What’s New?

For the first Dalat News each year I like to focus on “What’s New”. The first week of school is always an exciting one as the campus finally comes alive with students and activity. All the work that has been done in preparation of the new-year starts to pay off as classes begin meeting and students get back to their studies.

It’s fun to see our new students learning all about what makes Dalat a special and unique school and our new staff beginning to understand why we are so proud of our students. In North America an expression that is used to say “hello” or greet someone you know is to ask the question, “What’s New?”  At the beginning of each year that is a good question to answer in the first director’s message.

So what is new at Dalat this year? Quite a bit actually, as you will see in the list below.

New Students: Our enrolment for this year currently stands at 566 students from 24 different countries with 124 of them being new to Dalat.

New Staff: This year we have 18 new full time staff and 3 part time staff joining Dalat; Craig Roylance – ESL coordinator and teacher, Carin Roylance – HS English Teacher, Chuck Arnold – MS & HS computer teacher, Deana Arnold – Grade 5 teacher, Pat Walsh – HS Guidance Counselor, Ellen Walsh – ES special services teacher, Tom Cura – Spiritual Life Director, Shuli de la Fuente-Lao – Grade 1 teacher, Dustin Roberts – ES and MS art teacher, Renae Roberts – Preschool 3 teacher, Dale Sawatzky – MS and HS English teacher, Shannon Sawatzky – Preschool 3 teacher, Stephanie Watkins – Grade 2 teacher, Roby Yeung – HS Science teacher, Erica Yeung – HS Math teacher, Bona Anderson – Preschool 4 teacher, David and Suzette Boshoff – Dorm parents, Debbie Mayo – Dorm Assistant, Mary Geiman – Grade 5 teacher, and Lacey Fields – Kindergarten teacher.

New Facilities: A newly renovated middles school and preschool building is making a wonderful impact on what we are able to do and offer for our students in both divisions.

New Theme: Our theme for this year as a school is “Radical: Living a Life of Conviction” and as the year goes on this theme will be fleshed out in many different ways. Our “Focus ESLR” (Expected School Wide Learning Result) is Servant Leader.

New Classes: This year we have added a second section of Preschool 3 and both the 4th grade and 5th grade classes. New classes being offered this year in the HS include AP Biology, Anatomy, and AP Statistics. In the middle school Dalat has revamped it technology curriculum and is offering new classes throughout the division (in a new computer lab).

New Positions: Dalat has increased its staffing in a number of areas – PE and athletics, Preschool, Elementary and Middle school, computer department, HS math department, and a new chapel coordinators position.

New Extra-curriculars: Dalat has joined a new athletics league in the region (ACSC – Asia Christian Schools Conference) which will have our varsity teams traveling to tournaments throughout the year. We have also started a new intramural program in the high school for students not involved in varsity athletics.

Other New Things: New uniforms in the ES and PE program, new textbooks and resources in all divisions, a new bike lane out front :-)

The list could go on with a number of other small changes but I will stop there. A lot of things are new around Dalat right now but my hope for our new families is that very soon it will no longer feel like a “new” school but instead will feel like “home.”