– Recollections Of The Music Man With A Band Vision That Changed The History Of ISKL
“I grew up in a musical family, and music has always been a big part of my life. Early on, I decided not to pursue a university degree in Engineering but to continue following a life in music education”.
Roger Beermann is a personality embedded in ISKL’s rich history. He was ISKL’s first Band Teacher and the motivation behind the entire Interscholastic Association of Southeast Asia Schools (IASAS) Program.
Ironically, Roger returned to Malaysia in October 2023 to bury his beloved wife’s ashes in the ISKL Gratitude Garden. We, in turn, show our gratitude as we learn and share the story and memories of the man with a broad vision who made it a true and long-lasting ISKL reality:
Roger and his late spouse, Anne, are American citizens originally from the state of Iowa. They met as young teachers, him as Band Director and her as a Speech, Theater, and English teacher, yet as they were engaged to be married, they romanticized about working in a school together as a couple.
However, the reality of accomplishing this dream was a struggle due to the 1980s ‘Farm Crisis’ in America, whereby farmers were increasingly losing both their farms and money. Roger recalls, “It became such that community values dictated and highlighted the imbalance of finances if one couple achieved two teaching salaries in that current climate.” With this in mind, they were encouraged to hear from an acquaintance working and living as a teacher in Libya that many international schools were seeking teacher couples. Armed with this information, Roger and Anne’s lives took a turn for the better when they attended an International Schools Recruiting Fair and met Dr. Gail Schoppert, the Head of School at ISKL. After being offered employment, they married and headed to Malaysia in the fall of 1982.
Roger recalls their first night in Kuala Lumpur was a somewhat traumatic experience, an evening that could have put them straight back on a plane to Iowa had they not had the confidence and foresight that Malaysia would ultimately fulfill their dreams – which it did for the next six years. After an enjoyable local dinner at a street stall, they retired for a good night’s sleep at a fellow ISKL teacher’s house. However, they were awoken by three men armed with parangs (a Malaysian machete). Despite Anne’s self-defense training, she was admitted to the emergency ward and administered 17 stitches in her arm and across her nose.
They quickly put this incident behind them to start their roles at ISKL; Roger’s position was establishing and taking responsibility for the Band Program. Anne’s initial role began as a Grade 8 English teacher, progressing eventually to the role of Grade 9 English and Drama Director. They both made their mark on ISKL, with Roger now being renowned for his vision and implementation of the IASAS Program and Anne establishing the ISKL Thespian Honor Society, both of which stand firm in the ISKL curriculum today.
The evolution of IASAS was a steady process, which involved Roger first establishing the Band Program in the book room behind the stage with carpeting on the walls for soundproofing. These humble yet formative months were the beginnings of a massive leap in ISKL’s vision for the future of its musicians. Having arrived in Malaysia with a modest selection of instruments, including a brass drum, baritone, tuba, bass guitar, and an amplifier, to recruiting five keen and able band students, before long, there were some twenty-one players, and after their first concert on December 14, 1982, Dr. Schoppert arrived on stage with tears in his eyes, hugging Roger before exclaiming “We have a Band!”
Roger’s next step was to unite his music students with the Dalat School in Penang and the Singapore American School (SAS) to host joint concerts. The success of these led to conversations with other international schools in the wider SEA region, including SAS, International School Bangkok (ISB), International School Manila (ISB), and Jakarta International School (now known as Jakarta Intercultural School), with the guidelines and rules for the varying elements of IASAS being drawn up in brainstorming sessions between the leadership of these schools. It was here that the inception of IASAS was formed, initially named The Fine Arts Festival, which included art, speech, drama, dance, band, and choir. As it stands today, IASAS consists of a far-reaching variety of sports, Model United Nations (MUN), art, film, chess, math, drama, dance, forensics, debate, and music, and the inclusion of Taipei American School (TAS).
Roger and Anne spent six happy years in Malaysia and took with them, on their departure in 1988, memories of friendship, warm weather, and the food culture. They left to undertake teaching roles at the Canadian Academy in Kobe, Japan, before returning to Iowa for a short period to care of Anne’s elderly father and then heading back to Asia to teach at the Shanghai American School. Retiring in 2008, they spent two happy years traveling through 60 countries on all seven continents, even enduring the temperatures of Antarctica!
Sadly, Anne passed away in 2019, and in her memory, Roger is continuing their travels to fulfill her wish of spreading her ashes in meaningful places around the world, including Phuket, Thailand, Bhutan, Kobe, and Kuala Lumpur. The symbolic purpose of returning to ISKL has allowed Roger to reconnect and reminisce with old colleagues and friends such as Karen Palko, who remains a teacher in Middle School, and many other peers who continue to reside in Malaysia. The campus may have grown considerably and relocated from the Melawati Campus since Roger taught in the 1980s. Yet, the ethos and values of what he and Anne brought to the school remain embedded.
Now residing in Iowa City, Roger continues to enjoy a life of music – playing in a veteran Jazz band. His passion for music was instilled from a young age, and with this, he has selflessly used it to inspire and educate children in a career and life journey that has proved to be far-reaching in many ways.
We thank Roger and Anne for their roles in our history of music and dramatic arts development. If you have a memory to share about Robert and Anne, please email [email protected], and we will share your recollections of this remarkable couple.
