Barracudas Swimming Coach

The BIS Barracudas are very pleased to welcome Khoi Tran to the coaching team. Khoi is an enthusiastic swimmer and coach. He has represented Vietnam at Nationals and was the captain of the HCMC Swimming Team.
Khoi enjoys backstroke and individual medley events. He competed at the SEA Games in 2013, 2015 and 2017, where he received 5 silver medals and 3 bronze medals. Khoi also competed in the Asean Tournament where he won 4 gold medals. He holds National records for the 200m Individual Medley, 400m Individual Medley, 50m Backstroke, 100m Backstroke and 200m Backstroke.
Khoi will be coaching the Junior Blue, Junior White, Junior Red and Senior Squads. He will also be assisting with the F3 Swimming Lessons. We look forward to working with Khoi as part of the swimming team at BIS.
New Staff Profiles
We would like to introduce a few more staff to you this week that have joined our school. Do read on!
Ms Kathryn Payne

Hello everyone! My name is Kathryn and I am teaching in Year 6! Before joining BIS and moving halfway across the world, I’d never actually visited South East Asia before. My first impression has been very positive and I have loved seeing how friendly and welcoming everybody is - it has made settling into life in Ho Chi Minh a lot easier. I am really enjoying life in Vietnam - I love the country, the people, but most importantly the food!
I am originally from Doncaster in England and I grew up with two sisters and a brother. For a very long time, I was the youngest in the family, until my 3 little nephews came along and caused havoc everywhere! They are probably the main reason that I didn’t leave Doncaster sooner and I love receiving updates on how they are getting on at school and nursery. Although I miss them very much, I love living in Ho Chi Minh and experiencing a new culture - it has really opened my eyes to what the world has to offer and I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to teach here. My class welcomed me to the school with big smiles and fantastic personalities and they always laugh at my terrible jokes!
Thank you to everyone who has made my first few months in Vietnam so enjoyable and to everyone who has made me feel welcome.
Mr Oliver Bone

Xin Chào to all who are reading this, and first of all let me say a huge thank you to the whole BIS community for making me feel so welcome. From colleagues, to parents, to pupils, the welcome has been both warm and genuine. BIS is my fourth international posting and even in the short time I have been here I can feel what a truly exceptional school BIS really is. I have been wowed by both the talents and drive of the students in 6V and am excited about what lies ahead for us this year. Prior to moving to Saigon, I have been fortunate enough to teach in international schools in Shanghai, Seoul and Bangkok and whilst I have visited Saigon previously, it feels great to finally live here, surrounded by a wide range of ever-changing sights, sounds and smells.
Outside of teaching, I am a passionate supporter of Manchester United, an enthusiastic traveller and keen discoverer of new music wherever I can find it. Whilst living in Asia does sometimes feel like a long way from home, being surrounded by so many welcoming and friendly people makes it really quite easy to cope. Nonetheless, I am still excited to be travelling back to the UK over the Christmas break to see friends and family, and also to finally meet my newborn nephew who was born just last week! Thank you for taking the time to read this and for the warm welcome, if you do happen to see me around the school, please stop me to say hello!