Celebrating 40 Years of Women at Ashbury

next year double the girls and only increasing thereafter.

Cynthia Baxter chaired the committee on co-education, with John Woods as Board Chair bridging over to Bill Milroy, father of Ashbury’s current CFO Alex Milroy and Tony Macoun as Head of School. Jane Kennedy was appointed Dean of Women and ensured a successful transition in school life, and Jean Teron became Board Chair several years later, solidifying Ashbury’s coed status. Today we support a school environment that is inclusive for all students. From all boys to co-ed, and gender-inclusive, Ashbury moves from strength to strength as we embrace our pluralistic community. I am grateful for all those visionaries from board to staff, to students and parents in contributing to the Ashbury of today, and of tomorrow.

Lisa Inderwick ’84 My time at Ashbury helped me see more clearly who I was. Stepping outside the world I had grown up in at Elmwood let me see myself through a new lens. I had the best of both worlds, a new environment that still shared the same foundation as my old environment, with a great mix of old and new friends.

The French IB and the English literature program both captured my imagination, and I went on to study both at Carleton… the discipline of hard work that I learned at both Elmwood and Ashbury has served me well in any of my jobs. This is something that my husband and I have also passed on to our children and grandchildren.

The friends I had at Ashbury have been life-long friends and I’m not sure that happens to most highschool friends. We shared a fairly unique experience at

Ashbury and it provided a bond that saw us through the many unique life-experiences that awaited us.

Jillian Napier ’90 Ashbury wasn’t just a school for me. It was my home, in one way or another, for 14 years. I was a student, assistant coach, and summer employee at Ashbury. From the mundane (I swept the front steps every morning as part of the maintenance crew in the summers) to the memorable (hosting VIPs at our home) and enjoyable (working with Vicky Wilgress in the Advancement Office), these experiences all played a role in my development.

Whether it be appreciating the things in life and doing simple tasks with energy and enthusiasm, or facing extraordinarily challenging situations with determination, patience and perspective, my time at Ashbury prepared me well.

It is probably no coincidence that I am currently teaching Economics and coaching Basketball. Andy Sparks (Basketball) and Ian Deakin (Economics) were both influential to me in my high school career. After pursuing degrees in Education and Business and spending time in e-commerce and management consulting, I was fortunate to be able to take time to raise our family. Then, when asked to return to teaching, it seemed like a natural fit - back to my roots. So for the past seven years I’ve been at Brentwood College School on Vancouver Island, a school much like Ashbury which I know will have a similarly profound impact on its students.

Ashbury College alumnae: We want to hear your memories from your time at the school! Email alumni@ashbury.ca to share your reflections for the Ashbury archives.