To the administration of the New International School of Thailand:

We, the current and former students of NIST, are deeply saddened to learn of the termination of Ms. Prapatsorn Charoensuk’s teaching position as of December 9, 2016. Please understand that while we respect the privacy of this matter, we feel compelled to speak out that in our years at NIST, Ms. Prapatsorn has been an invaluable asset to our learning, due to the combination of her intellectual vitality, creativity, humour, and deep love for her subject matter. In particular, she holds a very special place as a role model for many in an environment where Thai personnel are undeniably underrepresented in both the teaching staff and board of administration.

While we wholly acknowledge that Ms. Prapatsorn is not perfect and makes mistakes in her conduct as a teacher, we must insist that the same complaint, if not much worse, could be made regarding many other teachers we have encountered at NIST. In light of this, we must suspect that a double standard has been used in the school’s decision to dismiss Ms. Prapatsorn from employment.

As a group of people who care profoundly about this school, we strongly urge you to consider reinstating Ms. Prapatsorn to her former teaching position. At NIST, we were taught to place high value on integrity, justice, and developing a strong sense of tolerance. Accordingly, we must ask you to think deeply about what message this course of action is sending to the students of NIST about fair proceedings and open, constructive communication. Equally, we cannot overemphasize the doubts that this incident is already casting in the minds of many Thai students at NIST regarding the level of respect that the school truly has for members of our community.

We thank you for giving our concerns their rightful consideration.

We greatly hope to remain, as ever,

The proud students of NIST