The omet

The New sletter of K. International School Tokyo
Volume 24 | Issue 1 | September 2020

In this issue...
02, 03...Welcome to New Staff

09...KIPS News

03...Travel During the Winter Holidays

12...Sustainable Superheroes

04...Message from the Board President

13...Athletics Update

05...IB Diploma Results—July 2020

15...Reducing Waste

06...Early Childhood News

16...Nurse’s Notes

07...Elementary Student Care

18...University Acceptances

From the Head of School

Dates to Remember

Dear KIST Community Members,
Welcome back to another school year at K. International
School Tokyo! The 2019–20 school year was not yourtypical school year, and was certainly not what I expectedin my first year as Head of School at KIST. Over the past
6 months we have had to rethink how we teach, how our students learn, how
we communicate, and how we keep ourselves, our families, and ourcommunities safe.
As a member school of an organization that connects many of the international
schools in Japan, I am connected with administrators from many schools. As
Heads of Schools, we normally meet a few times a year to share policies anddiscuss topics related to international education in Japan. From February ofthis year we began to meet virtually twice a week. A few days ago, during an
online meeting, we all shared not only how our new school years werebeginning, but how we were feeling and why. Some of the emotions shared bythese excellent and dedicated educational leaders, who are usually known for
their never-ending energy and positivity, expressed feelings of being
overwhelmed, exhausted, mentally drained, and apprehensive. Reasons theygave to explain their feelings included the uncertainty of this situation, its
unpredictability, the lack of control, and the responsibility to keep their schoolcommunities safe.
Emotions such as these are certainly not limited to the field of education. As amatter of fact, we likely have it easy compared to other industries that havebeen devastated by this pandemic. I began to consider the emotional toll thispandemic could be having on our students and their families. Change is notalways easy, and we have had to adjust and adapt to more drastic change inthe last six months than many of us have had to in years or even decades.
We’ve had to change our daily routines and adapt to new ways of working andlearning. We’ve had to alter or even miss significant life events. At the
beginning of May, our Grade 5 students presented their Exhibition online, andthen celebrated their PYP completion ceremony virtually in June. Many of ourrecent graduates have had their university plans disrupted or even cancelled. A
member of our teaching team, who recently completed a master’s degree, will
likely need to miss his graduation.

September 2020

21 School holiday
22 Staff development day (Noschool for students)
24 (S) MYP information session forG6 and new parents
28-29 School photographs
29 (E) PYP information session for
new parents
30-Oct 2 (G9) Camp (*Tentative)

October 2020

1 (G5) Day camp (*Tentative)
3 SAT@KIST
12 2021-2022 enrollment
applications open
14 (G10) PSAT tests
24 Last day of quarter 1
24 Whole school event day[Cancelled!]
24 Explanation Day (for prospective
parents) (see p. 8) [Date changed!]
25-Nov 1 Autumn vacation

November 2020

2 School resumes for all students
3 School day
9-10 (G7) Camp (*Tentative)
11-12 (G2-G8) English writing
diagnostic testing
13 Quarter 1 progress reports
issued14 (G6-G11) MUN Scrimmage(@KIST) (*Tentative)
18 (E) PYP information session
23 (W) Parent/Teacher/Student
interviews

What I would like to stress is that we still do not know how this pandemic isgoing to affect our children emotionally. Some children openly express theirworries and anxieties, and some children keep them to themselves.
Continued on next page

KIST Learning for Life KIST Learning for Life KIST Learning for LifePYP | MYP | DP2

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Continued from previous page

I think it is important that we are aware andunderstand that our children will have different
emotional responses to the recent changes in theirlives. It is essential that they know that we are there to
support them. As a community, it is also important that
we support each other.
As I am writing this, I have just looked out my officewindow. It is a beautiful sunny day. Our students arehappily playing with their classmates under the brightblue sky (while wearing masks of course!). This view
from my window reminds me that while it is easy to getcaught up in the concerns surrounding us, it isimportant that we take in all the wonderful things goingon around us as well. It is a beautiful day, our children

are happily
learning, andthere will becountlessbeautiful days
to come!
There isplenty to be thankful for!
Warm regards,
Kevin Yoshihara Ed. D.
Head of School/Elementary School
Principal

Welcome to New Staff
We would like to introduce you to our new staff for 2020—21. Please join us in welcoming
them to KIST!

Teachers

Julian Buck
Elementary PE(G2ꟷG6)

Marina Buck Tsurugai
Secondary
Mathematics

Hannah Cowie
Secondary
Geography

Andrew DiBella
Secondary
Visual Arts

Fernanda Guzman
Classroom Teacher
G2B

Ryusuke Hirai
Secondary
Japanese

Madeline Horan
Secondary
EnglishThomas Hughes
Secondary
Mathematics

Mia Newman
Secondary
Science/ESS

Judith Peel
Secondary
Science/Chemistry

Connor Smith
SecondaryMusic

Naomi Tawiah
Secondary
Mathematics

Chiaki Tomita
Secondary
Japanese

Yuqi Zhao
Secondary
Mathematics
Continued on next page

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V o l u me 2 4 | I s s u e 1 | S e p t e m b e r 2 0 2 0Continued from previous page

Instructional Support Staff

Patricia Aldana
ELS Instructor
G5

Priyanka BP
Teaching Assistant
K2A

Alishba Butt
ELS Instructor
G1A

Katharine Forbes
Teaching Assistant
K2B

Naoki Fukushima
Teacher-Trainee
Secondary JapaneseJaydine Hastings
Teaching Assistant
K3B

Trevor Root
Teaching Assistant
K2B

George Rowlands
Teaching Assistant
G1A

Devin Takahashi
Teaching Assistant
K3A

Sophie Taylor
ELS Instructor
G4

Travel During the Winter Holidays
During a normal school year, with the absence of global disruptions like the COVID-19
pandemic, the winter vacation offers a wonderful opportunity for travel. Currently, it is still very
difficult to predict what travel restrictions and self-quarantine expectations will be in place thisDecember/January. Now that travel restrictions have eased a little compared to last summer,
some families may be considering overseas travel this winter vacation. Before making yourwinter vacation plans, please consider that it may be necessary to self-quarantine for 14 days upon return to Japan.
In the event that your child must self-quarantine for two weeks due to voluntary travel, it is important that all families
understand that we will not be able to provide distance learning. While it may be possible for us to provide someresources for your child to complete independently at home, this would differ significantly from the distance learning
plan we implemented from March to June. Please keep this in mind as you begin to consider your winter vacationplans.
Kevin Yoshihara Ed. D.
Head of School3

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Message from the Board President
To those returning after the summer holiday, welcome
back! And to those who are new to the schoolcommunity, welcome to KIST!
At the beginning of each school year, I am always excited
to welcome our students back to school, but I have neverfelt more hopeful and excited than at the beginning of thisschool year. I was so moved to see the children’s smilingfaces as they were finally able to return to campus safely,
and my heart felt so full as I noticed how much they had
grown in the time since they were last at school. The pasthalf year as we all coped with the hardships and unusual
circumstances brought about by COVID-19 was difficult,and unfortunately, it seems like it will be some time until weare able to return to our normal lives. We thank you for yourunderstanding during these unprecedented times, and ask
for the continued cooperation of parents, students and staff
to help keep our community safe. We will continue toenforce a high standard of COVID-19 prevention measuresand reassess our safety policies to reflect the everchanging situation in order to ensure that students are able
to safely continue receiving in-person education. We
apologize for the inconvenience these measures may
cause, but ask for your understanding and support in
helping us to maintain a safe learning environment for yourchildren.

Accomplishing our mission

The core of KIST’s mission is to “provide (…) a high-quality
education (…) in order to develop competent, academic
and compassionate individuals who make meaningful
contributions to our global community.” KIST’s Board of
Directors first set this mission from the 2013 school year
and, with the aim of becoming a school with the highestlevel academics, began an educational reform. In 2018, we
further elaborated on this goal by setting “K. International
School Tokyo seeks for all learners to demonstrate
excellence in academics, compassion for others, and acommitment to making the world a better, more peacefulplace,” as our vision.
As our Board Vice President and Associate Head of School
Mrs. Komaki expressed in E-Communications No. 7, thereason we have chosen the International Baccalaureate’s
Diploma Program (IBDP) for the final two years of theeducational programming at KIST is because its curriculum
develops the research skills, as well as the critical,
analytical and logical thinking skills that lay the foundation
for success in university and our ever-changing global
society; focuses on strengthening communication skills
through writing, presenting, debating, etc.; imparts highlevel knowledge to prepare students for success in the
future studies and careers; and emphasizes the importanceof a volunteering spirit by providing opportunities for
involvement in the community. Through these elements, theDP (and the IB curriculum as a whole, supplemented by the
IGCSE) provides a strong framework for KIST to achieve
our mission—our aim is to provide high level educationfrom the elementary level so that, over their time at KIST,
students are able to build the foundation of the study skills
and knowledge that will prepare them for success in higher
education and their future careers. As achieving a highscore on the DP exams is valuable proof that students havemastered these skills and obtained this knowledge at a highlevel, the KIST Board of Directors set achievement of ahigh score on the DP exams as an important goal for KIST
in alignment with our vision and mission. Additionally,
achieving a high score on these exams serves as aninternationally recognized, standardized testament to thefact that students have mastered such skills andknowledge.
Dr. Yoshihara, along with the rest of the educational
leadership team, is dedicated to furthering our goals ofproviding high-level academics through working
collaboratively with our passionate and devoted teaching
staff. Thanks to his leadership, the dedicated efforts of ourstudents, and the support of our parents and guardians, our2019 graduates achieved a DP score of 39.2 (world
average: 29.65), and were ranked 12th in the world for their
DP results on the UK-based website ib-schools.com. And
this year, despite the difficult situation with COVID-19, ourClass of 2020 and their teachers and families worked
incredibly hard to achieve the even more impressive resultof 39.83 (world average 31.83). More details are available
in our DP Coordinator Mr. Hiro Komaki’s article on the next
page; please give it a read!

Financial report

The financial report from the April 2019 to March 2020
financial period has been inspected by the required two
auditors and has been approved by the Board of Directors
and reported to the Board of Trustees. (As private schoollaw designates the financial period as April to March, thereport does not align with our school year.) If you would liketo inspect the report, please contact Mrs. Komatsu or Mr.
Honda to make an appointment. In accordance with thelaw, current students, parents/guardians of students, andcurrent staff are eligible to view the report.

New building plans

Clearance of the area on the northern side of the main
school building and construction of a temporary
prefabricated classroom in preparation for construction of
our new school building has been completed. The newclassroom is currently being used as a Grade 8 homeroom
and a science classroom for Grades 6 through 8. Ouroriginal plan was for construction of the new school building
to begin at the end of summer vacation, and for Grade 6
through 8 to begin classes at Nakamura Girls’ Junior andSenior High School. Unfortunately, the COVID-19
pandemic has caused financial difficulties around the world,
and in response to this, we felt it was important to provide
economic support to our community members in need.
Therefore, in order to prioritize allowing families in need offinancial aid to remain at KIST, the Board of Directors
decided to create a fund to support families who sufferedfinancially due to COVID-19, which has required a delay tothe construction schedule and the move by Grades 6
through 8 to Nakamura. While we cannot predict when the
pandemic will end, we plan to restart the construction plans
as soon as we are able. I know that many of our community
members were looking forward to the new building, but we
ask for your understanding in our Board’s decision toprioritize financial support for the members of ourcommunity in need.

Closing words

While the end of this unprecedented COVID-19 situation is
not yet in sight, I believe that all of us in the KIST
community, with our strong sense of unity,
can overcome it together. Thank you foryour continued support. Let’s work together
for another great school year.
Sayoko Naito
Board President/Director of Operations

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IB Diploma Results—July 2020
As many of you are aware, following the cancellation of the May
2020 examinations, this year the IB released results on July 5
using an awarding model based on Internal Assessment (IA),predicted grades (PG) and historical assessment data such as
from previous examination sessions, individual schools (e.g. PG
accuracy, relationship between coursework and examinations)and subject data for the May 2020 session. Due to this model,
many IB schools saw a discrepancy between the school’s
predicted and awarded grades; however, this was not the case at
KIST and we believe that there are two main reasons for this:• KIST has always been very accurate with PGs.
• KIST graduates have always worked hard until the final IB examinations despite receiving unconditional offersfrom universities.
I would like to take this opportunity to recognise the KIST teachers for their dedication and hard work in helping
students achieve and often exceed their PGs in the final IB examinations. Thank you also to the past graduates forworking hard to maintain and often exceed their PGs in the final IB examinations. This is a gift that you left for theschool and the graduating classes in future years.
Despite the challenges this year has brought, the results of KIST’s “Class of 2020” once again saw the highest
KIST Diploma average score of 39.83, 0.63 points higher than the previous highest average in 2019. Of the Class
of 2020 cohort, one student attained a perfect score of 45 points, placing the student in the top 0.42% globally. A
summary of the Diploma results from the past five examination sessions is shown above.
Of particular note for the Class of 2020:• 41 of the 44 students (93%) were enrolled in the full Diploma, in comparison with the global average of 50%.
• 41 of the 41 students (100%) enrolled in the full Diploma at KIST attained the IB Diploma, in comparison withthe global average of 85%.
• The average score for KIST students attaining the IB Diploma was 39.83 points, more than 8 points above the
IB Diploma world average 31.38 points.
• 25 KIST students attaining the IB DP (61%) attained scores of 40 points or above, in comparison with theglobal average of 13%. The students qualify to be considered for the KIST “Learning for Life” University
Support Scholarships.
• 1 student attained a perfect score of 45 points, which only 0.42% globally achieve.
• 2 students attained 44 points; 3 students attained 43 points; 8 students attained 42 points; 5 students attained
41 points; and 6 students attained 40 points.
The table on the right shows how KIST’s course averages (calculated
for students who attained the IB Diploma) compared against the IB
world averages for each course.
• 97% of courses offered at KIST had results above the IB world
averages.
• 97% of courses offered (with green and blue shading) had results
more than 0.5 points above the IB world averages.
• 59% of courses (with blue shading) had results more than 1 point
above the IB world averages.
Please refer to the “Statistical Bulletin” at the link below for further
information on the IB Diploma results and statistics.
b
Web

https://www.ibo.org/about-the-ib/facts-and-figures/statistical-bulletins/diploma-programme-statistical-bulletin/

Congratulations to the Class of 2020 for achieving fantastic IB
Diploma results by demonstrating resilience and determination during
an unprecedented year, and best wishes for continued success as
you commence your university adventures.
Hiro Komaki
DP Coordinator*Subjects studied through Pamoja Education5

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Early Childhood NewsTo all our new students and families, welcome to KIST!
And welcome back to all our returning students andfamilies, especially after the long period of distancelearning last year. All of the ECE staff were thrilled tosee our students return to campus after almost six
months.
This year, we welcomed two new classroom teachers
in the ECE department, Ms Emma Moulder in K1B and
Mr Wilhelm Merchel in K3B. Ms Emma may be familiar
to ECE families after working for four years as a K1
teaching assistant—she has now earned her teachingcertification specializing in early childhood education,and looks forward to leading K1B this year. Mr Will waspreviously an ECE teacher at KIST, and is now rejoining us after several years teaching G1. Additionally,
we welcomed several new teaching assistants thisyear, creating a diverse team with a wonderful varietyof nationalities. We are looking forward to a successful
year together with you all.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been difficult on all of us,
and many of us are still struggling to move forward;
however, at KIST, we are here to support your children
and create a safe, happy learning environment for all of
our ECE students. All KIST staff are following the ReOpening Safety Measures policy to prevent infection as
much as possible, and we have also implemented thefollowing steps (see photos below) to ensure that our
youngest learners stay healthy and develop important
habits for maintaining their own safety.
While this year has started a bit differently thanprevious years, I wanted to once again welcome you(back) to school, and thank you for your continued
understanding and support! Let’s make 2020–21 agreat year for our children!
Eri Ozawa
Early Childhood Coordinator (K1–K3)/
K2B Teacher

Before COVID-19, we...
Did lots of group work.

Lined up together in thefoyer (K1ꟷK2).

Washed hands withsoap, sometimes onlywith water.

Didn’t wear masks
when we were well.

Went out to the playground
together with grade level friends.

Had fun lunch times
together with our friends.

After COVID-19, we...
Have more tables so that
there is enough space foreach child to work
individually.

Stagger drop off andpick up times.

Shared materials with
our friends all the time.

Washed hands with soap
as much as possible, andspray our hands withdisinfectant.

Wear masks all
the time.

Go out to the playgroundwith our own class only.

Don’t talk while eatingand have no lunch
helper.

Use our own resources
as much as possible.

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PYP News
Welcome back to school
As I began to write this post, I thought it would be
helpful to look back at what I wrote this time last year.
This is how it began…
“2019—2020 is going to be an extremely eventful year
for all of us. With the proposed construction at KIST
and the Tokyo Olympics just around the corner, things
are sure to be very lively.”
I am sure that you will agree that 2019–20 was anextremely eventful year, unfortunately, mainly for thewrong reasons. The COVID-19 global pandemic has
thrown up many obstacles in terms of how we deliver
our curriculum, but I feel that as a school community,
we have all pulled together so well. We very muchappreciated all of your support during distancelearning, and we are currently revising our distancelearning plan so that we are well prepared in the eventthat the school has to close again in the future. The
children are now back at school and everybody seems
happy and comfortable despite the social distancing
measures so I am extremely confident that we candeliver the curriculum successfully and in its entirety.
For the 2020–21 school year, we have a number of
new staff in the elementary school and with lots ofhomeroom teachers moving to new grades, I feel that
there is a fresh outlook to this school year. I expect thatmany of the units of inquiry will be altered this year so it

will be an exciting time foreveryone.
Our move to the Pearson
Abacus mathematics program
has been a success,particularly with theintroduction of Active Learn as an education hub.
Additions this year are the Grammar and Spelling Bug,
the Bug Club, and the Science Bug. These programs
mean that teachers can allocate fantastic interactive
resources through Active Learn. This year, we will bemaking the permanent move from Moodle toPowerSchool Learning but I expect this to be a smoothtransition after our distance learning experiences.
As always, our teachers here at KIST will continue topromote the International Baccalaureate’s philosophyof constructivist and concept-driven learning, while
striving for excellence in the core subjects of literacy
and mathematics. As with the parent welcome night,
this year’s PYP information session will be done
through a recorded video, so please feel free to get intouch with me if you have any questions regarding ourcurriculum at KIST.
Here’s to a safe and successful 2020–
21!!!
Oliver Sullivan
PYP Coordinator

Elementary Student Care
We are back!
Welcome back to school! I have to say, it is a pleasure
to see the students, parents and staff back in ourfamiliar school surroundings. I am grateful for theopportunity to meet our community once again, face toface. Please forgive my sentimentality, but I do
appreciate the fact that we can all be back at school,
together.
Teaching at the Summer Review Session in August
gave me an opportunity to share stories with our
returning students and gauge the excitement that
separation generated in their hearts and minds. It isevident that we all needed the closeness and intimacyof the human interface more than we might haverealized. This perception was supported when thewhole school returned on August 24 and again thesame elation was evidenced in the faces of ourstudents. Even though we are shielded behind facemasks and fortified with hand sanitizers, our hearts
seem to shine through.
We must protect this precious gift of community by
watching out for each other. This can only be done as awhole community approach wherein we all take theappropriate steps to keep each other safe. If we remain
vigilant in the execution of the Campus Re-Opening
Safety Measures and keep a positive attitude toward

these health preserving steps,
we should be able to finish theentire year on campus, together, where we belong.
This year in the elementary school I am working as
Student Care Coordinator and look forward toparticipating in your child’s education with a specificintent to provide for each students’ physical, emotionaland educational needs. One of the most importantskills that children learn as they grow is to be a positiveand productive participant in society. With our return tocampus, one of the most important parts of my mission
has been realized—that of providing an appealing,
inviting and welcoming social network from which tolearn and grow.
I look forward to working closely with students,
teachers and staff during these unprecedented times. If
you feel that I can be of help in answering questions
about the experience your child is having at school,please feel free to e-mail me or when the campus
opens again for visitors, drop by the elementary office
and we can set up an appointment.
Clay M. Bradley
Elementary School Vice Principal/
Student Care Coordinator78“ T h e Co m e t ”

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Elementary ELS
Elementary English Language Support
Team 2020–21
We’re back at school at last! English Language
Support (ELS) staff enjoyed the 1-to-1 online
language lessons we had with many students at theend of last school year, but we are so glad to be backin the classroom now for face-to-face learning.
Some children may be feeling nervous to be back in
an English-speaking environment again after several
months mainly at home, or might be feeling like theirEnglish is a little bit rusty. But don’t worry! We know a
big part of our job in semester 1 is to support andencourage our students as they reacclimatize to their
daily school life in English.
Part of reacclimatizing is to get used to bringing over
into English all of the language skills and knowledge
we have in our home language(s); so your child’s
strong skills in their home language(s) are a hugeadvantage! It means they have lots that they cantransfer into English to make their English stronger,
too.
You may remember this quote from the Bonnie
Campbell Hill article we usually distribute at Parent
Welcome Night:
If your native language is not English, we
hope you continue to speak and read toyour child in your home language.
Speaking in your native language will notmake it more difficult for your child tolearn English. In fact, an important partof language development is learning afirst language well.” (Campbell Hill, 2001,
p. 446)
So please take reassurance from the language
development research. One of the good things about
being stuck at home for so long earlier this year isthat it was a chance to further develop our homelanguages. It’s important to keep up this work you do
at home of strengthening your child’s home language(s). You may also remember these three tips from
Campbell Hill on how to help the process ofdeveloping English and home languages together:• Find some time every day to listen and talkwith your child about his or her school day
in your home language.
• Explain challenging concepts to your childin your native language.
• Allow your child to teach you English.
Especially for those of you who may be new to KIST
this year, please feel free to e-mail me for more

Our Elementary ELS department for 2020–21:(Back row L>R) Ms Ali (G1A), Mrs Aldana (G5), Ms Rachel (G3), Ms
Parvathy (G2), Ms Rina (G1B)(Front row L>R) Ms Sophie (G4), Mr Derek (K3B), Ms Wang (K3A)

information and tips on how you can help your child’s
language development at home.
Rachel Parkinson
Elementary ELS Coordinatorrachel.parkinson@kist.ed.jp
Reference:
Campbell Hill, B. (2001). Developmental continuums: A framework
for literacy instruction and assessment K-8. Norwood, MA:
Christopher-Gordon.

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KIPS News
From challenge to opportunity!
All of us at KIPS, like many of you, were devastated that
school would have to close from April 13 until the end of
May due to COVID-19. We were so excited to welcome
the children back from June 1, and have all been sopleased to be able to see their smiles and hear their
giggles in the classrooms.
As we look back, we feel fortunate to have been able tosupport parents and children via distance learning through videos with music, dance, craft, storytelling andmovement. We loved hearing about how the children enjoyed seeing their teachers’ faces on the screen. One of thechildren even mentioned that she wanted to have the same hairstyle as her teacher! Thank you so much for sharing
these with us and supporting the children at home.
Since P2 children were not able to perform in the virtual Spring Concert, teachers
made a video of what children had been practicing at school and home so thatfamilies were able to see their children’s confidence as they performed the lyrics
and moves they had memorized and how much they enjoyed singing anddancing. Thank you so much for sending us video clips of your children
performing! It was awesome to see all the children “together” in the video.
We were excited to hold an in-person Completion Ceremony on June 19 in the KIST gym. We had to separate all
the seats 2 meters apart to maintain social distance. We were apart physically, but we felt so much closeness, joy
and happiness when the children sang the “Goodbye Song” to their parents and teachers. I will never forget their
happy smiles during the ceremony.
Bringing children back to some level of normalcy and routine can be a great challenge; however, it allows us to see
a given challenge as an opportunity to grow and learn, rather than to fear. We welcome new and continuing children
back to KIPS for the 2020–21 school year. We will continue supporting parents and children with positive and clear
communication to avoid any confusion during the COVID-19 situation.
Let’s enjoy our time together!
Stephanie Pae
KIPS Coordinator

Asa

Hana

B

Daiki

Haru
Kai

John

Shusei

Riko

Sebby

Taiyun9

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MYP News
MYP students begin new school year with
continuity and change
There is something reassuring about the start of eachschool year echoing the past. Students, teachers andparents have long grown used to familiar patterns thatprovide a sense of reassurance. While there arealways some students new to KIST and always agroup of new Grade 6 students who are new to theSecondary School, most years contain a sense ofstability arising from familiarity. But this year isdifferent.
The list of changes caused by the safety measures
put in place to respond to the threat of COVID-19 isquite long. The changes are geographic (all MYPclasses are based on the first floor of the Secondary
building), temporal (the school day begins with anextended homeroom session at 9:40 and ends at4:30), and social (clubs and activities will delay theirstarts this year).
MYP students and teachers have worked hard to
make the necessary adjustments. Students havebeen enthusiastic about being at school in person for
the first time in many months. They have been
conscientious about adapting to the routines requiringsocial distancing and heightened hygiene. Students
have adapted quickly to the new schedule and havedealt effectively with the changes imposed by safetymeasures.

Opening Lines: a bulletin board display from MYP English
Language and Literature

One of the chief reasons for the students’ ability tomake these changes so smoothly arises from thecontinuity brought about by their academic work in the
MYP. KIST teachers do an excellent job of guiding
their students through the rigorous investigations
required in each of the MYP subjects. Whether thisyear is their first experience with the MYP or if they’removing into their last year in Grade 8, students all
have the opportunity to explore the concepts,
investigate the content, and develop the skills
required to be engaged, reflective thinkers.
In addition to the academic focus, MYP teachers are
helping students to improve their organizational skills
and be equipped to handle the stresses that
accompany their challenging subject material throughG6A’s Puzzle Pieces introducing themselves to MYP

the Homeroom Advisory classes. Each MYP class is
led by two teachers who help the students explore thesocial-emotional skills necessary to navigate life as a
middle school student in the year 2020.
All of us at KIST look forward toanother rewarding year in the MYP.
Robert WhiteMYP Coordinator

Secondary SRC
With the start of the newschool year, a new groupof aspiring leaders are
currently being shortlisted
to be elected as the classreps.
The Student
Representative Council
has decided to rethink andinnovate a new processthat allows us to select the best candidates for each
SRC role. With the inclusion of a new job role anddescription, and a small new interview session, classreps will be more informed than ever on what they are
expected to do in the Student Representative Council,
and the Executives will have a much clearer idea on
who will be potentially joining the Council, should they
be elected. This has been done to allow us to be abetter council in general and have better candidates
in order to create a better environment for students tobe able to share their ideas and create new projects
in our current turbulent times. We have received 33
applicants, which is a great number in our eyes! We
hope that the students who apply, and eventually getelected, are inspiring and motivated to push throughduring these times, where idea generation may be
more limited, and obviously, social distancing making
it harder for traditional projects to be accepted; withthat said, we hope this will allow the representatives
to think more outside the box, and generate projects
that have never been thought of before.
Continued on next page

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V o l u me 2 4 | I s s u e 1 | S e p t e m b e r 2 0 2 0Continued from previous pagework within these bounds to find new ways to help ourstudents thrive. This year, in order to maximize our
support, both myself and Ms. Furnival will be working
with all students requiring support across G6–10.
Should any students or parents have questions about
English Language Support, please contact me atjade.bonus@kist.ed.jp.
Jade Bonus
Secondary ELS Coordinator

The Secondary SRC Executives(L>R) Ravi (G12B), Riya (G12A), Kishore (G11B),
Tatsunori (G11B), Michiko (G12A)

We have also refreshed the Arts and Media
committees, and removed the sports committee.
Starting with the bad news, unfortunately, due to most
sports being canceled and due to social distancing,the sports committee is unnecessary. Future Councils
will likely bring this back, however, so it is likely not apermanent end to the committee, but more of ahiatus. The Arts and Media committees, on the other
hand, are seeing a rebranding, which sees them
combining into one MA committee. This will have twoheads that will lead a group of students who areinterested in digital arts. More detail will be provided
once the heads are selected and once the committee
is started.
Finally, the SRC hopes that all the students haveenjoyed their stress balls that we provided on the firstday back. The intention was just to provide students away to move their minds away from the diagnostics
for Grade 12, and for lower grades, to stop worrying
about the pandemic for five minutes while theysqueezed the ball.
While the pandemic provides us with a difficult
situation, we hope that the KIST community is stillfinding ways to relax and take theirmind off things. We hope everyone has
an excellent academic year, with
continued practice of social distancing!
Ravi (G12B), on behalf of the SRC
SRC Public Relations Officer

Secondary ELS
Staff introductions
It is wonderful to be back to in-person teaching andlearning at KIST for 2020–21. This year we aredelighted to welcome Ms. Kana Furnival into theSecondary ELS department. With five years’
experience in the Elementary School as an ELS
Instructor across various grade levels, Ms. Furnival
brings with her a wealth of expertise to help ourstudents meet their challenges and achieve their best.
Given the current situation with the COVID-19
pandemic, the shape of how we can provide support
has changed; however, as a team we will continue to

11

Ms. BonusIam a certified secondary
English and Media Arts
teacher originally from
Melbourne, Australia. Prior to
moving to the educational
sphere, I specialized as an
editor, working in the music
media and am still very passionate aboutmusic even though I can neither play nor sing asingle note.
Japan has been my home for just over sevenyears. I taught English for two years in thebeautiful city of Towada in Aomori Prefecture
while on the JET Program and I will always
consider it my Japanese hometown. I joined
KIST as an Elementary ELS Instructor in 2015
and spent three years in Grade 1 before
moving over to the secondary school first as an
ELS Instructor before becoming Secondary
ELS Coordinator last school year.
I am particularly excited for the 2020–21 school
year as my first Grade 1 students will now beentering the Secondary School as Grade 6ers!
How time has flown!

M

Ms. Furnival

y name is Kana Furnivaland I have been here at
KIST since 2014. I waspreviously working as an ELS
Instructor in the Elementary
School and am looking forward
to the new challenge of working
with the Secondary School students.
My passion for education started when I taught
at an early learning school in England, where I
supported Japanese students with theirEnglish studies. The satisfaction of seeing mystudents progress was second to none and it
has only grown over the years.
As a native Japanese speaker who has also
had to learn English as a second language, I
can empathize with the challenges this brings,
and I will use my experiences to help support
students in their lifelong journey.

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Global Social Leaders: Sustainable Superheroes
by ourselves. Therefore, we gathereda few volunteers from our grade as
well as younger students from theGreen Team to weed the garden. As
mentioned previously, we also
developed a booklet about the SDGs
over the winter break and completed
work on a PowerPoint for thispurpose.

W

e are the Sustainable
Superheroes, a group of six
students in Grade 11, and over thelast school year, we have participatedin a global competition called the
Global Social Leaders to connect theUnited Nations Sustainable
Development Goals to our local KIST
community
Throughout the course of developing
and implementing our projects, we
identified the vitality of targeting theschool community on a large scale inorder to effectively address anddisseminate the SDGs. Following our
first meeting in October of last year,
we began the long process ofdevising ideas, considering theirfeasibility with the school andrepeating until we had a relatively
solid list of projects we planned to go
through with that included
presentations to the younger students
about the SDGs and a collaboration
garden with the Green Team. Ms.
Evelyn, our teacher advisor, assisted
us in fleshing them out, with arranging
initial meetings with the elementaryteachers and generally guiding ourcreative process. By the time we
submitted the final plan to the Global
Social Leaders team, we had started
work on our elementary presentation
resources, which was a booklet
detailing out various aspects of each
Sustainable Development Goal alongwith thought-provoking questions, inaddition to arranging the course forwork on the garden to start early thenext year.
In order to execute our projects, we
identified the need for funds. This was
especially crucial for our school
rooftop garden project, as we needed
to buy plants to fill the barren land. To
raise money, we collaborated with astudent-led organization called theGreen Team to do a fundraiser hot
drink stand during the annual WinterConcert. We were able to raiseawareness of our project amongst
visiting parents and students,
resulting in a profit of approximately
40,000 yen. After acquiring thenecessary funds, we then realizedthat we could not maintain the garden

As the planning phase wascompleted, we moved on to thecollaboration with the Grade 5teachers and students, for which we
had created presentations andresources introducing the SDGs in anaccessible manner for the younger
students. We had the incredible
opportunity of giving a live
presentation, and we hope weassisted the Grade 5 students indeveloping and solidifying their ideas
for the G5 exhibition. In addition tothis, our partnership with the Green
Team to further disseminate“greenness” within our schoolcommunity resulted in a concretedecision of creating a rooftop
garden—a project which effectively
utilized the school facility andenhanced the inclusiveness of ouraction. Although the outbreak of thecoronavirus pandemic hindered thecontinuation of the garden, we hopeto make the garden sustainable—one
which can be inherently managed by
the younger students.

While all our classes were moved
online, we all agreed to construct analternative plan to remain productive
during quarantine. The outcome wasa series of seventeen educational
videos which explained each of theSDGs in a simple infographic style.
Thus, we opened our horizons to the
public. Stemming from our primaryidea of sharing the videos with theyounger elementary students, wetransferred these videos onto theglobal video-sharing platform,
YouTube. Our videos can be found on
our official channel: “Sustainable
Superheroes”. The creation of thesevideos was a challenging endeavor in
itself. We engaged in weekly online
meetings to outline a consistent
structure for the content andpresentation in each video, focusing

especially on formulating ideas forany audience to be able to take local
action towards contributing to the
SDGs. The product was an
astounding coalition of our selective
research and ideas which overlappedwith our initial, most values objectiveof promoting the goals locally, as well
as a show of our ambition to reachfurther audiences with the SDGs.

We competed in the semi-finals andreceived a commendation for the
Pivot Award (in recognition of teams
who kept pace with a rapidly changing
environment and adapted their project
to be more effective or relevant to theneeds of their community). This award
sums up much of our project where
we had to be extremely flexible while
adapting and understanding theconstraints we faced due to thecoronavirus. Although we were unable
to execute the garden and continue
with our G4 and G5 presentations, we
believe that the pandemic pushed us
to new limits, allowing us toexperiment with our newfoundcreative freedom. Ultimately,
throughout the course of this project,
we were able to plan a variety of
projects, some of which that weresuccessfully executed; however,through reorganizing ourselves during
the pandemic, we were able to learn avariety of important lessons including
the significance of adaptability andcohesion while likewise introducing
the SDGs to the community in an
impactful measure.
Despite the complex school
environment we find ourselves in now,with an end to the coronavirus
pandemic seeming distant, we aim tocontinue with our initial focus on
spreading awareness of the
Sustainable Development Goals,
potentially covering wider bases inconnection to environmental issues
that our planet is currently going
through. We hope that our actions thiscoming year will have an even greater
impact than last year, and we invite
the KIST community along on ajourney to sustainable living!
Hanano (G11A), Mehak (G11A),
Stephen (G11A), Eleina (G11B),
Hanna (G11B), Kishore (G11B)

V o l u me 2 4 | I s s u e 1 | S e p t e m b e r 2 0 2 0“ T h e Co m et ”

Athletics Update
Fall sports

At present, KIST clubs and teams are on hold pending the COVID-19 situation as
safety of our students is a priority; however, special permission has been granted tothe high school tennis team as the school’s social distancing measures can be met.

Kanto Plains Varsity Boys’ tennis team

The team had their first practice on September 1 and will continue to practice weekly until the end of theseason in early November. With four G9 students joining this year, the team is up to 11 members, 7 ofwhom will participate in games against YIS, CAJ, ASIJ and St. Mary’s starting from early October. Let’swish them success for the coming season!!
We have been using the courts at Nakamura Junior & Senior Girls’ High School this season.

Featured athlete
Daiki (G9A) was selected recently as a ‘Tokyo Athletes Certified Player’ forfootball (soccer)—one of only 15 football members (and a total of 276 athletes)
selected in the second year of the Reiwa period. The ‘Tokyo Athletes Certified
Player’ is a system that certifies and supports athletes from Tokyo who are
expected to participate in international competitions such as the Tokyo 2021
competition. The aim is to boost interest in athletes raised in Tokyo and cultivate spirit
for the Tokyo 2021 Games by providing reinforcement activities and introducing competition activities.
Daiki’s current team is the Mitsubishi Youwa Soccer Club – Sugamo Juniors where he plays goalkeeper.
In G7 and G8, Daiki played for the KIST Comets Middle School Boys’ team and was instrumental in
guiding us to a 3rd place league finish and 3rd place tournament finish. Though his natural position isgoalkeeper, Daiki played midfield and was the strongest player on the field in any
game at any of the Kanto schools. Though we were missing two of our stronger
players for the tournament, KIST was still able to be competitive in the semi-final
game and the 3rd place game in which we won 3–0 on penalty kicks. Daiki hadgone in net late in the game after suffering a minor injury and stopped all 3
penalty kicks—two of the phenomenal type, diving high to the left to take away
shots to the top corner. Players from the other Kanto Plains schools
were amazed.
Here is the certificate with stamp from Tokyo Governor, Yuriko Koike.
We wish Daiki all the best for his continued success!

Dennis Ota
Athletics Coordinator

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Library News
Elementary Library

After many months, it’s wonderful to be able towelcome students back into the library for their regularlibrary classes! Library classes resumed this month,with each class coming in one a week to choose theirbooks and hear stories.
So that students can safely enjoy their library time, wehave been taking extra precautions in the library. We
have been quarantining books for 3 days after they
have been returned, and regularly disinfecting all
surfaces in the library. We have also been limiting
numbers of students who can visit the library at one
time.
There are many fantastic new titles for the students toenjoy, and I look forward to seeing students enjoy
these books!

websites with over 1,000 shortanimated movies for students in grades
K-12 (ages 6 to 17), together withquizzes, supplemental information and relatedmaterials, covering the subjects of science, social
studies, English, mathematics, engineering andtechnology, health, and arts and music.

Britannica School

Online encyclopedia, recommended websites, journals
articles and images with APA referencing style.

Churchill Archives

A digital library of modern international history including
more than 800,000 pages of original documents,
produced between 1874 and 1965.

The DayNews for schools and colleges to help explain current
affairs in short articles written and illustrated bydedicated staff. Search by topic, course, or IB theme.

Destiny Discover

A database of all the books available in the Elementary
Library and Secondary LMC.

The Financial Times

An international daily newspaper based in London andpublished digitally that focuses on business andeconomic current affairs.

JSTOR
Shannon Goan
Elementary School Librarian

A digital library of academic journals, books, andprimary sources.

Raz Kids
Library Media Center

Welcome to the Library Media Center for the newschool year!
My name is Mr. Davignon and I am the LMC supervisor
for 2020–21. I have been with the school for many
years, but this is my first in the LMC. I would like to use
this opportunity to familiarize you with the online
resources we have here in the LMC. This list can befound at:b
Web

https://kist.learning.powerschool.com/
kistlibraries/kistlibraries/cms_page/view/48201492

There, the following resources are available to you:

Online guided reading program with interactive ebooks,
downloadable books, and reading quizzes.

The World Almanac
Almanac for kids.

Please investigate these resources at your own pace. I
am here to help and answer any questions you may
have (if I don’t have the answer right away, I will be
sure to get it for you!). I am looking forward to seeing allof you in the LMC this year!
Michael Davignon
Secondary Library Supervisor

KIST Library Team

Active History

Modern World History offers a comprehensive look atworld history from the mid-15th century to the present.
Thousands of subject entries, biographies, images,
videos and slideshows, maps and graphs, primarysources, and timelines.

BrainPOPAll grade levels. BrainPOP is a group of educational

Shannon Goan
Elementary School
LibrarianMichael Davignon
Secondary LibrarySupervisor

Hema Teja
Yadavalli
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Staff 10!
In this month’s Staff 10!,
we are pleased to present
Alexander (Jay) McAllister
who joined us in January
2019. This year, he isworking as a PE teacher
in the Elementary Schoolwith students from K1 to
Grade 1.
1) Tell us somethinginteresting about yourhometown.
I was born in San Diego,
California but have moved
The suave Mr. Jay
pondering what life would bearound for most of my life,
like without suits...
so I don’t really have ahometown. I’ve lived in San Diego, California; Eugene
and Springfield, Oregon; Central Florida and Belize
while I was growing up.
2) What is your favorite place in the world?
My favorite place in the world is Tokushima where the
Awa Odori festival is held during Obon. I really enjoy
dancing during at that time of year. It might be a goodtime to return in 2021. I hope to go back again soon!
3) Who would you like to meet if you had thechance and why?
I would like to meet the artist Bansky. No one knows
what he looks like so I would like to see him for myself.
Also, if I get an opportunity, I would like to get one ofhis paintings. He sometimes leaves them on the street
for people to take.
4) Do you have any special skills or talents?
I am a published comic book writer in the US. I was
published 4 years ago. In the future I hope to publish
more works and perhaps get a screenplay for a film
made.
5) Please share a little-known fact about yourself.
I was once lost at sea and drifted to Honduras during afamily vacation.
6) What is your most prized possession?
My most prized possession is my favorite wristwatch—a Sinn Military Type 3. It’s a very rare watch and only
300 were made. I recently met the maker of the watch
in Ginza when I was looking to have my watch
repaired.
7) Which IB learner profile attribute do you mostclosely identify with and why?
I think I closely identify with being a risk-taker. I’m notafraid to take a chance or a risk. I enjoy trying newthings and going my own way.
8) If you could live your life again, would you doanything differently?
I probably would invest in Google when I had thechance or Amazon. Other than that, I don’t think I
would change much. I’m very happy with the person I
am today.

159) Is there anything you are trying to learn/improveabout yourself at the moment?
I’m always trying to improve my teaching skills and I
am taking private Japanese lessons for my personal
growth. Also, I’m always trying to improve on myphysique in the gym. I hope to gain more muscle andhave less fat. When the Olympics comes to Tokyo in
2021, I want people to think I’m competing in an event.
10) Do you have any special message for yourfans?
Keep learning and keep having fun!

Reducing Waste
Donating snacks to the Kodomo
Shokudo “Shitamachi Kodomo
Dining”
The new school
year is wellunderway, but
unfortunately, due
to safety
precautions
against the spreadof COVID-19, K.
Shop is closed to
students for thetime being Ms.
Minako, our shop
attendant, wasworried that,
Ms. Minako (left) handing snacks towithout customers,
Kodomo Shokudo representative,
Ms. Oki.
the snacks stocked in
the shop would expire
and go to waste. Her solution? To donate them to the
Kodomo Shokudo “Shitamachi Kodomo Dining”—anonprofit organization that provides a safe space andmeals for underprivilegedchildren—before theexpiration date. You may
recall the article about
the Kodomo Shokudo
Network from the March
2020 issue of The
Comet, where we
introduced the CAS
group “Kodomo Shokudo
Service,” through which
members Riya, Kaoru,
Sujin, Min Seung,Michiko and Uri
CAS students with children at(currently in G12)
Kodomo Shokudo last school
volunteered to support
year.
this worthwhile cause.
We were pleased to hear that the children enjoyed thesnacks, and that they are greatly looking forward towhen KIST student volunteers can visit again! We, too,are looking forward to the reopening of clubs andservice activities once it is safe to do so.

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Nurse’s Notes
Home first-aid kits
“What should go into a home first-aid
kit?” asks a KIST parent.

•

Pain relief patches for
temporary relief of mild tomoderate muscles andjoints aches as well as thepains associated withsprains, strains, bruises and daily discomfort suchas backache. Apply an ice pack before sticking
the pain relief patch to the skin.

A basic first aid kit may contain:•

Scissors•

A digital thermometer to measure temperature••

Cooling patches for fever (in Japanese,“hiepita”): these patches easily adhere to yourchild’s forehead, reducing the surface
temperature of his/her skin by two degrees

Adhesive tape (surgical tape or medical tape): a
type of pressure-sensitive adhesive tape used in
medicine and first aid to hold a bandage or other
dressing onto wounds•

Distilled water for cleaning wounds (though inthe event of a very dirty wound, tap water will
suffice)

Triangular bandages: this type of bandage canbe used as a sling to support or immobilize painful
injuries to the arm, or as a pad to control bleeding•

Elastic bandages: these can be used to support
injuries, limit swelling and ease pain by applying
pressure to the affected body part or area•

Tweezers to remove splinters: before using,sterilize the tip of the tweezers using rubbing
alcohol and then pull out the splinter in the same
direction that it entered the skin•

A flashlight to use when light is needed toeffectively address an injury (e.g. when removing
a splinter)

It is important to have a well-stocked first-aid kit inyour home so you can deal with small accidents andinjuries. Your first-aid kit should be locked and kept ina cool, dry place out of the reach of children. It might
be helpful to also keep a small first aid kit in your car
for emergencies.

•••

Antiseptic wipes for wounds: a convenient way
of killing germs and sterilizing the skin
Adhesive bandages/plasters in a variety ofdifferent sizes and shapes: it is important to stocka variety, including ordinary plasters suitable forsmall cuts and grazes, including ones designed
especially for fingers and heels. Kids’ size
plasters are suitable for all types of smaller
wounds and little fingers.

•

Disposable gloves are useful to protect against
blood transmission•

Saline eye drops for temporary use when eyes
are irritated only•

Sterile gauze pads and wound dressings ofdifferent sizes to cover the wound••

Antibiotic ointment can be applied to help
prevent infection and keep the wound from dryingout

Anti-itch cream or liquid for bug and mosquito
bites: these products can relieve itching and stop
children from scratching the bite, causing further
irritation•

Painkillers: prescribed medications from yourown doctor or over the counter medicine (if you
are allergic to one particular medicine please ask
a pharmacist). Medications should be checked
regularly to make sure they have not passed their
expiration dates.

•

Cotton balls to gently clean small wounds andapply ointment•

Nail clippers•

Instant cold packs: many types of injuries
benefit from being iced. The cold can slow theflow of blood to decrease swelling and bruising
after a sprain or impact. Also, the cold can easeitching from stings and bites.

•

A splint and a roll of bandages: this supportive
device is used to keep any suspected fracture(such as in the arm or leg) in place, while thebandage is used to wrap the splint to the injured
body part.

Other first aid items to stock at home

Keep a reusable cooling pad or ice packs in thefreezer: a cooling pad can instantly
lower the temperature around yourhead, neck and shoulders.
Yukiko Yamazaki
School Nurse
References:
Kathleen M. Cronan, MD. (August 2018). First-Aid Kit. Kids Health.
Retrieved from https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/firstaid-kit.html

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University Guidance News
2019–20 KIST university acceptances andoffersOnce again this year, the offers that our KIST
graduates have received have been very good. The
following are highlights from the class of 2019–20:• 51 total offers received from top 50 universities (QS
Rankings 2021)• Direct admission to a top UK medical program (HullYork)• 100% of students who have applied so far havereceived placements (More than 75% were
accepted to and enrolled in their 1st choice)• Students this year received offers across eight
unique countries• UK was the most popular destination with 16
students enrolling• North America (Canada/United States) was 2nd
with 12 students enrolling
How can we continue to improve?
As a university guidance team…
…We are most happy about the third bullet point
above.
KIST is home to a variety of students (from 45 different
countries this year) with a variety of interests anddesires for their futures. Some students look foruniversities with high rankings, while others focus on
the location of their future school and what type ofenvironment is surrounding them. With more than 75%
of students being accepted and now enrolled in theirfirst choice, this assures me that our program isworking. Now that students in Grades 9 and 10 have bi-weekly university counselling advisory sessions, I
hope that number can continue to increase to 80% andbeyond in the next few years.
As parents and families…
…You can help to increase this number by following
these points:• Take the time out to speak with your child and
LISTEN to what they want.
The closer students get towards their high school
graduation, the more likely that communication
between parents and child decreases. Many
students had an idea of what they wanted to do in
Grade 10, but two years later their goals havechanged completely. Find a good way to open a
conversation and see what ideas your childcurrently has.
• Work TOGETHER to develop a plan for their future.
You may know your child better than anyone andmight know what is best for their future as well;
however, if they are not “on board” with your idea,
you may waste a lot of time and money having themstudy something they are not interested in. Many
students have well developed and thought out plansthat need parents’ guidance to become a reality.
Others may be feeling lost and need that extra pushto get them to a place for future success. Eitherway, family support can go a long way.
• Be HONEST in what is possible for both sides.
It is in a parent’s nature to want the best for theirkids, sometimes no matter what the price; however,with the rising cost of university
tuition, some schools may start tofeel out of reach. If there is a
destination or school that yourchild is considering that may be too expensive or ina country you do not feel comfortable sending themto, talk to them about it. Most children feel
uncomfortable to ask their parents directly about
these topics, especially if it is related to money.
Parents may need to take the first step. Once thathas been decided, it allows students to look at theiroptions more clearly.

Online university fair webinars

There are hundreds of universities from across theworld offering online webinars in September andOctober 2020 in lieu of visiting schools directly. These
are being offered both by the international school
teams in the Kanto Plains area as well as throughCialfo, our university guidance partner. Up-to-dateschedules can be found on the KIST University
Guidance Calendar and are viewable by bothstudents and parents.

Continued virtual support

For any assistancewith university related
matters, families canschedule video calls
through Cialfo using
the inbuilt Zoom interface. This helps to prevent the
spread of COVID-19 on campus and gives families theflexibility to meet at timings that may be difficult
otherwise. Students in G9–12 can login to Cialfo andschedule meetings simply by selecting the “meetings”
tab. The counselor’s weekly calendar of availability
should be shown, and bookings can be made andinstantly confirmed if the time is available*.
*Point: If the meeting is being scheduled as a
virtual parents meeting, please write “virtualparents meeting” in the notes of the meeting,so I know to send the invitation.
Thomas Waterfall
University Guidance Counselor
thomas.waterfall@kist.ed.jp
Office hours: Monday–Friday, 9:00 a.m.
–6:00 p.m.
University Guidance Office (3F)

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University Acceptances and Offers
Class of 2020
( )=Number of students accepted | []=Scholarship offered[#]=Matriculation confirmed | As of August 26, 2020

ITALY

University College London (4) (#2)
University of Bath (2) (#1)
University of Birmingham (4)University of Bristol (5) (#1)
University of Edinburgh (4)University of Exeter (4)University of Glasgow (1)University of Leeds (9) (#1)
University of Liverpool (1)University of Manchester (11)
University of Nottingham (3)University of Reading (1)University of Sheffield (4) (#1)
University of Southampton (1)University of Surrey (1)University of Warwick (4)Conservatorio Agostino Steffani (1) (#1)

USA

JAPAN

Arizona State University (1)Boston University (1)Creighton University (1)George Washington University (1)Illinois Institute of Technology (1)Kalamazoo College (1)Michigan State University (1)New York University (1)Pennsylvania State University (1) (#1)
Pepperdine University (1) (#1)
Portland State University (1)Quinnipiac University (1)Rensselaer Polytech Institute (1)Rochester Institute of Technology (1)Seattle University (1)University of California Davis (1) (#1)
University of California Santa Cruz (2) (#1)
University of California San Diego (1)University of Charleston (1) (#1)
University of Michigan Dearborn (1)University of Michigan Flint (1)University of Oregon (1)University of San Diego (1)University of San Francisco (2) (#1)
University of Washington (1)Virginia Tech (1)Washington State University (1)CANADA
McGill University (1)University of Alberta (1)University of British Columbia (8) (#2)
University of Calgary (1)University of Toronto (6) (#3)
University of Waterloo (2) (#1)
HONG KONG
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (3)University of Hong Kong (1)International Christian University (4) (#2)
Nagoya University (3) (#1)
Sophia University (3)Temple University Japan (1) (#1)
Waseda University School of Economics and Political
Science (1)Waseda University School of Science andEngineering (1)NETHERLANDS
Leiden University (1) (#1)
UAE
University of Birmingham Dubai (1)UK
Aston University (1)City University of London (1)Durham University (4)Hull York Medical School (1) (#1)
Imperial College London (2) (#2)
King's College London (7) (#3)
Lancaster University (1)Loughborough University (1)Newcastle University (1)Nottingham Trent University (1)SOAS University of London (1)Queen Mary University (5) (#2)