You have probably heard or read that Village School is part of the Tri-Association and AASCA (Association of American Schools of Central America). But what is the Tri-Association and what is AASCA and what does it mean for Village School?
Let’s begin by explaining what the Tri-Association is. It’s the Association of American Schools of Central America, Colombia-Caribbean, and Mexico. According to the official page of the Tri-Association (https://www.tri-association.org), it “is a non-profit organization, comprise of private, accredited, independent schools, offering an American-style education, and residing in three geographic regions (Central America, Mexico, Colombia, Caribbean)”. Its mission states that “The Tri-Association nurtures mutually supportive communities to transform learning.” And its vision states “Schools and students as agents of responsible change.”
Being part of AASCA, allows Village School to be a part of the Tri-Association. This gives Village School many benefits, for example, “Non-limited participation in the Annual Educators’ Conference and reduced conference and institutes fees.” Village School participated in the TRI Online Learning Spring 2022 program. Science teachers were part of the Spring NGSS Partnership Conference from March 8th to March 10th. It had an emphasis on Engineering. On March 9th and March 16th, Village School participated in the “Restorative Practices” training led by Corwin Press and Dominique Smith, and on April 28th in “The Science of Instruction remains the same” training. Village School was also part of the TRI talks. Representatives from the school interact with members of other schools to learn from each other and come up with proposals to continue improving learning processes. Taking advantage of the training opportunities like the ones mentioned, allows Village School to “remain at the forefront of education” like it is stated on our Vision.
What about AASCA? As it is stated in its site (https://www.aascaonline.net), “The Association of American Schools of Central America (AASCA) was formed to support and encourage academic, artistic, athletic, and cultural interaction between international schools that offer a US type education in Central America. It is felt that through the organization and sponsorship of these types of activities that all young people involved will be exposed to and benefit from the multicultural interaction. It is the desire of AASCA to promote a better understanding of multiculturalism among all races of young people through these events.”
It also states that “AASCA also strongly supports the continuing education of its member teachers and administrators through facilitating workshops and conferences that focus on the latest educational ideas and teaching methods from the United States. It is the desire of AASCA to improve the quality of all education in the countries in which they reside and create a greater awareness and appreciation for cultural diversity through the programs they sponsor.”Village School hosted a new AASCA event the “Debate Competition” in February 2022. Before the pandemic, we hosted the “Leadership Conference” in Antigua Guatemala. We will continue to participate and lead AASCA events for we strongly believe in educating and forming “upstanding, capable and sensible leaders who are active participants in global development”, just as it is stated in our mission.
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