3 minute read
Moving forward in privatization
Ihope this issue of Veritas finds you and your loved ones healthy and in good spirits following a year of uncertainty. It has been challenging for many of us, but as the country starts to open up, it is time to start looking towards the future.
Selwyn House School became a fully private school as of July 1, 2021. The decision was made to forego any form of government funding a couple of years ago.
The government provides a grant to each school, based on the number of students in the secondary school. This is meant to help defray the costs of school, but at the same time, it requires that all students have a Certificate of Eligibility in order to study in an English institution like Selwyn House. This means that many members of the Montreal community could not even apply to Selwyn House, or any English-language school, and each year some of our Elementary School students were required to leave Selwyn House at the end of Grade 6 and move to a French school.
Let’s take a step back and look at our history. Selwyn House School began its life as a private enterprise founded in 1908 by Algernon Lucas. In 1912, Lucas transferred his ownership in the school to his friend and business partner, C. C. Macaulay, who re-named the school “Selwyn House” after their shared alma mater at Cambridge University. Macaulay, in turn, sold it in 1929 to G. H. T. Wanstall, who died without a will in 1945 while still Headmaster.
Faced with the risk of losing their school, a group of parents and Old Boys formed a corporation that took over ownership of the school and hired Robert Speirs as their new headmaster. Selwyn House Association was officially formed in 1945. In 1973 the school started to receive grants from the government under Bill 50, which was created to provide money to help cover costs for high-school students.
The decision to forego any form of government funding is an opportunity for Selwyn House to open its doors wider than ever before. A potential student no longer requires an English Eligibility Certificate to attend Selwyn House. This means that we can now open our doors to every student in the city and around the world.
On July 1, 2021, a new era began at Selwyn House School as we started our journey in privatization.“In foregoing government subsidies, more students who were previously not eligible to experience a Selwyn education can now benefit from all we have to offer,” says Selwyn House Association Board Chair Michael Avedesian.
“Our student body will increasingly reflect the diversity of Montreal, which means we can remain accessible to the community, providing more financial assistance, allowing students from all walks of life to attend.”
Former Headmaster Hal Hannaford introduced the Vision Statement that our school motto, Veritas (truth), should be interpreted as a call for every student to embody the qualities of being true to himself, true to others, and true to his school. We want our students to be respectful, resilient and hard-working young men who pursue fulfilled, balanced and purposeful lives anchored by Selwyn Veritas.
This year, we have added a fourth pillar of truth to our Vision Statement. We want our boys to be true to themselves, true to others, true to their school and, now, true to their world, through integrity, leadership, partnership and justice.
As a school, we believe we should be producing global citizens. Our students should be prepared to be the next leaders of the world. They need to be ready to deal with whatever they come across.
This starts with the school, where we need to be modeling and teaching the behaviours, skills and ingenuity that they will need in order to be successful. They need to be part of diverse classes to fully learn about and respect everyone, regardless of religious backgrounds, ethnicity, socio-economic status or sexual orientation. We expect our men to go out into the world, lead by example, work hard and be good people.
The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us that the world is a very small and interconnected place, but at the same time, it taught us the true meaning of community. Our theme was “Stronger Together,” which resonated with the students throughout the year, with every adult and child in the school wearing their “Stronger Together” t-shirt with pride. We are all very fortunate to be part of such a caring Selwyn House family. We were stronger together, and we were all in this together. And we made it! The future is looking bright!
