KISC Alumni Newsletter

If you are in Kathmandu, joining the KISC community in the 'Summer Concert' would be a nice opportunity.

The term Christmas to Easter was a long and busy one. Here are some of the highlights, without forgetting all the hard work that the students and teachers put in on a daily basis.

Founders' Day was celebrated on 26th February with a day of prayer that included the whole school. It was a time of giving thanks for 38 years of God’s faithfulness to our school and lifting KISC in prayer for the future.

Athletics Day for both Primary and Secondary Students was a great success. Our students demonstrated outstanding sportsmanship and enthusiasm, making it a truly memorable event for all. It was heartwarming to see them cheer each other on, reflecting the KISC values of love and community. Makalu house were the eventual winners.

The KISC Inter-house Music Competition was another of the major events of last term. Each house showcased its best performances, with Annapurna winning for Best Vocals, Makalu taking home the award for Best Instrumental, and Dhaulagiri being recognised for Best Dance, as well as winning the overall competition.

Both boys and girls basketball and football teams have been taking part in the Nepal Inter-Schools Sports Association (NISSA) competitions and doing very well against some tough competition from schools across Kathmandu. Last term it was the girls football team and boys basketball team in action. Finals day saw our girls football team come third overall and our boys basketball runners-up in their respective competitions.

Activity Week, postponed because of bad weather in September last year, finally went ahead in the last week of term. Secondary classes headed out in various directions - Chitwan, Lamjung, Pokhara, Chitlang - and took part in the usual variety of fun and stimulating activities. Unfortunately safety concerns, because of planned protests in Kathmandu, meant that some groups had to return a day earlier than expected, but a good time was had by all.

Dr Giles Brindley, Chemistry Teacher, and Neetu Gurung, Executive Officer, recently got married in Neetu’s home in Darjeeling followed a week later by a reception in Nagarkot. Congratulations to the happy couple!

Yvonne Edwards, from Australia, taught Lower Secondary Science at KISC 2020-2021, but has recently stepped up to cover maternity leave. Yvonne and her husband, Mark, arrived for a five-month period in January and are leaving on 22nd May.Despite teaching for two years previously, Yvonne has experienced several ‘firsts’ during the last five months: first Activity Week and presentation, first Lip Sync battle and music competition. This is because the majority of the two years she was here before were spent teaching online due to COVID. She has loved picking up with some of her previous students and being a home room teacher - all in person this time!

After Yvonne had already arranged to take leave from her job in Australia for this year, she saw a Facebook post from a current KISC teacher about the need for short-term maternity cover here. Within a day she had been in touch and arranged everything!

Yvonne and Mark will be returning to their home in Bairnsdale, Victoria, where they will continue to travel for another five months and then she picks her old job again teaching Maths.

Thanks for being available and willing, Yvonne (and Mark)!

Joel Tanguay, who graduated in 2024, has been busy as a Primary Intern during this current school year. He took a year out to stay in Nepal before starting his studies in Bible and Theology at Bethlehem College and Seminary, in Minneapolis, USA, later this year. Joel has enjoyed working in every class across Primary. He first came to Nepal with his family in 2017 and then returned to the USA in 2018, before coming back again in 2022. He says that he has attended six different schools in his lifetime but there hasn’t been another one like KISC for its community feel and the genuine, caring teachers.

All the best for the future, Joel.

KISC is going to get a whole new building! The School Management Committee has approved the construction to meet our school's growing needs. With current space limitations, and the music room at risk of flooding, this will provide much-needed classrooms and a safer, dedicated music space. The two-story building will house Primary classrooms on the ground floor and a Secondary classroom and music room above. Work will start during the summer break this year and is expected to last one year.

Can you imagine, as a student, sitting down to take a computer exam having never touched a computer before? That is the reality for many of the students in Rukum West and remote rural areas across Nepal. Information and Computer Technology (ICT) is a compulsory subject in the Nepali curriculum but few rural schools actually have computers. Everything is taught by books and therefore even the exam has to be a written one. KISC EQUIP is trying to do something about that by helping to provide ICT labs in its partner schools. It is not an easy process and not every school has the space or facilities to install a lab but so far four partner schools now have ICT labs thanks to EQUIP and another two are planned for this year.

MoU signed with EduTech, a tech partner, and the local schools for the upcoming ICT Lab project.

Thanks to everyone who has offered to make a video about their study and career choices and paths. They are much appreciated.

If you haven’t done so yet, it’s not too late! We would be grateful if you take the time to make a short 3-5 minute video about your study and career journey, what you are studying or studied, or the field in which you are working now. We will share your experiences and wisdom with current and future students, as they consider their options for classes and it may help them to think outside the box about their careers.

If you would be interested in helping out in this way please message alumni@kisc.edu.np. Thank you!

We are still on the hunt for a new School Director. If you are interested, or know someone who might be, please check out the vacancies page on the KISC website. You will also find there details of all the other current vacancies.