Seigakuin Atlanta International School

"SAINTS" redirects here. For other uses, see Saint (disambiguation).
Seigakuin Atlanta International School (March 23, 2014)

Seigakuin Atlanta International School (聖学院アトランタ国際学校 Seigakuin Atoranta Kokusai Gakkō, SAINTS) is an international private elementary school located in Peachtree Corners, Georgia, northeast of Atlanta.[1][2][3][4] It is an affiliate to Seigakuin University,[5] and therefore is a Shiritsu zaigai kyōiku shisetsu (私立在外教育施設) or an overseas branch of a Japanese private school.[6] It is the only school in Greater Atlanta to have its curriculum accredited by the Japanese Ministry of Education.[7] From its founding in 1990 until 2003, the school had been located on the property of Oglethorpe University in Brookhaven, DeKalb County. In 2003, the school moved to its current location. Since April 2008, Minako Oki Ahearn (エイハーンみな子 Eihān Minako) has served as the principal.[8][9]

History

The organization Seigakuin Atlanta International School, lnc. was founded in March 1990, and classes for the SAINTS school began on September 5, 1990.[10] The school was originally located on the property of Oglethorpe University in Brookhaven in unincorporated DeKalb County,[11][12] in a former public elementary school building.[5][11] This facility is now occupied by PATH Academy, a charter school.[13]

The SAINTS junior high school opened in 1993. In 1994 the Japanese Ministry of Education approved SAINTS as an overseas educational facility.[10] In the northern hemisphere spring of 1995 the school planned to add the ninth grade, the final educational year. The school had no plans to add a high school. The school's first group of ninth graders were scheduled to graduate in 1996. Sherrell Evans of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution said that many would go on to area public and private high schools, or attend private Japanese boarding schools in New York and Tennessee (Keio Academy of New York and Tennessee Meiji Gakuin High School).[11] In 1998 the school had experienced a decline in its enrollment, and therefore stopped admitting junior high school students.[14]

As of 2002 the school has class sizes of seven or eight students per grade. In 2002 the school announced plans to move to a property in Gwinnett County formerly owned by the First Romanian Baptist Church. The campus has a capacity of up to 110 students. Minako Ahearn, the executive board director and business manager, said that the school was more centrally located for its students.[3] The school purchased the campus in March 2003, and the new school opened in April of that year. A new classroom building at the Gwinnett facility opened in 2007.[10]

Operations

As of 2014, the school operates a Pre-School for children ages 3–4, a kindergarten, and an elementary school that runs through the 6th Grade.

The school accepts qualified applicants of all national origins, religions, and racial backgrounds. Around 1994 the school implemented a policy that prevented prospective applicants who are not entering at the Kindergarten level from enrolling if they do not know Japanese. During that year, Nobuaki Oda, the headmaster, said that the policy was implemented because it was too difficult for the school to teach academic subjects in a language that some students could not understand.[11]

As of 2014 the annual tuition costs range from $7,000 to $9,000, though the school does offer scholarships

As of 1990, if a student leaves Seigakuin Atlanta in good standing, he or she may automatically enroll in the Seigakuin University network of schools in Japan.[5]

Curriculum

The school uses the curriculum of the Japanese Ministry of Education alongside an English language curriculum of its own. In Pre-School and kindergarten, about 90% of instruction is in Japanese. From age 5, children begin their study of English, which is significantly earlier than their peers in Japan.[5] From elementary school, students study all of the core subjects in Japanese, using the same textbooks as their peers in Japan. As students get older, English-language instruction in these core subjects is added to the curriculum, such that students might study math in Japanese on Monday, then continue with math in English on Tuesday. Consequently, students are exposed to both American and Japanese history and literature. By the time they reach 6th Grade, about half of their instruction time is in English, with the other half remaining in Japanese.

The curriculum also has a Christian component. Kindergartners learn Bible verses in both languages, while elementary students attend a twenty-minute worship service each morning. The school also puts on a Christmas pageant each year.

Student body

As of October 2014, the school has 92 students. 52% are native Japanese speakers, 14% are native English speakers, and the remaining 34% come from bilingual households.

When the school was first founded in September 1990, it had 23 students, including 16 kindergarten students and 7 students in grades 1 through 4.[10] In December 1990 the enrollment increased to 30 students.[5] Around 1990, when the school was first established, most of the students were born in Japan. The parents typically resided in the United States for three to four year periods before taking themselves and their families back to Japan.[3] Most of the parents worked for Japanese companies, and they wanted their children to easily adjust to the Japanese educational system upon their return to Japan.[5]

In 1992 the school had 62 students, with 75% of them Japanese nationals who were scheduled to eventually come back to Japan.[7] In 1994 the school had 75 students in grades preschool through 8.[15] In 1994 numbers of children who were not fully Japanese were increasing. As of that year, 20% of the students were Americans with no Japanese background and Americans who each had one parent of Japanese descent. Many parents enroll the students in the school because they are interested in the Japanese educational style, which has a high international reputation, and/or because they want their children to learn about Japanese culture.[11]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Putnam, Judy. "What Are The Peachtree Corners Voting Districts." Peachtree Corners Patch. December 1, 2011. Retrieved on June 6, 2012.
  2. ↑ "Map" (Map). Seigakuin Atlanta International School. Retrieved on January 11, 2012. "5505 Winters Chapel Road , Atlanta , GA 30360 USA"
  3. 1 2 3 "Relocating school has Japan ties." Atlanta Journal-Constitution. September 29, 2002. JJ1. Retrieved on January 11, 2012.
  4. ↑ "Zoning Map." (Archive) Peachtree Corners, Georgia. Retrieved on November 9, 2012.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Lively, Kit. "EDUCATION IS MADE IN JAPAN, EXPORTED TO ATLANTA." Orlando Sentinel. December 24, 1990. A1. Retrieved on January 11, 2012.
  6. ↑ "私立在外教育施設一覧" (Archive). Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. Retrieved on March 1, 2015.
  7. 1 2 White, Betsy. "School in Atlanta skips Saturdays Japanese youngsters here enjoy community instead." Atlanta Journal-Constitution. September 12, 1992. A7. Retrieved on January 11, 2012.
  8. ↑ "Principal." Seigakuin Atlanta International School. Retrieved on September 18, 2012.
  9. ↑ "校長あいさつ." Seigakuin Atlanta International School. Retrieved on September 18, 2012.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "History." Seigakuin Atlanta International School. Retrieved on January 11, 2012.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 Evans, Sherrell. "SCHOOL MATTERS Former U.N. diplomat heads Japanese school here." Atlanta Journal-Constitution. July 26, 1994. C2. Retrieved on January 11, 2012.
  12. ↑ "私立在外教育施設一覧" (Archive). National Education Center, Japan (国立教育会館). January 10, 2000. Retrieved on April 16, 2015. "聖学院アトランタ国際学校 3007 Hermance Drive,NE Atlanta,GA 30319 U.S.A."
  13. ↑ "Contact Us." PATH Academy. Retrieved on April 16, 2015. "PATH Academy 3007 Hermance Drive, NE, Atlanta, GA 30319"
  14. ↑ "History of SAINTS" (Archive). Seigakuin Atlanta International School. November 4, 2005. Retrieved on January 10, 2016.
  15. ↑ Transpacific, Volume 9, Issues 1-4. AsiAm Pub., 1994. 49. Retrieved from Google Books on January 11, 2012.

Further reading

Coordinates: 33°57′27.9″N 84°16′19.8″W / 33.957750°N 84.272167°W / 33.957750; -84.272167

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