Ho Chi Minh City AISVN students will finish the school year at the end of April instead of mid-May as usual, when the amount of money contributed by parents is only 4 billion VND.
The information was stated by the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training in an open letter sent to teachers and staff of the American International School Vietnam (AISVN) on April 13, after some teachers sent letters to parents, saying they would stop teaching from next week because they had not received their full salaries.
According to a Department leader, the principal of AISVN said that the school year will end on April 26, instead of mid-May as usual. Grade 12 students will still be guided by teachers to review and take the International Baccalaureate (IB) exam until May 17.
This has been agreed by the IBO (the organization that holds the copyright of the IB program), based on the amount of knowledge, learning content implemented and the school's upcoming plans.
"The school year ends earlier than usual but still ensures the training program remains unchanged, only shortening the time by half a month," he said.
Previously, in response to VnExpress , IBO said it was aware of AISVN’s difficulties and proactively supported and coordinated with other parties to find solutions. It is necessary to prioritize the health and educational needs of students, while ensuring that teachers’ concerns are resolved.
According to IBO, to obtain the IB certificate, students must complete six exams in many fields and levels, along with many other requirements (such as the Extended Essay course, Theory of Knowledge...). Student assessment follows the guidelines and criteria set by the IB. With this certificate, students can apply for university admission in the US and many countries around the world.
AISVN students in a learning activity in 2022. Photo: AISVN
In addition, in the letter, the Department of Education and Training emphasized its supervisory role, requiring the school to ensure operations until the end of the school year and basic conditions for teachers and staff, not to replace the investor in running the school.
"We are not the account holder, our duty is to monitor the school's salary payment to the right people and the right amount," the Department said.
According to the Department, paying salaries to teachers and staff is essential and of primary concern, but it is not decided by the Department but depends on contributions from parents. With the remaining balance, the school can only advance a portion of the March salary and housing for foreign teachers. That is the best the school can do because it still has to calculate salaries for Vietnamese teachers and staff.
"We just hope that with what we and the teachers are doing, the teachers can continue to go to school until the last day of this school year, and if the account balance increases, we will ask the school to continue transferring it to the teachers," quoted from the Department's letter.
Currently, nearly 750 out of more than 1,000 parents have contributed support to AISVN. However, many parents have divided their contributions and only transferred the first installment. Therefore, by April 13, the school's account had more than 30 billion VND, while it needs 125 billion VND to maintain direct teaching until the end of the year.
After paying for essential expenses (bus, electricity, water...), paying off salaries for January and February, and paying in advance salaries and rent for March for foreign teachers, the parent's contributed account only has more than 4 billion VND left.
Gate of American International School Vietnam, March 19. Photo: Le Nguyen
AISVN was established in 2006, with a campus in Nha Be District. The school currently has more than 1,310 students, most of whom study the International Baccalaureate (IB) program. AISVN's tuition fees range from VND280-725 million per year, depending on the level of study. Last July, the school attracted attention when parents gathered to demand debt. On March 18, all students had to take a day off because most teachers did not show up to teach due to unpaid wages.
On March 31, Ms. Nguyen Thi Ut Em, Chairwoman of the School Board, called on parents to support an additional VND9.5-25.5 million per student per month, in addition to the tuition packages already paid. The school then reopened on April 3.
A few days ago, the Department of Education and Training sent an open letter to parents, stating that with the current balance, AISVN "cannot continue to maintain direct teaching for students of the entire school until the end of the school year". The Department called on parents who have not yet supported to contribute more.
Le Nguyen
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