Founded in 1981 by former San Francisco Supervisor Carol Ruth Silver, CAIS was the nation’s first Mandarin immersion day school. Over our 43-year history, we have occupied five different campuses. Now, we are excited to establish our Forever Home at 3250 19th Ave, where we will teach 550+ preschool through eighth-grade students in accordance with our Mission and Core Values.
Since CAIS acquired the former Mercy High School campus in October 2021, we have been able to incorporate the campus’s Athletics and Arts facilities into our program and have enjoyed many of the benefits of the Lakeside neighborhood for almost three years. Our school community is excited about the opportunities that this magnificent campus will offer our students now that we have moved in! (See a quick post celebrating the occasion.)
We feel honored to be your neighbor and deeply appreciate the community’s patience as we have worked to bring the original 1952 building up to code and adapt it to be safe for our students. The interior of the main building, now our Teaching and Learning Center, was completed in time for the first day of school on September 3.
Work will continue for a few weeks on the west and east playgrounds of the campus.
We invite our Lakeside neighbors to reach out to us at neighbors@cais.org with any questions you may have.
We are proud to become members of the neighborhood and are committed to bringing our core values of kindness, inclusion, curiosity, courage, and perseverance in service to our community!
CAIS Quick Facts
- Founded: 1981
- Grades: Preschool (2 years old) – 8th Grade
- Students: 554
- Faculty/Staff: 128
Hours of Operation
Morning care for all grade levels begins at 7:45 a.m. and aftercare runs from 3:30-6:00 p.m. Regular school hours for CAIS vary slightly by division, but range from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The CAIS school calendar can be found here.
Families Getting To CAIS
In addition to a CAIS bus route bringing students from the northern part of the city (Pac Heights, Nob Hill, Presidio, Richmond) to campus, CAIS is running a chaperoned Muni program to bring students to campus via the M and K trains. Families who drive their students (including carpools) will drop off and pick up at the following locations and times:
Campus Entrance on 19th Avenue for Preschool – 1st Grade Families
- Drop off from 8:15-9:15 a.m.
- Pick up from 3:15-3:45 p.m.
Campus Entrance on Junipero Serra Blvd for 2nd – 8th grade families
- Drop-off from 8:15-8:45 a.m.
- Pick-up from 3:15-3:45 p.m.
CAIS as a Community Resource
Since 2021, our Athletic Center and Arts Center facilities have been used by local nonprofit groups and we will continue to find ways to make our campus serve as a resource for the wider community. (Nonprofit groups interested in our space are encouraged to click here for more information.) Our middle school student and faculty-driven clubs and activities have historically included community service and environmental efforts that will certainly be extended to our new Lakeside home.