The 10-Day Cycle

NIST is on a 10-day cycle. Each school day is lettered from A to J. NIST follows a published calendar for the 10-day cycle, which is updated on the school’s website. The 10-day cycle was implemented to avoid the disruption caused by public holidays, which often fall on the same day of the week.

We strongly believe that schools should be hubs for the community, places where you can connect and learn from others. Dozens of events are hosted each semester to allow you to meet administrators, teachers and other parents.

• NIST Parent-Teacher Association (NIPTA): More than any other group, NIPTA provides a way for you as a parent to be involved in the NIST community and meet others who share your interests. In addition to hosting regular small events such as coffee mornings and luncheons, NIPTA also organizes major annual events such as Pinktober and Starry Nights, both of which generate funds that are directed toward charitable causes.
• Cultural Groups: For parents who wish to connect with others who share their languages or backgrounds, cultural groups are an excellent way to network and become involved in many events both inside and outside the school.
• Community Learning Hub seminars: These information and discussion sessions are organized throughout the year for both elementary and secondary parents. Topics range from positive parenting techniques to training sessions that provide guidance in accessing school information. Each Monday an e-newsletter is sent highlighting upcoming events, and most presentations are archived in the NIST Parent Portal in Veracross.

NIST uses several online systems to provide information for both parents and students. The main website provides an overview of the school and programmes. However, the most valuable resource for keeping up to date with our community, as well as information specific to your family, is the NIST Parent Portal in Veracross, a one-stop system for all school information. Every new parent will receive a welcome email with your Veracross login information, which will also be used for the NIST Catering Campus Online. Along the top of the portal, you will see numerous menu items that we encourage you to browse, as they contain additional information and resources:

• My Children provides information specific to your child(ren), allowing you to check on attendance, grades and report cards.
• Calendars shows you a household calendar tailored to your family, as well as others for sports and the school as a whole. The one-page calendar is a document that can be printed out as an easy reference for all school holidays.
• Requests & Services lists links for Activities and NIST Music Academy signups, details about our the NIST Falcons Academies and other key services, including NIST Catering (where you can place meal orders).
  Resources provides information about specific programmes and facilities within the school, as well as links to the handbooks.
• Directories lists all staff members based on their departments and roles. You can also find information about key contacts, school leaders and school governors.
• News breaks down the news feed on the landing page based on school sections.
• Community provides details about the NIST Parent-Teacher Association, cultural groups, giving and getting involved with the school.
• Systems allows you to change your password, read guides and, for high school parents, access our college counselling system.
  Additionally, two key emails are sent each week: the Community Learning Hub Newsletter on the first day of the week and NIST News on the last day of the week. These respectively focus on seminars and events for parents, and general news and updates.

We will use the photographs that you submitted during the online application process to create parent ID cards. In some cases we may ask for an additional photograph if the one that was submitted is not suitable. Please note that it is also important for us to have recent photos of each of your children so that our school database system is up to date. This is very important for security reasons.

The school provides one ID card per parent. You will receive the ID cards during the orientation or on your child(ren)’s first day of school. If you would like to purchase additional cards for other family members or domestic staff/house help, you can do this by providing a photo, ID application form and copy of the ID card/passport at the reception desk at the school entrance. Additional cards are made for THB 300 each.

NIST Catering provides multiple services at the school, operating the cafeteria and kiosks around campus.

Elementary Students
A semester meal plan can be purchased for elementary students, which includes both a morning snack and lunch. Students also have the option of bringing lunch from home. However, please note that equipment for heating lunches is not available at school. The annual cost for the meal plan for early years and elementary students is about THB 25,000 per school year. Payments can be made using cash, credit card (plus 1.5% surcharge) or cheque.

Elementary parents must order their child’s lunch using their Veracross user names and passwords. Meals may be ordered up to one month in advance starting the first day of school. Full details of this process, as well as video and print guides, are available under Catering Services (under Requests & Services) in the NIST Parent Portal in Veracross. This will be accessible when you receive your login information.

Secondary Students
Secondary students do not buy a meal plan but instead register their ID card and top up money on their account using our kiosk payment machine. Students typically use an average of THB 130-150 per day for snacks and lunch.

For those families who choose to not use personal or public transportation, Montri Transportation Corporation offers private busing for the NIST community. This service includes multiple timings to accommodate students in activities and also provides monitors who will accompany students in early years and Year 1 to and from their classes. Parents who wish to sign up for the busing service should sign up through the parent portal. You can also request more information from admissions@nist.ac.th.

Secondary school students are issued a MacBook Air during their first week of class. This laptop is to be used at school and taken home to complete assignments. All parents will receive additional information about insurance coverage early in the school year, and you will be able to sign up for laptop insurance.

Elementary students will use school laptops and iPads only while in school and when it applies to their learning. School laptops and iPads cannot be taken home. Elementary students in Year 5 and Year 6 are required to read and sign the Acceptable Use Policy for Elementary and return the form to their homeroom teacher.

The NIST Shop provides all school uniforms, as well as other NIST-related items. Depending on the number of sets of uniforms you wish to buy, please plan an allowance of approximately THB 5,000 per child. Payment can be made in cash or credit card (1.5% surcharge) only.

It is highly recommended that uniforms are bought before the first day of school. Should you be wish to purchase uniforms ahead of time, please contact our admissions staff at admissions@nist.ac.th to make an appointment or check the school shop opening hours.

NIST provides all stationery for elementary students. Please provide a backpack and a water bottle for your child(ren) to take to school each day. From Year 1 upward, bags that can fit A4-size materials are appropriate. Water bottles can be filled up at the many water fountains around campus.

Teachers will provide information about any other supplies for each of their individual classes.

Secondary students will require a pencil case containing suitable stationery: pencils, eraser, pens, colored pencils, glue, scissors and a ruler. Secondary school students are also issued a MacBook Air during their time at NIST. Students in Years 9 to 13 also need a graphing calculator. The recommended calculator is the TI-84+ CE model, which we stock in the school shop at a reduced cost of THB 6,600. All secondary students can request access to a locker and purchase a combination lock at the NIST Shop or bring their own. Elementary students do not use lockers.