From the Director - Giving Thanks!

​Tomorrow’s American Thanksgiving holiday is my favorite holiday of the year. The focus of the day is to share a meal with family and friends and to pause and be grateful for all that we have. No commercialism, no materialism, just gratitude and the company of loved ones. Who could ask for more? Whether you are American or not, I hope you take a few moments over the long weekend (or every day, for that matter) to take stock of all that you have to be thankful for. Better still, take some time to make sure that the special people in your life know that you are grateful that they are there.
 
Personally, I also want to share my gratitude to all AISL community members for their support through these unprecedented times. Every day I am grateful that we are able to have an open campus. I speak regularly with dozens of school heads around the world. They share stories about new grade level or campus closures, staff and students who become sick, and the challenges of a fully online program. Thanks to the diligent adherence to our health and safety protocols by our staff and students, we have now been open for fourteen weeks! Of course, we must not take this for granted and become complacent. Many thanks to all families for keeping health and safety first and for regularly emphasizing this with your children.
 
Finally, I wish to express my deep gratitude to our staff. COVID-19 has added a significant amount of work and anxiety to our roles here at school. Beyond the hard work required to offer a world-class education, we now carry the daily burden and added stress of keeping everyone healthy in the midst of a global pandemic. The staff are working harder and longer than they ever have in their professional lives and, to be frank, a large number of them are doing it with reduced pay due to the budgetary constraints that COVID-19 has created.  Please take a few moments to share your appreciation directly with at least one member of staff. Or, feel free to send your comments along to me (rmenard@aislusaka.org) and I’ll share them. Alternatively, you could also share them on the Thrive Message Board on the Verbal Jam website. However you do it, please let someone here know that you appreciate their contribution to keeping this campus open and the school running well despite the circumstances.
 
Happy Thanksgiving!