French American International School (San Francisco)

The French American International School is a PK-12 independent school in San Francisco, California. The lower school (PK-8) is known as "French American" or simply "FAIS," FAIS is a bilingual French-English school from PK to 8th grade. The high school, International High School, referred to as "IHS" or "International", has its own identity and French is not required to attend. IHS is currently the only school in San Francisco to offer both the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program and the French Bac. Over half of the incoming freshman class at IHS come from Bay Area middle schools outside of FAIS, including, Chinese American International School (CAIS), Ecole Bilingue de Berkeley, International School of the Peninsula (ISTP), Live Oak, San Francisco Day, Presidio Hill, Hamlin, SF Friends, Adda Clevenger, Brandeis, Children's Day, Katherine Delmar Burke, Marin Country Day, St. Paul Episcopal, Alice Fong Yu, Aptos, and Everett, among others. A small number of students enter from schools abroad.
Academics.
The lower school (FAIS) follows a bilingual curriculum in French and English. The high school (IHS) offers the International Baccalaureate (IB) degree as well as the French Baccalauréat ("the French Bac"). Around three-quarters of the students graduate with the IB degree. Knowledge of French is not required for the IB degree. When applying to this school in 9th grade, you may choose a second or third language such as French or Mandarin. Students who have attended this school since 6th grade may continue (if they do not want to drop out) their third language - Mandarin, Italian, Spanish, or Arabic. However, they are not obliged to keep taking French if they switch to the "IB".