FRIDAY FLASH

Jan 9th, 2026 / ISSUE #16

WHOLE SCHOOL

Dear IICS Community,

We have had a great start to school following the winter break. Our first week back has been filled with meaningful learning, engaging activities, and a wonderful sense of energy across the campus. It has been a pleasure welcoming students and faculty/staff back into our learning spaces.

As we moved into the winter season, we would like to remind you that our emergency and snow day procedures are in place and carefully reviewed. All related documents can be found on our website under the password-protected Community Portal (Handbooks). Login details are provided below.

The safety and well-being of our community remain our highest priority at IICS. We regularly conduct emergency drills to ensure students and staff are well prepared, and both the Marmara and Hisar campuses are fully equipped with essential supplies to support our community if needed. We will continue to keep you informed throughout the year.

Regarding transportation, Babaoglu continues to provide safe and reliable services. Our Transportation Coordinator, Mr. Bedirhan Dere, is based at the Marmara Campus and is available should you have any questions. Transportation emergency procedures and flow charts are also available in the Community Portal.

As we begin planning for the school year 2026-27, we kindly ask all parents to complete the Re-Enrollment Intention Survey (please see details below). Your response whether you are decided or still unsure is extremely important and directly supports our organizational planning, including staffing and class preparation.

The survey is brief, and your participation is greatly appreciated. Thank you for taking a moment to help us plan effectively for the school year 2026-27.

We look forward to a safe and successful term ahead.

Warm regards,
Nicolaas Mostert
Head of School

HOW TO ACCESS THE COMMUNITY PORTAL

Dear IICS Community,

For security reasons, all important school news and announcements are shared through our Community Portal. To stay informed and connected, please follow the steps below to log in:

Community Portal Instructions:

Go to Community Portal (under the Community section on the main page).
Enter the email address you provided to the Admissions Team.
Create a username and password.
Enter the invitation code: 89d98d524m
Click “Sign Up!”
When redirected to the sign-in page, enter your login details.
Check the “Remember me” box.
Click “Login.”

We hope the Community Portal and website provide you with everything you need. Should you require additional information or assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact us and we’re happy to help.

RE-ENROLMENT INTENTION SURVEY

Dear Parents,

We hope this message finds you and your families well, and we wish you a healthy, happy, and successful year ahead.

As we begin preparations for the 2026-27 academic year, we kindly ask for your support in helping us plan effectively. Knowing the approximate number of returning students will enable us to allocate resources, hire staff, and ensure we provide the best possible educational experience for our students.

At this stage, we ask you to share your intentions for the next academic year by completing a very short survey, even if you are currently undecided. Please click here, which will remain open until Friday, January 23rd, 2026.

If your family has siblings who are considering joining IICS for the new academic year, we would appreciate it if you could indicate this in the survey so that we can tentatively reserve places accordingly.

Please note that this survey does not serve as a formal confirmation. We will contact you shortly regarding the re-enrolment of your child(ren) for the upcoming academic year.

Thank you for your continued support and for being a valued part of the IICS community. If you encounter any issues or have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to me.

Kind regards,

Zeliha Ozturk

Director of Admissions

To access the school's Google Calendar, please visit Google Calendar.

Monday, Jan 12: Primary CCA Season 3 Starts

Jan 23 - 24: TISL HS Basketball

Friday, Jan 30: Semester 1 Ends

PYP Reports published

Monday, Feb 2: Semester 2 Begins

Feb 5 - 8: TISL MS Basketball tournament in Ankara

Friday, Feb 6: Secondary Semester 1 Reports Published

Friday, Feb 13: Primary CCA Season 3 Ends

Senior Friendship Lunch

Wednesday, Feb 18: MYP Personal Project Exhibition (Upper Gym)

Ramadan starts

Friday, Feb 20: Holiday (No School)

Feb 23 - Mar 2: AP Mock 1 Exams

Gr 12 DP Mock Exams

Feb 26-Mar 1: CEESA MS Boys Basketball Tournament at IICS

Mar 4-8: CEESA HS Boys Basketball Tournament in Belgrade

CEESA HS Girls Basketball Tournament in Baku

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

For any questions or concerns, please contact Ms. Figen Underdown, Board Secretary. She will be pleased to assist with your inquiries. Additional information, including Board meeting minutes, is available on the Community Portal .

Those interested in joining a Board Committee are kindly asked to submit their CV and committee preference to Ms. Underdown, Board Secretary.

FINANCE COMMITTEE

FACILITIES COMMITTEE

POLICY COMMITTEE

CELEBRATIONS

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Back to School

We are so happy to be back on campus! 🐬

🌟🩰 Congratulations to Valentina 🩰🌟

We are incredibly proud to celebrate Valentina in Grade 6, who recently starred as Young Clara in The Nutcracker at the Kadıköy Opera House. Valentina’s performance was confident, expressive, and filled with wonderful stage presence, beautifully capturing the magic and emotion of this much-loved ballet.

Her dedication, discipline, and passion for ballet were clearly evident throughout her performance, and her hard work truly shone on stage. We congratulate Valentina on this outstanding achievement and wish her continued success in her artistic journey. Bravo! 👏✨

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🎉🏊‍♀️ Congratulations to Ellie! 🏊‍♀️🎉

We are proud to share that Ellie recently competed in her first official swimming race, organized by the Turkish Sports Federation, for 9-year-old girls and boys. The event took place on January 3–4 at the Tozkoparan Olympic Swimming Pool, bringing together 400 young swimmers from 10 clubs.

Ellie raced in Freestyle, Backstroke, and Breaststroke events over 50 m and 100 m distances and achieved excellent times, particularly in Freestyle and Backstroke. 🌟

She placed second in the ENKA Club girls’ team in the 50 m Freestyle with a fantastic time of 42.04 seconds 🥈 and was also selected to swim in the Flag Relay Race (200 m) with the ENKA team of four girls.

Well done, Ellie! We are so proud of your determination, effort, and amazing achievement. Keep swimming and shining! 💙👏

Alumni Visits

💙🐬 At Istanbul International Community School, our alumni will always be part of our family. We are always so happy to welcome them back and see familiar faces return home. This first week back at school, we were delighted to be visited by our wonderful alumni who truly made our hearts smile. What do we say; Once a Dolphin, always a Dolphin! 🐬✨