Chinese American International School (CAIS) is the oldest Mandarin immersion school (preschool through 8th grade) in both San Francisco and the nation. This comprehensive review is based on multiple visits to the school, conversations with approximately 200 CAIS parents about their children’s experiences, and a deep dive into the school’s history. I'm also a parent of two children who are currently attending CAIS.
The value of a second language, especially Mandarin, is significant in today’s increasingly competitive world. Mandarin is so different from English, that learning Mandarin well should help your child become a better critical thinker.
With over 1.35 billion Mandarin speakers globally, learning the language can give your child an edge, particularly if you're investing in private school tuition. Beyond the academic advantage, there are also social and cultural benefits to learning a second language.
Reflecting on my own education, including my time at The College of William & Mary, mastering Mandarin and communication skills were two of the most important components that have contributed to my success today.
Starting from the 2024-2025 school year, CAIS has a new forever campus at 3250 19th Ave, San Francisco, CA 94132 (front) or 440 Junipero Serra Boulevard (rear drop-off). Prior to this, the main CAIS campus for K-5th was at 150 Oak Street. The new 19th Ave location replaces the former Mercy High School, which CAIS purchased in 2021 and renovated.
Overall, I have a positive impression of CAIS and rate it 4.3 out of 5 stars. While many families also consider Presidio Knolls School, the other Mandarin immersion preschool-8 school in San Francisco, I personally prefer CAIS for the reasons outlined below.
Chinese American International School (CAIS) Review
This article is mainly a review of the CAIS preschool through to the Lower School. Once you get into the preschool, your child is generally in for the rest of the way if your family and child are in good standing.
If you have another child that wishes to go to CAIS, you must still apply and have a play session with your child to gain admissions. Admissions for siblings is not guaranteed, however, the acceptance rate is high.
CAIS goes from Pre-K (two years old) all the way through the 8th grade. There are three main divisions: Early Childhood (P2-1st grade), Lower School (2nd-5th grade), and Middle School (6th-8th grade). Therefore, if your child gets in and enjoys the experience, you won't have to worry about applying to middle school. Further, if you have a younger child, they will have preferential admissions, provided your family is in good standing.
Altogether, there are approximately 550 students enrolled at CAIS across all grades. Before CAIS purchased the old Mercy High School campus, Mercy High had around 800 students during its time in session.
Atmosphere / Facilities: 4.8/5
In Fall 2024, CAIS moved to a 5+-acre campus on the west side of San Francisco. As a result, the school is much bigger with more room for the children to play. The campus remodel of the outdoor space should be complete by November 1, 2024. Yes, sadly, school started on the new campus before the outdoor playgrounds were complete.
Chinese American International School has one of the best campuses in all of San Francisco. CAIS has already hosted a number of events there and it's been wonderful to have so much space.
The school consists of four floors, with preschool through 1st grade on the ground floor, second through fourth grade on the second floor, and the remaining upper grades on the third floor.
The school has a gym, theatre, dedicated rooms for music and art, a soccer field in the back, and a preschool playground in the front. Unfortunately, CAIS does not have a swimming pool or a cafeteria.
Diversity: 3/5
Most students are Asian (~40%), half Asian / half Caucasian/Other race (~36%), or Caucasian (~15%). Therefore, there is diversity, but not much among Black and Hispanic students.
In terms of socioeconomic diversity, many of the parents I know who send their kids to CAIS earn a top 25% income. Therefore, the socioeconomic diversity is not that great either. However, roughly 20% of families who attend CAIS receive financial AID according to the school. Contrary to popular belief, not all private school families are rich.
CAIS is actively trying to recruit diverse students and families to the program. However, sending your child to a Mandarin immersion school is still a unique education, therefore, it's harder to get the greater public to consider attending. It’s understandable that many of the students are of Chinese or Taiwanese background given the language immersion.
All independent schools in San Francisco have a diversity issue, so CAIS is not alone.
Teachers: 4.8/5
From what I've seen in person and online, the teachers are fantastic. The average tenure for a teacher at CAIS is about eight years according to the school's intro presentation.
There is a mixture between American teachers and Chinese teachers given the curriculum alternates by day. Preschool is full Mandarin immersion. Kindergarten and up alternate days between English and Chinese.
CAIS also provides floating teachers for both English and Chinese classes to add extra support.
I'm pleased with both the teachers and the administrative staff at CAIS. Everyone is friendly and helpful. It is a joy to interact with them.
Schedule: 5/5
CAIS is open Monday – Friday and has a very accommodating schedule for full-time working parents. Drop off is complimentary before 8:30 am (as early as 7:30 am) and regular pickup is by 3:30 pm. CAIS also has after school care until 6 pm with all sorts of activities for an extra cost.
You can enter the 19th avenue campus from the front, where you drive to the back of the school for the pickup/drop off roundabout for preschool through 1st grade. The pickup and drop off situation is relatively smooth, although patience is always recommended given children in aftercare may not always come out before parents arrive.
Given the size of CAIS, there is also drop off and pickup at the back, where there is a street one before Junipero Serra Boulevard. It is easy to park in the neighborhood and walk in, if you have security clearance. Walking in with your preschool student is a requirement if you choose to enter via the back gate.
Tuition: 3/5
Attending CAIS is expensive. Tuition for the 2024-2025 school year is $42,600 for preschool and K-8th. Not cheap when you can send your kid to public school at places like Star King, Jose Ortega, or Alice Fong Yu for free (if you win the public school lottery).
I fully expect CAIS tuition to continue to go up each year given it paid $40 million for the Mercy High School 19th Ave campus in 2021. Renovations always take longer and end up more costly than expected.
Tuition assistance is available to qualified families through the Adjusted Tuition program. One in five families receives some form of aid through the program. If you don't qualify and have to pay full price, ideally your family should try to make at least 5X the net tuition per child.
In this case, we're talking ~$215,000 household income per child, if you pay the full tuition. But if your net tuition price is $15,000, then having an income target of $75,000 may be more appropriate.
This is the guidance I have when deciding between private and public schools in my WSJ bestselling book, Buy This, Not That: How To Spend Your Way To Wealth And Freedom. You don't want to overly sacrifice your retirement nested for your child's. There has to be a balance.
Community: 4.5/5
There are some very connected and well-to-do parents who send their children to CAIS. If you want to join a community of highly-educated people who care about San Francisco and their children CAIS is an excellent community to join.
Parental involvement is extremely high at CAIS, which is a strong signal for the quality of the community and the education your child will receive. Parents are regularly volunteering for all school events and regularly raise funds to help the school.
However, if you cannot comfortably afford the tuition and also donate to their bi-annual fundraisers, you may feel out of place. That said, there is tuition assistance, so please inquire.
It takes effort to make connections and combat loneliness. But you'll be happy to know the more effort you make, the more rewarding connections you will also make.
Location: 4.8/5 Starting In September 2024 Onward
The west side of San Francisco is wonderful for families. It is less dense, has more parks, and is safe. In addition, having Stonestown Mall right across the street from CAIS is a great asset for kids to relax after school and be with their friends. Stonestown Mall is growing and is becoming a food hotspot. There will also be more family-friendly stores and activities in the mall.
Economic growth should continue on the west side with the completion of the multi-billion UCSF Parnassus Campus by 2030. In addition, the city wants to upzone the main traffic hubs on the west side to build more housing.
The west side of San Francisco is where you likely want to buy real estate, even if you don't end up sending your kids to CAIS. As a personal finance writer since 2009 and a resident of San Francisco since 2001, I've clearly seen the demographic shift toward San Francisco's west side.
The opening of CAIS on 19th avenue will only increase the demand for real estate. Every year, there will be roughly 60 new children attending CAIS for preschool. Here are the best neighborhoods on the west side of San Francisco.
Accommodation for Children with Disabilities: 3/5
Fighting for people with disabilities has been a mission of mine since 26, when my colleague’s wife birthed a daughter with Down’s Syndrome. Roughly 15% of the world's population has some type of disability which makes life a little to a lot more difficult. People with disabilities is the minority group I think we should all fight for the most.
I feel that because I have been a long-time advocate for the disabled, God blessed us with a son who has a visual disability called nystagmus, which is involuntary movement of the eyes.
Due to his Nystagmus, his best corrected visual acuity is about 20/80 after glasses. This means what a person can see clearly from 80 feet away, he needs to stand 20 feet away to see the same thing. Most people can correct their visual acuity to 20/20 with glasses or contact lenses.
Smaller font sizes and details are much harder for people with nystagmus to see. CAIS has been gracious to accommodate with a slant board, magnifying ruler, and seating him in the front of the class.
A Disappointing Lack Of Accommodation For The Visually Impaired In Favor of VIPs, Board Members, and Politicians
As a personal finance writer, I've written about money and power since 2009. I have experienced how money and power helps families at the expense of those with less.
During CAIS’s Mass Greeting ceremony on Feb 8, 2024, we asked the Chinese Program Director, if we could sit up front so our son could see us more clearly. He has nystagmus, a visual impairment that causes uncontrollable movement of the eyes and low visual acuity.
Unfortunately our request was denied to “accommodate VIPs, board members, and politicians,” according to the Chinese Program Director. This is understandable, especially given the event was packed. But it was also a sad reality of life and a wake-up call that money and power can often trump those with disabilities.
If I was a VIP, board member, or politician like London Breed, who came, I would have gladly given up my seat to help accommodate someone with a visual impairment. Or I would make room for one more. It is the right thing to do if you believe in equity and inclusion.
If this incident was brought to light in the news and I had not helped accommodate a child to better be able to see, I would feel ashamed and embarrassed. But as we all know, money and power give people advantages over those who don’t have as much.
Private Schools Can Accommodate However They Want
Here is another reality if you choose to attend a private school instead of a public school. It is the private school's discretion on how much to accommodate students with disabilities. Some do so better than others. The more significant your child's disability, the more you should look into public schools. A school like Chinese American International School may not have the resources you need. Please ask about accommodations for your child’s particular case.
Public schools are huge supporters of students with disabilities, mainly due to the law. Instead of putting VIPs, board members, and politicians first, they will put their students first. Public schools have IEP and 504 programs to help students with disabilities.
Here is some good information from the article below about IEP and 504 programs, which aren't required by private schools. If CAIS was required to follow the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the program director would probably have found a way to accommodate us.
IEP and 504 Programs For Students With Disabilities In Public Schools
An IEP is an individualized education program, an educational road map for children with disabilities. Required by the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, an IEP is a regularly updated document that outlines goals and milestones for students based on their unique abilities.
In California, about 800,000 students, or 13%, have IEPs. Students with IEPs can have autism, intellectual disabilities, orthopedic impairments, brain injuries, deafness, vision impairments, speech or language impairments or other disabilities that require specialized help with school.
“504 plan” refers to section 504 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which states that any organization, including a school, that receives federal money cannot discriminate against people with disabilities.
At schools, this can mean that students with learning disabilities, for example, can get extra time to take tests or finish homework, sit near the front of the classroom, or use textbooks in formats they can understand, such as audiobooks. A team of teachers, specialists and parents determines what accommodations a student receives under their 504 plan.
In general, the goal of a 504 plan is to accommodate students with disabilities in general education classrooms. About 85,100 students in California, or about 1.5%, have 504 plans, according to the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights.
If you have a child with any type of disability, please bring it up and inquire how the school can accommodate, if at all. CAIS does its best to accommodate, but this one incident left a sour taste in my mouth. I’m sure they will try to do a better job to accommodate and be more equitable in the future.
Chinese American International School CAIS Review Overall Score: 4.3/5
Overall, I give CAIS a 4.3 out of 5. Initially, I rated it 4.7, but I came to realize that parents of children with disabilities may need to advocate strongly for accommodations at CAIS. If you don’t speak up for your child, they may not receive the same experience as those without disabilities. My hope is that there will be progress by CAIS on this front.
Chinese American International School is a wonderful institution. Once your child is accepted into CAIS preschool, they are automatically enrolled in subsequent grades, provided both the child and parents remain in good standing. However, there is no guarantee that siblings will be admitted on the first try due to limited space.
CAIS pre-K 3 and kindergarten are the most competitive entry points. For CAIS pre-K 3, there were about 80 applicants for around 12 spots in 2020, and admissions remain equally competitive for 2025 and beyond.
Linda Vann-Adibe, the former Head of Admissions, was a delightful presence but left at the end of 2022. Her successor, Elaine Chang, is also wonderful and highly resourceful, having previously been a preschool teacher at CAIS. Elaine always greets you with a cheerful demeanor, making the admissions process smooth and welcoming.
Affording CAIS May Not Be Easy
If you have a flexible work schedule, you may have thought about homeschooling your kids to save tuition and extra driving as well, especially in the early years. You could also invest the entire saved tuition savings into various passive income investments. But homeschooling isn't practical or possible for many families.
If you are considering CAIS, you may find the community, Mandarin immersion, and social practice for your children are well worth the price. There is very low turnover among the teachers and the administrators are attentive.
Please spend time talking to as many students, parents, alumni, and administrators as possible. Visit the campuses multiple times and attend the various social events, like their ginger bread decorating activity to meet more people.
I highly recommend Chinese American International School (CAIS) for preschool and grade school. You can visit their website here for more information.
Related post: How To Get Into A Great Preschool Or Private Grade School
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