Message from the Principal
Recently, we have been reflecting a lot about the importance of our community – and in the last few weeks, we have received so many positive illustrations of this. Following the success of the ESF Run, we were privileged to host the third and final day of the ESF Festival of Music here at SIS, during which the audience were treated to an exceptional extravaganza of vocal performances from several special choirs, combining students from across all seven ESF secondary schools and sections. Music has always had the power to bring us together, and it is clear that our Music Departments at ESF are collectively in very good voice!
Last Saturday, it was a great privilege for my wife and I to attend the PTA Social Event in Causeway Bay. Parents and teachers are together united in one common objective – to do the very best we can for the students of South Island School. Circulating the room and talking with parents and teachers during this very special afternoon, it was clear to me how much synergy exists in terms of our desire to work together. CIS noted in their recent report the ‘very strong sense of mutual trust’ at SIS. Thank you for trusting us with your children.
Our community is quite unique. We live here in Hong Kong, a community that thrives through its combination of Chinese and International heritages and cultural influences, so we must always work hard to ensure that we celebrate our international diversity, whilst also fully embracing the customs and culture of our host country. Following on from our wonderful Chinese New Year celebrations, we are proud to look forward to our Chinese Drama Production, Butterfly Lovers. If you have not yet reserved tickets, please be sure to do so, as this will certainly be a performance to remember! This also comes just after we celebrated International Mother Tongue Day, and following last month’s International Evening and the Diwali Night in November. We will be looking closely at our vision for international and intercultural education going forward, in collaboration with student and parent representatives, and we look forward to further thoughts on this important element of school life in due course.
Ultimately, the ethos of our community is what binds us together. After seven months in role as Principal of South Island School, it remains a great honour for me to walk forward with our student, staff and parent communities, as we seek to articulate our next steps. Please do take the time to complete the CIS Community Survey, if you have not already done so – our community is strongest when we ensure that every voice is heard, and that every good idea is harnessed in our future plans. Thank you for all you do to support SIS.
Tom Vignoles
Principal
