HIS Administration

Executive Board
The Executive Board, responsible for the month-to-month operation of the school, is elected by the Board of Councilors. The Executive Board's six members, who may or may not be parents, serve three-year terms. A representative from the U.S. consulate, and the Headmaster also hold voting seats on the Executive Board.

HIS Board Policies
Nominees for the HIS Boards are recommended by the Board Nominating Committee, which identifies potential Board members, interviews candidates, and proposes a slate of nominees to the Executive Board and Board.

Board Member Selection
Nominees for the HIS Boards are recommended by the Board Nominating Committee, which identifies potential Board members, interviews candidates, and proposes a slate of nominees to the Executive Board and Board of Councilors each spring for approval. The process takes approximately two months each year. One third of Board members’ positions are up for review annually.

New Board members are usually asked to join the Board of Councilors. New Executive Board members are usually taken from the Board of Councilors

If you would like to be considered as a candidate for a Board position, please talk with either the Headmaster or the Board Chairman, who will forward your name to the Nominating Committee.

Executive Board Members
Executive Board Chair -- Dale Viljoen
Members:
Richard Branson
Robert Johnson
Karen Katayama
Phred Kaufman
Tom Lyons
Ikeda Tatsuaki
Suzanne Yonesaka
Shoji Toma (Auditor)

Strategic Plan
The Hokkaido International School Strategic Plan, an integral part of HIS' governance, is comprised of five key goals:

Strategic Goal 1
In 10 years (2017), HIS students will be international and fluent in English, meaning:
-- Grade 7-12 new students are at an ESL Level 4
-- ESL teaching support K-12
-- HIS is financially accessible to foreign children in Sapporo
-- 25% of students have English as a heritage language
-- HIS international program is strengthened

Strategic Goal 2
In 10 years (2017), HIS faculty will be diverse in background and balanced in longevity as Sapporo residents, meaning:
-- Teaching staff will be dynamic and inspired with ongoing professional growth
-- Transient teachers will be highly qualified
-- HIS will always hire best qualified candidates
-- HIS will look to diversify by nationality, gender and age
-- HIS will look for married couples when appropriate

Strategic Goal 3
In 10 years (2017), HIS facilities will be enlarged and technologically up to date, meaning:
-- HIS will have an expanded educational facility
-- HIS will have a second dormitory
-- HIS will have and expansion/replacement of the teacher housing with apartments for married couples

Strategic Goal 4
In 10 years (2017), HIS educational programs will be coherent and enriched, meaning:
-- HIS will have an articulated and monitored curricular plan with ongoing curricular revision
-- HIS will have a full schedule of IPC and AP programming
-- HIS will have an articulated Japanese and third language program leading to AP coursework
-- HIS will have integrated programs of enrichment leading to art and outdoor education

Strategic Goal 5
In 10 years (2017), spirit and support will be increasingly strong, meaning:
-- HIS is known and has a clear image
-- HIS has a strong sense of community
-- HIS is a force in the Sapporo community

Please click HIS Strategic Plan (PDF 264 KB) for more details, including action plan steps, strategic goal status, and goal milestones.

The plan is reviewed as part of the regular HIS governance process and HIS administration is determined to achieve the plan goals.

We thank John Ritter for his third visit to HIS as board consultant, as well as the Office of Overseas Schools for supporting this effort.

Rick Branson
Headmaster

School History
Hokkaido International School opened as Hokkaido American School in 1958 when the local US military school, Camp Crawford U. S. Army Dependents School, closed. The school started with 12 children from five missionary families who were left without a school.

In 1962, the school changed its name to its present name, Hokkaido International School, and moved to its own new campus in Fukuzumi. Students selected the school mascot, the Husky, as well as the school colors, Kelly green and white. The gymnasium was completed in 1965 with help from the US government.

In 1968, the Hokkaido Government granted accreditation, and by the early 1970s enrollment was up to 70 students. In 1982, Western Association of Schools and Colleges granted HIS accreditation. In 1988, the school added a high school program by enrolling one grade per year beginning with the 10th grade. Grades 10-12 were added to the WASC accreditation in 1992.

In the early 1990s, HIS, with the cooperation and assistance of the city of Sapporo and the prefecture of Hokkaido, developed plans for a new school to be constructed in Hiragishi, and the school moved to its new and present facility in the fall of 1995, with an enrollment of approximately 120 students. The new campus also included a dormitory to house 20 students.

HIS celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2008 with an enrollment of 200 students from over twenty countries, and a full and part time faculty of 25 from the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Peru and Japan.

While the school has grown, it continues its mission to provide international families with an education for their students that will prepare them for study at college and university as well as future stewardship of the ever-changing world.

PTA (HuPA)
HIS students and teachers focus on the learning process. We the parents, need to support our HIS community. The Husky Parent Association is the best way to encourage cooperation, communication, and friendship between parents and teachers, parents and parents, and parents and students.

We can foster a warm atmosphere in our HIS community by building trust and friendship through working together. We can widen our international understanding. We can provide role models for our students. HuPA meetings are held during the evenings at various times throughout the year.

Along with regular meetings, the two biggest HuPA sponsored events of each year have been the Fall Festival, a fundraiser focusing on food and games for the whole family, which usually happens mid- or late October, and the Spring Bazaar, which is an opportunity for everyone in the community to clean out their closets and share their wares with the world. This is usually in mid-May. Both of these events net funds which are then shared with the school in various ways. Both also require a lot of parent help to be successful, so if you are coming to HIS, be prepared to get involved! There are many ways both big and small to get involved in HuPA, so talk to other parents to find out how you can lend a hand.

To contact HuPA, please drop a note in the HuPA mailbox at the HIS office. Or send us an email at hupa@his.ac.jp.

Endowment Fund
In 2008 HIS launched an Endowment Fund to secure our future. HIS has seen growth from its founding to the present. Even as we recognize our past and our history, we also look to tomorrow.

The Endowment Fund will raise money to support the educational program at HIS by investing the funds and drawing from earnings raised from that investment. HIS will only draw from the earnings of the investment so the principal of the donations will always be protected. Each year HIS will hold an annual fund raising event to perpetuate the fund for the future.

The Endowment Fund will support the educational programming at HIS by providing funds for educational programming, student enrichment and scholarships and for teacher professional development.

Mission Statement
The HIS Endowment has been created to provide educational grants in perpetuity. Its mission is to ensure the quality of HIS education through grants for special educational programs, staff development, student enrichment, scholarships, and other extraordinary educational expenses.

The Endowment Fund is recognized as a non-profit corporation in the State of Oregon in the United States. The Endowment Fund is organized exclusively for educational and charitable purposes within the meaning of 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

The Endowment Fund investment adviser is Harris Associates L.P., which also advises the HIS capital fund.

The Endowment Fund is invested in Oakmark Funds for long-term capital appreciation.

The Endowment Fund was launched with its first contribution of ¥500,000 by the HuPA (Husky Parents), the parent association of Hokkaido International School.

Endowment Fund Meeting HIS Needs

Special Education Programs
The Endowment Fund would support special programming with the mission and curriculum program of HIS. This could include arts, technology, outdoor education and more.

Staff Development
The Endowment Fund would provide opportunities in professional development for HIS faculty and staff that requires funding beyond the normal expenditure. This could include conferences, courses, research and more.

Student Enrichment
The Endowment Fund would support programming to enrich student learning through curricular programming for students at HIS.

Student Scholarships
The Endowment Fund would support student scholarships by contributing money to existing Developing World Scholarships or providing new opportunities through additional scholarship programs.

Extraordinary Educational Expenses
The Endowment Fund would provide funding for one-time purchases that are beyond the means of an annual budget but within the curricular plan of HIS.

Latest Executive Board Minutes
The minutes for each Executive Board meeting are posted on the HIS web site. Please click Latest HIS Board Minutes (PDF 240 KB) for the most recent meeting minutes.

To access an archive of past Executive Board meeting minutes please click HIS Downloadable Documents.