANCE concerns, please

contact Gigi Azarcon and Jasmin
Andres Tel:840-8655 / 840-8660
November 26, 2010

Dear Parents,

Last year at this time I called this the “business end of the semester.” There is still much to do before
the Christmas holiday break, but if you do not count the four days of ICARE then we are left with just 7
½ days of regular instruction for the semester! It is unbelievable to think that the first semester is
drawing to a close and that it will soon be 2011. Where did that whole decade go?

I mentioned ICARE and I just want to dwell on that for a moment. Many alumni comment on the
fantastic experiences they had during ICARE, specifically the relationships formed with the communities
within which they work, but also the fact that our groups are vertically mixed through grades 9 to 12.
This intended “mixing” and the ability to foster positive peer role models is a strong feature of our
ICARE experience.

At this time in the semester we sometimes see examples of; extra stress, sickness, attendance
problems, issues surrounding academic integrity, overdue assignments, and so forth. I wrote last year to
assure you that as a high school we are very aware of these issues and how they affect our students,
your children. We are continually trying to address these issues in the most appropriate manner, given
the students, the classes they take and the individual circumstances involved. Of note here is that we
have close to 730 students and not one of those students has an identical schedule. It is therefore a
rather hard issue to track. I am pleased to note however that the grade 9 and 10 exams have been
completed this week without incident and I am sure this will immediately relieve significant stress for
the underclassmen.

Please enjoy this long weekend and let’s keep it business as usual through until Wednesday December
15th.

Kind regards,

William R. S. Brown
High School Principal

1 
 HS Calendar: 
Monday, November 29:    SPECIAL SCHEDULES IN DECEMBER:
NO CLASSES‐ Bonifacio Day 
  December 14 Tuesday
Tuesday, November 30:    Block F 7:30 - 8:40
IB2 English A1 Orals  Block G 8:45 - 9:55
 
BREAK 9:55 - 10:10
Wednesday, December 1: 
Student Late Start  Block H 10:15 - 11:25
IB2 English A1 Orals  Block A 11:30 - 12:40
IB1 Econ Commentary  LUNCH 12:40 - 1:15
  Block B 1:20 - 2:30
Thursday, December 2: 
IB2 English A1 Orals 
December 15 Wednesday (Early Release)
 
Block C 8.30 - 9.05
Friday, December 3: 
IB2 English A1 Orals  Block D 9.10 - 9.45
  Break 9.45 - 10.00
Saturday, December 4:  Block E 10.00 - 10.35
SAT 7:30 am (proceed to hallway of LT for  Block F 10.40 - 11.15
registration)  Assembly 11.20 - 11.50
 
 
Upcoming Events: 
December 7 – 10:  ICARE 
December 15:  EARLY RELEASE 
December 16 – January 7: Christmas Break 
January 10: Classes resume (Beginning of Second  
                       Semester) 
January 11:  New Parent Coffee 
 

High School Academic Bowl Success!

 
Congratulations  to  the  High  School  Academic  Bowl  team  led  by  the  inspirational 
Matthew Borja, assisted by the sensational Eun Yeol Ma and featuring ISM’s intellectual 
powerhouses  Will  Vankoughnett,  Leandro  Leviste,  Thomas  Bell,  Smriti  Sridhar,  Shrey  Chandra,  Blanca  Villanueva, 
Alessandra Panares and rookie Eric Manalac for winning the first semester Academic Bowl competition held here at ISM 
against Brent International School, Faith Academy and Brent Subic on 9th November 2010.  
David Birchenall
HS Academic Bowl Coach

2 
FROM THE PTA OFFICE:

Giving Back This Holiday Season

The ISM PTA invites you to its
General Meeting and Charity Bazaar
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
7:30-9:30 am @ the Little Theatre
 All members of the ISM Community are welcome and encouraged to
support our service partners in efforts to give back to the local
community.

 The following charity organizations will be selling their products and

may have information on volunteer opportunities:

PCF, Invisible, Trasah Bolsas, Jeepney, Hands on Manila, EVACF,

Taguig Water Hyacinth, CRIBS , Women’s Prison, WWF and more!
Questions: pta@ismanila.org

FROM THE SECURITY OFFICE:

LLO
OSSTT A
ANND
D FFO
OUUN
NDDV
VIIE
EWWIIN
NGG
M
Moonnddaayy ttoo FFrriiddaayy
D mbbeerr 66--1100,, 22001100
Deecceem
M
Moonnddaayy ttoo W
Weeddnneessddaayy
D mbbeerr 1133--1155,, 22001100
Deecceem

FFrroom
m 77::0000 aa..mm.. ttoo 44::0000 pp..m
m..
FFAATT cchhaannggiinngg rroooomm 11111188

IItteem mee w
mss uunnccoolllleecctteedd aafftteerr tthhiiss ttiim wiillll bbee ddiissppoosseedd ooff iinn ssuuppppoorrtt
ooff oouurr S Seerrvviiccee LLeeaarrnniinngg P Prrooggrraamm..

3 
FROM THE ADMISSIONS OFFICE:
Dear Parents,

If you will be withdrawing your child(ren) before the start of the second semester or at some other time before the close of this school
year, please read the following information carefully.

Withdrawing from International School Manila

First of all, we are sorry that you will be withdrawing, or not re-enrolling, your child in International School Manila. We hope, however,
that their stay, whether for one semester or for many years, was enriching and rewarding academically, socially and emotionally.
In order to make the withdrawal process go as smoothly as possible, we would like to remind you of the following:

STEP 1: Please come by the Admission Office to fill out, sign and return a Withdrawal Notification Form. The form is also available on
the ISM website to download and print and it can also be faxed back to the Admission Office at 840-8489.

STEP 2: If the student will be withdrawing BEFORE the last day of this school year, parents or students need to pick up the following
forms from the Admission Office (or download and print the appropriate form):
 The Withdrawal Clearance Slip should be taken to the indicated teachers and offices for signatures.
1. High School Student Withdrawal Clearance Slip (Grades 9-12)
2. Middle School Student Withdrawal Clearance Slip (Grades 6-8)
 For elementary students, the elementary office will handle the withdrawal clearance form for them.
 To receive the child’s YEARBOOK, if withdrawing before the end of the school year, complete and return the correct form to the
child’s school office for follow-up.
1. Elementary School Yearbook: ALAALA
2. Middle School Yearbook: SALINLAHI
3. High School Yearbook: KAWAYAN
 Note that school transcripts and records will be available from the particular school office approximately 5-working days after
the child’s last day of attendance at ISM. Please coordinate directly with the particular school office if you require other
arrangements.

STEP 3: When completed, the Withdrawal Clearance Slip must be taken to the Accounting Office Cashier. Only after the Accounting
Office Cashier has received and signed the completed Withdrawal Clearance Slip will the child’s transcript or school records be released
from the Elementary, Middle or High School Office. Please note that one copy of the transcript is provided free of charge, additional
copies cost P100 each, payable at the Cashier’s Office before release. Please coordinate directly with the particular school office if
you require more than one copy of school records.

STEP 4: The refund of the Facilities Upgrade Deposit (FUD) will be available approximately 15-working days after the signed
Withdrawal Notification Form, by the parent, is given into the Admission Office. However, in any event, it cannot be released before
the child’s last day of attendance at ISM and the completed Withdrawal Clearance Slip is signed by the Cashier. The refund check can
be picked up from the Accounting Office Cashier only upon return of the original signed FUD certificate. Note that the refund of the
deposit shall only be made to the person or authorized company representative whose name appears as the certificate holder on the
certificate. Please call the Cashier if you have any question about this.

Please allow the withdrawal process to go smoothly by starting the process early. Thank you for your help and understanding.

If you need help searching for a school at your next location, please try one of the following websites:
 http://www.ecis.org/
 http://www.nais.org/index.cfm
 http://www.internationalschools.net/
 http://www.eteach.com/hosted/schoolList.asp?list=international
 or use a search engine and query ‘independent school search’ or ‘international school search’ or ‘private school search’ for
example

Again, we hope that your child has had a successful and enriching stay at International School Manila and we wish you and your family
the very best in the future. If you have any suggestions or comments about Admission, School Life, and/or Withdrawal, please do not
hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,
Gary W. Jerome Margie Endelman
Director of Admission Deputy Director of Admission
admission@ismanila.org admission@ismanila.org

4 
FROM THE ATAC OFFICE:
ATAC ANNOUNCEMENTS: 
GAME SCHEDULE INFORMATION:
Information about all mid week/weekend fixtures for ISM teams can be found by going to the GAME SCHEDULE tab on the ATAC
page of the ISM website. You can also access this information via the ES/MS/HS divisional web pages. Please note the game
schedule does change often due to involvement with many local schools so please check the page regularly to find out the
latest information of where and when the Bearcats teams are playing. Access to the game schedule page is also available via
the ATAC blog. Click on the Bearcat logo to be directed to the game schedule page.
http://atac.ism-online.org
 
ATAC HIGHLIGHTS/UPDATES ‐ NOV/DEC: (for ALL match/schedule details check game schedule page as above) 
 Varsity Basketball Tournament at ISM Nov 26/27 
 Varsity JV rugby/Touch v Faith at ISM  Nov 26 
 MS Tennis Nov 27 at ISM 
 Rugby and Touch Dec 4 at ISM 
 Wall climbing Invitational Dec 11 
 PRFU Juniors MS/JV Rugby at ISM 8am‐Noon 
 Last Day of School for 2010 DEC 15th Noon dismissal 
 
ISTA DRAMA HOST FAMILIES/TENNIS HOST FAMILIES; 
Dear Parents, on behalf of the MS/Fine Arts/ATAC Departments I would like to express my gratitude to all the host families that 
assisted last weekend by housing  visiting ISTA students and HS Tennis players from JIS/SAS. It was a very busy weekend for the Fine 
Arts/ATAC Departments and we could not have hosted such successful events without the parents support in hosting the visiting 
students. 
 
IASAS BASKETBALL HOUSING: 
IASAS Basketball will be taking place at ISM Jan 27‐29, 2011 and housing placements are now being accepted. As of this week we 
have 30 students housed but we require 100 housing slots in total. 
All 1st season athletes who were housed this is your time to fulfill your responsibility and offer housing for Basketball. All varsity and 
jv basketball teams should also have returned housing forms by now as well. Please support the ATAC Department by getting these 
forms in ASAP. It would be great to have the housing completed before we go on Christmas break! Go Bearcats show your pride and 
support of the program and get behind our teams by hosting a pair of visiting players from our IASAS sister schools. Housing forms 
are available from ATAC office or on the ATAC Blog at  
http://atac.ism‐online.org/iasas‐basketball‐jan‐26‐31‐2011/ 
 
MS/HS Academic Bowls: 
On November 9  and 10  ISM hosted the  first  semester  Academic Bowls.  HS teams  participating  were  ISM, Faith,  Brent  and Brent 
Subic and despite some close competition from the Faith Academy team during the morning rounds the ISM team romped away in 
the afternoon round to win convincingly over Faith Academy. Congratulations to all participants for their efforts to continue ISM’s 
winning run of victories in the HS Academic Bowl . 
 
The MS Academic Bowl held in the Little Theatre on Nov 10 against Faith and Brent Mamplasan was a different affair this year with 
the ISM team having its winning run broken by a determined and talented team from Faith Academy. Mrs. Birchenall and her team 
were disappointed but are determined to get the trophy back in ISM hands at the 2nd semester Academic Bowl in April. 
 
A big thanks must go to our advisors Mr. and Mrs. Birchenall for all their work in the lead up to the event and on the day as hosts 
and organizers of this Academic Bowl contest. Our teams are looking forward to doing battle again in the Spring. 

BEARCAT DEN:
Regular Opening Hours for the Bearcat Den:
Mon, Wed and Fridays from 11:30am – 1:00pm and 2:30pm – 4:00pm.
Tues and Thurs afternoons from 2:30-4pm. Thanks to all our great volunteers. The Bearcat Den will go into Christmas hibernation
from Tuesday Dec 14 and will reopen on Wednesday Jan 12th 2011.

5 
 ISM Basketball Invitational More Announcements:

November 26, 2010 IASAS Golf:

MS Gym ‐ Girls  This year's IASAS Golf Invitational was held at a
tough course, Bangkok Golf Club hosted by ISB. The
   Time  Home     Away     event consisted of 60 players from 6 schools.
   4:00PM  ISM  v  UP‐B     Congratulations to our ISM golf team who performed
very well during the 2 day tournament.
   5:30PM  UA&P v Poveda   
Congratulations to the ISM Girls team, Erika Morihiro,
HS Gym ‐ Boys  Stephanie Kubota, Angela de Villa and Mika Kubota
Don who took the SILVER medal. It was a very close
   4:00PM  ISM v Bosco    game against the ISB girls team who took the Gold
   5:30PM  DLSZ  v  Claret     medal leading by 3 strokes. Senior Erika Morihiro
won the GOLD medal in girls individual section by
shooting 74, 77 and junior Angela de Villa finished
4th by shooting 83, 83. The boys team also did a
November 27, 2010  great job and finished 5th place. Well done to all
players and thanks to all parents and coaches Alex
Pethan and Wayne Hamaguchi for supporting the
MS Gym ‐ Girls  team!!!
   Time  Home     Away    
   8:00AM  UA&P  v  UP‐B     Varsity Touch Football:
The ISM Varsity Touch Football team traveled to
   9:30AM  Poveda  v  ISM    
Singapore last weekend for the Asian All Schools
   11:30AM  ISM  v  UA&P     Championships. They competed in the U18 grade (a
   1:00PM  UP‐B  v  Poveda     24 team grade) which included the other five IASAS
schools. The girls won their first 3 games against
   3:30PM  FINALS Game Top 2 
local Singapore schools but lost their 4th game in a
close, lightening delayed, match with SAS. With
HS Gym ‐ Boys  games being made shorter, the girls took great
opportunities in their final round game to beat
Division  Time  Home     Away    
another local team. They finished 2nd in their pool and
   8:00AM  ISM  v  Claret     had only had 2 touchdowns scored against them in
Don  around 100 minutes of Touch Football. At the end of
time in the semi-final against TAS the scores were
   9:30AM  Bosco  v  DLSZ    
tied, so extra time was played. With only 3 players on
   11:30AM  DLSZ  v  ISM     the field and 5 minutes into extra time, TAS slipped
Don  around the outside and scored the winning
touchdown. ISM ended the tournament in 7th equal
   1:00PM  Claret  v  Bosco    
place with JIS. Sierra Lee was named the team’s
   3:30PM  FINALS Game Top 2  MVP for the tournament. Throughout the day, ISM
was the life and soul of the tournament and the girls
had a great time being social! As always with Pre-
IASAS, we now have plenty of hard work to do in the
coming weeks. Please come out and support your JV
& Varsity teams on Friday 26th from 4pm onwards.

6 
7 
8