• COVID-19 Information
  • Summer Camp
  • Enrichment
  • Campuses
  • Events
  • Giving
  • Contact
  • myHWIS
  • 0 items
HWIS-white-logo-on-transparent-backgroundHWIS-white-logo-on-transparent-backgroundHWIS-white-logo-on-transparent-backgroundHWIS-white-logo-on-transparent-background
  • About
    • About HWIS
      • At a Glance
      • Mission & Values
    • Immersion
      • What is Immersion
      • HWIS Model
      • Research
      • Why Mandarin
      • Why Spanish
      • Resources
    • Campuses
      • New York
      • New Jersey
    • History
    • Accreditation
    • Faculty & Staff
    • Head of School
    • Board & Advisors
    • Press
    • Blog
  • Admissions
    • Welcome
    • Why HWIS
    • Events
    • Visit
    • Apply
    • Inquire
    • Tuition and Financial Aid
      • NY Tuition & Financial Aid
      • NJ Tuition & Financial Aid
    • FAQs
    • Alumnae/i
    • Portrait of a Graduate
    • Parent Perspectives
  • Academics
    • Academic Overview
      • STEM
      • Arts
      • Physical Education
      • Global Experiences
    • Early Childhood
    • Elementary
    • Middle School
  • Auxiliary Programs
    • Auxiliary Program Overview
    • Enrichment
      • After School Programs – NY
      • After School Programs – NJ
    • Extended Care
      • Extended Care – NY
      • Extended Care – NJ
    • Summer Camp
      • Summer Camp NY
      • Summer Camp NJ
  • Campus Life
    • Campus Life Overview
    • Calendar
    • HWISPA
  • Contact
  • Shop
    • Shop
    • Cart
    • Checkout
    • My Account
  • Summer Camp
  • Enrichment
  • Campuses
  • Events
  • Giving
  • Contact
  • myHWIS
  • 0 items
Kaitlyn Chee | HudsonWay Immersion School
Kaitlyn Chee
July 1, 2020
Summer Programs | HudsonWay Immersion School
10 Tips to Improving your Child’s Bilingual Skills this Summer
July 3, 2020

Interview of Mark Bandak, HWIS partner

Categories
  • Thought Leadership
Tags
  • HudsonWay Immersion School
  • immersion curriculum
  • Mark Bandak
  • perspective
What is your background and upbringing? 

I’ve been fortunate to have a global background. Born in the UK to “Mediterranean” parents, we moved to Italy before settling in Chappaqua, NY in middle school. Other than a brief stint in Russia (actually the Soviet Union, just to date myself), my subsequent education was at Columbia University (BS in engineering and MBA). My career in finance took me to London and the Arabian Gulf in addition to NYC.  Now I’m settled in London with my 10 year old twins, who also enjoyed a worldly perspective.  But you’ll often find me in New York, especially after the HWIS investment.

How did you come into wanting to invest in education and how long have you been at it?

It’s almost been a decade of investing in the education, which actually makes me one of the more experienced finance professionals in the sector.  Historically, there has been few opportunities to invest in education and, candidly, the sector hasn’t really changed in 100+ years.  While the sector won’t be disrupted by technology (the limitation of online education became clear during the COVID19 lockdown), it does need to become more relevant in a global, ever-changing world.

What are some of the interesting schools you’ve seen and trends you are seeing in international education?

Thankfully, many schools are trying to adapt to the modern world, which has come in many forms.  Among the more established curriculum, the International Baccalaureate, known for its global focus, is becoming more accepted, especially in the US.  For-profit schools focused on the emerging middle class in emerging markets are democracizing the elite stigma of private schools.  In early education, “forest schools”, where children spend the day (regardless of weather!) in nature, are gaining popularity.  Unfortunately, some schools are victims of their past century of success – they have no incentive to change.  But the main theme progressive schools are pursuing, albeit in different formats, is the attainment of life-skills and social emotional development.  Google will always be smarter, so why focus on facts?

What did you see in HWIS that made you interested in becoming involved in helping it grow?

HWIS is a unique school.  I have never seen a one that best prepares a child for the opaqueness of the future world.  The pure immersion curriculum is one that is exceedingly difficult to implement, but the benefits of doing so are significant.  Students implicitly develop their cultural awareness, cognitive and executive skills, social-emotional capabilities and, of course, foreign language fluency. And the proof is in the hard facts: [70%] are admitted to their top choice ex-mission school, 100% test as gifted if enrolled at HWIS for 4+ years, 6:1 student to teacher ratio; and significantly higher standardized test scores than other private schools.

How would you compare HWIS to many of the other top-tier independent schools?

Even though HWIS is the oldest immersion school in the Tri-State area, it does not have the brand name of the top 10 independent schools in the area. Therefore, it cannot rest on its laurels and has to continually innovate and deliver greater value-add to children and parents: a superior education, as supported by published statistics, at a reasonable price. 

Share

Related posts

August 11, 2021

Welcome Nelyda Miguel, HWIS’ incoming Head of School 


Read more
Explorers Mural
June 23, 2021

NY Explorer Mural


Read more
March 25, 2021

How Can We Respond to Anti-Asian Sentiment?


Read more

Categories

  • Admissions (6)
  • Alumni (11)
  • Cognitive Development (5)
  • Curriculum (6)
  • Early Childhood (9)
  • Elementary (7)
  • Events (1)
  • Extracurricular (19)
  • Giftedness (11)
  • Head of School Blog (12)
  • Immersion (34)
  • Mandarin Immersion (12)
  • Project-based Learning (27)
  • Remote Learning (3)
  • Research (5)
  • School News (8)
  • School Updates (69)
  • Social-emotional (12)
  • Spanish Immersion (13)
  • Thought Leadership (8)

Quick Links

  • Immersion
  • Contact
  • Visit
  • Apply
  • Shop
  • Newsletter Subscribe

NYC Campus

525 W 52nd Street
New York, NY 10019
Nicole Liu, Admissions Director
nliu@hwis.org
(212)787-8088
Show Map

NJ Campus

249 Bebout Ave
Stirling, NJ 07980
Tracie Xiong, Admissions Director
txiong@hwis.org
(908) 598-8088
Show Map

Search

Apply

YouTube

© 2021 HudsonWay Immersion School. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy.
    0

    $0.00

    • Summer Camp
    • Enrichment
    • Campuses
    • Events
    • Giving
    • Contact
    • myHWIS
    • 0 items
    ✕

    Login

    Lost your password?

    Create an account?

    • New York
    • New Jersey
    • Inquire
    • Apply
    • Summer