International School of Tianjin
The International School of Tianjin (IST, ) is an international school in Jinnan District, Tianjin. The school was founded in 1994. IST uses the IB PYP (IB Primary Years Programme) until grade 5, IB MYP (IB Middle Years Programme) until grade 10 and the IB DP (IB Diploma Programme) from grades 11 to 12. The school provides education from Nursery to grade 12. Student body. IST's student body consists of over 450 students from 32 countries. Facilities. IST has two building divisions, Han and Qin Building. IST has: School Services. The International School of Tianjin offers  various services for the safety and well-being of students. These include a 24-hour guard and security service, a fleet of buses offering transportation services for students and staff, a fully operational school clinic staffed by a full-time nurse and a school cafeteria service operated by one of the premier international catering companies called Chartwells. Please click on the links above for a more detailed explanation of each of these services. Student and Campus Safety. IST has a 24-hour guard and security company contracted to secure the school premises and maintain a vigil on people entering the  school campus and grounds. The guards are well-trained and monitor the security and safety of the campus round the clock. In order to ensure that your children are safe and accounted for at all times, IST does not allow students to leave the campus during school hours unless accompanied by a teacher, as well as having obtained a signed parental permission slip. Students will only be allowed to leave the school with parents or the student's registered driver if a letter of authorization is received from the student's parents, and permission is granted by the director or  relevant principal. IST also keeps daily records of student absences in order to more closely monitor attendance patterns and in an effort to determine if a student is, in fact, absent. Should a student be absent when the class attendance register is taken, the school office will telephone the student's parents in an effort to determine the reason for the failure to arrive. Identity cards. The school issues ID cards to all persons in the following categories: With the exception of students, persons in all the above categories must show their ID card to the security guard at the  school gate, and wear it throughout their time on campus. Persons without an ID card must sign in at the security guards’ office, and wear a visitor's ID card. Anyone who loses their card should contact the school's Human Resource Manager to request a replacement card. Valuables. Valuables are brought on to campus at the student's own risk. Where ever possible, they should be named and easy to identify. Students must give any valuables to a teacher to look after, lock them safely in lockers or keep them on their person when not in use. The school  cannot be held responsible for valuables lost, unless in the safekeeping of a supervisor. Loss or damage to the property of students, parents, and visitors The school does not accept liability for loss of, or damage to, the property of students, parents and visitors, including motor vehicles, on the school campus. Students are strongly advised not to bring high-value items to school. Lost and found. Any lost items that are found on the school campus will be placed in the lost and found cupboard. Students and parents should approach the office personnel should they wish to search the  box for lost items. Parents are asked to label their children's personal items, such as clothing, in order to assist the school to identify the owner before the item is placed in the lost and found box. Quarterly displays of lost items will be made to help students to identify their lost property. Health and safety online documentation. For a complete run-down of health and safety at IST please download and refer to the official school documentation below. The IST Bus Service. IST's bus service is available to all students, with special drop off times for half‐day  Nursery children, and a late bus service for students participating in extra‐curricular activities. The drop off and pick up points will be developed for areas where five or more children sign up for the bus. The bus will stop at a designated gate for each housing area (i.e. children will not be picked up at their individual houses so that bus runs are as short as possible.) We will do our best to ensure that no child is on the bus for more than 45 minutes, although unfortunately this is not possible for all locations. There is a Chinese helper  on each bus and all buses are equipped with seat belts and a mobile telephone. The cost of the service in is RMB 11,000 per year (RMB 5,500 per semester) for city locations and RMB 12,000 per year (RMB 6,000 per semester) for TEDA. Please see the current bus routes attached for your reference but note that the routes and times may be adjusted according to demand. The School Clinic. IST has a fully operational school clinic staffed by 2 qualified nurses, one full-time and one part-time. In addition, the school has established an emergency access scheme with  the Tianjin United Family Hospital (TJUFH) Under this scheme, students are provided access to the hospital for initial treatment in emergency medical situations that occur during school hours and/or at school events. The school covers the cost of this initial treatment only. Parents are responsible for the cost of all medication and for all treatment beyond the initial consultation with the doctor. Parents are therefore strongly advised to arrange medical insurance for their children. Please note that responsibility for the decision to send a sick or injured student to TJUFH lies with the school nurse, whose priority is always the  welfare of the individual student. While access to initial treatment is at the school's expense such coverage does not apply before or after school hours or on any day following an accident or injury. If a student becomes too ill to participate in school lessons or activities, the school nurse will telephone the parents to pick the child up from school. Please do not send your child to school if he/she is sick, as your child's recovery will be slower, and other children and adults will be exposed. Students who are sent home sick will be re -admitted to school only after they have been checked by the school nurse. The School Cafeteria. Healthy foods policy. While recognizing that the selection and provision of snacks and meals for their children to eat at school is a legitimate right of all families, the IST community firmly believes that students at this school should be provided with healthy foods that promote both student health and student learning. To this end the school strongly discourages parents from providing their own children with unhealthy snacks such as candies and soda drinks. In addition, treats for other class members may only be  provided if prearranged with a teacher or a member of the administration. Birthdays will be celebrated together on one day per month as designated by the home room teacher. The school also forbids the sale of sweets, chocolates, soda drinks, and other sugar rich and salty foods to students unless formally approved for special occasions by the administration. IST expects teachers and parents to act as role models for students and strongly encourages adults in the building to model healthy eating behaviour. School lunch service and snacks. The school has contracted with the Chartwells Catering Company to offer a full  meal service. To use this service, students may purchase an electronic charge card from the school office. Students may alternatively choose to bring a nutritious lunch and a drink from home and there are microwave ovens available in the cafeteria to heat food. Nursery and Pre-Kindergarten students will be given a snack and fruit juice each day. ComPOS Online Lunch Card. The catering company has introduced a ‘ComPOS’ online lunch card system to enable parents to check balances on student lunch cards, and to add additional cash to them. Please click the following link for more information from the  company. Teachers. IST currently has over 70 teachers recruited internationally.