Welcome to the IB Asia Pacific Regional Newsletter

Quarter 2, 2009

Message from Regional Director

It is with much pleasure that I write to you as the new Regional Director for the Asia Pacific region.

Since taking office on 1 April, I have been immersed in learning about the strengths of this region with the help of my knowledgeable colleagues in the regional office. While I have had a long standing passion and relationship with the IB, it was from the perspective of someone working in a university in the Americas. Working as regional director will of course provide an entirely different view and I am happy to embark on this enviable educational journey.

The diversity of the schools that have adopted the IB in the Asia Pacific region is fascinating. Starting in August, I am eagerly looking forward to visiting schools, meeting heads, coordinators, teachers, and students. In September, I have plans to attend meetings of some of the associations but am eagerly looking forward to building on our relationships with networks and associations that do such good work. All of you make the mission and values of the IB come alive in classrooms and communities. I have no doubt that being in schools and talking to you will give me a better feel for the IB in this region than anything I can read or study from the confines of our Singapore office.

From your regional office, you can continue to expect the following:

Exemplary service in terms of evaluation and authorization
Professional development available throughout the year, close to your sub-region and priced as reasonably as possible
Recognition efforts that ensure the IB programmes are understood by the universities wherever your students seek post-IB education

After reviewing the results of the schools satisfaction survey, I am aware that there we are doing well by you and that you are satisfied with our services. However, we continue to build on that and encourage you to send your feedback to this office, as my colleagues and I plan for the future.

Our current plans are to increasingly engage experienced IB practitioners from the region in the work we do, in joining us on site visits and in leading workshops, as we prepare for more IB schools that want to embark on implementing IB programmes.

You have many opportunities to offer feedback—through my colleagues, by calling the office, when we visit you, when you attend workshops or at the Annual Regional Conference, among other ways. Please know that I am always open to hearing from you–feel free to email us or use this form anonymously. You can be assured that I will always review and consider your input.

I look forward to hearing from you and perhaps meeting you.

Sincerely,
Siva Kumari, Ed.D.