American School in Taichung 3.69

The American School in Taichung is an international school in Taichung City, Taiwan offering grades one to twelve. The school, founded in 1990, was previously known as Lincoln American School. It is fully accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) and hosts the annual Taiwan Model United Nations (TAIMUN) conference, which is attended by schools from across Taiwan and Asia. One of the school's founders, Anna Lee, is a daughter of former President Lee Teng-hui. The school's current director is Mr. Andrew Corcoran.HistoryIn 1989, Dr. Esther Hanna and Anna Lee established a new American school for expatriates' children in Taichung. The school was located in a town house with three bedrooms. Due to its limited resources and facilities, the officers of the Ministry of Education (MOE) and the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) were hesitant before agreeing to establish the school. Eventually, the school moved outside what were at the time the city limits of Taichung, into an area that would become the Dakeng Nature Reserve. This location ensures that the area surrounding the school will not become urbanized, thus preserving the existing ecosystem that proves beneficial to supervised student exploration and scientific study. A new gym was added to the school campus on August 8, 2013.AcademicsThe required courses at American School in Taichung are English, Mathematics, Science, History, Physical Education and two years of a Foreign Language . AST also has drama, art, and music programs . There are two concerts during the year, one in the spring and one in the winter. Currently, AST offers eight Advanced Placement courses: AP Statistics, AP Biology, AP US History, AP Calculus AB, AP Literature, AP Chinese, AP Physics and AP Language.