Many are claiming to be international schools, but only a few have got the real deal.
As Dep-Ed Undersecretary for Regional Operations, Ramon C. Bacani said, “Real international schools catering primarily to foreign students are few since they can be established only by legislation if not presidential orders.”
Southville International School and Colleges (SISC), now on its 19th year, is one of only two international schools in the Philippines created by legislation.
On July 24, 2006, the Philippine Senate and the House of Representatives then headed by Sen. Manny Villar (Senate President) and Cong. Jose de Venecia, Jr. (Speaker of the House of Representatives) respectively, enacted into law Republic Act 9493, “recognizing Southville International School as an educational institution of international character, granting certain prerogatives to hasten its growth as such and for other purposes.”
A truly historic milestone for Southville International School and Colleges, Republic Act 9493 is one of the highlights of the school’s 18 years of brilliant educational services. Anchored on the school’s constant pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, and community services, SISC has always been using an international curriculum which earned it an accreditation by the American Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). From Preschool to Upper School, the English curriculum is mainly patterned after the McREL International Model (Mid-continent Regional Educational Laboratory, U.S.A.) standards which offer a comprehensive guide to assessment standards and benchmarks for state and local educators. The Math and Science curriculum, on the other hand, is a fusion of the US-based National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) and the Singaporean curriculum as has been inked and stamped by their Ministry of Education. On the heels of RA 9493, Southville also received authorization from the very prestigious Geneva-based International Baccalaureate Organization to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program as a fitting post-High School two-year course that leads to a college qualification recognized by leading universities in 128 countries around the world, for a fee that competitively begs to differ from the other “real” international schools. That’s right. Operative word – “differ” – because actually, speaking of fees, a few calls to these handful of “real” international schools will reveal that Southville is the most competitively priced among them across all year levels. And speaking of competitiveness, Southville went even further as opening a College Division that offers courses in the most sought-after global professions today, such us, Nursing, Tourism, Psychology, Human Resource, Education, Communications and Media, Fashion Design, Business and Entrepreneurship, and Information Technology with Microsoft Certification Program integrated in all levels of the curriculum. Perhaps 18 years is but a fledgling life in the history of international schools in this country. But looking the other way now, having started with just 2 students and 5 teachers, 18 years with a Republic Act, WASC accreditation, IB authorization and Microsoft Certification all under its belt of international credentials is quite a big feat in such a short time. Now, that’s what you call “making a difference.”
Admissions are on-going for all levels. For details, please call 825-6374, 829-1675 and 820-8702 or email pr@southville.edu.ph.