The latest from CAIS

CAIS has partnered with SMART Tuition to manage tuition billing collection for payment Plan B and payment Plan C families in the 2013-2014 school year. Use of third party billing is a widely accepted practice among private schools, and we expect this new system to be a step forward in improving efficiency and convenience for families and school alike.

Although SMART will be the vehicle for billing and collecting tuition and supplementary middle school fees for Plan B and C families, all after school enrichment and extended day billing and collection for all families will be managed by the Business Office in conjunction with the Auxiliary Programs Department.

Enrollment can be done via internet at www.enroll.smarttuition.com, using CAIS code: 11993. Please complete and return your paper form to the Business Office or enroll online by Wednesday, May 1, 2013.

Please email studentbilling@cais.org with any questions.

The last CAIS family camp of this school year will be on held on the weekend of May 17-19 at Olema campground, which is located on Route 1 in Olema, about an hour north of San Francisco. A huge section of the campground has been reserved -- so everyone can join the party! Sign up no later than Wednesday, May 8 to reserve a spot! The form that must be completed can be found here.

This camping trip is an incredibly fun and great way to spend time with families in the CAIS community. Everyone is invited to join the fun! If you have specific questions, please contact Mary Powell.

If you’re looking for camping gear for the family camp weekend or in anticipation of summer camping season, don’t forget the Family School Alliance (FSA) has partnered with Sports Basement. You will receive 10% off any purchase and with every dollar you spend in the store, they will donate 5% of your sales to the FSA. The more we as a community spend, the larger the donation. Every dollar generated on behalf of the FSA is used to help fund CAIS community building activities such as the Mid Autumn/Back to School Picnic, Holiday Faire, Chinese New Year Parade, Teacher/Staff Appreciation week and the End of School Picnic.

Jewish Community High School is hosting a free workshop titled High School: The Next Journey for all sixth and seventh grade families around the Bay Area. The workshop will feature keynote speaker Amanda Mallory, an educational consultant in San Francisco. Parents will have an opportunity to learn from a panel of experts about navigating the admissions process and learn more about financial aid, college advising and high school athletics.

Event details

• What: High School: The Next Journey, a workshop for parents of sixth and seventh graders.
• When: Tuesday, April 23, 2013, 7:00-8:30 p.m.
• Where: Jewish Community High School of the Bay, 1835 Ellis Street, San Francisco.
• Register: Click here to register online for the event.

Click here to learn more about the event.

On Tuesday, April 23 in conjunction with SpeakSF, author Po Bronson will be at CAIS to present about the topic surrounding the book he authored with Ashley Merryman, "Top Dog: The Science of Winning and Losing." Please click here for full event information.

If Po Bronson or Ashley Merryman sound familiar, it’s because they are the authors behind the 2011 best-seller "NurtureShock."

In the book, the authors clearly and convincingly explain why, physiologically, some of us are at our best when it counts while others choke. When it comes to competition of any kind, the authors say, people tend to fall into one of two categories: "those who need to avoid stress to do well, and those who actually need stress to perform their best." Whether you fall into the former or latter category has little to do with arbitrary notions of mettle or character - it has a lot more to do with your genes.

"Top Dog" was released in February and so far has received accolades from the San Francisco Chronicle and New York Times.

We’ll keep you updated about the parent education event at CAIS happening on Tuesday, April 23, in the meantime, we encourage you to learn more about the authors and the book.

Read the San Francisco Chronicle book review here and click here to read the New York Times article.