Why ISB dropped it's scholarship program By: Emily Wills

("Coastline College", April 3, 2023)

Did you know that ISB had a scholarship program to financially support student education? They actually had one for 5 years, which ended last year when their final scholarship recipient graduated and went off to college. Everyone recognizes that a scholarship program is costly, and there are both positive and negative aspects to having a program.

How was the scholarship program implemented? ISB awarded five scholarships over a 5-year period to Thai students from impoverished families. It started with 8th graders, and each year, two scholarships were awarded, with another two given out when the new 8th grade arrived.

ISB began the program in 2014, and each student had to meet a number of strict requirements. ISB chose candidates through a scholarship program known as the “King Scholarship Program.” To be eligible for an ISB scholarship, the applicants must have been top-ranking students from financially disadvantaged families. This program was designed to assist Thai students in bettering their lives and obtaining an exceptional education.

However, ISB quickly realized that there were numerous challenges and that they needed to address the situation. Dr. Marc De Vries discussed how the scholarship was becoming increasingly expensive and how scholarship recipients would still have difficulties in achieving the mission of the Kings Scholarship Program if the student was unable to acquire a scholarship to attend a University post-High School. However, ISB awarded each person $10,000 to help them afford college if they couldn't financially support higher education. Another reason the program was terminated was that it was too exclusive. DeVries stated that only selecting two people had a minimal impact on the poverty of Thailand and that he wished they could assist many more children. Finally, this program was only open to Thai students. Thai students who transferred from a Thai school to an international school and then back to a Thai school saw that their Thai language skills deteriorated and they were unable to speak the native Thai language as well as they used to.

This is not to say that the ISB community has not assisted Thai students in their local areas. For years After the Wave helped those in Khao Lak who were impacted by the tsunami, and current efforts support students who reside close to the EWC. However, that funding is largely provided through donations and does not make an ISB education more widely available to others.

Mr. Macky believes that we can do better. He indicates that ISB has the resources to achieve a successful scholarship program. One principle upheld by ISB is the idea that challenges should constantly be attempted to overcome. Students that attend ISB overcome many difficult obstacles, often due to the resources that are given. If ISB can help students in this way, they will be able to accomplish their own objectives for the school in future years.

Mr. DeVries did acknowledge that ISB has been thinking about the scholarship program and is considering bringing it back. Many modifications are being considered and will be required if the program can achieve its aim and be implemented effectively. Although ISB still has a lot of work to do to get this program back up and running, the future is promising and should hopefully bring about many more successful outcomes.​​