Santitham Witthayakhom School, Sahapattana Road,
Ampur Muang, Yasothon Province 35000, Thailand
Guidance notes, rules
& recommendations
Santitham Witthayakhom School is a Baha’i inspired
educational institute, it is a not a profit-making project
and it is run by the Baha’i Foundation of Thailnad.
Santitham has 3 main programs which are Nursery, Kindergarten
and Primary programs. It has become stronger and more stable
just in the last couple of years. It is still working hard
towards developing itself into a more efficient, exemplary
school. We need Year of Service Volunteers to help meet our
objectives for furthering that development.
Although we will do everything we can to make your stay
as enjoyable and rewarding as possible, we are not always
able to meet this obligation. Therefore we must ask that you
adopt a flexible, independent attitude during your period
of service here. Also do your best to integrate with the school
staff and students as well as the community, the people, and
culture. This in turn will be a great help in your coming
away from this experience with something valuable.
“Let
deeds, not words, be your adorning” |
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School Principal’s Policy:
All volunteers must undergo 1 month(one month) orientation
before their term of service is confirmed.
1. Reputation and
image of Faith and School
To avoid problems & misunderstandings in the future
we have devised a list of guidance notes, rules & recommendations
as follows.
Year of Service Volunteers are expected to abide by Baha’i
law at all times. Accept and comply with guidance and instructions
from any or all of the following; LSA of Yasothon, NSA of
Thailand, Baha’i Foundation of Thailand, and School
Administrator.
| Good
to do , |
the following behavior is likely
to help further enhance the |
| prestige of the school and Faith in the
community. |
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1. Avoid loosing your temper or shouting, especially in a
crowded place.
2. Pray and meditate in the morning and evening. Bring yourself
to account each day.
3. Make an effort to be happy, cheerful and friendly with
everyone you meet.
4. Learn basic Thai language.
5. Integrate with the Thai school staff and students. Avoid
forming a clique.
6. Avoid excessive complaining. Try to adopt a positive outlook.
7. Be-friend the local Thai’s.
8. Always try to find ways to be of service to other people.
9. Avoid going to places, which are known to be ‘a front’
for brothels. Beer bars, nightclubs, etc. Use wisdom.
Failure to comply with the following is likely
to tarnish the hard won image of & the Faith and the school
in the local community.
1. Smoking, Drinking Alcohol, and using Drugs is prohibited
2. Volunteers who are accommodated as guests with Thai families
should make every effort to help the family by keeping their
room clean, doing their own laundry or/and cooking when necessary,
helping with housework, integrate with the Family & speak
English with the children, being at home within time agreed,
not playing loud music and not smoking in the home. The Thai
families who have hosted some of the volunteers were very
busy people. They did not always have time to take care of
the volunteers. However, they were very happy to have volunteers
stay with them and speak highly of the Baha’i youth
to their friends.
Failure to comply with the following is likely
to damage the image of the Faith & and the school in the
local community. Repeated violations of the rules listed below
will be grounds for dismissal from the school.
1. Smoking is not permitted anywhere in the school grounds
2. Females must not walk or cycle alone after 21.00 at night.(This
for your own safety)
3. Volunteers must never be alone in their room with a member
of the opposite sex.
4. Consuming alcohol or narcotic drugs / substances anywhere
in Thailand is not permitted
5. Engaging in promiscuous activity is not permitted.
6. Volunteers must make every effort to complete agreed daily
work routines everyday.
7. Volunteers must work at least 7 hours a day, 5 days a week.
The exact time for work will be agreed when your schedule
is planned. Normal working hours for Thai Teachers is between
08.00 - 16.30. Most of the Thai staff arrive at the school
at about 07.00.
8. Volunteers are expected to keep themselves clean and appropriately
dressed.
- Wash in the morning and evening.
- Dress for men (during school hours): Shirt with collar
or Thai style collarless shirt, a pair of dress pants, socks,
clean shoes, or good quality sandals. Friday is the school’s
sport day, so all the teachers wear a tracksuit. It would
be good to bring one. During time off; T-shirts, jeans and
shorts are perfectly acceptable.
- Dress for women (during school hours): Dress/ skirt &
blouse/ Thai style clothes, clean shoes or good quality
sandals. For dress on Friday, please refer above to “Dress
for Men”. During time off; T-shirts, jeans and shorts
(important: women in Thailand, especially those in small
towns such as Yasothon, do not wear shorts, which come up
much higher than the knee. It is culturally looked down
upon.) are perfectly acceptable.
- Keep hair neat and tidy.
2. General rules
Telephone
1. Volunteers must get permission before using telephone.
2. During working hours, volunteers may only use the school
telephone for a maximum of 15 minutes. If the telephone needs
to be used for longer periods of time, an alternate time during
off-hours can be arranged.
3. Volunteers will be informed when the bill comes, and must
pay it before the last day of each month.
Water and electricity
1. After use, all electrical lights and fans must be switched
off.
2. After use, all electrical appliances must be switched off
and unplugged.
3. Electrical faults, exposed wiring, faulty electrical appliances
should be reported in writing to the Maintenance manager using
the appropriate form. Failure to do so may result in a serious
accident.
4. Do not attempt to repair any electrical appliances, fittings
or wiring yourself. By doing so you risk injuring yourself,
others who use electricity later or you may cause more damage
than you fix. Report damage to Maintenance manager as mentioned
above (3).
Bicycles
1. Bicycles will be provided for the volunteers. (This,
however, depends on the number of volunteers serving at one
time, due to limited supply.)
2. Bicycles must be parked under the roof. To keep dry and
avoid hot sun.
3. All moving parts should be oiled at least once every two
weeks.
4. Bicycle repairs will be the responsibility of the user
and at their expense.
5. Bicycles must be locked at all times when not in use outside
the school.
6. In the event of a bicycle being stolen, the user must pay
the school 1,000 baht (approx. $30 US.)
Time off
1. Volunteers work Mon. to Fri. and so have weekends free,
unless there is a school project which involves the school
staff. The volunteers may then be asked to help.
2. The school closes on Baha’i holy days and volunteers
are not expected to work on those days.
3. Volunteers should not come to school when ill. They should
however make an effort to inform the school office that they
will not be coming to work. This is necessary so that alternative
arrangements can be made for classes.
4. Volunteers must inform the school office whenever they
know they will not be able to come to the school. If we do
not know for many days, then we must inform the police. This
could cause problems for the school.
5. Until such time as the school can get one year visas for
our Year of Service Volunteers, you will need to travel to
Malaysia or Laos every 3 months to get a new visa. Volunteers
are allowed one week to do this. Should you like to take a
little more time off to visit Southern Thailand/Malaysia or
Laos during one of these trips, arrangements can be made,
depending on the circumstances at the time. The school cannot
subsidize this trip. Volunteers should ensure that they have
the funds available to meet all visa expenses. The visa trips
usually cost between $70-$100 US.
6. The month of April and a small part of May are summer holidays
here in Thailand. The school closes down and so the volunteers
have this time off. There are also a few weeks to a month
in October which the school closes down for, just after midterms.
Again the volunteers are given a break here. The volunteers
must inform the school of their plans for these breaks, so
they know where you are, when your coming back, etc.
Property
1. The school accepts no responsibility for volunteer’s
property loss or stolen.
2. Do not borrow anything without the owner’s knowledge
or permission. If you borrow something you should return it,
in the same condition, to the owner when finished using it.
3. School property should not be taken out of the school or
lent to anyone other than school staff without permission
from the school office.
4. Return all tools and equipment to their rightful place
after use. When not in use, keep store- room locked.
Health
1. Volunteers must have a valid insurance policy which will
cover all their expenses in the event of an accident or serious
illness. A one year insurance policy should not be too expensive
and could be taken out here in Thailand or in your home country.
2. Volunteers must get a complete medical examination before
leaving their home country. A copy of their medical certificate
must be sent with their application to work here.
3. Volunteers should not come to work when sick or ill. Medical
advice should be sought if symptoms persist.
O SON OF MY HANDMAID
| “ Guidance hath ever been given
by words, and now it is given by deeds. Every one must
show forth deeds that are pure and holy, for words are
the property of all alike, whereas such deeds as these
belong only to our loved ones. Strive then with heart
and soul to distinguish yourselves by your deeds. In this
wise we counsel you in this holy and resplendent tablet”
Baha’u’llah |
3. Helpful hints &
advice
Health
1. Because of Thailand’s hot and humid weather it
is essential that volunteers keep themselves and their eating
and living quarters clean ( hygienic ). People should bathe
and change clothes at least once a day. To avoid fungal problems
you should dry yourself thoroughly.
2. Not all food offered to you here in the N.E. of Thailand
is cooked. Volunteers should know what it is they are eating
before doing so. If you can’t find out, wait until a
later date to try it.
3. Hepatitis A & B, rabies and TB are prevalent in Thailand.
You should get medical advice on prevention before leaving
your home country. By eating at unsanitary roadside food outlets
you are at a greater risk of contracting hepatitis.
We recommend the following immunizations :
- Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV) - one single dose
- Measles-Mumps-Rubella vaccine (MMR) - one single dose
- Tetanus dipheria (TD) - one booster dose
- Japanese B Encephalitis vaccine - first three doses are
1-2 weeks apart, fourth dose is 12 - 18 months after second
dose
- Typhoid vaccine - every 3 years
- Rabies HDCV - After 3 pre-exposure injections, booster
is not required for 2 years unless exposure occurs
- Hepatitis B vaccine - First two doses are 1-month apart,
third dose is 6 months after first dose.
- PDP TB skin test - every 12 months
- Gamma globulin - every 4 months
( Don’t let the thought of getting all these immunizations
intimidate you. We expect that you already have some of them
through mandatory immunizations in your own country. You should,
however, inquire about them with the medical professionals
in your country, since people from different countries may
require different immunizations. Again, the ones which would
be most important to get are those for hepititis A & B,
rabies and TB.)
4. The responsibility for personal medical care is left to
the volunteers themselves.
Passport, visas, and air ticket
1. You should make sure you have a valid passport for the
duration of your stay (one year), because it can be rather
expensive to renew it while here in Thailand.
2. The visa you will need is a Non-Immigrant 90 day visa
type “B”. The school will provide a letter of
invitation to present, with your other documents, to the Royal
Thai Consulate in your country. It is a good idea to try and
apply for a double entry. This will be a visa valid for 6
months before having to apply for a new one. Although you
still have to leave the country every 3 months, your second
entry only requires that you cross the border. This saves
you the time, money and paperwork involved in applying for
a new visa.
3. When applying for a visa, you should do it about a week
before you leave, because once it’s been issued, your
visa is in effect. This is of course unless it takes a week
to have it issued. But Thailand ‘s waiting period is
fairly short for most countries.
4. You will need to book a return ticket before leaving
your country. When doing so you should make sure it is valid
for your period of service (one year). It is sometimes difficult
to look ahead a year in advance, so you may want to leave
your return portion open ended.
Clothing
1. It can get quite cool from Oct. to Jan., so we recommend
you bring or buy a jacket.
2. It rains quite a bit from June to Aug., so it would be
a good idea to bring some rain gear.
3. You may find jeans uncomfortable to wear. The heat and
humidity make them rather hot and heavy to wear. Pants and
shorts made of cotton are much cooler and lighter.
4. Thai’s do not usually wear socks or sun block cream.
These can be expensive here. Sun block recommended for fair
skinned people.
5. When travelling within Thailand or going to Malaysia,
it is a good idea to bring some “nice” clothing
in case you are invited to a formal event.
Water and electricity
1.. Thailand uses 220-240 voltage and power transformers
can be expensive. Likewise, electrical equipment in Thailand
would not be appreciably more expensive than in the US or
Europe.
2. The school provides filtered water for drinking. We advise
against drinking water from taps / faucet. Ice is usually
served with drinks in restaurants. In cheaper establishments
it’s often not clean.
Personal Finances
1. We recommend volunteers bring or have access to at least
$2,000 US for one year. This will allow you to shop and travel
etc.
2. Money could be sent by international direct transfer
to an account here via a Thai Bank or bank with a Thai connection
in your country. We suggest you bring about $200 US initially
and once here open a Bank account.
3. We do not recommend traveler checks or bringing a large
amount of cash owing to the security risk.
4. Personal checks unless international may be difficult
and costly to cash.
5. We recommend getting an ATM card.
6. Credit cards are useful to have for emergencies.
Traffic Safety
1. Road accidents are a major cause of death and serious
injury in Thailand. When cycling or walking it’s advisable
to be very careful. You cannot assume that people will obey
laws or comply with accepted motoring etiquette. It is not
unusual for a motor cyclist to come out of a side road in
front of on-coming vehicles or for a car to go through a red
light.
What we have
The following is a list that helps to give volunteers an
idea of what they will be provided with by the school. Should
volunteers stay with a Thai family for a period of time, #1-4
will be looked after by their host’s. Numbers 5 and
6 will still be provided by the school.
1. A place to stay with toilet, shower and cooking facilities.
2. Cooking facilities: pots, pans, plates, bowls, glasses,
forks, spoons, knives, gas stove. (There is also a fridge.)
3. Mattress, pillows and sheets.
4. Filtered drinking water.
5. A school lunch. (Breakfast and dinner as well as food
on the weekends is the responsibility of the volunteers.)
6. A bicycle. (Again depending on the number of volunteers
serving at the time, due to limited supply.)
What to bring
The following is a checklist of the things already mentioned,
as well as a few extra suggestions, to give you a clearer
idea of what to bring.(And maybe make your packing process
a little easier!)
1. A pair of shoes, socks and a pair of sandals.
2. Your work clothes, preferably a different set for each
day (Mon.-Thurs.), tracksuit for Friday.
3. For evenings and weekends 4-5 t-shirts, a few pairs of
shorts and a few pairs of pants (it’s a good idea to
bring some pants because if you are invited to an event, although
it may be informal, it would be impolite to go with shorts).
4. A set of “nice” clothes for formal occasions.
5. A jacket/sweater for the cold season.
6. Rain gear for the rainy season.
7. Valid insurance policy.
8. Health card/documents.
9. A personal first aid kit, vitamins. (You don’t
need to bring a hospital!)
10. You may want to bring some of you own music (cassette
tapes), walkman. (The trips to Malaysia are pretty long .
11. It would be a good idea to bring some books, because
you may find you’ll have extra time in which there isn’t
much to do.
We hope that all this information is helpful in preparing
yourselves for coming to Thailand and serving the Faith and
the school to the utmost of your ability!
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