Taipei American School (TAS; ; abbreviation TAS) is a non-profit private international school with an American-based curriculum located in Tianmu, Shilin District, Taipei, Taiwan. TAS serves students from pre-kindergarten through grade 12. At the high school, students may choose from a range of courses including honors, AP, and IB courses that fulfill the full IB Diploma Program. Founded in 1949, the school served as a U.S. Department of Defense contract school during the U.S. military presence in Taiwan from the 1950s to 1970s. Upon termination of diplomatic relations between the United States and the ROC in 1979, TAS was reorganized into a private international school. The school is operated by the Taipei American School Foundation under contract to the American Institute in Taiwan, the United States' quasi-embassy in Taiwan. The school is a member of the G30 Schools Group. Most graduates of TAS attend colleges and universities in the United States, although some choose to attend schools in other countries due to obliging other national passports to be admitted in the tertiary education across the globe despite having a distinctive American high school educational experience. As required by ROC law, TAS admits only students who hold foreign (i.e. non-ROC) passports. History The first meeting of Taipei American School took place on September 26, 1949, in the basement of Presbyterian Theological Seminary at Zhongshan North Road, with eight students. This marked the beginning of the "missionary era" where Taiwanese and American medical missionaries were instrumental in founding TAS and providing it with students. The first class of students included American, European, and Taiwanese students. By 1951, the influx of missionaries and business people escaping from the communist victory in mainland China caused enrollment to grow to 120 students. By 1952, TAS was forced to relocate to Nong'an East Road to provide space for the growing student population In 1953, the U.S. Military Assistance Advisory Group was established in Taiwan. This brought to the island a large number of U.S. military personnel. Along with these military personnel came their families, including children needing an American-style education. TAS became the school for the children of the U.S. military personnel. In the summer of 1953, TAS constructed a much larger campus at Chang'an East Road. In 1956, TAS graduated its first class of 14 seniors. By then, the Chang'an campus had approximately 50 faculty members and 1,000 students. In 1957, Mr. Wayne Nesbitt served