Imprint: December 2021 Issue

IMPRINT

DEC 2021 VOL 21/ISS 1

FOR THOSE WHO EXPECT MORE THAN A TRADITIONAL EDUCATION

Empowering our students to explore their passions.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

FROM OUR LEADERS

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MANAGING EDITOR Aldrich Tan Advancement Services Manager

Tell Your Story & Honour Your Voice FROM OUR LEADERS

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Tell our Stories & Raise our Voices

SENIOR COPY EDITOR Isabel Sankaran-Wee Director of Advancement

FROM OUR LEADERS

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Celebrating Each Other FROM OUR LEADERS

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PHOTOGRAPHS Clarence Chan Photography Aldrich Tan

Leadership Development EDUCATE

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Gender & Sports at Stratford Hall

COVER & ANNUAL REPORT DESIGN Red Rocket Creative Strategies

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Honour Your Voice EDUCATE

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Celebrate our Diversity, Raise our Voices: National Coming Out Day ENRICH

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Diversities: Curating & Sharing Library Books REFLECTION

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The Long Walk to School SNAPSHOTS

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School Life REFLECTIONS

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Alumni Reflections: Where are they now?

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Annual Report 2020-2021

Stratford Hall 3000 Commercial Drive Vancouver, BC Canada V5N 4E2 T: 604 436 0608 E: advancement@stratfordhall.ca www.stratfordhall.ca

CALENDAR

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Save the Date CALENDAR

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2022-2023 Key Dates

Imprint is published twice per year, expressly for parents, students and friends of Stratford Hall. Imprint is copyright © 2021 Stratford Hall IB World School, Vancouver BC, Canada. Please contact our office to be added to the mailing list.

IMPRINT: DEC 2021: VOLUME 21 / ISSUE 1

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Tell Your Story &

Honour Your Voice 2

IMPRINT: DEC 2021: VOLUME 21 / ISSUE 1

FROM OUR LEADERS

Stratford Hall has long been known as a warm and caring school community. This well-earned reputation came from its founding families and the first staff members, who partnered with them in the earliest days of the school.

When the school was small, everyone was recognized, known, and heard. It was therefore easy to maintain a caring community because people regularly connected with one another - the parking lot, in the corridors of the Italian Cultural Centre, at concerts, galas and the like. As the school grew, I credit Dr. Jim McConnell and his team for maintaining a commitment to the notion that each person’s story was important and that their voice needed to be heard. They ensured each person was valued, heard and understood.

In their pursuit of developing a school in which each child, each family, and each staff member was known and cared for, they adhered to the last sentence of the school’s mission statement, “We foster a strong, pluralistic community built on integrity and respect.” These words remain important to the school today as we seek to understand what it means to maintain a pluralistic school community in which integrity and respect are the norm.

In the past 18 months, as a staff we have recommitted ourselves to this part of our school mission. Collectively, at the school-wide level and individually in each of the Junior and Senior Schools, we are seeking to ensure everyone has an opportunity to tell their story, to honour all of our

voices. We are creating spaces within which purposeful dialogues can take place. These “spaces” are in classrooms, assemblies, Community/Advisory lessons (Senior School), and clubs and activities, to name a few.

A significant area of focus has been to learn more about diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI); to learn more about voices within our school community and the broader community that have been marginalized. I am pleased with the progress we have made this year with the creation of DEI student ambassadors. This new group of leaders will help us build an even stronger, pluralistic community.

The school that opened its doors at the ICC in 2000 to 40 students now has 530 students, 390 families, and 100 faculty and support staff. Maintaining a commitment to celebrating our stories, and raising - or honouring our voices is a challenge; it takes effort, planning and strategy. Celebrate with me as you learn how Stratford Hall continues to value the story and the storyteller. I hope this edition of Imprint encourages you to tell your story and honour your voice.

Dean Croy Head of School

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FROM OUR LEADERS

Celebrate our Stories, Raise our Voices BY: MEG CHAMBERLIN Senior School Principal One of the fundamental roles a school plays in the lives of students is to provide opportunities for young people to develop the skills to be empathetic, engaged, and active global citizens. Educators have long been asking questions around how we do this most effectively. We can look to the field of experiential education and service learning which has provided us with insightful research into how we can address global citizenship education in a scaffolded and impactful way. Here at Stratford Hall, we apply that insight across our co-curricular and academic programming.

What we know is that meaningful, collaborative experiential opportunities that engage students with diverse personal stories and ways of living help young people to gain a deeper understanding of diverse perspectives, and thus support

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empathy development. When we pair learning about others’ stories with meaningful action in our circles of community (family, school, local, and global) followed by reflection, we see powerful transformations in young peoples’ understanding of their impact and their desire to initiate positive change in their communities.

When paired with thoughtful preparation, collaborative conversations, and meaningful reflection, these experiences have the power to shift our students’ relationship with self; with others; with different perspectives, attitudes, and ways of knowing; and with culture, ways of living and the environment.

In just the first few months of this academic year in the Senior School, we have supported global citizenship education through our MYP service

learning programme; Outdoor Experiential Education; the Living Library; field trips (e.g. Chinatown and Stanley Park Indigenous walking tours); and community partnerships with Queen Alexandra Elementary, Lakeview Senior Centre, MOSAIC, Help Change My City, Fresh Roots, and ISSofBC, to name a few. In addition to these connections, our DP students extend their exploration of personal impact on their community through CAS, making connections that will carry on far beyond their time at Stratford Hall.

Ultimately, the goal of these programmes is for our students to develop empathy through celebration of our community’s stories and to inspire our young leaders to raise their voice and take informed action to make a positive impact in our world.

FROM OUR LEADERS

Celebrating Each Other BY: MICHAEL PALMER Junior School Principal The Junior School is a diverse community of students and teachers, and as a learning community, we aim to ensure that everyone’s voice is respected and heard. Our learners are knowledgeable, skilled, and full of ideas they want to share with their friends and teachers. To acknowledge and hear the diverse voices in our Junior School community, this year we launched a theme that will celebrate our diversity and honour our voices: a variation on the theme of this issue of Imprint.

Our Junior School learners are coming to know their identity and the world around them and we believe it is important for all students to have a chance to speak and be heard so we can learn from each other.

Acquiring literature that promotes diversity, equity, and inclusion has created opportunities for our students to see themselves represented in stories such as Mommy’s Khimar and Grandma’s Purse. The Junior School has made a conscious effort to seek out and acquire rich literature for children that provides them with a range of perspectives and leads them to interpret and question while making meaning of their own identity and experiences.

As we continue to honour the voices of our Junior School students, Stratford Hall parents are invited to share your family’s culture and traditions with us. All you have to do is make a video and send it to your child’s teacher. We look forward to learning more about all of our students as we continue to celebrate our diversity and honour our voices.

Zachary and his mom Annie were the first to be heard this year when the Burkes family prepared a video to teach us about the Jewish holy days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The whole family prepared an informative and fun video that generated some rich conversations around the school.

In September, three of our Kindergarten students shared their tradition of celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival.

They spoke about moon cakes, grapes and the lantern as a symbol during this important holiday in Chinese culture.

In November, many of our families celebrated Diwali.

Kailash and Kaavya made a video to teach us about the origins of Diwali, the special clothing they wear, and the food they eat during this worldwide celebration in Hindu culture.

Having our students and families share their cultural identity is a way to honour their voices.

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FROM OUR LEADERS

Leadership Development BY: GARETH JONES Senior School Vice Principal

Can every student become a leader?

In the 16 months that I have served in the position of Senior School Vice Principal, this is a question I have been asked, have asked, and ask myself regularly. It is a complex question. It is a question that challenges perceptions of leadership - who is or isn’t a leader? It confronts one’s personal definition of leadership - what does it mean to lead? It tests perspectives towards the actions typically associated with leadership. Is leadership primarily about what someone does or is it about who someone is? This question, while perhaps easy to respond to, is certainly not easy to answer.

I often wonder what our students think about this question. Do they see themselves as leaders? As leaders in the making? If they are leaders, where does their motivation lie? Is it possible to be intrinsically motivated?

In an age where, thanks to social media and the 24/7 news cycle, our students are more attuned to the leadership failures of others and the resulting impacts, is leadership something they aspire to?

I went ahead and asked our Senior School Prefects what they thought about this question, “Can every student become a leader?” and they had some salient points. One student suggested, “There is tremendous value in treating every student like they can be a leader.” Another Prefect noted that, “Everyone can learn the skills for being a leader, but being a leader is largely about mindset and not everyone will immediately have that mindset. Mindsets are not fixed, though, and a change in mindset does need to happen if one wants to become a leader.” Lastly, a third Prefect said, “With the right guidance, yes, every student can become a leader.”

Well said.

There are certainly benefits to suggesting that every student becomes a leader. It puts us in a position to be articulate about the education required to develop

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leaders. It would lead us all to consider, as a community, the competencies and characteristics of a Stratford Hall leader. We would all need to be clear about the dimensions of leadership we are focusing on - leadership of self, leadership of others, leadership as a global citizen.

This increasing clarity (currently evident throughout our programming and increasingly so with the development of our approaches) would most benefit our students who would begin to see themselves as a leader to the extent of their gift set. And the benefits they experience would be significant.

The research is very clear on the benefits of leadership development on many aspects of a student’s life. Research from the Center for Creative Leadership, for example, indicates how focusing on student leadership development has a positive impact on student engagement evidenced through an increase in student belonging and academic achievement. Well-respected leadership development program, LeaderInMe, has reported the positive impacts that leadership training and action can have on student mental health, peer relationships, and health choices.

Each member of our community - students, staff, faculty, board, parents - could chime in with the positive benefits that leadership development (through supportive inquiry, action, and reflection) can have on a young person.

We have made a lot of progress over the past 20 years in our capacity to develop excellent leaders. Most recently, I’m very proud of the progress we have made. This year, we have 27% of our Senior School students in a defined leadership role. Defined leadership roles involve an application, presentation, election, and/or nomination.

They have defined expectations and targeted areas in the school where they are expected to have impact. They are guided through their development by leadership coaches (teachers) who support their initiatives and oversee their growth. Lastly, each student leader participates in our Leadership Speaker Series where a member of our community shares their story of leadership and invites

FROM OUR LEADERS

CLUB LEADERS

Ambassador Club: Aksel Naylor (12) and Alaana Shamji (12) Chess Team: Drew Corston-Oliver (12) and Jenny Lieu (12) Climbing Club: Thomas Westlake (11) and Grace Young (11) Earth Club: Lauren Andersen-Williams (12) Gender Sexuality Alliance Club: Talulla Cameron (10), Victoria Haussmann (11), Madeleine Quennec (11), Nghi Truong (9) and Cedar (Jay) Zulkoskey (7) Hot Potato Initiative: Georgia Cooperwilliams (12) Mandarin Club: Ryan Lu (11), Ella Tang (10), Carol Xing (11) and Jack Ye (11)

the student leaders to dialogue, across grades and areas of leadership, about their own experiences, hopes, and progress. For reference, on December 1st we welcomed Angela White, Executive Director of the IRSSS, to speak about leadership. It was a fruitful, engaging, and thoughtprovoking session.

When you teach students to lead, you have to be prepared to let them lead. That’s tough for us adults; us teachers.

We want to step in, with best intentions, to help our students shine. In many ways, their success is a reflection on us. We have to remember that it’s not about us, but it’s about their learning; their growth. There will be pitfalls and failures, but that is to be expected. In the student life economy, everything is growth and progress. We have to be prepared to support, to teach, to encourage, and to coach. That’s our job. We’ll leave the visible leadership to the students because it’s their school and they deserve every opportunity and position to be about them. They’re learning how to become the leaders of tomorrow.

Can every student become a leader? It is a question that can create more questions. And that’s a good thing.

We should embrace the dialectic tensions that this may establish. And I invite you to this on-going conversation that we’re having and ask that you engage with us if you have any questions, challenges, or opinions. As for our approach at Stratford Hall, we’ll always believe that every student can become a leader because we believe (and have active hope) in the endless potential of our incredible students.

Resources Center for Creative Leadership: “Accelerating School Success by Investing in Leadership Development” https://www.ccl.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/acceleratingschool-success-by-investing-in-leadership-development.pdf

LeaderInMe https://www.leaderinme.org/research-highlightsleadership/#section1

Model United Nations: Alykhan Rajan (11), Lauren Wong (11) and Justin Zheng (11) Plan International Club: Anisha Singh (12) ROAR Zine: Kristen Chan (11), Madeleine Quennec (11) and Grace Young (11) Sabres F.A.S.T.: Daphne Meng (11) Sabretank: Simon Le (12) Social Action Club: Jenny Lieu (12) Speech and Debate Club: Jeeya Matharu (9), Rohan Singh (10) and Rhea Sunderji (9) Yearbook Club: Max Biermann (12), Gisele Fu (10), Chloe Hon (9), Sahara Majeed (12), Jamal Pascal (12), Nicole Yang (10), Ryan Yeung (10) and Hannah You (9)

PREFECTS

Action & Wellness Council: Harjunn Sandhu and Georgia Cooperwilliams Arts Council: Adam Cross and Jenny Lieu Athletics Council: Jakob Ma and Sarah Robbins Innovation & Academics Council: Jonah Leibu and Moneek Rawan Spirit Council: Jaya Chauhan and Navin Howard

ADVISORY LEADERS

Grade 6: Noam Breger, Aaria Jamal, Patrick Wu and David Zhang Grade 7: George Callaghan, Allison Chu, Akshay Grewal and Chereen Ting Grade 8: Callista Do, Nimrit Khera, Aniyit Saran and Chloe Wong Grade 9: Olivia Atkinson, Seth Press, Rhea Sunderji and Hallie Young Grade 10: Gisele Fu, Caleb Jang, Izzy Karim and Taryn Wong Grade 11: Elan Breger, Alex Coleman, Alyssa Fielding and Justin Zheng

DEI AMBASSADORS

Paulina Antipova (6), Radhika Assanie (11), Drayden Atwal (8), Damian Babul (6), Lukas Bell-Buchner (7), Jaskeerat Garcha (9), Emelie Kim (11), Ezra Lee (10), Mahee Patel (8), Anisha Singh (12), Daphne Tsogas (6) and Dana Yamashiro (11)

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Gender & Sports at Stratford Hall BY: BRINA DERKSEN-BERGEN PHE/OEE Department Head I have thought about gender and sports and the inequalities that exist there almost every day since I signed up for intramural basketball during lunch in elementary school. When I stepped onto the court for our first games, it was obvious that I was the only person present who identified with a gender other than male. It would have been so easy for me to quit and walk away because I was afraid, but there were two reasons why I stayed. The first reason was my parents. They always taught me that my gender made me powerful, not weak, and that gyms, fields, and arenas of sport were places that I belonged. They took me to these places and taught me how to throw a baseball, ride a bike, and swim when I was young. The second reason was my PE teacher, Mr. Scheer, whom I adored. He made it clear that he supported me and that I would be safe anytime he was in the gym. At that time I didn’t realize how much this mattered to me and now as a PHE teacher myself, I am so grateful to him.

In Athletics and in the Physical Health and Outdoor Education department at Stratford Hall, we collectively think about gender and sport quite a lot. We have learned and acknowledged that the systems of sport as we know it were designed by and for men. We also acknowledge that the entrenchment of gender binary in the very design of sport rules, regulations, leagues, and governing bodies have left little room for belonging for non-binary, trans, and gender non-conforming athletes. We have read “The Rally Report” which published startling statistics regarding the drop in participation of girls in sport after the age of 13 in Canada (Canadian Women & Sport, The Rally Report, 2020).

In efforts to be better now that we know better, we have invited Sam Moore, a speaker from Sabres F.A.S.T., and her colleague Marsa Daniels to coach us in considerations for athletes who menstruate and are going through puberty.

Ms. Moore is a research fellow at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Exercise and Sport Science Graduate School who specializes in training hormonally aware athletes. Ms. Daniels is a Teaching Associate and Coach Developer at the University of Washington’s Center

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for Leadership. These two professionals are on the cutting edge of this field and we are so grateful to have access to their perspectives and research. From them we learned that an athlete going through puberty may not know how to run or jump anymore as their hips are now wider than their knees. We learned that a menstruating athlete can have almost superhuman strength at different hormonal phases in their cycle, yet have low energy availability at other times. We learned that athletes going through puberty also have a heightened sensitivity towards peer perceptions of themselves. You can imagine how these factors impact the confidence of young people when asked to be vulnerable and take risks in PHE class. This sparks us to change how we train young athletes.

We can and are beginning to implement these practices at Stratford Hall. For example, we are continuing to retrain movement patterns each year. This looks like adding proper jump and landing mechanic practices to our dynamic warmups to protect from knee injuries. We are training the whole student athlete, not just their physical abilities. This means using athlete training journals to empower students to take ownership over their health, well being, menstrual cycle, nutrition, mood, and sleep. Bringing equity to PHE class looks like giving students choice with regards to the weights they use during strength and conditioning, and a bigger window of opportunity for fitness testing to occur on the day when the student feels best, not when we decide testing should occur. It looks like using command terms that are physically inclusive. Some students may not feel strong or able to “explode” like we are asking them to do. Instead we can use external cues such as “push through the floor” to accommodate for a range of energy levels and abilities. Equity in PHE class also looks like sharing our pronouns, having visual symbols of allyship present in athletic spaces, degendering roles within our dance unit, representing non-binary athletes on the Ultimate field, and so much more.

Optimal Distinctiveness Theory, in order for individuals to feel true belonging and inclusion, they not only need to be welcomed into the group but valued for their uniqueness within the group (Brewer, 1991). By growing and changing as educators, we hope to help all students belong, thrive, and feel safe in the gym. I want to help my students feel safe just as I felt under the guidance of Mr. Scheer. Maybe in the not so distant future, one of these students will design a better world of sports, one that does not divide along the lines of gender.

Right now we are taking steps towards equity in gender and sport at Stratford Hall however small those steps might be. This will be a long journey and will likely involve many mistakes, and many difficult but inspiring conversations with our entire community. According to

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Honour Your Voice BY: GILLIAN LOUIE Junior School Learning Support Specialist When we speak about student advocacy in many respects we are speaking about choice, voice, and exercising agency. At Stratford Hall, we encourage students to listen with intention as well as use their voices to advocate for both themselves and others. Often even young children know how to do this. They may simply just require modeling and encouragement. When we give them space to use their voices, they can tell us exactly what they need and why. It is often the adults who get in the way!

In Learning Support we focus on the importance of self-advocacy; the idea of advocating to have one’s needs met regardless of age or ability. In this respect, voice can take many different forms. Take a young primary student for example.

Initially, their ‘voice’ could simply be their behavior or their body language. It is our job as teachers and mentors around them to learn how to translate this behaviour into oral communication. It begins from this that students will grow their self-advocacy and strengthen their voices. In a world largely designed for extroverts, how and when we use our voice is often as important as what we say. “We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.” This quote is attributed to Epictetus and speaks to the power of effective communication and to honor someone’s voice means we all need to spend more time listening than speaking.

We all have a voice and it is our job to nurture and give space for all voices.

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Stratford Hall is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. We value each other’s identity and well-being. Together, we learn and grow by embracing and respecting multiple perspectives, experiences, and cultures.

Our differences are our strengths.

The Pride flag was originally designed in 1978 by Gilbert Baker. It consists of six horizontal lines representing life (red), healing (orange), sunlight (yellow), nature (green), harmony/peace (blue), and spirit (violet). In 2018, Daniel Quasar added on the half size stripes representing trans folks (light blue, light pink and white), and marginalized People of Color (brown, black). The arrow points to the right to show forward movement, while being along the left edge shows that progress still needs to be made.

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Celebrate our Diversity, Raise our Voices

National Coming Out Day BY: SKIPPER & QUINN Senior School Gender Sexuality Alliance (GSA) Teacher Supports

Quinn Casey talking about how Yogi Omar provides a window into the life of a queer refugee and person of colour in Canada.

Within the Stratford Hall community, we celebrated National Coming Out Day. Occurring on October 11 every year, this day raises the voices of LGBTQ2S+ (queer) people worldwide.

Coming out can be challenging which is why Stratford Hall commits to creating safer spaces for everyone to be themselves regardless of gender identity and romantic/sexual orientation.

National Coming Out Day aims to educate people about the joys and challenges of being LGBTQ2S+ while celebrating the courage it takes to come out in a world that is not always safe for the community. Every coming out story is unique and worth expressing. To honour this day, Stratford Hall developed two metaphors that represent the purposes of National Coming Out Day: this day is both a mirror and a window.

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If we think of National Coming Out day as a mirror, then what that means is that queer people need to feel reflected in their society in order to have a strong sense of belonging in this world. National Coming Out Day reveals to queer people that they are real, that there are many of us, and that they are as normal as everyone else. For queer people specifically, our stories have not always been accurately and positively represented in the media and reflected in the people around us. Certain identities and stories are often more reflected than others, so National Coming Out Day helps queer people see that other queer people exist.

Then, we can build a community and a common culture while appreciating that every culture around the world has their own way of expressing gender identity and sexual/ romantic orientation.

National Coming Out Day is also a window. What that means is that hearing other people’s coming out stories lets us into other people’s lives. This way, National Coming Out Day lets us learn more about all sorts of different identities in the queer community. If you are an ally to the queer community, then you can listen to other people’s coming out stories and get a glimpse into their life. As an ally, you can also create windows into queer people’s lives to foster respect and inclusion across cultural and social boundaries.

National Coming Out Day was created in 1988 in North America by Robert Eichberg and Jean O’Leary because they actually saw a need for LGBTQ2S+ people to see themselves reflected in society and the media.

Metaphorically, there was a lack of mirrors. From their parents to their teachers and from their friends to their favourite celebrities, queer people struggled to see reflections of themselves anywhere. If a reflection was shown, it was a negative portrayal. LGBTQ2S+ people knew that one another existed, but it was not safe for them to come out. People hid their true identities and often pretended to be straight and cisgender. The truth is that

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There are as many ways to be queer as there are people in the world, yet it is currently illegal to be LGBTQ2S+ in 71 countries around the world. Coming out is not possible for everyone and it is not the same for everyone, even in Canada. The reason why is because many people have to negotiate their queer identity and their queer selfexpression in unsafe places, from Indonesia to Canada. With more windows into queer people’s lives, we are compelled to to honour what queer people choose to do in order to stay safe from being marginalized and criminalized.

Therefore, we are further compelled to recognize that deciding to not come out for any reason does not make you any less authentic or real.

historically we exist today, and we have always existed, since the dawn of humankind. Prior to colonization and Westernization, it was the norm to be LGBTQ2S+ in many societies as much as it was the norm to be straight and cisgender. In 1988, during the creation of National Coming Out Day, queer people needed to be seen and needed to see positive examples of possibility. And today, this need has evolved into a push for greater representation of queer intersectionality, which is why at Straford Hall we heard Yogi Omar’s story of being a queer refugee and person of colour in Canada.

Ultimately, we want to leave you with these words: there was a moment in your life when you saw an out, proud, and unashamed queer person in public and it awakened something in you, maybe showing you that people like you are possible, and people like you exist today and will exist happily in the future. One day, you will be that person for someone else.

The GSA Student leaders interviewing Yogi Omar.

GSA Student Leader, Madeleine Q. (Grade 11), talking to Matt about who they see as a window for themselves.

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Diversities: Curating & Sharing Library Books BY: KIRSTEN MOROZOV Senior School Teacher-Librarian / Extended Essay Coordinator

Last year, our library staff ran a presentation for ISABC schools on finding, curating, and sharing diverse queer (LGBTQ2S+) content in our school libraries. Thinking about serving our diverse queer students and allies also got me to thinking about how and what we do in our library supports (or doesn’t) other types of diversity of marginalized people, such as diversity in ability/disabilty and amongst racialized people.

Diversity of resources in libraries is a complex topic requiring the writing of many books to truly do it justice, and I’m no expert in this arena, but I offer to you here a brief reflection of my process and thinking as the Senior School teacher-librarian.

First off, I worry about performative allyship and tokenism.

For instance, I do recognize the need for special events and days to recognize marginalized people such as Coming Out Day as it helps with awareness. But, rather than just have a display the one time of the year, I rely on the help of Ms. Turner, our Library Technician, who does a great job ensuring lots of books on various topics representing many groups of people and authors are displayed all school-year long.

Secondly, we need to set the stage by creating a welcoming space to our entire student and staff population. School libraries have often been a place of refuge for students in need of it, as almost a third space.

Our library spaces at Stratford Hall are not locked off and students are usually able to come and go as they please.

I run low-key library clubs at lunch giving our students a legitimate place to hang out with their friends or make new friends playing games, participating in book clubs, and partaking in various other activities. The library also

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provides an opportunity for introverts and other students stressed by the social challenges of pre-teen/teen life to recharge away from classroom crowds and concerns by tucking themselves in next to a quiet bookshelf to read.

How do I find diverse literature?

This is getting to be much easier, as various educational organizations and publishers are finally starting to prioritize diversity. Journals for teacher-librarians are great resources, as is input from students and staff members when building my book shopping-list. It’s important, however, to complete these suggestions with additional resources.

In regards to diversities, for instance, students and staff may not be aware of all that’s out there, and each diverse “group” is not a monolith. Differing opinions, interests, and intersectionalities will result in different interests in literature.

Thus, judicious use of the Internet can be an excellent portal to the blogs and websites of individual activists, groups, and consultancies run by marginalized people who provide ideas of their own. Online professional learning networks are also useful to me as the conversations between diverse professionals as well as some nonprofessionals who chime in are especially useful for developing a nuanced understanding of issues around diversity. Additionally, it’s important not only to find books specifically about marginalized people’s tribulations and triumphs for reasons of edification and bibliotherapy, but also to find books with diverse characters just living their everyday lives, or saving the world from invading aliens, depending on the genre. This is a never-ending process as there is always more to learn and always more perspectives to explore, in order to continuously evolve my practice in supporting our school community.

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Cataloguing and sharing diverse books in the school library Though I come with my own set of opinions regarding how to integrate diverse books into our library, there are times where it is advisable to confer with those most likely to be impacted by my decisions. For instance, a number of years back I spoke with one of our SOGI (Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity) leads, Mr. Skipper, who had been discussing how to best organize books with LGBTQ2S+ content with the students in the GSA club. My personal belief is that there shouldn’t be a separate section for e.g.

LGBTQ2S+ books, but rather that they should live amongst all the other books on the shelves because not only am I a big believer in serendipitous discovery, but I worry some students who would otherwise discover a fabulous book with e.g. an LGBTQ2S+ character might avoid it if it was on “that” shelf, as we have a ways to go yet before variety amongst humans is sincerely celebrated. That said, I wanted to ensure queer students and their allies could easily find those books. I offered to add a queer-specific sticker to the spine, but though the GSA students shared my belief that queer lit should be interspersed with everything else, they didn’t necessarily want to “out” a reader, nor have students avoid books very visibly labelled with a queer designation.

Note that being outed can also be a concern for those wanting to read books about neurodiversities (such as people with ADHD, autism, dyslexia etc.), or health issues (such as cancer or mental-health challenges).

In lieu of an identifying genre sticker, we create a variety of lists (an ongoing process - these are never exhaustive) through our cataloguing system so students and their supporters can more easily find books which speak to them. In the case of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour) books, I have chosen to include books written

by BIPOC authors, which may not actually have BIPOC main characters or themes, because such authors have traditionally lacked representation by publishers and I feel this is a way to support them. Furthermore, as a colleague pointed out, these authors also bring their own perspectives to non-BIPOC focused stories.

Other ways to share have included my posting photos of new purchases of books and resources through Instagram and Twitter. Admittedly, I’ve been pretty slack on this for the last while as the increasing toxicity of social media has tarnished the shine on the benefits of using it.

Ms. Turner also works to promote diverse literature in a variety of ways beyond book displays, such as by hefting piles of books covering a variety of diversities to the GSA club meetings to share with club members.

My work as an (albeit flawed) ally includes offering library services and resource purchases to support various stakeholders in our community, such as the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee and subject teachers looking for ideas to diversify their students’ reading and research options. I rotate through the different department meetings to not only offer my services, but to also just listen in so I’m aware of what’s happening in that subject when I find a potentially useful resource, I’ve a better idea of where to direct it. I’m also a member of the Future of Education committee, and as part of our research, we know we need to work toward inclusive, personalizing learning - I believe, after all, that the future is diverse.

All this said, I should admit my own selfish gains through the ongoing process of working to ensure we have a solid diversity of perspectives and experiences through our library books - it means I have more great books piling up on my desk for me to read.

* This is a shortened adaptation of an article written for my blog in January 2021.

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The Long Walk to School BY: KATHERINE DJACIC Junior School French Teacher

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“Well... when I was growing up...” is how any good guilt trip from a parent starts. Complain about loading the dishwasher?

“When I was a kid, dishwashers didn’t exist!” Don’t want to mow the lawn? “When I was growing up, our yard was 10 times the size!” Don’t feel like walking to the bus stop? “When I was young, we had to walk to school!” We’ve all heard the stories of our family members who had it unbelievably harder than we did growing up, and yet their stories always seemed like some type of fiction. Like something that this person standing before me could not have experienced in the same lifetime. This was always the case with my dad and his stories from childhood.

Growing up in a village in rural Yugoslavia (now Montenegro), my dad’s childhood and adolescence could not have been more different than mine. The eldest of four, he was expected to take on many responsibilities around the family farm from a young age, as was every child at this time. Without running water or electricity, my dad grew up in a household that was completely self-sufficient: the cows provided milk, chickens provided eggs, the river provided water and so on. My grandparents’ income came from the watermill on their property and from my grandmother’s trips into town to sell cheeses and other homemade products at the market. The mornings started early and the work went late into the night, day after day, month

after month, year after year. There was no such thing as a vacation, sick day or days off. When I think about this type of life, it seems like one lived hundreds of years ago, and not one by my immediate family, only one generation before me.

This summer, I had the privilege of returning to my father’s village where I spent one month every summer growing up. As I age, the cultural differences between Montenegro and Canada become more and more clear to me, as does the life my father describes to me in stories, starting with “when I was a little boy.” I love hearing about my dad’s adventures and mischievous pranks with friends, most of them happening on their long walks to school. I’d heard my father boast many times about his lengthy, arduous journeys to and from school, and about how much easier we have it now. After doing the walk myself this summer, however,

I can see that my dad was not embellishing.

The roughly 6 kilometer round trip hike (and I mean hike—there is no flat terrain in Montenegro) to and from my dad’s Junior School paled in comparison to the 17 kilometres to and from his Intermediate School. After a 5:00am wake up and a quick breakfast prepared by my grandmother, my dad would be off to school, first heading down towards the river where he would cross over rocks and follow the water, meeting up with neighbouring friends. Past the river the group would turn off, and up into the hills, crossing farms, fields, grazing livestock, working men and women, and other kids on their way to school. The roughly 8.5 km walk in the morning would take my dad and his friends hours. They would leave home earlier than they needed to so that they would have more time along the way to play soccer, and prank farmers and kids from other

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villages. These students lived a day’s worth of events before I even wake up to get ready for my 1.3 kilometre walk to Stratford Hall.

Times are different now. Hardly anyone is left in the village. The Junior School closed its doors long ago for lack of children. The Intermediate School still operates with a handful of students. This summer, the river where I used to swim every summer looked more like a stream. Many locals never saw water levels so low.

The trees, bushes, and shrubs have taken over paths that used to be carved out of the wild by people and livestock. The watermill still stands, as does my fathers childhood home, but no one lives there anymore.

Visiting this place will always hold a very special place in my heart. It makes me incredibly thankful for the sacrifices my father made by coming to Canada so that I could have a more privileged childhood than he

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did. I am thankful and proud that I speak his mother tongue and have been exposed to the culture and traditions of my extended family.

Most importantly, I am humbled by how easy my childhood and life have been compared to that of my father. I used to take the school bus to and from school. I don’t think I ever woke up at 5:00am unless it was for a flight or fun affair. The stories we hear, those that are passed down to

us from generation to generation, are the reason for the richness of our communities and the meaning of our lives. The words “When I was growing up” can sometimes elicit a negative response—perhaps even an eye roll.

But we should remember to look a little deeper and have a little patience, to see the value in hearing stories from a life lived not so long ago by the people we hold the dearest.

SNAPSHOTS

School Life

Grade 8 Volleyball team finished 1st in the ISAA Tier 2 division

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SNAPSHOTS

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SNAPSHOTS

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SNAPSHOTS

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SNAPSHOTS

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SNAPSHOTS

Senior Volleyball team finished 1st in the ISAA Tier 2 division

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Alumni Reflections: Where are they now?

Annika Chan, ‘19 My name is Annika and I’m a proud Stratford Hall alumni!

I graduated from Stratford Hall in 2020 and since then, I’ve been at UBC in the ArtsOne and BFA Theatre Acting program. As the winner of the Creative Launchpad scholarship and a finalist in the United Players AK scholarship, I have been involved in musical theatre with the troupe at UBC for a musical revue online and in the troupe at Arts Umbrella as well. Just recently, I was in the All Together Now show from Musical Theatre International, a global event for local theatre. For a while now, I’ve also been with The Characters Agency as an actor and at the Youth Panel at The Cultch Theatre.

These days you’ll probably spot me as a production assistant for film projects or as an usher, most recently at a production of The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh, directed by Jessical Aquila Cymeran and Eanna O’Dowd. Next year, I hope to go on a self-directed research study to Greece about Greek tragedy, old and new comedy. There I would be able to see the archaeological sites, act in a Greek musical, and visit various sites such as the Acropolis of Athens.

During my time at Stratford Hall, I received an Associate Diploma from Trinity College London in Speech and Drama. I started working at the Bolton Academy as a teacher after graduating as the valedictorian of 2020. I teach group and individual classes about communication, creative writing, and the spoken arts. I am a part of the ongoing Diverse Voices initiative, a program aimed at supporting aspiring BIPOC authors by introducing their work to the Western audience.

I’m always looking for more poems, prose, and scenes celebrating diversity and hoping to introduce them to students. I manage a blog promoting these authors and design activities geared for students of all ages to learn about their works. If you want to catch me at Stratford Hall, I’ll be taking part in the Living Library series soon.

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Kelsey Lee, ‘17 I am a 2017 Stratford Hall alumna who is currently finishing an undergraduate degree in Neuroscience with a minor in Dance at Western University in Ontario. The theme “Celebrating Diversity” is fitting as the IB curriculum at Stratford Hall taught me to be a global thinker – think how we are globally connected. Before the pandemic, I went on a university exchange to Leeds in the United Kingdom. I was not sure what to expect as I would be going alone to a different continent for the first time. I had such an amazing time. I made friends with students from a variety of faculties coming from different countries representing diverse cultures because of our shared interests in the arts, science, and travelling. Being able to connect with them helped broaden my global perspective. Learning from a European and English perspective was insightful. You do not realize how much your way of learning is greatly influenced by your local culture and values until you study in a foreign country. I made lasting friendships and although many of us live in different countries, we still make time to connect and are eager to meet up once COVID-19 is over.

Back in London, ON, I volunteer at a hospital helping veterans. I always look forward to my time with them as they always have interesting stories and experiences to share with me. The veterans are a diverse group and their experiences show it. I am also a dance teacher, teaching students from primary school to adults. After graduation I hope to continue travelling and pursuing more education.

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Basil Rohlfs, ‘21 Since my time at Stratford Hall ended, I have been immersing myself in the next step of my student life at university. After a productive summer working as a sailing instructor, marksetter and boat technician, I started the next chapter of my life learning how to be an engineer at UBC. As first term has passed, the value of taking the IB programme has really become apparent to me. The skills I learnt in physics and chemistry have started to reappear in my courses. The calculus I learnt in math is now used universally in all courses. Needless to say that the skills I learnt in IB are popping up all over the place. Moreover, Engineering has a reputation for its large workload. While it stands up to this reputation, the time management skills that I used during my time at Stratford Hall contribute to the workload feeling mostly mild. Overall, I feel that the skills I’ve learnt have translated nicely to university learning.

Basil with Mr. Nystad

Along with classes, I have joined the UBC Sailing team and attend practices occasionally, when they do not conflict with my classes. In the future, I am hoping to join some research initiatives or work with professors on their research. My particular areas of interest lie in quantum chemistry, quantum mechanics, and materials study. Next year, I am looking to specialize as a chemical engineer or materials engineer. The teaching at Stratford Hall, especially in chemistry, is what sparked and fostered my interest until today.

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Sean Kyer, ‘19 Graduating from Stratford Hall, I wasn’t sure what university path would be right for me. Computer Science was never on my radar, but after being introduced to the business and computer science program during my first year at Sauder, it has taken hold of my fascination. I’ve always had split interests between engineering and business. This program combines them in a way that is just right for me.

When the pandemic first hit, everything moved online. Not wanting to spend the foreseeable future in my pyjamas planted in front of my computer, I took the opportunity to go on a cross country road trip. I drove from Vancouver to Toronto during the summer of 2020 and back again during winter. My favorite parts of this trip were exploring Calgary and Winnipeg, checking out the amethyst mines of Thunder Bay as well as skiing in Banff. Driving through the Rockies was absolutely beautiful and a real treat to photograph. It’s something I’d never experienced despite living so close.

While in Toronto, I completed my second year of university and worked for Sinking Ship Entertainment as a junior tech director. This was my first experience as a software engineer and I learned a lot there. Now in my third year, I’ve recently gotten a co-op position at Motorola with their Firmware team where I’ll continue to learn the tech industry.

The past couple years have been full of new experiences and challenges. You never know what opportunities life may present you and I think it’s important to make the best of whatever situation you’re in. I am always looking forward to new experiences and am excited for what the future may hold.

Sean with Noah Kent and Filip Kragl

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Ari Nitikman, ‘14 It’s crazy to think that it’s been over seven years since graduating from Stratford Hall. I’ve been running a business called Elevate Ultimate since 2016 where we teach kids values such as conflict resolution and sportspersonship through ultimate frisbee. I’m very proud to say we’ve coached well over 20,000 athletes in Metro Vancouver and Ottawa, our newest location, and have over 50 employees. In 2019, my partner and I were awarded Best Youth Entrepreneurs by Small Business BC and were even featured on CBC! I’m currently doing a bit of business advising on the side helping other entrepreneurs grow their business, and taking care of my new puppy, Indy.

I’m still playing ultimate and have represented the U24 National team twice at the world championships, and most recently won a national championship with Vancouver Furious George.

Ari with Danie Proby (Elevate Ultimate) Small Business BC’s Best Youth Entrepreneur 2020

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Annual Report 2020-2021 TABLE OF CONTENTS 32

Message from the Board Chair

34

Message from the Head of School

36

Our Volunteers

38

Our Year in Review

40

Financial and Fundraising Model

41

Stratford Hall (School) Society Financial Report

42

Stratford Hall (School) Society / Stratford Hall Foundation Combined Balance Sheet

44

Giving and Gratitude

45

Gifts from our Community

48

Gifts from Education Investment Deposits (EID) Endowment Gift

50

With Gratitude

51

Reconnect & Engage

52

The Class of 2021

54

Student Leadership and Service

55

Co-curriculars Honour Roll

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Athletics

58

Staff News

ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

You made a difference in 2020-2021

Total amount raised Thank You!

To the Stratford Hall community for your commitment and trust to the School.

Your generous support enables every single student access to the best educational and co-curricular resources. It allows the School to enhance the opportunities offered in order for all Stratford Hall students to strive for excellence and reach their fullest potential.

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Message from the Board Chair The main responsibility of the Board of Governors is to ensure Stratford Hall’s financial stability. Approving the budget and setting tuition are just two aspects of school operations that it oversees. We will be looking at ways to keep our tuition competitive whilst finding ways to be more efficient.

We have a lot to celebrate at Stratford Hall and certainly diversity is definitely one of those things. We are one of the few independent schools in the Lower Mainland where anyone roaming the halls can see and hear our diversity.

It is important to embrace what makes Stratford Hall unique. We must cherish and protect our uniqueness, for if we do not, it may be diluted or lost altogether.

Even so, there are two important changes coming to Stratford Hall: new leadership and Strategic Plan update.

While the Board works closely with the Head of School to ensure fiscal responsibility, it also partners with the Head of School to plan for the future growth and development of the school. To this end, developing plans that will solidify our presence on the Drive and expand our programs.

Along with the Foundation Board, we are considering the possibilities of incorporating the Middle Building in the short term. As plans solidify, they will be communicated to our school community.

Our parents have put our community at the forefront to make sure our bubbles don’t burst. I want to thank our leaders, faculty and staff for helping us weather the pandemic. Our teachers have taught us how to be more resilient and have been nimble in adjusting the way they teach our children. Our leaders and administrative staff have made Stratford Hall a safe haven for learning. We will continue to strive to make Stratford Hall the best it can be for our children.

Thank you for your trust and support of Stratford Hall.

In our search for our new Head of School, one of our priorities was to ensure there was a clear commitment to what makes Stratford Hall so unique: our pursuit of excellence in academic programming, our genuine heartfelt community and our commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI).

Stratford Hall has undergone a lengthy process in the past two years to gather data and feedback to help revise our Strategic Plan. At the same time, the Strategic Planning Committee will also examine our Mission, Vision and Values (MVV) to ensure it reflects our core principles. A long-term Strategic Plan will be finalized once we welcome our new Head of School but in the meantime, the Committee will provide an interim Strategic Plan to the community in early 2022.

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Ron Cheung Board Chair

ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Message from the Head of School The 2020-2021 School Year was an exceptional year in so many ways. The school had just turned twenty, we were in the middle of a global pandemic, students and staff had been away from school for nearly six months, and we were returning to in-class learning with a new set of rules to protect against the spread of disease. Not in our lifetimes have educators and students been challenged in the ways we were in the past school year. More importantly, never before have I seen a group of people - teachers, support staff, administration and parents - rally so wholeheartedly to ensure our students were educated, and cared for, to the highest standards.

It was an exhilarating day when we returned to in-class learning after several months away from school. Despite social distancing, the exhilaration experienced when students and staff were reunited was palpable, and indeed, heartwarming. While there was apprehension related to the many unknowns related to the spread of disease, the overwhelming power of human social connection reminded us that we needed each other, both for teaching and learning, and for our overall social and emotional well being. Despite the challenge of not being able to participate in school sports and many other typical school activities, we were together in person. In the midst of the global pandemic, we were grateful for the opportunity to learn together, from one another, and to support each other; this is what Stratford Hall does best!

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

There was no secret to our success in the 2020-2021 School Year. It was due to the drive of the Stratford Hall teachers and students who, with the commitment and encouragement of our whole community, rose to the occasion and focused themselves on the business of teaching and learning. The faculty support of our students in challenging times was nothing short of inspirational.

Our students were cared for and challenged, and the Class of 2021 had a remarkable year. Teachers, support staff, academic and senior leaders, parents and board members: thank you for your exceptional support in this year we will never forget. Our future is bright because of your tremendous commitment to Stratford Hall!

Thank you once again for a great year!

Our students and staff showed a willingness to take initiative and to be intellectually agile. We discovered our personal and mutual limits and persevered; finding ways to deliver the IB curriculum and collaborate while remaining physically distant. If anything, this real world issue that has permeated our classrooms and thought processes, has helped prepare our students for the future in a way that we could not have explained in a classroom setting.

Yours truly,

Dean Croy Head of School

Our reputation as one of the premier IB continuum schools in the province remained in good standing. As we were able to conduct our classes in person, and provide the same excellent program, the word spread and our admissions waitpool remained close to pre-pandemic levels.

The student body was ably led by an exceptional group of young people, the Class of 2021. Their diligence, perseverance and outstanding leadership set the tone for the entire student body. While activities were curtailed, our Grade 12s partnered with the faculty to provide a multitude of opportunities to engage their peers. Student participation in the life of the school was as high, or perhaps higher, than in previous years; in so doing students remained connected and cared for. The strong academic results of our graduating class showed their determination as they were able to lead and serve in their school community and, at the same time, achieve outstanding results on the IB Diploma. While our first live-streamed graduation ceremony did not seem fitting to honour this special group of grads, they took it all in stride until the very last day.

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Our Volunteers Thank you to all our volunteers who give their time ensuring Stratford Hall is and continues to be the amazing school that it is.

Board of Governors

The Stratford Hall Board of Governors is voted on or appointed by the Stratford Hall (School) Society. The Board is responsible for overseeing the strategy of the school: setting priorities, approving annual budgets, and appointing the Head of School. The Head of School is responsible for ensuring that the school runs in a manner that supports Stratford Hall’s mission and vision.

The Board meets monthly throughout the school year (more frequently if required) and includes a subset of five committees: Audit & Finance, Governance, Head of School Relations, Risk Management and Strategic Planning.

Ron Cheung, Chair

Foundation Board of Trustee

SHPA Executives

A second organization, also under the Society’s Act of BC, is the Stratford Hall Foundation. The Foundation holds major capital assets and conducts capital fundraising.

Derek A. May, Vice-Chair Shaneeda Jaffer, Secretary David Nicolay, Treasurer Liz Fei Elisabeth Finney Sean Pearson

Myriam Dumont, President Jesse Kaltio, Secretary Andrew Norden, Treasurer

Ming Jang

Carolyn Williams, Events Coordinator

Fayaz Manji

Janis Sun, Volunteer Coordinator

Harry Lee

Society Members

Alumni Association Allison Lee, ‘10, Chair

Shamsh Kassam

Sakina Hudani, ‘14

Graham Kedgley

Lawrence Li, ‘17

Elaine Lee

Alyssah-Jasmine Merani, ‘14

Harry Lee

Geneva Nam, ‘11

Cindy Leung Jeremy Leung Dr. Jim McConnell

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Class Representatives

Crossing Guards

Zoe Brown

Dave Howard

Gloria Chu

Cindy Hua

Patricia Chu

Anita Hui

Katie Chuang

Steve Naylor

Samantha Fan

Henry Wang

Lily Gao

Kylie Williams

Bev Ginder

Karen Winstanley

Lou Guerrero

Simon Wong

Tim Au

Keith Chan

Jennifer Gunasekera Navi Kahon Nahid Kalim Stacy Kerr Marie Louie Jang Kim McCurley Ryoko Norden Marlane Press Satpal Rai Ali Sauder Nathan Slee Janis Sun Calvin & Jennifer Tse Karen Winstanley Rachel Yao Corrine Zhao

A Big Thank You to our Retiring Governors Anthony Cheung Mimi Cheung Alain Quennec Philipp Postrehovsky

We would also like to thank Carol Chiang for her many years of service as a non-Governor committee member.

Lesley Shannon

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Our Year in Review

September 2020 Welcome Back Sabres

October 2020 Annual Fund Kick-Off Box Delivery Bike to School Halloween New Parent Box Delivery Orange Shirt Day Terry Fox Run

November 2020 Grade 5 Pinning Ceremony Neighbourhood Cleanup Day Queen Alexandra Food Drive Remembrance Day

December 2020 Hamper Drive MYP Arts Showcase Winter Concert (Filmed)

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

February 2021 Kindness Week Mother Language Day SMASH Fair

March 2021 Happy Day 100 Our new bike shed

April 2021 Freaky Friday on a Thursday Twins Day

May 2021 Graduation

June 2021 Junior School Sports Day PYP Exhibition Service Day

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Financial and Fundraising Model Not-for-Profit Stratford Hall, under the name Stratford Hall (School) Society, operates under the Societies Act and is a registered Canadian charity.

Tuition Tuition (%) and government grants (%) cover the day-to-day expenses and operation related to the delivery of a Stratford Hall education. Tuition does not cover maintenance and campus improvements, classroom equipment and supplies, funding for extra-curricular activities and state-of-the-art technology.

Stratford Hall Foundation The Stratford Hall Foundation is a separate registered Canadian charity that manages all capital assets and administers fundraising in support of new facilities.

The Annual Fund The Stratford Hall Annual Fund is an investment in the future of Stratford Hall. Tuition fees cover the day-to-day expenses and operations related to the delivery of a Stratford Hall education.

Education Investment Deposit (EID) Gifts All Stratford Hall families are required to place an Educational Investment Deposit (EID) with the school. Families are encouraged to donate all, or a portion of, their deposit to the school in advance of their last child’s departure. Families who donate their entire EID will be granted membership into the Stratford Hall Leaders’ Circle.

Endowment Endowments will ensure that students will continue to benefit from your support in perpetuity.

The principal amount of your donation will be invested. Once the investment has grown significantly, generated income will then support Stratford Hall programs, student scholarships and bold programmatic initiatives. Endowed gifts may also lead to recognition opportunities that honour or memorialize a person of the donor’s choosing.

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Stratford Hall (School) Society Financial Report

Revenue / Sources

Expenses / Uses

Tution

Salaries & Benefits

$12,312,659 Goverment Grants

$1,915,750 Fundraising

$567,458

School Programs

$106,615

Interest & Other Revenues

$116,423

81.98% 12.76% 3.78% 0.71% 0.78%

$9,379,978

63.47%

Rent/Facilities, Repairs & Maintenance

$2,422,701

Administration

$1,272,847

Program Costs

$1,034,151

Amortization of Capital Assets

$561,982

Tuition Assistance

$107,480

16.39% 8.61% 7.00% 3.80% 0.73%

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Stratford Hall (School) Society Stratford Hall Foundation Combined Balance Sheet for the Year Ended June 30, 2021 2021 $

2020 $

Cash

6,645,066

4,010,688

Short-term investments

2,469,995

4,443,589

Assets – Current

Receivables

3,308

65,807

GST rebates

166,980

152,874

126,583

176,085

9,411,932

8,849,043

1

1

34,461,244

35,376,112

43,873,177

44,225,156

Payables and accruals

1,676,346

1,319,839

Deferred revenue

5,556,181

4,966,145

77,935

95,156

7,073,000

7,647,000

729,365

698,056

16,316

14,806

15,129,143

14,741,002

17,901,283

18,630,648

57,313

75,113

1,008,198

2,002,902

20,690

20,563

34,116,627

35,470,228

Unrestricted

7,792,747

6,828,143

Restricted

1,913,753

1,901,785

Prepaid expenses and financing Investment in 3060 Commercial Drive Nominee Ltd Tangible capital assets Liabilities – Current

Deferred contributions Educational investment deposits Current portion of long-term debt Current portion of capital lease obligations Long-term debt Capital lease obligations Interest rate swaps Security Deposits Fund Balances

Endowment

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50,050

25,000

9,756,550

8,754,928

43,873,177

44,225,156

ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Giving and Gratitude Year after year, our community comes together to further our mission by making financial contributions to the school through the Stratford Hall Annual Fund. These gifts are beyond the cost of tuition and provide additional resources that allow Stratford Hall to be extraordinary. While tuition funds our mission, annual giving and campaign commitments inspire our vision for tomorrow - the school we aspire to be.

Giving generously not only of their time and commitment but also of their financial gifts.

That’s what our community of students, families, alumni, staff and friends do - to ensure our educational environment is innovative and inspiring for all learners.

This unique year was no exception for Stratford Hall, an Independent school that is a not-for-profit organization and operates with a volunteer Board of Governors.

In fact, Stratford Hall is a registered Canadian charity and complies with the regulations set forth by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).

What all of this means is that we devote all of our resources (funds, staff and campus) to our primary purpose of delivering an outstanding educational program for our learners. As we are a not-for-profit organization, your investment in our school has a tremendous impact. Every last cent of your contributions is invested in our incredible programs, people and spaces. This is the independent school difference.

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It is with my utmost gratitude that I share with you how our staff have continued to go above and beyond in their commitment to the school this past year by donating to the Annual Fund, alongside parents, to foster development and community.

Our community was built on a foundation of volunteering - our students participate in community service, our alumni are making a difference around the world, and our parents model this community - to - community building right here at Stratford Hall. The amount of time that our parents commit to support and grow our community is humbling.

I am indeed pleased to share the names of many others who give so generously and the variety of ways our families invest in our exceptional school. We are incredibly grateful that our community supports Stratford Hall - financially, as ambassadors and through volunteering, and by choosing Stratford Hall for their children’s education.

With gratitude,

Isabel Sankaran-Wee Director of Advancement

ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Gifts from Our Community Our capacity to continuously enhance our facilities and enrich our programs is made possible due to your generous support of the Stratford Hall Annual Fund.

The Annual Fund empowers our teachers with the tools and extra resources needed to prepare your child to be an effective contributor to society and tomorrow’s leaders. As the school progresses to offer added opportunities for students, we must count on the Annual Fund to keep tuition affordable while maintaining a high quality educational program.

Thank you for believing in Stratford Hall and for supporting us every step of the way.

CHAMPIONS CIRCLE

$20,000 - $49,999 Anonymous (2) Beverly Ginder

VISIONARIES CIRCLE

$10,000 - $19,999 Anonymous Fuzhong Ye and Wei Li

Every donor impacts the story of every student at Stratford Hall.

We are beyond grateful to you for your generosity and commitment to our school. We are and will continue to be better together!

FOUNDERS CIRCLE

$5,000 - $9,999 Anonymous Craig & Eva Atkinson Cheung Family Cheung Family The Coleman Family Ryan & Jesse Kaltio Gordon & Stacy Kerr Yan Lu Sabrina Su Jackie Ma & Annie He

Jianhua Shen & Tianqing Yao Fu Qing Wang & Bo Xu Roger Wei & Amy Zhang W-Tech Technologies Ltd Keith Zhang & Kylie Cai Shuo Zhao & Xueyan Wu We greatly appreciate each gift given in support of the Stratford Hall Annual Fund, and we have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this listing. Please notify Aldrich Tan, Advancement Services Manager, of any inaccuracies or omissions by contacting him at aldrich.tan@stratfordhall.ca. We regret any errors.

Zhongheng Zhou & Xi Yang

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

HEAD’S CIRCLE

SABRES’ CIRCLE

FRIEND’S CIRCLE

Anonymous (2)

Anonymous (2)

Anonymous (2)

Jason Chai & Cecilia Tang

Afshari Family

Abdulla Family (Ayva, Asher, Sheliza & Asif)

Leo Chen & Julie Deng

Andrew & Peggy Ah Yong

Ryan & Kelley Allen

Thomas Dai & Lily Gao

Delon & Florence Cheung

Meg Andersen

Long En & Cindy Hua

Chin Family

Anna’s Cake House

Jodi Evans & Sue Blackwood

Lovick Scott Architects

Elan & Noam Breger

Annis Law & Francis Fu

Shaneeda Jaffer & Govind Dandekar

Sanjay & Manjeet Chauhan

Brian Hong & Cindy Shi

Electronic Arts Outreach

Xin Dou & Echo Liang

Samson & Jennifer Hui

Forooghian Family

Yanlin Liao

Frank Jiang & Sophie Yi

Hai Gao & Yuchun Zhao

Nancy Mitenko & Jeff Gravistin

Byron & Josephine Jung

Global Education Alliance Inc.

Hilton/Webster Family

Lee Family

Wilson Guo & Ginger Li

Kimi Jin Family

Flynn-Leibu Family

Hynes Family

Steve Kamachi

Levy Li & Jean Zheng

Navi & Raj Kahlon

Graham Kedgley

Feng Liu & Liz Fei

Shamsh & Karima Kassam

John & Minji Kim

James & Jessica Liu

Lau Family

Whitman Lee

Stephen Macdonald & Elizabeth Vassar

Amanda Lee

Jeremy and Cindy Leung

Mimi & Nathan Mah

Ronna Jin

Li Family

Fayaz & Salima Manji

Stella Wei

Edmund Low & Liezel Lorico

Harry & Elena Mason

Richard L. & Corrine Z.

Vincent & Jaden Ma

Ye Chu & Mark Mehrer

John Lo & Kandy Du

Jim McConnell

Kate Keeler & David Nicolay

Derek & Nadine May

Sanajko / Peterson family

Alaska Qian & Zhaoyun Jiang

Vincent & Kim McCurley

Ritchie & Jennifer Renaud

Qian Family

Ni Family

Rupi Kaila & Perry Saran

Jonathan & Janis Sun

Sean Pearson & Lauren LeBoldus

Ron Schmitz

Huong Nguyen

Alain & Linda Quennec

Candace Koo & Felix Seto

Henry Wang & Shirley Jin

Rick Ramsay & Elisabeth Finney

Meena Anand

Zuoyong & Chen Wang

The Reynolds Family

Andrew and Valerie Tsui

Steven Wen & Vivian Jiang

David & Summer Telio

Tina & Tony Verma

Jim & Carolyn Williams

Liliana & Amit Venugopal

David Vu & Nikki Tran

Wei & Tiffany

Trevor Wai & Emily Gee

Simon Wong & Wendy Louie

Jerry Zhang & Connie Wei

Joan Zhou

Madoka Wowk

Xuming & Jessica Zheng

M&E Wang Family

Lorne Yip & Gloria Wong

Yujie Zhou & Judy Zhang

Edward Wu & Samantha Fan

Jason Zhang & Celia Yang

OJ Xu & Anna Dai

Dong Zhou & Haixia Hua

Richard & Kin Yang

Alumni

$2,500 - $4,999

$1,500 - $2,499

Lydia Liu Rhoda Yau Yuedi Huang & David H. Zhang Staff Adele Armstrong * Isabel Sankaran-Wee 46

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$500 - $1,499

Matthew Boulter, ‘20 Andrew Jang, ‘20 Staff Anonymous (2) Dean Croy Gareth Jones

ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Thank you to our Faculty and Staff

This year, our faculty and staff have again shown their support of the Annual Fund. Thank you for making a contribution to Stratford Hall.

Thank you to our Alumni

Brian Li Han Wong, ‘12 Kadin Sangha, ‘20

Anonymous (2)

Dan Lin

Judy Bai

Robin Ma

Lisa Blachut

Dawn Marcoux

Denise Brabban

Kirsten Morozov *

Anne-Marie Butler

Bobby Nishi

Izzy Karim (9)

Quinn Casey

Amanda Peacock *

Aiden Wang (9)

Meg Chamberlin

Krista Pederson

Hazel Chee

Gwen Perkins

Catherine Daniel

Mark Pulfer

Saloni Dholakia

Sukh Sandhu *

Boyd Grealy

Caitlin Shepard *

Grzybowski Family *

Skipper

Gunasekera Family *

Carmen Stephen-Patel

Jordan Hannah

Aldrich Tan

Rimi Hans *

Skyler Todd

Ellis Herbert

Steph Torrisi

Tatjana Jansen

Carla Valenzuela

Thank you to our Students

Nancy Kartsonas Olivia Law

* Staff who are parents 2020-2021

Amanda Lempiere

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Gifts from Education Investment Deposits (EID)

Leadership Circle

Wayne Hsu & Katie Chuang Levy Li & Jean Zheng Keith Wang & Joan Zhou Dong Zhou & Helen Hua Zhongheng Zhou & Xi Yang

To date, more than 90 Stratford Hall families have donated their EIDs, helping to reduce the school’s debt load. Donating your EID not only supports the school’s financial position, but also generates a tax benefit. This benefit, if invested well over the 13 years your child attends the school, can earn enough funds to mitigate much of your gift. For details on EID donations, please feel free to contact Isabel Sankaran-Wee, Director of Advancement.

Others

Yi Li & Shao Zhao Alastair Moore & Dominica Babicki Bin Qian & Zhaoyun Jiang Oliver & Patricia Rohlfs Mark Shieh & Shannon Harvey Steven Wen & Vivian Jiang Hao Zhang & Jun Fan

Endowment Gift Your gift to endowment will ensure that students will continue to benefit from your support in perpetuity. The principal amount of your donation will be invested. Once the investment has grown significantly, generated income will then support Stratford Hall programs, student scholarships and bold programmatic initiatives. Endowed gifts may also lead to recognition opportunities that honour or memorialize a person of the donor’s choosing.

Dave Sangha Fund

The purpose of this endowment shall be to award $1,500 to a deserving Grade 12 student who demonstrates leadership and service to the community.

Ginder-Sangha Family

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Previous Recipients Ibreez Asaria (2020)

ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

2021 Recipient: Kiran Dhanda

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

With Gratitude BY: MYRIAM DUMONT President, Stratford Hall Parent Association

2020 was a challenging year to say the least.

The SHPA Executives and the Stratford Hall parent community deeply missed connecting with one another and gathering at school-wide events that are a tradition at our school. We were sad that we were unable to host a back to school event in September or a spring fair. However, we are now finding our way back, slowly and safely to a new normal that is allowing us once again to connect.

The SHPA wanted to show gratitude to the wonderful staff that makes our community such an amazing place and so we facilitated various school-wide lunches throughout the year as a token of our appreciation. We were also able to support having a bike rack installed behind the middle building, which we felt was an important step in aligning with Stratford Hall’s goal of prioritizing sustainability. We provided each student in Kindergarten to Grade 2 with a library book bag to help ensure that our library books stay in great condition and also gave each student, faculty and staff a house shirt to promote school spirit.

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All this could not have been done without the support of our amazing parent volunteers. All parents of Stratford Hall students are part of SHPA and we need you! With more in person events and opportunities in the future, we depend on volunteers to make them happen. I encourage you to explore all the wonderful volunteer opportunities that SHPA has to offer.

I want to take this opportunity to thank all our grade parent representatives who do so much for our school community.

Our SHPA Executives is a small group of dedicated and determined parents and the work that you have done over the past year is so appreciated.

Finally, on behalf of the SHPA Executives, thank you to all the parents for your ongoing support and we look forward to working with you in the future.

ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Reconnect & Engage BY: ALLISON LEE, ‘10 Chair, Stratford Hall Alumni Association

2021 has been an exciting year for the Stratford Hall Alumni Association, which is now in its 2nd year! Working hard to connect the community of alumni across the globe, the Committee is composed of three volunteers: Allison Lee (2010), Alyssah-Jasmine (AJ) Merani (2014), and Lawrence Li (2017).

One of the Committee’s biggest accomplishments this year has been the establishment of Stratford Hall’s Alumni Mentorship Program, led by Lawrence. A year in the making, the program was created as an opportunity for alumni to give back to Stratford Hall’s Diploma Programme (DP) students. For its inaugural year, we have an accomplished and talented group of alumni dedicating the next year to mentoring and guiding a cohort of current Grade 11 students. Our alumni mentors span multiple graduation years, and are excited to share their diverse experiences in their industries and careers with students.

Our intent is to create a resourcefully strong support system for the Grade 11 students, and we are looking forward to carrying on this new tradition between Stratford Hall students and alumni for years to come.

Our main resource for reconnecting and engaging the entire alumni community has been our Instagram account (@stratford_hall_alumni), managed by AJ, which has provided a great space for alumni to share their endeavours, entrepreneurial pursuits, and life updates since their time at Stratford Hall. It has also been a platform for us to reminisce on old memories and the incredible growth of our school over the last 21 years, in addition to a place for staff and teachers (new and old!) to share their own reflections. To help us continue our pursuit of reconnecting, we encourage alumni and staff to fill out the form answering what’s new in their lives!

A major goal for the Committee next year is coordinating events in a meaningful and engaging way. We would also love to grow our Committee members, so if you are interested, please email me at alumni@stratfordhall.ca.

We look forward to the next year ahead and cannot wait to connect with all of our alumni!

Stay connected with the Alumni Association

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

The Class of 2021 The Class of 2021 was one of our most exceptional. Despite the fact that they completed the majority of the Diploma Programme under COVID-19 restrictions, 100% of students who applied to post-secondary programs of study received an offer of admission. Students matriculated to a wide range of programs and regions from Fashion Photography at Parsons in New York City to Accounting and Finance at the London School of Economics. While students pursued studies in a wide range of post-secondary disciplines, this was our largest Business cohort yet, with the vast majority of our students going on to study Business doing so at the Sauder School of Business at UBC. This graduating class was also exceptional in terms of scholarship money earned, with the highest scholarship total of any previous graduating class. Even though they are a small class of just 35 students, they earned $695,846 among them.

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Graduates

Areas of Post-Secondary Study

Post-Secondary Destination

Post-Secondary Acceptance

Accounting and Finance

Canada

35

100%

100% of students who applied to Post Secondary received acceptances (one student planned a Gap Year)

Scholarship Offers

30

Scholar Cumulative Worth

$695,846.33

Arts Commerce

Capilano University

Engineering

Douglas College

Film

Langara College

Forensics

Queen’s University

Kinesiology

Sheridan College

Life Sciences / Health Sciences

Simon Fraser University

Medical Science

St. Francis Xavier University

Photography

Trinity Western University

Pre-Veterinary Medicine

University of British Columbia

Science

University of Toronto Waterloo University Western University

Academic Excellence (90% or above)

23 Students

United States Chapman University Parsons School of Design (The New School)

International London School of Economics and Political Science (UK)

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Student Leadership & Service Number of Prefects

10

5 Prefect Lead Councils

2 Prefects per Council 5 Councils: Athletics, Action & Wellness, Spirit, Innovation & Academics, and Arts

Percentage

42% Student Body on a Council Houses

4 Houses Bear, Eagle, Orca and Wolf

LEADERSHIP TRAINING ISABC Student Leadership Cohort Participants

6 Students

ISABC student leadership cohort is a collaborative group. This year’s theme is ‘inclusion’ and our Grade 6 - 8 DEI ambassadors were the Stratford Hall representatives.

‘Desire to Lead’ Participants

30 Students

SERVICE LEARNING

Emphasis is on developing student skills to engage in meaningful reciprocal relationships in their community.

How did the Pandemic affect CAS?

The Class of 2021 found ways to be creative with their CAS projects in light of the pandemic: • Zoom English lessons online to Canadian newcomers at MOSAIC • Creating a wellness colouring book for Queen Alexandra students

Defined Co-curricular Leadership Positions

• Running a sandwich making and delivery event for the DTES (inspired

by Help Change My City’s work with our students on the Senior School Service Day in June)

Advisory Leader, Prefect, Club Leader

Community Service Partners:

16% Students

Advisory Student Leaders

1 per Advisory equals 4 per Grade Grad Commitee

7 Students

BC Children’s Hospital Cedar Cottage Fresh Roots

Greater Vancouver Food Bank Help Change My City ISSofBC Queen Alexandra Elementary Lakeview Senior Centre Lord Selkirk Mosaic New Fountain Shelter Trout Lake Community Centre

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Co-Curriculars Stratford Hall students are encouraged to take advantage of the co-curricular programs available to them. Team sports, student-led clubs, leadership opportunities and service learning programs provide opportunities for skill-building and character-in-action experiences.

Number of Senior School Clubs

31 Clubs

Number of Participants in Club Activities

285 students

Senior School Students Involved in a co-curricular (Club, Council, Athletics)

94%

Honour Roll At Stratford Hall, academic excellence is achieved by meeting the following criteria: a score of 5 or higher in all subjects and a PAWER or ATL score of ‘Practicing’ or ‘Leading’ in all areas.”

141 Senior School Students

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Athletics The 2020-2021 athletics year could have been a story of how the COVID-19 pandemic completely removed all athletics opportunities from students. The story that ended up being told was one of coaches and athletes coming together in new ways to figure out how to stay physically active participating in the activities they love.

COVID-19 did present significant challenges to the traditional scheduling of school sports but from this challenge emerged a new set of opportunities to develop Sabres Athletics.

This school year provided our coaches and athletes with opportunities to focus on skill enhancement, leadership development programs, have meaningful discussions with our student-athletes about what values Sabres Athletics should be founded on, a pressure-free environment for students to try new sports, enhance the mezzanine weight room and add a new program with Sabres strength and conditioning.

The year started with five coaches signing up for Winning Leader Academy, an eight-week coaching and leadership development program aimed at enhancing the soft skills of coaching. Kiran Shoker, Chris Brogan, Mitchell Taylor, JoAnna Takeda, and Jordan Hannah all committed to levelling up their coaching skills in order to provide a better experience for our students. While the coaches were focused on their growth as leaders, there were 18 students who took part in the first Desire To Lead cohort at Stratford Hall. This is a leadership development program led by Jeremy Boone with the mission of providing purposeful leadership development that results in meaningful action.

Much like the coaches, the students participated in an eight-week program that was attended by schools ranging from New England to Florida and Colorado to Texas. On a bi-weekly basis, our students met with students from across the continent to discuss the challenges and opportunities being a leader in athletics presents.

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

The winter term provided our passionate basketballers with an opportunity to hoop it up two days a week. Gladys Kong and Kiran Shoker ran regular training days for our female athletes to play the sport they love. Fuelled by the competitive nature of coach Jordan Hannah, Friday open gyms became the place to be for serious basketball ballers. All coaches committed to offering training for our athletes from November until the end of February. This continuity of programming provided a welcoming space for our students to remain physically active during a time when external options were limited.

We also added a new offering to the athletics program Sabres Strength and Conditioning. Offering sport-specific training for students, the program ran five mornings a week from 6:50 - 8:00am. This program saw an incredible 48 students commit to showing up two days a week at 6:50am to participate in a program aimed at increasing strength, power and speed. Through the Stratford Hall Annual Fund, we were able to install a brand new PLAE flooring, purchase new equipment and install a new wall wrap proudly displaying our Sabres Athletics logo. This only served to further enhance and elevate the look and feel of our strength and conditioning program. You instantly get a sense that something special is happening upon walking into the gym mezzanine.

The spring saw frisbees flying as Sabres Ultimate finally returned to the field. Despite not having any games our Grade 8, Grade 9/10 and Grade 11/12 teams had excellent turnouts for practices and scrimmages. The spring cohort for Desire To Lead also started up in April. A smaller group of 11 students pursued growth and self reflection as they learned the skills that would help them become leaders of impact in Sabres Athletics. This group led the BC Children’s Hospital Jeans Day fundraiser. With the goal originally set to $5,000, the team had raised $8,500 by the end of the drive! The generosity of Sabres families in supporting this cause was very exciting.

We were proud to offer athletics opportunities for our students during the course of the year. Last fall, coaches stepped up to ensure students could participate in crosscountry, volleyball and basketball. Led by Phil Brownhill and Abi Cranton, cross-country participated in a number of virtual meets, running pre-set courses on specific days and then comparing times with other schools. While the thrill of race day may have been missing, the opportunity for any competition was welcomed with open arms.

Brina Derksen-Bergen, Mitchell Taylor and JoAnna Takeda provided opportunities for the girls to continue developing their volleyball skills and play, running volleyball from early September through November break.

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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Staff News Service Awards

We are pleased to acknowledge the service of the following individuals:

15+ years

15 years

Chris Brogan

Olivia Law

Rick Campanella

Meg Penafiel

Boyd Grealy Laura Moriarty Bobby Nishi Kirsten Morozov Carmen Stephen-Patel

10 years

Feda Ghaleb

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Dan Lin

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Gillian Louie

Andrea Ryan

ANNUAL REPORT 2020-2021

Farewells

We are grateful for the dedicated service of our former faculty and staff members and wish them well.

Jonathan Burrell Lindsay Causey Gennie Chan Natasha Dales Saloni Dholakia Darren Freedman Sam Guglielmucci Julia Jachimowicz Dr. Tatjana Jansen Terry Paulyn Siobhan Sheridan Michelle Stafford Brett Williams

Temporary Staff

We are very appreciative of the staff members who served the Stratford Hall community this year as temporary teachers, co-op students and staff.

Nikki Burge Madisen Butterfield Emma Hawkes Sveta Jones Bruce MacNamara Kathryn McCready Jake Merkl

New Full-time Hires

Welcome and congratulations to our new full-time staff members in the 2020 - 2021 school year.

Quinn Casey

Senior School Teacher / Resource Teacher

Sharon Chang

Mathematics and Science Teacher

Abi Craton

Senior School Teacher / Resource Teacher

Katherine Djacic

Junior School French Teacher

Benedict Hung

Diploma Programme Coordinator

Nancy Kartsonas

AJ Merani, ‘14

Senior School Guidance Counsellor

Nathan Purcell

Gladys Kong

Sherry Shen Carey Wass Kim Whitehead

Science and Humanities Teacher

Katie Lacey

Physical Education / Resource Teacher

Kristine Soo

Grade 2 Teacher

Jackie Taylor

Humanities Resource Teacher

Bree Turner

Library Technician

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CALENDAR

Save the Date January 10

Classes resume after Winter Break

January 20

Let’s Talk Business 8:30am & 6:30pm

January 25

SHPA Parent Learning Session: Tech Solution 7:00-8:30pm

February 1

DP Information Session for Parents 6:30-8:00pm

February 3

Junior School 3-way Conferences (Goal Setting)

February 23

April 29

February 24

ALL DAY

Pink Shirt Day

SMASH Fair

Senior School Parent-TeacherStudent Conferences 4:00-8:00pm

February 25

Senior School Parent-TeacherStudent Conferences ALL DAY

March 2

SHPA Parent Learning Session: Restorative Justice 7:00-8:30pm

March 12-27

4:00-7:00pm

Spring Break

February 4

March 28

Junior School 3-way Conferences (Goal Setting) ALL DAY

February 17

Teacher Pro-D Day NO CLASSES

February 18

ISABC Pro-D Day NO CLASSES

February 21 Family Day

SCHOOL CLOSED

Classes resume after Spring Break

April 4 - 8 Arts Week

April 5

MYP Personal Project Showcase / DP Arts Showcase

April 15

Good Friday SCHOOL CLOSED

April 18

Easter Monday SCHOOL CLOSED

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Junior School Student-Led Conferences

May 20 All School Early Dismissal 12:00pm

May 23

Victoria Day SCHOOL CLOSED

May 28

Graduation Convocation

May 29

Graduation Dinner and Dance

June 3

PYP Exhibition

June 9

Admissions Open House

June 15

Junior School Sports Day

June 24

Closing Assembly 10:00-11:00am

All School Early Dismissal 12:00pm

CALENDAR

* Subject to Change

2022-2023 Key Dates 2022 September

Tuesday 6 Wednesday 7 Friday 30

Senior School New Student Orientation, 10:30am School Opens - First day of school for all students National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (School closed)

October

Friday 7 Monday 10 Wednesday 19 Thursday 20 Friday 21

Teacher Pro-D Day (No classes) Thanksgiving Day (School closed) K-12 Parent-Teacher-Student Conferences, 4:00-8:00pm K-12 Parent-Teacher-Student Conferences, all day (No classes) BC Pro-D Day (No classes)

November

2023

Friday 4 Monday 14

December

Friday 16

January

Monday 9

February

Thursday 2 Friday 3 Friday 17 Monday 20 Thursday 23 Friday 24

Last day of class before Winter Break, Early Dismissal, 12:00pm WINTER BREAK: MONDAY, DEC 19 - FRIDAY, JAN 6 Classes resume after Winter Break Junior School 3-way Conferences (Goal Setting), 4:00-7:00pm Junior School 3-way Conferences (Goal Setting), All Day (No Junior School classes) ISABC Pro-D Day (No classes) Family Day (School closed) Senior School Parent-Teacher-Student Conferences, 4:00-8:00pm Senior School Parent-Teacher-Student Conferences, All Day (No Senior School classes)

Monday 27

Last day of class before Spring Break (full day) SPRING BREAK: MONDAY, MAR 13 - FRIDAY, MAR 24 Classes resume after Spring Break

April

Friday 7 Monday 10 Friday 28

Good Friday (School closed) Easter Monday (School closed) Junior School Student-Led Conferences (At school by appointment)

May

Friday 19 Monday 22 Saturday 27 Sunday 28

Early Dismissal, Kindergarten - Grade 12, 12:00pm Victoria Day (School closed) Graduation Convocation Graduation Dinner and Dance

June

Friday 23

March

Friday 10

Last day of class before Midterm Break (Full day) MIDTERM BREAK: MONDAY, NOV 7 - FRIDAY, NOV 11 Classes resume after Midterm Break

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OUR MISSION Stratford Hall educates students to the highest global standards through the programmes of the International Baccalaureate. Excellence and confidence are developed through a challenging academic curriculum with further emphasis on creativity, action and service. We foster a strong pluralistic community built on integrity and respect.

OUR VISION Stratford Hall strives to be a global leader in the International Baccalaureate community. Our students will gain a deep understanding of the world around them, and they will act on their connections to the outside community.

They will excel to the best of their abilities, and graduates will be equipped to achieve their chosen goals. This is accomplished by acquiring and retaining the best teachers, and by a commitment to a balanced and enriched curriculum. The success of Stratford Hall is deeply rooted in the establishment of a supportive, knowledgeable and committed community.

STAY CONNECTED www.stratfordhall.ca

@StratfordHallSchool

@Stratford_Hall

@Stratford_Hall