The Link, Fall 2020 by thecds1972

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IN THIS ISSUE

Easing Back to Normal The Duckett Years Part 1 The Growing Mind Coping During COVID Stanley Cup Winner Graduation 2020 Alumni Notes

CONNECTING THE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL COMMUNITY

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THE YEAR OF THE MASK HAS MADE US STRONGER THAN EVER

Building Magic COMING SOON! An exciting addition to our beloved Junior School The Campaign for the Junior School is proceeding full steam ahead and the groundbreaking is just around the corner. Look for more details in the near future. Please join us in supporting a renewed foundation for tomorrow. Learn more about the Building Magic campaign at www.cds.on.ca/ buildingmagic or by calling 905.833.1220 x269 today!

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CONTENTS FEATURES

Easing Back to Normal Adapted from a blog post by Vivien Zhang ’21 about a very different return to school in September.

The Duckett Years Part one of a two-part story on our third Headmaster’s 22-year legacy.

The Growing Mind What is Self-Advocacy and why should our kids learn how to do it?

Launching an E-Learning Database during COVID Sophia Joffe ’21 identified a need and set about fulfilling it.

Coping During COVID How Lauren Neil ’22 has adjusted her track training and mindset.

Stanley Cup Winner Barclay Goodrow ’11 becomes first

CDS alumnus to hoist the Cup.

DEPARTMENTS 2

From the Editor

Message from the Head of School

36 Alumni Snapshots

School Highlights

41 Connections

16 Timelines

Graduation 2020 and Retirements Excerpts from Junior, Middle and Senior School ceremonies and farewell to seven retirees.

Congratulations to the Class of 2020 You’ve made us proud – we wish you all the best!

34 Community News

42 Alumni Notes

ON THE COVER: Mrs. Wildberger first created this collage of

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faces (with the help of her son Hudson ’15) to show at the opening Junior School Assembly. We have since adapted it with a few Middle and Senior School additions. While it doesn’t include everyone, it has become emblematic of this year and the many faces we see around CDS (and those we see on the screen joining us remotely), with smiling eyes replacing the smiles behind the masks ... for now.

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FROM THE EDITOR

THE YEAR OF THE MASK

EDITOR

Hard to believe it all started 12 months ago

Kim Sillcox, Director of Communications and Marketing

CONTRIBUTORS

AST MARCH BREAK, my son and I drove my daughter back to Montreal following her break and spent a few days skiing and sightseeing before continuing on to Vermont to do more of the same. I vividly remember having brunch with Carly and her friends the day the WHO declared COVID-19 a global pandemic. Looking back, it is surreal how quickly things unfolded from there and how slow I was to comprehend what this meant for our future. The highway south was empty as my son and I crossed the border that same day, albeit with some trepidation. We hadn’t seen these family members in quite some time, and I rationalized that we could always turn around and come right back. Right? We had plans to visit with two sets of family members and ski for the next four days and were determined to see these through. At our first stop, we FaceTimed with more family in Italy. They had just gone into lockdown two days earlier. They were surprised that we were gathering, and although we didn’t realize it then, their situation offered a glimpse into what our reality would soon become. Our trip was curtailed by an anxious call to return to Montreal and pick up Carly as her university was shutting down. All this had transpired in a matter of days. We arrived back in Aurora to learn that the grocery store shelves were empty and people were hording things like toilet paper, wipes and flour. Never had I been so happy to return to the sanctuary of my home. Little did I know, I would not be venturing very far for the next year. It’s strange what our mind does in an attempt to lessen the blow of a traumatic

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experience or drastic change in our routine. While we were away, I had drafted a blog post about the sudden arrival of the coronavirus, and my hastily written conclusion had us all back at school in person immediately following the break. Now here we are one year later. Our spring/summer 2020 edition of The Link was our 30th anniversary edition, and because of the times, we chose to deliver it as a virtual magazine last summer available here: cds.on.ca/thelink. This fall 2020/winter 2021 edition is fittingly called The Year of the Mask and showcases some of the significant changes that CDS underwent in order to get our students back to in-person learning for September. From a new Health & Wellness Centre and additional Outdoor Ed classrooms, to some stories of how our resilient students and alumni are coping during this time, I hope you find the contents of interest. This issue also includes Part 1 of a two-part legacy piece on Paul Duckett, who served as CDS’s third Head of School for 22 years, retiring 10 years ago in 2011. And of course, we bring you another thoughtprovoking Growing Mind piece titled What is Self-Advocacy and Why Should Our Kids Learn How to Do It? I hope you all can find some time to delve into this issue. For me, reading has provided a welcome escape from the news and technology this past year. May the same be true for you. Stay safe everyone. Kim Sillcox

Director of Communications and Marketing

John Andersen Celia Bland Liane Cooke Scott Garbe Liz Lang Warren Lang John Liggett Kristy Marshall Lauren Neil ’22 Sheida Sadrolashrafi Karen Sumner Deirdre Tait Georgie Tsiolis ’20 Ethan Wahba ’24 Rob Waldron Ann Wildberger Vivien Zhang ’21

DESIGN

Michael Cherkas

PHOTOGRAPHY

Stan Behal Photography Jeff Kirk Zach Lawton Michael Shaw Kim Sillcox

The Link The Country Day School 13415 Dufferin Street King, ON L7B 1K5 T: 905.833.1220 F: 905.833.3655 E: communications@cds.on.ca www.cds.on.ca Correspondence is welcome The Link is published by the Offi ce of Community Relations at The Country Day School for CDS families, alumni, staff, faculty and friends.

MESSAGE FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL

SEPTEMBER 2020 WAS A RETURN TO SCHOOL LIKE NO OTHER We are now co-existing with COVID and with lots of cause for hope

T’S BEEN SIX MONTHS since Return to School 2020, and I marvel at how we were able to pull off what we did in terms of retrofitting our school and preparing our community for a dual modality shift in such a short period of time. It was no easy feat and required the collective efforts of our entire community. I would even venture to say that our first term was largely a success, with only a few bumps in the road and a total of 2.5 days closed for Middle/ Senior students and 5.5 days for the Junior School. We experienced Return to School all over again in mid-February, as students in York, Peel and Toronto

… I thank all of you for doing your part to ensure your children and family are staying safe. Together, we will continue to mitigate and navigate this pandemic and eventually come out the other side of it, stronger and more resilient than ever.

Regions returned after being away for two months. Once again, we have updated daily self-assessment guidelines and mask-wearing directives, as well as additional VOCs (variants of concern) to be mindful of, contributing to the stress of the morning drop-off routine. As we approach the one-year mark, COVID-19 continues to weave a complicated web for all of us. However, I believe that as humans we are incredibly intelligent beings with innate survival skills. With science backing our every decision, and measured guidance provided by our Medical Consulting Team, we are determined to keep our students learning on campus as safely as possible and for as much of the remainder of this year as Public Health will allow. I must say, that the depth of resilience I have witnessed, among staff and faculty and our students and parent community, has been nothing short of remarkable. We have all dug deep for the past year and will continue to do so for this next stretch until June. We will then prepare for September and whatever that might entail. Little is known for sure, except that we will be ready to adapt as need be. We remain focussed on finishing off our school year as safely as possible. Depending on how the vaccine rollout unfolds and transmission rates progress, I am hopeful that this year will close very differently than the last. I want nothing more than for us to finish the year in person. COVID-19 has touched us all in many different ways, and without a doubt has been challenging for everyone. Throughout it all, CDS has been a constant for our students, and for that I thank all of you for doing your part to ensure your children and family are staying safe. Together, we will continue to mitigate and navigate this pandemic and eventually come out the other side of it, stronger and more resilient than ever. John Liggett

Head of School

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SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS

NEWS FROM AROUND CDS

OUR RETURN TO SCHOOL PLAN FOR 2020/21 n preparation for Return to School 2020, CDS held a parent webinar last July with Dr. Ronald Cohn, President & CEO and Senior Scientist at SickKids Hospital, who shared the essence of SickKids Guidance for reopening and answered questions in an effort to allay parent concerns. Our CDS Return to School Plan was formed in consultation with a team of dedicated medical experts – Dr. Tarek M. Sardana, Dr. Todd Walters, and Kelsey Houston ’12 – and created a school environment that allowed our students to safely return to campus last fall. It is available on our website at www.cds.on.ca/return-toschool-plan. Kelsey, who is an Infection Control Practitioner for the University Health Network, created three safety videos to demonstrate the three essential daily protocols of handwashing, proper mask wearing, and physical distancing. Watch her videos here: https://bit. ly/2Pcw8UB

I Eliza Pasha ‘22 organized and led a protest in Bradford last June.

Talking about Race and Racism

ast May, we witnessed an alarming and deeply troubling series of events which continued to unfold all summer in America and around the world as a result of the murder of George Floyd. As Mr. Dave Harvey, our Middle/Senior Academic Director, wrote in a piece in Backpack, “These events served as a stark reminder that anti-Black racism is not an historical issue relegated to history classes: racism is contemporary and all too real in countries around the world, including our own.” During the last week of school in June 2020, many of our Senior School classes provided forums for students to ask questions, express their thoughts, vent their outrage and disappointment, and explore important topics like systemic racism, white privilege and unconscious bias. Members of our Inclusivity and Social Justice student groups spoke openly and honestly using the school’s social media platforms. Ms. Denise Steadman, a longMs. Denise Steadman

time member of our Physical and Health Education faculty, created a moving video that we shared at the end of the school year. She was joined by Tawana Ngorima ’22, who used video to share her Tawana Ngorima ’22 thoughts with the community, and Lauren Neil ’22, who allowed us to share her personal thoughts via Instagram. Outside of school, Eliza Pasha ’22, organized and led her own protest of 100+ participants down the main street of her hometown of Bradford, was interviewed by the Mayor on behalf of Bradford’s youth, and was featured on CTV News. Since fall 2019, CDS’s Diversity Group has been working hard to contribute to the discussion and keep this important issue at the forefront. Diversity has been the subject of several Advisory mornings in the Senior School. Stay tuned for the next issue of The Link to learn more.

A PHYSICALLY-DISTANCED TERRY FOX DAY In September, CDS held its 29th annual run for Terry Fox in celebration of the 40th anniversary of Terry’s Marathon of Hope. For the first time in the school’s history, the event took place over two days so as to be mindful of safety and ensure physical distancing. JS, MS and SS students wore their House colours and walked a range of trails that our Grounds Crew helped create: the Gord Lytle Loop, Jackson Pine Trail, Ms. Collins’ Talking Circle Loop and Cyclone Ridge Trail all in an effort to keep Terry’s spirit alive.

OPENING OF THE NEW HEALTH & WELLNESS CENTRE n September, our new School Nurse Vanessa Sciammarella opened the Health & Wellness Centre with three isolation

I 4

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TWO NEW OUTDOOR CLASSROOMS Students returned to campus in September to find two new outdoor classrooms built from reclaimed wooden logs fashioned into desks and seats. An accompanying blackboard with equipment storage space increases the number of subjects taught outdoors. All classes were encouraged to go outdoors at some point throughout the day during the first few months of school, and some took advantage well into the winter.

tions of well-being relate to the individual, groups and wider community. rooms where the Business Office used to be. Should a child or staff member exhibit any COVID-19 like symptoms, they are sent to be assessed by Nurse Vanessa. This is why it continues to be imperative that all CDS parents, students, and faculty and staff follow our protocol by conducting the daily self-assessment.

POST-SECONDARY COUNSELLING MOVES ONLINE AND OUTDOORS n September, GY and Grade 11 parents and students joined CDS Director of Admissions, Mr. David Huckvale, for the annual Post-Secondary Information Evening. While his broadcast was live on Google

Meet this year, rather than in person in the Paul C. Duckett Theatre, his advice was invaluable in guiding students on how to take charge of their future and navigate university and college applications during the coming months. Throughout most of the fall, Mr. Huckvale met regularly with the GYs in person outdoors for as long as the weather lasted for regular discussions and updates on their post-secondary choices and applications.

WELL-BEING AND THE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS global pandemic certainly wasn’t on Mr. Milonas’s radar a year ago when he pitched the idea for a new interdisciplinary course on well-being and happiness for Grade 11s. As CDS’s Head of Physical and Health Education, he had enrolled in Yale University’s online course titled The Science of Well-being, and felt strongly that high school students would benefit from a class like this. Joined by Ms. Bevacqua-Tirone, Head of English, and Ms. Houston, a guidance counsellor in the Student Services Centre (and former science teacher), this dynamic trio has been recalibrating and tweaking as they go. The course consists of three units, Me, We and Us, and explores how these percep-

TO THE CDS PARENT ASSOCIATION FOR … Hosting Alyson Schafer, family counsellor, best-selling author and parenting expert for a Zoom webinar on Creating Balance in Your Life during COVID in November. Delivering awesome CDS toques to all Faculty and Staff in December. Hosting Dr. Michael Thompson and Dr. Robert Evans, internationally recognized psychologists and school consultants, for a Zoom webinar and enlightening discussion on Parenting in a Time of COVID in January.

2020 PORTRAIT OF A GRAD VIDEOS Be sure to watch our latest Portrait of a Graduate videos featuring Jack MacDonald, Isabella Bousada, David Kuntz, Carly Campoli, Georgie Tsiolis, Eve Stewart, Billy Tsiolis and Sean Song at www.cds.on.ca/portraitofagrad.

Check out our Education with Balance blog at cds.on.ca/educationwith balance

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EASING BACK TO NORMAL Adapted from a blog post describing a very different return to school in September BY VIVIEN ZHANG ’21 Student Communications Liaison

t had been six months of remoteness after COVID-19 had forcefully inserted its unwanted presence into our lives. I trust that I speak for the majority when I say that I expected everything to have returned to normal by the time September arrived. I had been overly optimistic––not an attribute that generally described me––and had underestimated the virus’ persistence and ability to maintain its grasp on the world. I recall dismissing my friend’s now perceptive foreboding of the present situation due to its “ridiculousness” in early April. The misfortune of the 2020 graduates around the world, robbed of an in-person ceremo-

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ny in June, weighed heavily on our minds. Then all summer long, everyone remained glued to the news as continued debate over Ontario’s reopening plan dominated all conversations, especially those shared by worrisome parents. Upon arrival at my designated entrance on the first day of school, I spotted some familiar faces from afar and felt as if everything had returned to normal. A year ago, I would have warmly approached my friends to hug and greet them after a long summer apart. Instead, we opted for a simple “hello” and crinkle of our eyes, what we now look for as the indicator of a smile. Among the many changes was the in-

crease of unrecognizable faces over the last six months. Of course, the masks added to the challenge of identifying one another. I find it incomprehensible that we will be leaving CDS as adults in less than a year. I scrunch up my eyebrows along with my peers when we are referred to as GYs. It sounds so odd when directed at us! I won’t deny the disappointment of spending my Grade 12 year without the enjoyment of assemblies and coffeehouses by the Learning Stairs, highlyacclaimed lunch experiences in our Marché style dining hall, or exciting side chatter during class (now with desks 6m apart, this isn’t as easy). In spite of the things we will miss, as GYs we can still bask in the privileges we do have, such as use of the exclusive Sue and Michael Burns Grad Lounge and Dining Hall Mezzanine offered solely for our purpose. Meanwhile, school has been restructured to be strictly about education, its original and primary purpose. Extracurriculars have been paused, and so have all the larger school-wide gatherings which served as a stress reliever for myself and others, such as the weekly assemblies, drama and musical productions, and sporting events. Socializing has become more complicated while social distancing and wearing a speech-muffling mask, yet we persevere and are getting better at it with each passing day. The classroom environment is seemingly more effective since students are active and alert. Classes are largely in-person mixed with accommodations for the handful of students who have chosen to continue with remote learning. On the other hand, the two-hour extension of the period is straining and the content taught in one single class is overwhelm-

ingly heavy. It can become tiresome and suffocating due to the masks. Thankfully, the teachers encourage us to take breaks outside and even enforce mandatory ones to ensure that all students feel physically and mentally comfortable. I can say without a doubt that the courtyards have been fully taken advantage of and enjoyed this past month.

avigating through the hallways is surprisingly easier due to the signs that have transformed the walkways into traffic lanes. Automatic sanitizer dispensers, the locks on water fountains as well as the propped-open doors are new features and evidence of the thoughtfulness in the reopening preparation that comforted the uneasiness I had felt. At lunch, I was surprised to see the distanced tables in the dining hall that had limited chairs to accommodate a maximum of three students per round table.

The beautiful autumnal weather allowed us to take advantage of outdoor learning well into November. Students adjusted quickly to the new rules of mask wearing, handwashing and physical distancing – just happy to be back together again.

The food is neatly and considerately packed in blue containers for each of us to retrieve. The quality of the lunch remains spectacular, thanks to the outstanding dining hall staff whom we are grateful to have. There are assortments of different salads, chocolate milk, and fruit amongst other snacks to provide us with a diversified set of daily options. Snacks are delivered to classes each day to replenish our energy and stamina. As the weeks progress, I’ve gradually become accustomed to the daunted feeling in the pit of my stomach. The hectic newness of school began to fade and a rather monotonous schedule settled into place. Be that as it may, When performing music indoors, it is essential to spread apart and face forward. Frequent breaks, often taken outdoors, have become the norm with class time extended by nearly two hours.

school work and the obligations in my agenda began piling up as October approached. The constant nagging in my head to explore more of my post-secondary pathways amplified each day. Despite the absence of extracurricular activities, my position as the Peer Tutoring Coordinator and Communications Liaison have kept me preoccupied. I feel grateful for all the programs that have been kept available to us in spite of the challenges in launching them virtually. Regardless of my complaints about the restrictions COVID-19 has cast upon us, I do recognize that we are fortunate to have such great staff and teachers to provide us with a safe, yet educational learning experience. On that note, I encourage everyone to continue to follow the safety guidelines to maintain the face-to-face interactions we have in school. It’s simple. Wash your hands. Wear your masks. And social distance! ■

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FEATURE

Part One

NEVER SAY NEVER: THE DUCKETT YEARS It’s been more than thirty years since Paul Duckett began his 22-year tenure as Headmaster of The Country Day School. The story of how he led the School to national prominence is also the story of his passion for teaching, commitment to relationships, and knack for seeing the future. BY WARREN LANG

When Paul Duckett started in 1989, CDS was introducing its first Grade 12 class with only 15 students, having previously rolled out Grades 9, 10 and 11 over the past three years. At the time, there were 379 students in JK-Grade 12. Upon his departure in 2011, the student body stood at 686.

ometimes, an educator’s impact on the formative stages DISCOVERING A PASSION of an institution is so significant the School’s DNA forever carries the markings of that early influence. For The In the spring of 1964, Paul graduated from grammar school in County Durham in northern England. Despite success on his math and physics Country Day School, Paul Duckett is such a figure. This spring marks a decade since Paul retired as Head- A level exams, Paul confided in his mother that he wanted to become master. Understanding how his emphasis, style and pas- a graphic artist. But when his father—a pharmaceutical salesman and sions shaped the School’s distinctive features involves a former Regimental Sergeant Major—heard about that ambition, he look back at the intersecting stories of this unique educator and the said tersely, “No. You are going to be an engineer.” Complying with the edict, Paul enrolled in engineering on a “fixedremarkable school he helped to build.

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“PAUL DUCKETT WAS THE CONSUMMATE LEADER. A TEACHER AT HEART, HE WAS PRINCIPLED, WISE, SELF-DEPRECATING AND POSSESSED OF INFINITE PATIENCE. AS EMERGING LEADERS, WE LEARNED A GREAT DEAL FROM HIS ENCOURAGING AND SUPPORTIVE LEADERSHIP AND CONSIDER OURSELVES FORTUNATE TO HAVE WORKED ALONGSIDE OF HIM.” SUSAN SCOTT AND TONY YOUNG

sandwich” scholarship program through which he was sponsored by a large electrical engineering firm. But in February of his first year, Paul’s life took an unexpected turn when his father died. Feeling free to make his own decisions, Paul saw out the year and withdrew. Returning home, Paul was short on cash and began looking for work. He went to see a friend’s father who was the chief estimator for Tarmac, a large civil engineering firm with headquarters in northern England. That conversation led to an opportunity for Paul to work on a “hot roll gang,” a team that paved highways using huge Barber

Greene machines. “It was the school of hard knocks,” recalls Paul. “After a year with the gang, my mother sat me down and said, ‘It’s time to become a citizen of the world. You have to figure out what you’re going to do,’” recalls Paul. “My brother was a teacher and suggested I try it. I had always said I would never, ever be a teacher.” After considering other options, including joining the military or police, Paul applied to a three-year high school math and physics teaching certification program at the University of London’s Institute (continued on page 10)

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FEATURE

Some of the original founders and staff members (l-r): Rob Kiddell, Head of JS, Jim Bayler, Robin Fraser, Paul Duckett, Moffat Dunlap (Co-founder), Edmond G. Eberts (Co-founder); front row: CDS’s first teacher – Peter Taylor and Head of Housekeeping and Chief Custodian – Di Hawksworth.

(continued from page 9) of Education. Preferring that Paul do his training at the university in Durham, his mother asked why he wanted to study in London. “Well, because it’s London,” he replied. Whatever reluctance Paul had about teaching evaporated when he stepped into a classroom for the first time. “I knew within five minutes that this is what I wanted to do,” he says. “It was a miracle!”

WORLDS APART In 1970, Paul completed his training, qualifying with distinction, and took a job at a comprehensive school in the Walworth district of London’s east end. It was a particularly rough area in the heart of the territory ruled by the legendary Kray twin gangsters. “I loved it,” recalls Paul. “I’m a ‘with the people’ kind of guy. I revelled in it.” Meanwhile, a world away in King Township, the fateful dinner conversation about founding an independent school had taken place, and the CDS founders were making plans to lease the former Eversley Public School. In 1972, the year CDS opened its doors, 26-year-old Paul left England for a teaching position in Bermuda and then, two years later, took a job as Head of Mathematics at Crescent School in Toronto. In 1976, as Robert Ross was beginning his 13-year tenure as Headmaster of CDS (a story detailed in the Spring 2019 Link), Paul was beginning a 15-year-stint at Crescent that saw him rise quickly through the ranks. As Director of Academics at Crescent, Paul was instrumental in developing the high school program, including phasing out Grade 13 more than a decade before the province would do so. He also became increasingly involved in leading the School, including a promotion to

“THE SCHOOL BECAME VERY FORWARD THINKING. ... A GREAT EXAMPLE WAS THE ACQUISITION OF THE LAND AROUND THE SCHOOL. IT WAS A PIVOTAL PURCHASE THAT ENABLED EVERYTHING THAT HAS HAPPENED SINCE THEN.” GLENN FAGAN, CDS Parent and Board Chair when CDS celebrated its 25th anniversary in 1997. 10

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Assistant Head. And he co-led the Crescent 2000 strategic planning process with his colleague Mitch McGuigan, which involved overseeing a major expansion of the school facilities and working closely with the School’s financial controller. In 1989, when Robert Ross announced he was moving on, CDS was in the process of establishing a high school. The School had already rolled out Grades 9, 10 and 11, and was on track to have a total of 379 students in September, including 15 in the first Grade 12 class. When Paul applied to be Headmaster, the School’s priorities and his profi le as a candidate matched up well. The search committee recommended him to the Board and, in September of 1989, he became the third Headmaster in CDS history.

A FOUNDATION OF FINANCIAL HEALTH AND STRATEGIC VISION In those early years, Paul knew that for the School to grow, it needed a solid financial base. So he focussed on implementing the fiscal discipline that would become a hallmark of his tenure and a longstanding source of financial health for the School. He oversaw every aspect of the fi nancial processes, including writing the budget himself and signing every cheque. Over the first five years, he led the School in several changes, including restructuring how tuition fees were set and collected, implementing best practices in accounting, and establishing financial controls that would ensure the School’s long-term sustainability. “The School was in a transitional phase, and we needed to start thinking differently,” recalls Glenn Fagan, who joined the Board as Finance Chair in 1995. “Paul had no formal training in business and made no apologies for asking a thousand questions. It turns out he was a quick study when it came to the accounting principles.

I’d always say to the Board, ‘How do we build our endowment so it can cover our whole operating budget?’” When Paul announced his retirement and the Board asked what they could do to honour his legacy, he was true to this ambition and suggested an endowment fund. Today, the Paul C. Duckett Endowment Fund, which supports fi nancial aid for existing CDS students whose families encounter uncertain times, stands at more than $1 million.

DRAMATIC – AND BALANCED – GROWTH Building on that solid financial and strategic foundation, Paul led a 22-year transformation of the School’s programs and facilities that elevated CDS to national prominence. As he did, he established what went on to become Education with Balance, the School’s By applying best practices, he was able to establish a solid financial commitment to a diverse, well-rounded learning experience. Guided foundation for the School.” by this philosophy, the School’s programs have flourished and CDS Stacie Stanton, Board Chair during Paul’s fi nal years as Head, students have gone on to remarkable achievements in academics, shares this sentiment about Paul’s financial stewardship. “The School athletics, the arts and cultural pursuits like debating. had no debt when Paul retired because he was so fiscally responsible,” This commitment to balance also guided the impressive and she recalls. “I was Chair during the 2008 financial crisis. We were able ongoing development of the School’s facilities. to weather that because of Paul’s proactive approach.” Early in 1990, Paul introduced the CDS Expansion Project, which Along with his commitment to financial discipline, Paul was highly included enlarging the Junior School through additional classrooms, strategic in his outlook. “The School became very forward thinking,” a science lab, and art, computer, music and French rooms. In 1996, says Glenn, who was Board Chair when the School celebrated its 25th the School made the strategic 65-acre land purchase and in 1997, in anniversary. “The board is there for guidance and oversight, but the time for the 25th anniversary, completed a new front field complex vision has to be driven by the Headmaster. Paul was instrumental named after beloved former Chief Custodian Bing Hawksworth. in the growth from a small country school into the institution CDS In the late 90s, The Growth of Excellence Campaign led to a new became.” Middle School, which included a multi-purpose room, dedicated “A great example was the acquisition of the land around the School,” Middle School classrooms, a science lab, gymnasium, and centralized continues Glenn. “It was a pivotal purchase that enabled everything administrative area. This phase also saw additions to the Senior that has happened since then.” School with a library, art studio, new classrooms and science wing. Stacie has a similar perspective. “Paul never looked just at what Then, in 2002, the School opened the cutting-edge Performing we were working through at the time,” she says. “He always had a Arts Centre, designed by Toronto architect Jack Diamond. The long-term strategic vision of where the School was heading.” facility included a theatre that would eventually become the Paul Reflecting on his natural inclination to take the long view, Paul C. Duckett Theatre when an anonymous donor made a gift in Paul’s remembers drawing inspiration from schools that had been around honour in 2018. for centuries. Not satisfied to rest on its laurels, CDS went on to add a new Junior “My brother’s children attended the famous Queen Elizabeth School double gymnasium in 2007, four tennis courts in 2010, and Grammar School in England,” says Paul. “It looks like the Houses the Cyclone Dome in 2011. of Parliament and has been around for close to 500 years. It didn’t Reflecting on the growth of the facilities, Paul says, “You are seem like a leap to think of CDS being around that long. That was always moving forward, you can never stand still. You build a theatre my mindset. I remember saying to the Board in my early years as and you’re not finished. Now you are thinking ‘What’s next?’” Headmaster, ‘the School is going to be here forever.’” “John Liggett has carried on that drive to grow,” Paul continues. Paul also aspired to achieve the kind of endowment boasted by the “The new Senior School is remarkable and the plans for the new Junior world’s oldest schools that enabled them to be needs blind, i.e. any School building are ambitious. Again, it all moves the School forward to student could attend, regardless of financial circumstances. the benefit of the students, faculty and staff, and community at large.” ■ “What I had in mind was to provide a wonderful education that was available to anyone. I wanted money to be the last conversation. To be continued in the next issue of The Link. Paul conducts an interview with a CBC reporter while on the 2008 CDS China Music Trip.

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THE GROWING MIND BY DR. KAREN SUMNER a freelance writer and editor based in King City

WHAT IS SELF-ADVOCACY

AND WHY SHOULD OUR KIDS LEARN HOW TO DO IT? Mastering this skill pays off socially, academically and in any future career.

Grade 6 student begins his year on one sports team and then wants to switch to another. The first games have been played, and he is not enjoying his current sport. His parents advise him to speak to his coach. His coach reminds him that team selections have been made, and suggests he ask the Director of Junior School about procedure. He makes an appointment. She listens carefully and then advises him to speak with the Athletic Director. He goes looking for the AD, they have a conversation, and he is told that if both coaches agree, he can make the change. He then speaks to both coaches. After a day of tracking people down and explaining his thinking, he switches teams. Self-advocacy does not mean getting what you want. It means speaking up for yourself and representing your personal interests and needs. And it involves a few key features: understanding yourself and your goals, being proactive, communicating clearly to others, persevering through obstacles, and learning from your mistakes. A student who self-advocates takes responsibility for their path in school—and, later, in life.

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That’s not the same as gaining a specific outcome. It’s important for our children and students to understand that they cannot control outcomes. There are no guarantees like that in life. But they can control the part they play in shaping those outcomes. Sometimes they will be successful, other times not. But as Wayne Gretzky famously said, you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.

ENCOURAGING SELF-ADVOCACY Our intrepid 6th Grader did a lot of things right, partly owing to his willingness to engage in a process and partly to the fair yet demanding role that each adult played. His parents did not contact the school on his behalf—they sent him off to manage it. His coach didn’t make the call, instead launching the student on a journey to deal with every stakeholder. He persevered through layers of authority figures and timetable constraints. He told his parents later that he was nervous talking to everyone, but he wanted to make his case and (continued on page 14) hoped for the best.

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IT’S UP TO PARENTS AND TEACHERS TO ENCOURAGE INDIVIDUAL EXPRESSION, RECOGNIZE THE EMOTIONAL RISK INVOLVED, AND RESPOND THOUGHTFULLY, WHATEVER THE FINAL OUTCOME.

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THE GROWING MIND (continued from page 12)

KNOW THYSELF

By Grade 6, this child had learned how to use his voice, even with an uncertain outcome and butterflies in his stomach. Not all children would have the same self-confidence and determination to achieve their goals. So how can we help all young people to speak up to authority—after all, every adult in their life is an authority figure—when they need help or want change?

“Know Thyself” is inscribed on the Ancient Greek Temple of Apollo—and over the Oracle’s door in the film The Matrix. It is commonly understood to mean, “Take an accurate measure of yourself.” In other words, be clear-eyed about your own strengths and limitations. If you’re Neo, your life will depend on it. If you’re a kid making your way in the world, your sense of capability and confidence are at stake. Here’s some useful advice for parents and teachers from The ability to self-advocate begins with accurate self-knowledge. researchers at Michigan State University on how to empower young The more parents and teachers can help young people to see what people to be their own best advocate. they can achieve on their own and where they need help, the stronger 1. Give them ownership of problems. Don’t solve their problems a foundation they have on which to build a happy and meaningful for them. Listen, help them clarify the issues, and co-create a life. Michael Wehmeyer of the University of Kansas has shown that course of action if they need that level of guidance. students who have learned to self-advocate at school are “more likely 2. Give them ownership of feelings. Kids need to understand their to have achieved more positive adult outcomes, including being ememotions and find constructive and appropriate ways to express ployed at a higher rate and earning more per hour than peers who them. Let them know it’s okay to be upset or frustrated, but it’s were not self-determined.” not okay to be rude or make demands. As parents, it’s neither honest nor compassionate to communicate 3. Nurture independence. Create opportunities for children to to our children that they can be, or are, good at everything they do. make decisions and speak up. If they don’t like a family meal, Life will eventually teach them the truth: we are all less stressed and they could help shop for and prepare an alternative. If they have more productive and effective when we lead with our strengths and a different idea for an assignment, they could explain how it find support for our limitations. equally demonstrates their learning. That’s exactly how great teams function. Google’s famous study, 4. Show them the value of speaking up. Some children don’t called Project Aristotle, set out to discover the secret to their highestwant to be a bother or worry that their say isn’t welcome. It’s performing teams. The researchers learned that the best teams are up to parents and teachers to encourage individual expression, not made up of exceptional individuals with the most impressive recognize the emotional risk involved, and respond thoughtfully, credentials. Rather, the best teams create a culture of psychological whatever the final outcome. safety, which is built on open communication, empathy and genuine connection. Within that culture, individuals willingly share their Home and school environments guided by these principles help ideas, areas of strength and blind spots. This allows team members young people to speak up and ask for what they need in order to to fully align, take risks, support one another, and become better reach their dreams and goals. collectively than the sum of their parts. Yet these critical operating guidelines aren’t enough on their own Well before launching their careers, young people require the to set children on the path to self-advocacy. Running on a parallel same self-knowledge to work effectively within their own teams— track, they also need to acquire increasing self-knowledge as they their families, advisor groups, study groups, and classrooms. At home grow and develop. and at school, that level of understanding lays the foundation for knowing what they want to achieve and getting the help they need. Consider the situation a Grade 10 student navigated a few years ago. She wanted to step away from a party scene that included weed and alcohol, which left her feeling tense and anxious. Having bowed out in the past with bogus excuses about family events, she was ready to be honest with her friends but feared being laughed at or excluded from other outings. She spoke to her school counsellor, who helped her clarify her feelings and design Susan Scott, Deputy Head of School and Director of Student Services a simple plan. When the next event came

“BEING A GOOD SELF-ADVOCATE BENEFITS YOUNG PEOPLE ACADEMICALLY AND SOCIALLY. A STRONG SELF-ADVOCATE HAS SELF-CONFIDENCE AND SELF-RESPECT AND IS ABLE TO MAKE DECISIONS THAT AREN’T ALWAYS POPULAR BUT ARE RIGHT FOR THEM. AND THEY ARE ABLE TO GET THE SUPPORT THEY NEED TO ACHIEVE THEIR GOALS.”

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around, she would talk to her friend group at school during lunch, which felt safer than over social media. She practised what she would say and then, when the grade was buzzing about the next party, she nervously carried out her plan. She was relieved when her friends supported her, but she later heard some had called her a loser at the party. She was stung. But in talking to her counsellor more throughout the year, she learned that friend groups reshape themselves, sometimes in painful ways. She stood by her values and her closest friends stood by her—plus a few more she found who shared her interests. This girl knew who she was and was determined to go her own way, at the cost of some social and emotional turmoil. But she called on a school resource for guidance and support. And in the end, her new friend group offered the same culture of psychological safety that all great teams share.

“MANY STUDENTS STRUGGLE WITH TASK INITIATION AND PRIORITIZING. THEY FIND IT DIFFICULT TO FIGURE OUT WHAT TO DO FIRST AND HOW EARLY TO START A PROJECT, WHICH LEADS TO PROCRASTINATION. SPEAKING UP EARLY ON AND ASKING FOR THE HELP THEY NEED IS A CRITICAL LEARNING AND LIFE SKILL.”

TEACH OUR CHILDREN WELL What does it look like when we teach our children to develop an accurate view of themselves and encourage them to speak up when they need help? Here are some important ways that kids can self-advocate for their learning and wellness: • They ask questions in class when they don’t understand a concept or follow up with the teacher afterward. • Instead of procrastinating because they don’t understand part of an assignment, thus possibly handing it in late or incomplete, they talk to their teacher about their struggle. • They book time with a teacher or advisor to help them break down a task and understand what steps to complete along a timeline. • They ask teachers for feedback before completing an assignment to check they are on the right track and working at their highest level. • They find their coach after a practice or game for feedback on how they can improve. • They rely on their values and interests to guide them and stay away from people and situations that compromise their wellness. • They book time with their counsellor to discuss their overall approach to learning or their sense of wellness, including any mental health challenges they may be handling. At home, parents can do a lot to help their child become a better self-advocate. First, they can refrain from taking over and solving their problems. For example, if your child comes home from school

Catie Ferguson, Head of Middle/Senior Learning Support

complaining that the assignment is impossible, the test was unfair, their coach has it in for them, and so on, it’s best to step back from the heat of the emotion and help them understand what’s beneath the outrage. Are they worried they don’t have what it takes to succeed? That they’ll be left behind in class? Do they firmly believe the teacher’s lessons and expectations aren’t clear enough? That their coach isn’t giving them a fair chance? Whatever the content of the emotional outburst, focus on the process your child can engage in to address it. And emphasize that it starts with them, not you, talking to an adult. You can set your child up for success in advance of that conversation. Help them understand the difference between being assertive (asking for clarity and feedback) and being aggressive (making angry demands). Help them see what effort looks like (adopting strategies to address their shortcomings) and what entitlement looks like (expecting success because they deserve it). Let them know that there are skills they need to practice in order to become self-reliant and independent. It may help to role-play in advance of a conversation your child needs to have with a teacher, coach or counsellor. Give them feedback on the questions they plan to ask and have them practice their tone of voice. And explain why you can’t take on their intellectual and emotional work. Like learning to play soccer or the guitar, they will learn how to speak up, share their thoughts and ask for what they need by doing. Most of all, help them to separate the process from the outcome. They may or may not be making reasonable requests—part of their journey is learning what’s reasonable in the first place. They may or may not get what they want. But they are owed constructive feedback and a thoughtful response from the adults in their lives. We want our children to feel in control of their lives. Ask for the supports they need today for their learning and their wellness. Find and use the best resources in post-secondary education. And join high-performing workplace teams where they draw on their strengths, others fill in their gaps, and they find career and life satisfaction. ■

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TIMELINES TIMELINES

JUNIOR SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS 4

JUNE

SEPTEMBER

1. Grade 3s planned and designed their own green city. As urban planners, they considered how they were going to use their land in order to meet their community members’ needs and wants.

4. Mrs. Moore reading to her Grade 2 remote learners and in-person students the first week of school.

2. Grade 2s created Outdoor Ed Terrariums while learning from home. 3. The JS End of Year Assembly was enjoyed by all with one of the highlights being the Grade 6’s Words of Wisdom video, including advice from Deven Amarnath pictured here.

5. The first COVID-style fire alarm.

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9. A painting of the Ms. Collins Talking Circle was gifted to the Junior School in memory of our beloved friend, colleague and teacher, Ms. Steph Collins. It was painted by Caitlin (Barnes) Tamane’s mother-in-law, Michele Tamane. Caitlin, a CDS alumna from the Class of 2009 and former teacher, is now living in BC.

OCTOBER 6. Grade 6 Pathways to People members helped organize another successful food drive collecting more than 40 boxes of food for the King City Food Bank! 7. JKs give each other high fi ves COVID style! 8. Mrs. Street’s Grade 6 students read to their Grade 1 Reading Buddies virtually this year! Lola Pietrobon is pictured here reading from home.

10. The JS Halloween Costume Parade tradition continued, albeit virtually as a video that the Junior School watched together remotely.

NOVEMBER 11. Grade 3s hosted a special guest during their Early Settler Unit, Mrs. Carol Field, a 4th generation King City resident and author. Mrs. Field joined both classes by Zoom to share her memories about growing up in the 1940s on her family’s farm, which her great grandfather purchased in 1860, and where she still lives today. She read from her collection of vignettes, Memories of King, and answered questions about what it was like to walk 2.5 miles each way to school, attend a one-room schoolhouse, and live with no hydro or indoor plumbing.

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12. The Junior School came together virtually on November 11 at 11 a.m. We were together even though we were apart. The assembly was a collection of our usual Remembrance Day traditions including the laying of class wreaths, student speakers, and meaningful videos to mark this day of remembrance. 13. Ms. Roszell’s Grade 6 music students used their xylophones, the music notation program Flat, and the recording program Soundtrap to compose, rehearse and record their own original morning chime.

DECEMBER 14. Grade 2 students put on the play Les trois petits cochons in the JS outdoor classroom. 15. CDS Parent and author Tamara Estabrooks helped launch a family tree colouring contest to coincide with the 10-year anniversary of her book, Perfectly Peach. Students in JK-Grade 6 were invited to colour their tree reflective of their family members. Tammy and her co-author Vicky’s ultimate goal in writing this book and hosting this contest was to bring colour to all children’s lives and help them feel accepted and loved for who they are. The winner from each class received an autographed copy of Perfectly Peach and a pack of multicultural Crayola crayons!

16. Grade 6 students sought inspiration from Ontario abstract artist, Mandy Budan, for a series of landscape paintings. Nathan Tran from 6B’s painting is featured here. 17. Back by popular demand, every student in the Junior School participated in the Hour of Code! Tutorials and activities at CDS this year included an introduction to the Kodable app for our JK and SK students. Our primary students engaged in programming in Code.org, with a special focus in Grade 3 on learning about AI (artificial intelligence). Grade 4s and 5s explored Scratch, a free programming language where students created their own interactive stories, games, and animations.

And in Grade 6, students celebrated in a Tynker CodeLab, Build A Lunar Habitat, with special guests from NASA. 18. Thank you to all who supported Toonies for Turkeys in King this year, in lieu of our annual Book and Treat sale fundraiser! 19. Students and their teachers celebrated the last day of school before the holidays with a fireside visit in the Back 40.

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TIMELINES

MIDDLE SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS 1

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2018-19 Grade 7 students. Class of 2024, participate in activities that were the inspiration for the development of this course

JUNE

SEPTEMBER

OCTOBER

NOVEMBER

1. Grade 7s took to social media for #worldoceansday to spread awareness about the many issues connected to the life-support system that is our oceans.

4. Ms. Hunt shared teachings of the Medicine Wheel from an Anishinaabe cultural perspective with the Grade 8s.

6. Ms. Romanowich created this fun graphic of our Middle School teachers using new software she is teaching in her Creativity class! In her words, “Since we all can’t be together in our MS, we wanted to have some fun and introduce our students to all of our teachers. For teachers, the Bitmoji phenomenon has taken off since the inception of remote learning. Teachers all over the world have created their own character and used it in their lesson preparations and handouts. We decided that we could make a ‘Teacher class photo’ that would put all of us together in the same place. Each month, students are given three interesting facts about a teacher and asked to guess who it might be. It has been a fun moral booster for all of us!”

7. At 10:55 on Remembrance Day, Middle and Senior School students took time to remember and reflect on the sacrifices made by Canadian soldiers. Students watched a virtual assembly of videos made by their classmates and teachers in honour of this solemn day.

2. A fun End of Year Assembly was enjoyed by all. 3. Congrats to our two artists whose work graces the 2020-2021 Middle School Agenda, Audrey Jiang ’26 for first place on the front cover and Lisa Wang ’26 for second place on the back cover.

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5. NAVIGATING THE DIGITAL WORLD – NEW COURSE FOR GRADE 7S While in the works long before COVID, now that Middle and Senior School students have access to a device while at school, knowing how to manage themselves and their devices is more important than ever. Team-taught by Mrs. Taylor and Ms. Weening, this new course offers our Grade 7 students the skills and practice they need to navigate the digital world safely and effectively.

8. In our Grade 8 Creativity and Media classes, students were asked to put plastic water and pop bottles to another use by researching, designing and building their own concepts.

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9. Ms. Hunt led Grade 7 students in a traditional Anishinaabe Smudging Ceremony, whereby students engaged in setting an intention, reflected on their learning, and agreed on the importance of respecting all people and the power of coming together for a shared goal. 10. Students in 7B took time out of their Geography class to write very thoughtful holiday cards to members of our Canadian Armed Forces who were not able to be come home for the holidays.

DECEMBER 11. Middle School students participated in a virtual baking class lesson with Madame Marshall, our resident baker, who shared the ingredients for s’mores cookies in advance. It was a delicious evening! 12. Grade 8 students were introduced to the concepts of photosynthesis in Ms. Griffin’s Science class by building a sugar molecule and then modelling the process of cellular respiration of breaking down the sugar for energy. Remote learners joined in to help their in-person classmates via Google Meet breakout rooms.

13. Thirty-four Grade 7 and 8 students competed in the University of Waterloo Beaver computing Challenge in their math classes. 14. Grade 8 students created their very own ‘Awe’ Walk in the Back during their Phys Ed and Guidance classes. They filled the trails and trees with hundreds of ornaments and decorations so that all students, staff and faculty can experience ‘Awe’ on their next walk through the CDS trails.

DEAN SHERMAN

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TIMELINES

SENIOR SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS 4

JUNE 1. Marianna Speranza ’22 was selected as 2020-2021 Executive Provincial Officer for DECA Ontario and will be the Branding and Communications Officer for the coming year, representing the 15,000 DECA members across Ontario. This is the first time a CDS student has ever been chosen!

JULY 2. Mr. Fanni’s Summer Book Club read Homer’s The Odyssey and got together on Google Meet every week to discuss it. 3. More than 60 CDS students took the Advanced Placement (AP) exams last May in a range of subjects. Congrats to Michael Khaykin ’20, David Kuntz ’20 and Kevin Liu ’21 who received AP

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Scholar with Honours awards and to Ian Zhang ’22 who was named an AP Scholar with Distinction.

Craft students about “finding your voice” in writing and shared tips on how she conducts her research process.

finished in 15th and Eliza Pasha ’22 was in the Top 25. These strong performances meant that the CDS team finished as the 3rd Canadian team out of 40!

AUGUST

OCTOBER

4. Congratulations to Eliza Pasha ’22 on being a finalist in the 2020 World Individual Debating and Public Speaking Championships, an incredible feat for a Grade 10 student! Last year, 64 students from 10 countries participated in the WIDSPC online tournament that was to be held in Shanghai last April.

6. Kudos to Senior School Student Council and Social Justice Club members and House Captains for organizing a successful Food Drive! Dunlap House came in first place with the most donations, and Council members dropped off three car loads worth of food, essential items and gift cards to the Aurora Food Pantry.

8. Last fall, the Grade 9 Green Industries students ventured to the back of our campus with Ms. Wellnhofer and EcoSpark instructors to study the quality of the stream that forms part of the headwaters of the East Humber River and flows down to Lake Ontario. New to CDS this year, Ms. Wellnhofer’s goal is to “understand the ecosystem of this campus, and that involves the hydrology of the rivers and streams, where they were and where they are now, and how they’ve changed over time.” She feels it is also strategic for us to have this information as a baseline moving forward. Watch our short video here: https://bit.ly/3uRrviS

SEPTEMBER 5. International thriller author K.J. Howe – (The Freedom Broker and Skyjack among others) presented to our Writer’s

7. Maria Ivoditova ’22 won the St. Margaret Trophy for Top U16 Student at IISPSC 2020. She was 3rd in Interpretive Reading Finals and finished as the 5th placed Canadian student (and 6th place overall), which qualifies her for the 2021 World Championships. Arjun Walia ’22

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9. Our Grade 11 Outdoor Education class typically involves a series of off-campus expeditions, but due to COVID students set up a campsite at the back of our property instead. The goal of this trip was to have everyone learn how to plan and pack for an overnight, cook over a fire, and sleep in a tent. Students were in cooking groups of three and prepared a three-course meal!

experience and trench-building experience to enhance their understanding of the efforts of soldiers in WW1.

NOVEMBER

13. Nilou Doust ’22 qualified for the Canadian National Public Speaking and Debating Competition to be held virtually. She went on to finish in the Top 10 (9th out of 56) at Nationals in February, competing in three out of four finals: Impromptu Speaking, Interpretive Reading, and Persuasive Speaking.

10. Congratulations to Michelle Cai ’21 and Nevis Hunt ’21 for receiving their Duke of Edinburgh Bronze and Silver Awards respectively. 11. The Grade 10 History classes undertook what has become an annual exercise at CDS, a two-day field

12. At 10:55 on Remembrance Day, Middle and Senior School students took time to remember and reflect on the sacrifices made by Canadian soldiers. Students watched a virtual assembly of videos made by their classmates and teachers in honour of this solemn day.

14. SECOND VIRTUAL SENIOR SCHOOL COFFEE HOUSE Our students (with the help of Ms. Hudson) organized another wonderful evening in November celebrating our musicians and the arts, hosted by MCs Ryan Corbeil ’21 and Alex Bobechko ’21. 15. Brendan McLeod, Canadian Slam Poet, novelist, musician and playwright presented to Ms. Hudson’s Grade 12 Writer’s Craft class. 16. Seven members of the Grade 12 Computer Science class took part in a virtual Computer Design Competition hosted by U of T: Tegan Asprey ’21, Ethan MacDonald ’22, Robert Milliken ’22, Arjun Walia ’22, Henry Xiu ’22, Kevin Liu ’21 and Ian Zhang ’22.

DECEMBER 17. Seven of Mr. Moorlag’s Computer Science students were admitted to participate in an online course centric around quantum computing provided by IBM and The Coding School: Henry Xiu ’22, Robert Milliken ’22, Kevin Liu ’21, Karan Amin ’22, Zack Downey ’22, Arjun Walia ’22, and Isaac Khan ’23. 18. The Student Council Holiday Drive supported Yellow Brick House, Inn from the Cold, 360 Kids and Covenant House during this holiday season. Thank you to all who donated!

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The news was (and still is) full of stories about single and working parents struggling to make remote learning work for their children, and ill-equipped teachers needing to pivot to online teaching overnight. “That’s not to say it was easy for us,” she acknowledges. To satisfy her curiosity of what other students were experiencing, she researched available sites beyond the recognizable free online ones like Khan Academy. Sophia explored various schoolboards across Canada and then equivalent U.S. sites and was surprised to discover she couldn’t find one comprehensive learning site that met all students needs (JK12 and all learners). The aspiring business major quickly realized this was an untapped market she could help fill. The more research she did, the more she learned that parents were frantically searching for ways to augment their children’s experience in an effort to lessen the learning gap brought on by COVID. “Search terms such as ‘online education’ saw an increase of 300+% in search traffic during How one student identified a need the first few weeks of lockdown,” explains Sophia. and set about fulfi lling it Two weeks into remote learning herself, Sophia set BY KIM SILLCOX about creating eLearn.fyi, a free database of more than 300 online learning sites to help hile Sophia Joffe ’21 augment remote learning for recalls her switch to students from Kindergarten remote learning last to Grade 12. Offerings are March as incredpresented by grade and searchibly positive, the able by subject, description or then Grade 11 student was well grade. Since April, her site has aware that that wasn’t the case had more than 50,000 unique for so many others in her comvisitors from more than 125 munity and around the world. countries.

LAUNCHING AN E-LEARNING DATABASE DURING COVID

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Seeking to market her product as widely and immediately as possible, she boldly reached out to the CEO of Meltwater - a global media outreach and monitoring platform - and asked for a free monthly subscription. This allowed her to identify emails for nearly 1500 education reporters across North America to forward her press release to, including The New York Times, which ran her story in October, Bringing Online Tools Together. As the pandemic continues to disrupt school and class schedules around the world, Sophia feels a deserved sense of accomplishment. “I’m helping students stop that learning loss. The database is free to use, and always will be.” Between October and November, she made numerous appearances on TV and radio shows, including the CBS Morning Show, CBC Radio and Global TV, reaching audiences across Canada and the U.S. Now that online learning is here to stay, we hope word will continue to spread so that as many students, faculty and parents as possible can take advantage of this valuable resource! ■

Check it out here at elearn.fyi!

COPING DURING COVID: ONE ATHLETE’S JOURNEY Adjusting one’s mindset and track goals can have unexpected benefits

the rich fall foliage lining our streets – an unexpected benefit of those neighbourhood runs. Training during a pandemic takes shape in hard work and determination. I have taken strides to demonstrate my resilience and loyalty to the sport through this trying time. Duplicating the camaraderie of the gym in my own home has been one of the most powerful tools in staying physically and mentally sound. In doing so, I have regained a sense of control during this time of instability. For the broader sports fan, professional leagues pivoted

to a new normal as well, with two hockey host cities to close out the NHL season, and the NBA bubble offering three months of riveting basketball. Collectively, they provided an undeniable spark to encourage athletes to stay active. More than simply an activity, sport is a way of life, uniting us with a bond able to withstand any threat, including COVID-19. ■ In her first appearance at OFSAA in Grade 9, Lauren set a school record in the 100m and narrowly missed the hurdle record by two tenths of a second.

BY LAUREN NEIL ’22 Student Communications Liaison

OVID-19 has upended life as we know it, and the world of sport has not been immune. From the birth of the Olympics in Ancient Greece to the evolution of amateur and professional athletics today, sport is our proverbial glue; it binds, it unites, and it is a constant in our communities. With the onslaught of COVID-19, life with sport was threatened, and the ensuing void undeniable. For me, as a sprinter and hurdler, it meant years of training set to culminate in the 2020 track and field

season was lost, as were any hopes and goals attached to them. As with any threat, how we internalize and approach situations will determine the outcome. With restrictions tightening, I found myself on the cusp of losing my high school career. As an athlete, watching what you cherish slip away is not an easy task. Closed tracks and gyms have led to a shift to home gyms and neighbourhood jogs. My track goals, now more modest but just as rewarding, have given me a renewed appreciation for

Lauren enjoys a run on her neighbourhood trails.

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Barclay’s parents, Janice and John Goodrow of Aurora, joined him on the ice immediately following Tampa Bay’s win over Dallas (2-0) in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals. Janice and John were invited to join Barclay for the Cup finals in Edmonton after a regimented policy of quarantining and testing before and after leaving Aurora (totaling 21 days). They were in the stands to watch Games 4, 5 and 6 and join in the celebration!

CUP WINNER! CDS alumnus Barclay Goodrow ’11 captures the Stanley Cup BY KIM SILLCOX

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hile The Country Day School has had four alumni go on to play in the NHL, including Mike Cammalleri ’99, Victor Mete ’16 and Jakob Chychrun ’16, not until this past NHL season has a former CDS student hoisted the Stanley Cup. Barclay Goodrow ’11 became the first CDS alumnus to do so after he helped the Tampa Bay Lightning defeat the Dallas Stars in the NHL’s Stanley Cup finals last September. Barclay had previously played for the San Jose Sharks for six seasons when in February 2020, Tampa sought and traded for him at the trade deadline in a deliberate effort to bolster their roster for a Stanley Cup run. According to his mother, Janice, Tampa was “looking to add ‘grit and truculence’ (along with skill) to their lineup, having been swept last season in four straight games in the first round of the playoffs.” The talented right-winger delivered on all of the

above—playing a significant role on the team while adding grit, truculence and scoring. Growing up in Aurora, Barclay started Opti-hockey at the age of 5, then Tyke, followed by two years with Aurora Tigers AA teams. When he was 10, he began playing AAA in Richmond Hill. He went on to play his final years of minor hockey with York Simcoe Express, helping his teams win three OMHA championships in five years. A CDS student from Grade 7 to 10, Barclay also played school hockey on the U14 and U16 teams with Mr. MacMillan and Mr. Hendry as his coaches. Voted MVP for every sport he played during his time at CDS, Mr. Sherman fondly remembers coaching Barclay on U13 Basketball, as do Mr. Andersen and Mr. Burleigh for U14 Rugby. There’s a great lesson in this: playing multiple sports really does help an athlete develop a wide variety of skills. Barclay was a first-round draft pick for the OHL’s Brampton Battalion in 2009 and played five seasons with Brampton [then North Bay], serving as captain in his final two seasons. He remains the Battalion franchise leader in regular season games played, scoring 229 points in 313 games with the Brampton/North Bay franchise, and the second alltime leading scorer. Then in March 2014, he signed as an unrestricted free agent with the San Jose Sharks. The rest is history. We wish Barclay all the best in his second season with Tampa Bay playing in the Central Division during COVID! ■

GRADUATION 2020

Hats off to our Grade 6, Grade 8 and Grade 12 Graduates!

hanks to COVID-19, schools around the world were forced to take a very different approach to Graduation season last June. For our Grade 6s it took the form of diploma drop offs delivered by their teachers. It was a day of celebration, in-person – yet physically distanced farewells, and lots of smiles. The Grade 8s celebrated in a similar but somewhat less formal fashion with Hoody Drop Offs and a promise of something more official in the future. And for our GYs, from whom the pandemic took away the most significant milestones surrounding this coveted right of passage, the day saw a Drive By Event, once again with a promise that we would gather again when it becomes safe to do so. Sadly, that day never arrived, so we set about celebrating our graduates virtually! The Grade 6 and 8 students had a Virtual Award Ceremony the morning of Tuesday, December 1. Annual academic awards were presented and students and parents had an opportunity at long last to hear from our Grade 8 Valedictorian and now Grade 9 student, Ethan Wahba ’24. Then later that evening, our GYs, their family members, and CDS faculty and staff gathered together in living rooms and dorm rooms across Canada to watch the Class of 2020 commencement with all the pomp and circumstance we could muster … virtually. In addition to hearing from Head of School Mr. John Liggett, Board Chair Mr. David Myers, and Director of Senior School Ms. Celia Bland, we were treated to a Valedictorian speech for the ages by Georgie Tsiolis ’20, one of our 19 CDS Lifers in this class. While it was not in person, which we had all desperately wanted from the beginning, it was special nonetheless, and we hope it conveyed to our graduates just how proud we are of them. On the following pages are some highlights from these graduation moments and an assortment of farewells to our seven retirees from 2020 who we were also not able to honour in person but hope to welcome back to campus in the not too distant future. Without further ado …

The Grade 6 Driveway Diploma Day was a big success and a wonderful way for our teachers to congratulate our graduates!

EXCERPTS FROM THE JUNIOR SCHOOL GRADUATION

our Junior School teachers and I have enjoyed the journey with you and we thank you for touching our lives in a unique and special way. We will appreciate watching all of you travel through Middle School and Senior School. I hope you will always carry the words of the Junior School Citizenship pledge with you. Be honest, trustworthy, courageous and kind. And always try your best to be your best, each and every day. ■ Ann Wildberger, Director of Junior School

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GRADUATION 2020 Grade 8 teachers got to visit with their students after not seeing them all spring term when they dropped off the Grade 8 Grad Hoodies in June.

EXCERPTS FROM THE MIDDLE SCHOOL GRADUATION

EXCERPTS FROM ETHAN WAHBA’S MIDDLE SCHOOL VALEDICTORIAN ADDRESS

iddle School graduates, you will no doubt succeed in the Senior School as you left such a lasting impact as Grade 7 and 8 students. You have represented our school with honour and pride on the court or field, in the theatre through music and drama, through leadership and service, and through your academic pursuits. I know your parents and family members are very proud of you, as are we. ■ Rob Waldron Director of Middle School

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s Charles Darwin said, “It’s not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.” I think that this quote is so relevant because throughout the year, our group has learned to be adaptable.

Switching from in person to online in a matter of weeks adapting to social distancing and most importantly, not being able to see our friends and teachers daily have been some of the most significant changes to our community. However, we’ve learned to be resilient and bounce back. With major events being cancelled, we reached out to our friends to help them in tough times, and we learned that some-

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Our Middle School lives have taught us to be adaptable, resilient, independent, resourceful and empathetic, and we are so lucky to have had an amazing group of teachers to help us on our journey.” ETHAN WAHBA Middle School Valedictorian

times things can be just as good online. We have also learned a lot about technology and the dos and don’ts of Google Meets. And, finally, we’ve learned to be

independent and resourceful. We had to learn how to rely on ourselves and each other when we didn’t have our teachers right in front of us in our classrooms to guide us. We learned how to have patience and think creatively when technology didn’t work. And we learned how to own up to our mistakes when they were made. We don’t know what our future, near or far, holds. But, I can guarantee you that whatever happens, this group of students is ready for anything. Our Middle School lives have taught us to be adaptable, resilient, independent, resourceful and empathetic, and we are so lucky to have had an amazing group of teachers to help us on our journey. In conclusion, like my first day at CDS, our time in Middle School has sometimes been confusing and challenging. The past two years have been full of twists and turns and locked doors. Life has not been easy or perfect by any means. But when we worked together, when we persevered, we achieved our goals. ■ Ethan Wahba Valedictorian, Middle School

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EXCERPTS FROM THE SENIOR SCHOOL GRADUATION

“Humility is not thinking less of yourself …”

think we can all agree that 2020 has been a year of challenges. As we look back and reflect on them, we may start to contemplate the lessons we have learned, lessons that may stand you in good stead, graduates, as you embark on this stage of your lives, whether you are already delving into university or whether you have decided to take a gap year. When we reflect on what this year and the pandemic have taught us, I wonder what it will include for you specifically. How will this year change you as a young adult for the better? The pandemic certainly showed us that we are not as in control of life as we might think. That change, for better or worse, can be just around the corner. Change can be difficult for some of us, especially when it is thrust upon us. Have you started to cherish in-person gatherings more than the world of virtual reality? Have you realized how much you cherish time spent with the elders of your family? Have you spent more time exploring the world close to home rather than racing to explore another country? Have you found joy again in the simple things, like game nights with family and friends?

But what will be the bigger takeaways from this year? What have you learned about yourself specifically that will make you a better person, a better human being, as you embark on adult life? Resilience probably comes to mind, as you have had to navigate changes in plans and a year of post-secondary education that is likely not quite how you imagined it. The Persian poet Rumi philosophized: “Yesterday, I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today, I am wise, so I have begun to change myself.” If yesterday was March and you were heading into the break with great plans for your final term at CDS and for September, you probably felt quite clever. We have dreams for you to be people who will go out and change the world, make it a better place. What Rumi suggests is that the way to do that is to start with ourselves. If today, you are a little more wise because of the challenges you have faced this year, how have you changed for the better and how can you continue to change? Because better people will naturally create a better world, one person at a time. So, if this year has humbled us all, and we wish for you to

We have dreams for you to be people who will go out and change the world, make it a better place. What Rumi suggests is that the way to do that is to start with ourselves.” CELIA BLAND Director of Senior School

head out and change the world, I encourage you to take some time to think about how you can change yourself. And perhaps consider how you can be more humble, thinking not less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less often. If you have this wisdom in your heart, you will be ready to actually change the world. ■ Celia Bland Director of Senior School

EXCERPTS FROM GEORGIE TSIOLIS’S VALEDICTORIAN SPEECH

hen I sat down to write this speech, I had no idea what I was going to say. I wish I could stand here and tell you that everything is going to be okay, but that simply is not the reality of things. In the world we

live in right now, tomorrow’s plan is as good as a toss-up, next week is a shot in the dark, next month is a whole new world, and, at this rate, next year is practically a galaxy we’ve yet to discover. To tell you how to navigate the future is daunting, if not impossible. Regardless, I knew that was the question I needed to try answer. How to plan for the unplannable. How to live through the unpredictable. I don’t know myself. I can’t look to the future without also remembering the past, so I have used those two things to hopefully find a way to move forward in the present, however uncertain it may be. So what does the future tell us about charting the unknown? I sat and thought about it for a few short minutes before I got my answer. It tells us nothing. It hasn’t happened yet. What we know to be the future is simply a construct of our imagination. And that’s when I realized that I think we’ve become too caught up in trying to plan this life. I remember only three things from Middle School. On the first day, Mr. Sherman said, “Alright, folks. Welcome to Middle Earth.” Then, what felt like a few days later, Mr. Sherman returned to our group and said, “Alright everybody.

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GRADUATION 2020

You’re now departing Middle Earth. Good luck with high school.” And that was it! That was Middle School! But somewhere in between, he told my Grade 8 class about a line he had heard in a movie: “No plan survives its first contact with implementation.” In other words, no plan is perfect. You simply cannot account for everything that life will throw your way. So, for the first time, I began to think that maybe the question itself was flawed to begin with. Why try to plan the unplannable? Why try to plan life at all? It’s become an unhealthy obsession with our generation. I want a wife or husband of this height, this many kids, this car, where I’m going to live, who I’m going to know, how much money I’m going to have, and when all of those boxes are checked off, I’m going to be one thing – happy. But isn’t that why we were disappointed by this year? Because we expected things to turn out as perfectly as we had imagined them? And so I learned that as long as we continue to expect or plan for what we think is going to make us happy, we will be unsatisfied. Because plans rarely work out. But expectations and plans don’t merely set us up for dissatisfaction – they also stop us from living a full and proper life. To decide what you want out of this life today implies that you will be the same person in five years, 10 years, 20 years, and beyond. It implies that you will not change. It implies that you will not grow. And it implies that you will not learn. By limiting

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If you wake up each morning with the right intention – to pursue something meaningful, to do something difficult, or to simply speak to everybody you come across with love – you will win.” GEORGIE TSIOLIS Valedictorian, Senior School

yourself to one path, you close yourself off from all of the other organic directions this journey will want to take you and, as a result, you will stop becoming better as a human being. So, I tell you to focus not on the path you feel you’re supposed to be on, but on what your soul and heart tells you should be doing in this moment. I can’t put it any better than last year’s Best Picture winner, Parasite. “You know what kind of plan never fails?” a father asks his son. “No plan. No plan at all. Because life cannot be planned.” Now you’re probably watching this saying, “I graduated high school and my Valedictorian is telling me I don’t need to plan anything. Fantastic! This is exactly what I

needed!” I’d be thinking the same thing, too. And your parents, who might be watching, may be saying, “This is exactly what I needed! My kid just graduated high school and now thinks they don’t need to plan anything! Don’t listen to him – he doesn’t know what he’s talking about!” I wish it was that simple, but no, that’s only half the answer. If the future tells me not to spend the present planning, I have to look to the past to figure out what I am supposed to be doing. So I sat down again, this time to think about the past, and one thing was clear. Our best moments came when times were trying, when things were difficult. Not when we took the easy way out or when we let our foot off the gas. It was the soccer team bussing an hour and a half to Hamilton, losing badly, and then having the whole team come in on a Friday morning to figure out what went wrong. It was the snowboard team giving up a full day of every school week to train, and then going and placing first in the province under the leadership of Jeevan Gosal. It was the cast and crew of every drama production committing ungodly hours to rehearsal and then giving the school a show for three days straight. It was David Kuntz and Isabella Bousada and the rest of the Student Council, in one of the shortest windows in school history, delivering one of the greatest Terry Fox Days it has ever seen. It was all of you, when your Grade 12 year was taken away, showing up every day and doing work you didn’t need to be doing. If there is anything

that the past tells us, it is that there is something deeply human about confronting not only what is difficult, but more importantly, what you know to be possible. It tells us to pursue something meaningful and to do that thing well. And so if the future told me not to plan my life away, the past told me that the most rewarding parts to living are when we choose to do something challenging and refuse to accept an outcome that is not victory. So that’s what I’m telling you today. Throw away your expectations, your timelines, and your ideas about what you think you should be doing. Instead, focus on putting your absolute best foot forward in this moment right now. That is how you operate in the present. People will tell you that you only live once, but it’s my opinion that if you’re never truly here, right now, in this moment, you may not even get that once. I’m telling you that in one way or another, if you wake up each morning with the right intention – to pursue something meaningful, to do something difficult, or to simply speak to everybody you come across with love – you will win. Accept that this universe is so big, that there are forces at play that we will never know, and things that are more complex than we will ever understand. But something tells me that if you make it your priority to win every day you wake up, it will take care of you. ■ Georgie Tsiolis Valedictorian, Senior School

RETIREMENTS 2020 STEVE MCCUTCHEON – 30 YEARS

LESLIE COLUCCI – 22 YEARS

Inspiring Students through Science and Storytelling

An Enduring Legacy of Humanity

teve has been a role model for his colleagues from the day he set foot onto the campus 30 years ago, although some of the tales from his early days are legendary! He loves his colleagues, and they love him. In fact, one of them loved him so much, she married him! His dedication to all things Country Day School has been remarkable. As a scientist, he expounds on the inventions and fast changing world of science whilst cherishing the traditional. He is fondly known by students to teach through stories. Through this approach, he has built deep trust, connections and inspiration, and so our alumni are always willing to make the long walk down to the Science Wing to see him and fill him in on how their lives are unfolding. Steve remembers all of them and the important details about their lives and families. As a colleague, Steve is known to be the listening ear, the wise counsel, the wealth of knowledge of the history of the School and its community, the foundational mentor to welcome you to CDS, the moral compass, the trustworthy and strong shoulder to lean on, the fountain of statistics to motivate you on a challenging day ... “15 days until exams!” He is forthright when he needs to be, and yet he will always tell you gladly that his day is “so far so good” or that “he never met a weekend he didn’t like” while holding the door open for one and all after assembly. As advisor to the GY’s, Steve has created the genius, daily GY slideshow, organized a jewelry case of grad rings and ensured albums were filled with the perfect graduation photos, Graduation Day comments were prepared for the spotlight, and that hundreds of graduates felt unique as they stepped onto the stage in perfect order on their Graduation Day. Steve is truly the founder of tradition at CDS!

“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” Anne Frank

Our alumni were always keen to make the long walk to the Science Wing to see Mr. McCutcheon and fill him in on how their lives were unfolding. Steve is also a loving father and husband who is proud of his family’s successes and is now ready to have more time to spend with them for long hikes, travels to Disney and capturing their joyous moments in photography, and also for his own love of music and, of course, shopping for more dashing ties and socks. Steve is irreplaceable, but we know he will be a regular visitor at our alumni gatherings. He is one of the people they are sure to have on their list to see, and he will now be on our list too. Steve, we thank you for your incredible 30 years of dedicated service to CDS. We wish you and Sheila a long, happy, research-filled retirement, documented and archived by fabulous photographs along the way. ■ Celia Bland, friend and colleague

legacy can be forged in many ways. Points scored, wealth accumulated, power seized and kept. These are loud and self-aggrandizing endeavours, memorable for their flash and audacity. We stand on the sideline, point and say, “Wasn’t that amazing?” Other legacies are quiet, humble and enduring in their humanity. They are built in small moments. We are invited in, moving from the sideline to become participants, and are left in a better place. We stand within a shared experience and say, “I’ve been changed.” Such is the legacy of our beloved Madame Colucci. Teaching French to students in the Middle School is not for the faint of heart. Youthful disinterest, the battle for fleeting attention, a restless search for relevance – these are all elements that would be the undoing of many a well-meaning educator. Madame Colucci’s disarming alchemy of kindness, expertise and passion for language quickly removed these obstacles, enabling students to see the possibilities that lay before them when they realised that new words mean a pathway to new worlds. David Copperfield has nothing on Madame Colucci. And she did her magic without tricks. Just the shared experience. Over two decades, hundreds of students, hundreds of lives. Illuminated. Ask her colleagues about the ways Leslie has left them in a better place than where she found them. Whether facing professional challenges or the challenges of cancer. Coming for comfort and leaving inspired. Arriving at school as an exhausted new father to find the perfect collection of music to lead your child into deep slumber. Hoping to help your community protect its environment and findTHE LINK FALL / WINTER 2020-21

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David Copperfield has nothing on Madame Colucci. And she worked her magic without tricks. Just the shared experience.

ing a partner to make that dream a reality. Instructing students to put on their costumes, by the hundreds, over 33 productions, and watching them transform scripted characters into living human beings. Remarkably, the myriad, virtually innumerable ways Leslie unfailingly uplifted and edified her colleagues were each unique because, as the consummate atelier she is, every kindness was especially tailored to the needs of the person before her. Last June, after more than two decades of service to CDS, Madame Colucci moved from the rewards of a life in education into the joys of retirement. She has pumped gas, waitressed at Waves Fish Parlour, edited commercials for Crunchie bars, and saved the rabbits used in that piece of advertising from being disposed of once the cameras stopped rolling. And in so many ways, big and small, over a remarkable career, she has saved us too. How wonderful, indeed, that she did not wait a single moment to improve our world. ■ Scott Garbe, friend and colleague

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ANDY MACMILLAN – 22 YEARS

An Extraordinary Coach, Teacher and Outdoorsman

ndy MacMillan is a mountain of a man in every sense. He is the kind of teacher everyone needs to have at least once in their lifetime. He supports his students, he knows his students, and he most certainly inspires his students. Andy has a sense of adventure that is second to none. His passion for the environment, for Temagami and for the outdoors radiates in all that he does. He instills his enthusiasm in others, inspiring hundreds of young people and his colleagues to develop their love of nature in ways they didn’t know were possible, evoking in them a sense of adventure and a desire to know more. Every outing was always so much more than just a field trip. Students learned about themselves, their place in the world, what they were capable of, and how to step out of their comfort zones. They experienced a way to connect with nature and live in harmony with it. Andy incorporated not only the hard skills of existing in the wilderness no matter the conditions, but also the soft skills of teamwork and group harmony. Indelible images

include nights around the campfire, explaining how to play a variety of camp games (like Farkle) to the kids, or fishing from the back of the canoe during their travels. His incredible skills were put to the test right to the very end of his career when Andy was one of our intrepid leaders famously locked down in Peru with 20 students at the beginning of the pandemic. The calm confidence amongst our young folk was testament to the remarkable leadership skills of Andy and his colleagues. When Andy speaks, he perks the ears of seismologists worldwide. Once, the former Director of Senior School, Warren Lang, was in Mr. Davison’s office and heard Andy’s booming voice. “Should we go and see if everything is OK?” he asked. “No, it’s just Andy,” replied Mr. D. matter-of-factly. Wherever you are, you can hear his voice:

Every outing was always so much more than just a field trip. Students learned about themselves, their place in the world, what they were capable of, and how to step out of their comfort zones. They experienced a way to connect with nature and live in harmony with it.

through the halls, on the campsite or across a lake. No student ever fell asleep at their desk in Mr. Mac’s class. Andy introduced the famous Climate Change Simulation long ago in the Grade 9 Geography curriculum, which include the concepts of sustainability, resource consumption, wilderness, and a series on Parks Canada. He headed up our newly-formed Outdoor Education department in the Senior division, leading the charge on a brand new curriculum, more adventures, and even the installation of our first beehives. He also worked alongside the late Steph Collins to develop a comprehensive Middle School Outdoor Education curriculum, and cochaired the Green Initiatives Committee with another long-time colleague, Mme Colucci. Andy coached at CDS for 22 years and has left his imprint on close to 1000 athletes, primarily in hockey, rugby and volleyball. His players and fellow coaches can testify to his passion, his commitment to helping every athlete become better, and his ability to make them accountable for their actions, (underscored by his familiar bellow to “Keep your head on a swivel!”) while still remaining their favourite coach. His larger-than-life personality, boisterous laugh, and endless energy have made him such an integral part of our Athletics program. Known by his students and staff alike as Mr. Mac, Big Mac, Coach, Mac Daddy, or Mr. MacMillan, Andy’s impact on the development of students and athletes is legendary. Andy is a loving father of his two children, Mike and Ali, who share his passion for the outdoors. He is also, of course, the devoted husband of Nadine, who will be joining him in his retirement. Andy, we shall miss your giant bear hugs and towering presence in every sense. We thank you for more than 20 years of incredible service to CDS. We wish you a long, happy, active retirement, embracing the wilderness and paddling away on adventures with Nadine. ■ Celia Bland, friend and colleague

NADINE MACMILLAN – 22 YEARS

Legendary Grade 5 Teacher, Division Head & JS Librarian

met Nadine MacMillan during my first years of teaching at Grenoble Public School in what was then North York. Nadine always stood out as a fun-loving, smart, approachable person, someone you wanted to have as your friend. I wanted to get to know her, so one day when she was in her room, working as a resource teacher at the time, I went in to say “Hi!” I was amazed by how she had decorated her room: ugly metal fi ling cabinets were sponge-painted in bright colours and everything was neat, organized and interesting to look at. During the strike action in the 1990s, we walked the picket line together as she pushed her baby, Michael, in a stroller. Soon after, Nadine moved on from Grenoble and landed at Country Day School. We lost touch until I arrived at CDS thanks to a job lead from Joanne Belch, who had also worked with us at Grenoble. Nadine and Joanne were Grade 5 teaching partners at the time, and then Nadine did a stint in Grade 1 and I took her place in Grade 5. When Nadine returned to Grade 5, we became teaching partners. What a joy it was to work with her again! Always thoughtful, creative and full of fabulous ideas. She could take any curriculum area and create a document, form, or study unit in the blink of an eye (and this was before Google Classroom!). Throughout the many years that we taught Grade 5 together, we dreamed up some very cool experiences for the students. Who could ever forget the Egyptian Extravaganzas where we re-enacted the discovery of King Tut’s Tomb or recounted the history of ancient Egypt while a slideshow, music and students in full costume danced and played instruments and then celebrated the event with an enormous feast? There were the first iterations of the Grade 5 elections and Matter Magic, events that brought

the curriculum to life for the students. For many years we took the Grade 5s on an eighthour bus trip to St. Donat, Quebec, where we supervised over 50 10-year-olds for three nights! And you can’t overlook the Cookie Book Clubs that Nadine invented, or the love and respect for nature that she wove into all aspects of her teaching. She was a masterful curriculum innovator! Not one to pass up a new challenge, Nadine pursued her love of literature by ap-

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plying for the position of Librarian of the Junior School in 2016. Over the past four years, Nadine has guided young readers in their book choices, has continued her book clubs, created curricular presentations for all grade levels, organized book fairs, supported the needs of students and parents, and performed countless other magical things in addition to her regular duties as Librarian. Nadine spent many years as our first Junior Division Head; she paved the way for those who followed her example as an organized, caring leader of people. Nadine also slipped easily into the role of mentor during her career; guiding and teaching Joanne, Gillian and Andrew, just to name a few. Nadine has always been the voice of reason, the one people seek out to run ideas and problems by and who always offers balanced, thoughtful words of wisdom. Nadine, thank you for your 22 years of service. After all these years of love, sweat and tears that you have invested in our beloved CDS, you are well deserving of a long, exciting and fulfi lling retirement. ■ Liane Cooke, friend and colleague

LARRY DEGEER – 22.5 YEARS

Known for his Willingness to Help, Selfless Positivity and Kind Words

ome 22 years ago, we welcomed Mr. Larry DeGeer into the CDS community as a key member of our custodial staff. Since then, he and his wife Cisca have truly become family to all of us. After an incredible long run of dedicated, loyal and first-rate service to the School, Larry decided to retire last April.

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MARY FOURNIER – 8 YEARS

Approached her Students with Fairness and a Gentle Kindness

Last spring, Larry and Cisca, who retired in 2019, moved “down east” to be closer to family and to finally put their feet up and enjoy a well-earned rest! We will miss them dearly, and wish them a wonderful retirement in Nova Scotia. “Larry, I hate to say goodbye and see you go, but I love knowing you’ve got so much happiness ahead of you. This place just won’t be the same without you. I’m really going to miss you and your friendly, helpful, energetic, funny, good-natured ways around here. I am never going to forget your approach toward me with a big smile on your face, and your famous, ‘Quick, quick, open your hands!’ followed by putting a variety of marbles, pencil sharpeners, erasers and extra random items you used to find here and there in my hands as a way to add some humour to the day. I am going to miss all of your pranks and your funny jokes, your costumes on Halloween, and all the stories you used to tell me about your life growing up and memories of your dad. I am going to miss it all. Thanks for being you, and for making this such an extra special place to work. You are simply irreplaceable. You and Cisca worked so hard for so many years. You deserve to relax and take it easy for a change. New places to go and new stories to live. As much as I’m going to miss working with you, I think it is time to let the next chapter begin. I can’t wait to watch you go put your energy where your passions are! Congratulations on your very well-deserved retirement. Enjoy it!” ■ Sheida Sadrolashrafi, friend and colleague

ne cannot put into words the knowledge, care, and integrity Mary Fournier has brought to the field of education. Over the course of her 30-year career, students and educators alike have been touched by her dedication to her role as a teacher. As a colleague, it has been a true joy to watch Mary engage with her students on a day-to-day basis. Walking into her room amidst a lesson always led to a tremendous amount of growth and learning for her peers. Mary approaches her students with fairness and a gentle kindness that fosters a great deal of comfort. Throughout her years of teaching in the public sector, Mary touched the lives of students facing a variety of challenges, be it social, emotional, or academic. She has comforted families who have lost a child to gun violence, advocated for young girls’ rights in school, and supported students who faced poverty and abuse. Each of these students and families without a doubt carry her words, gestures, and kindness in their hearts forever. Mary has reached so many children through her skill and tact with reading intervention and recovery. Not only do students in her care jump leaps and bounds with their reading, she gives them the wings to fly into literature with enthusiasm. Mary shows students that they are important, and that nothing is impossible. During the eight years she worked at The Country Day School, Mary continued to support children as though they were her own. She helped a student seek his true identity and advocated for him to be able to speak, dress, and live as his authentic self. She supported students through the deaths of their family members. She stood by students in times of emotional turmoil, advocating that

While Mary is a tremendous educator, so much of what she has taught her colleagues and students goes much beyond the curriculum. She has taught her community to stand in the truth, value kindness and hope, and appreciate one another’s differences and the importance of being a lifelong learner. Upon Mary’s retirement last spring, the field of education lost an unforgettable educator. However, the lessons learned will live on through her students forever. ■ Kristy Marshall, friend and colleague their needs be met to give them the best possible surroundings to grow and flourish. On top of all of this, Mary enlightened young learners and helped develop their sense of global understanding. She never shies away from world issues and situations of inequality that will open her students’ eyes to new perspectives. Under her care, children have learned valuable lessons about race, religion, socio-economic struggles, peace and humanity as a whole. There isn’t a book read from Mary’s rocking chair that doesn’t teach a valuable underlying lesson. Her purposeful and humble approach to teaching allows her students to feel comfortable to dive in, dig deep, and think critically. One of Mary’s profound qualities is her ability to listen and honestly reassure her colleagues and peers. She knows just the right thing to say in each moment, and for that, so many are grateful.

Under her care, children have learned valuable lessons about race, religion, socio-economic struggles, peace and humanity as a whole.

MARGOT BEECH KENNEDY – 4 YEARS

Truly Epitomized the CDS Pledge

t is hard to believe that it was only four years ago that Margot Beech-Kennedy joined the Junior School in the role of both Junior School Counselor and Resource teacher. How lucky were we to gain such a well-seasoned and talented teacher from Crescent School where Margot had spent the better part of her career. Since that time, we have had the privilege of working closely with Margot and have seen the immense impact she has had on so many, including students, parents and staff. When reflecting on the top qualities and attributes of a counsellor, teacher, colleague and friend, according to students, these words ring particularly true of Margot. In Margot’s role, it is so important to be both dependable and flexible. If she has arranged a lesson or session with a class or student, she will work around whatever schedule limitations a teacher may have and will never turn away a student who seeks to spend time with her. She has a patient, caring personality and seems to easily empathize with what others are going through on any given day. If you ever need another perspective or shoulder to cry on, Margot is without a doubt one of the most accepting and non-judgmental people out there. She is loyal,

respectful, trustworthy and kind. Yes, she truly epitomizes the CDS pledge. Entering retirement as a teacher in no way signals the end of Margot’s dedication to those she serves. She can now step back and appreciate how far she has journeyed. It is time for her to look forward and spend time with the people she cares about most deeply while continuing to follow her passion for counselling in her private practice. COVID may have delayed your world travels for the time being, but we look forward to hearing about your many adventures in the future. We wish you a long, healthy retirement full of many new adventures. May this next chapter of life bring you endless time to do the things you love! ■ Deirdre Tait and Liz Lang friends and colleagues

CDS FACULTY AND STAFF RECOGNIZED FOR YEARS OF SERVICE IN JUNE 2020 30 Years of Service Steve McCutcheon (Retired) 20 Years of Service Kirsten Baird Joanne Belch Dave Downer Brian Jimmerskog Phil Moorlag Alex O’Reilly Sheldon Rose 10 Years of Service Maria Huckvale Agnes Wong

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COMMUNITY NEWS Christelle Ah Sen joined

the Middle and Senior School Modern Languages Department in September. She holds a B.Sc. in Honours Life Sciences and a BA in French from McMaster University, as well as a Master of Teaching degree from the University of Toronto OISE.

Antonella Costanzo joined

the Middle and Senior School faculty as an Associate Teacher in October. She received her B.Sc. (Hons) in Intermediate/Senior Division Biology and Chemistry from Ryerson University and B.Ed. from Queen’s University. Ms. Costanzo has taught as a teacher candidate in Grades 8-12 in York Region and southern Ontario.

RECENT APPOINTMENTS AND STAFF NEWS

Kathleen Griffin

joined the science faculty in the Middle and Senior Schools in September. She holds a B.Sc. in Biological Sciences from Brock University, a B.Sc. in Honours Psychology from the University of Western Ontario, and B.Ed. from OISE in Science/Biology and Individual and Society. Mrs. Griffin taught at CDS from 2006 to 2009 in the Middle and Senior Schools and most recently has been working for Scientists in School. Hillary Hall

Cameron Baldassarra joined the

Junior School in September as a Grade 6 teacher. He most recently taught Grade 6 at St. Clement’s School in Toronto and previously worked in primary and junior classrooms in the TDSB for four years. Mr. Baldassarra completed an honours degree in History at Glendon College before pursuing his B.Ed. with a specialization in Outdoor Ed at Queen’s University. He holds an MA in Geography from York University and is continuing his academic pursuits part-time at McMaster University where he is completing a PhD in environmental history. Ellie (Seedhouse) Cawfield mar-

ried Andrew Cawfield on June 27 at the family cottage on Balsam Lake in the Kawarthas. It was a COVID safe, intimate wedding with only immediate families present. Mrs. Cawfield has taught Physical Education & Health and Outdoor Ed in the Junior School since 2015.

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Fraser Fell and his wife, Sarah, welcomed a second son, Benjamin Fraser, a brother to Logan on November 30. Fraser has been a member of the Senior School English faculty since 2013. Hannah Fransen and

her husband, Joel Morrissey, welcomed their second daughter, Olivia Rose, on July 9. Hannah has taught French in the Middle and Senior Schools since 2015. Aldo Garcia

joined CDS in February 2019 as an Associate Teacher and moved into the role of SK teacher in September. He holds a BComm degree from Ryerson University and his B.Ed. from UOIT. Outside of CDS, Aldo is a licensed provincial coach for soccer.

joined the Junior School faculty as Librarian in September. She has a BA in English with a minor in Psychology from the University of Western Ontario, a 4th Honours Qualifying Year with an English Major and Drama Minor from Laurentian University, and a B.Ed. from OISE. Ms. Hall brings considerable teacher-librarian experience working with the Halton, Peel, Toronto and Scarborough Boards of Education. Lauren Hunt

joined the Middle and Senior School faculty as an Associate Teacher in September. She is a graduate of the Laurentian University Outdoor Adventure Leadership Program with an honours degree in Health and Physical Education, and she earned her B.Ed. at Trent University specializing in Health and Physical Education and First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) Studies.

Peter Johnson

joined the Junior School Outdoor Education faculty in September. He has a BA in Psychology/ BSS Criminology from the University of Ottawa and B.Ed. in Junior/Intermediate Division from the University of Toronto. Mr. Johnson has more than 20 years of educational experience teaching science, geography and history as well as an extensive background instructing young people in outdoor settings. He has taught in the Durham District School Board and at an independent school in Toronto. Lauren Kelly

and her husband, Dan, welcomed a baby boy, Declan Peter, on October 21. Mrs. Kelly teaches Grade 5 and has taught at CDS since 2015. Zach Lawton

and his wife, Emma, welcomed Sophia Mae on December 28, a baby sister for Charlie. Zach is a Digital Media Specialist and has been with the Office of Community Relations since 2014. Kristen Mack

joined CDS in September as a Senior School Learning Strategist in the Student Services Centre. She holds a BA in English (Hons) with a minor in Geography from Wilfrid Laurier University and a B.Ed. from UOIT. Ms. Mack taught Middle

BLOWING IN THE WIND and Senior School in Alberta for the past six years. Joanna Minor

joined the Junior School faculty in September as a Grade 4 teacher. She has a B.Ed., Primary Education, from Nipissing University and a BA in Contemporary Studies from Wilfrid Laurier University. Joanna comes to us from teaching in Saskatchewan, most recently at the Ethel Milliken School.

Vanessa Sciammarella joined CDS as our School Nurse in the new Health & Wellness Centre in September. She completed an Honours B.Sc. and a postgrad degree in nursing from the University of Toronto. Nurse Vanessa has status with the College of Nurses of Ontario as a Registered Nurse. She previously worked at SickKids in Toronto for the past five years, where her patients ranged from newborns to young adults.

Merci Mme Colucci for the heartfelt message you left on the beautiful wind chimes in a tree outside the Senior School Gym entrance in September. We continue to heed it each and every day.

Darby Moreau

and her husband, Tyler, welcomed Peyton Cecilia on September 10, a baby sister for Ethan. Darby has worked as the Admission & Post-Secondary Counselling Coordinator since 2014.

Jody-Anne Peterson and her hus-

band, Matthew, welcomed twin boys on November 25: Sullivan Randall Jackson and Theodore Warren Allan. Siblings Emmalynn and Max are thrilled! Jody works in our premises department in many roles. Sara Purdy and her husband, Rob, welcomed Grace Elizabeth on July 6, a sister for Jack. Sara is a Learning Strategist in the Student Services Centre and has been at CDS since 2013.

Anne Wellnhofer

joined the Middle and Senior School Outdoor Education faculty in September. She has a Bachelor of Environmental Studies (Hons) in Environment & Resource Management, Biology and Geography from the University of Waterloo, and a Diploma in Education from Bishop’s University. Ms. Wellnhofer most recently comes to us from Greenwood College School where she taught science and geography. While there, she constructed trips and was a lead teacher for many of the outdoor education programs, including Grade 7 to 9 at Kilcoo, Grade 12 leadership, west coast hiking, Costa Rica and Grade 11 dogsledding. She has taught at independent schools for the past 25 years, including The Study in Montreal, outdoor education on Vancouver Island, and startup schools in Costa Rica and midtown Toronto. Her outdoor highlights include hiking across the Arctic Circle with her dad and guiding a 50-day canoe trip.

SPIRIT WEAR!

Now available at our online general store: cds.on.ca/general-store

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ALUMNI SNAPSHOTS

HART JACKSON ’02

DO WHAT YOU LOVE AND YOU’LL LOVE WHAT YOU DO Envisioning the future of cancer research

t the CDS Senior School virtual assembly on February 8, 2021, Hart Jackson ’02 was the featured speaker. At the end of his presentation, students asked how his interests at CDS had played out in his career choices. Hart explained that if he had learned anything, it was that you just have to follow your interests, saying, “I didn’t expect to be a scientist, at all.” What’s amazing about his insight is that Hart has become a world-leading expert in a field that he didn’t initially pursue after graduating from CDS. “I went into a dual degree program between Waterloo and Laurier to study math and business,” recalls Hart. “After a few months, I wasn’t really clicking with my classes. I remember going home and talking to my parents and telling them I was going to change programs.” Soon after, Hart transferred to Queen’s University where he studied biochemistry. He spent his summers working at a research lab at Princess Margaret Hospital where he “caught the research bug,” as he puts it, which prompted him to spend

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seven years completing a PhD program based at that hospital. He was then faced with deciding which post-doctoral research position he would accept. “When people ask me how I chose which opportunity to pursue, I tell them that it’s the one that has you up thinking about it in the night,” he says. “That’s your gut telling you where to go.”

n Zurich, Hart joined a team that had recently fi nished building a protype of a technology called imaging mass cytometry, which they had developed in partnership with a Canadian company based in Markham. The technology enables multi-dimensional analysis of cells in a tissue sample that far exceeded the data existing imaging methods could provide. Hart’s challenge—and opportunity— was to be the first person to apply the new technology to cancer research. During his five and a half years in Zurich, he conducted a first-of-its-kind research study related to breast cancer, the findings of which were recently published in the prestigious journal Nature. Through his work, Hart became the world’s foremost expert in the application of the Hyperion Imaging System, which he helped to commercialize and is now being applied by researchers around the globe. On the strength of his cutting-edge work that is changing the way cancer research and treatment are conducted, Hart secured a position as a Principal Investigator in the Systems Biology group at Mount Sinai Hospital’s Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute. He is also funded through the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, is a Professor in the department of Molecular Genetics at the University of Toronto, and holds a Canada Research Chair in systems pathology. In his lab, Hart oversees a team of three

ing located in a hospital environment. It’s really an ideal setting to conduct research.” As a CDS Lifer, Hart maintains many personal connections to the school. His father, for whom the Alan B. Jackson award is named, was a longstanding member of the CDS faculty. His sister Emma (Jackson) Fogel ’05 is married to Josh Fogel ’05 and spent time as a member of the CDS faculty. Hart’s cousins Scott Mather ’04 and Ben Mather ’07 are also CDS graduates. And he remains in contact with Class of 2002 friends Ronald Richardson, Luca Lorenzoni, and Franklin Gairdner.

“WHEN PEOPLE ASK ME HOW I CHOSE WHICH OPPORTUNITY TO PURSUE, I TELL THEM THAT IT’S THE ONE THAT HAS YOU UP THINKING ABOUT IT IN THE NIGHT,” HE SAYS. “THAT’S YOUR GUT TELLING YOU WHERE TO GO.” doctoral students and two senior scientists who apply high-dimension imaging technology and understand how cells interact and communicate. Their work is advancing cancer research, developments in imaging technology, and new approaches to creating customized treatment plans. “Mount Sinai is an ultra-supportive environment full of really impressive colleagues,” says Hart. “It’s challenging and supportive at the same time, while also be-

ow 37 and a new parent with his partner Jennifer Sacco (their first child, son Bailey, arrived in October 2019), Hart values the ways his CDS education laid the foundation for his future success. “Having really supportive teachers across a variety of subjects ended up being important to my career,” he says. “Obviously, I was able to draw on an excellent foundation in biology, chemistry and physics. But my work is also interdisciplinary. It requires me to draw on what I learned in math, computer science and economics at CDS. And my ability to disseminate new ideas is enhanced by my experiences learning to make an argument in English class and honing my public speaking skills as Student Council President.” Having had an opportunity to reflect on his career path by talking with the CDS students, Hart is struck by how important it is to pursue your interests. “I’m a person who loves what they do,” he says. “Every day is exciting. I work with amazing, dedicated people, I’m stimulated intellectually, and I have a sense that I’m contributing to help make life better and easier for people. I feel really fortunate.” ■ THE LINK FALL / WINTER 2020-21

ALUMNI SNAPSHOTS

ROXANNE COHEN ’09

BRINGING EDUCATION AND ACTIVISM TOGETHER Leading in the social justice space from gap year to graduate school

here to start when catching up with Roxanne Cohen ’09? With Green Club activities in high school at CDS? With a gap year partly spent in Ghana, staying with local families and teaching young children in a state school? With Greenpeace activism, or a role in the Toronto Occupy movement, or the founding of a free school that offered classes around the city for anyone interested in learning? With her position today as a doctoral candidate in education at York University? Roxy’s life is packed with initiatives and experiences. This is a person whose activism sometimes complemented her university studies and sometimes conflicted with them, to the point where she dropped classes and delayed graduation to fulfi l her political commitments. “I remember when I was living in St. James Park for awhile, during the Occupy movement, and I started missing a few classes,” she says. ““I asked one of my professors if I could write a paper on community engagement instead of attending class, and she said yes. I understood that I wasn’t really following the standard path. But I was looking for a way to combine education with activism. That was, and still is, a core issue for me.” Enrolled in Equity Studies at the University of Toronto at the time, Roxy continued to work on the problem of how education can inform activism and vice versa. She found her classroom studies were stronger on social problems—like socioeconomic inequities and the environmental crisis—than on solutions. So how to bring theory and application together? By 38

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creating community-based opportunities that blend the two. In 2014, in the final year of her BA and before entering the Master of Education program at York University, Roxy founded Conscious Minds Co-operative and created a youth summer camp focused on human rights, climate change, decolonization and holistic wellbeing. Campers engage with the natural environment while practicing to live within an equitable and environmentally sustainable community. Thus, concept meets experience. “It’s a pay what you can opportunity, so cost is not a barrier for participation,” says Roxy. “Campers learn about the themes of the camp while living them at the same time. That includes learning from

“I ASKED ONE OF MY PROFESSORS IF I COULD WRITE A PAPER ON COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT INSTEAD OF ATTENDING CLASS, AND SHE SAID YES. I UNDERSTOOD THAT I WASN’T REALLY FOLLOWING THE STANDARD PATH. BUT I WAS LOOKING FOR A WAY TO COMBINE EDUCATION WITH ACTIVISM.”

Indigenous elders to better understand different models of justice and also its spiritual side. The camp is a space for young people to develop practical strategies to address the issues we face as a global community.” Between undergrad and graduate school, Roxy also worked with a non-profit called LIFT (Low-Income Families of Toronto), a human rights advocacy group. She volunteered with the St. James Town Community Co-op, which facilitates sustainable development projects. She helped to run a community café on a pay what you can model to help address food insecurity. And she set up a community school operating on a time bank, meaning that participants “pay” for classes in, say, Japanese or dance by contributing their own time to teach others their speciality.

fter a few years of both paid and unpaid work, Roxy arrived at York, which she selected for its more liberal and justice-oriented approach to education studies than other schools. She entered the master program knowing she would stay for her PhD and is currently in her fourth year. An interesting pattern in Roxy’s path from high school to doctoral studies has been stepping out of formal education for periods of time, which reflects her philosophy that there are more ways to learn than inside a classroom. “I applied to university after graduation from CDS knowing I would defer and take a gap year,” she says. “In high school, I learned that I was most interested in environmental and justice issues. And I was

well prepared academically for university. But I needed time to answer some bigger questions. What should I do with my life? What is my purpose? I wanted a mental break from academics and some more experience with work and travel, which is how I ended up in Ghana. I also wanted to come back to school enthusiastically and more sure of who I am.” Whether enrolled in school or working in the community between programs, Roxy

continued to focus on bringing education and activism together. Today, as a doctoral student, Roxy has participated in the Borderless Higher Education for Refugees (BHER) Project, which aims to make educational programs available to the global refugee population. She taught 60 teachers located in Dadaab refugee camps in Kenya via online instruction as part of an initiative to expand education opportunities in a region that

contains over 200,000 refugees and asylum seekers. Many live in the camps—now functioning almost as towns—for years or decades. A book arriving in 2021, called Borderless Higher Education for Refugees: Lessons from the Dedaab Refugee Camp, contains a chapter co-authored by Roxy and her PhD supervisor that draws on her work as a teacher trainer. Roxy has also designed a new certificate (continued on page 40) THE LINK FALL / WINTER 2020-21

ALUMNI SNAPSHOTS

(continued from page 39) program offered by York’s Faculty of Education which provides formal leadership training for youth engaged in climate activism. Rooted & Rising is a free 12-week program with a curriculum devised by a 10-person steering committee Roxy assembled with diverse skills and experiences in public health, mental health, Indigenous education and community development. There is plenty of evidence and knowledge around the climate crisis, Roxy says. What’s missing is youth education on how to apply that knowledge to transform systems and effect change. “The program creates a boost for young people starting out in activism. They want to know how to be a leader in this area, and how to connect with other youth mentors focused on the same work. Many youth of colour and those from lower-income backgrounds hear that they don’t ‘look’ or ‘sound’ like a leader. Well, that’s okay. Not everyone is Greta Thunberg and the climate crisis demands diverse types of leaders. The program gives space for youth to practice being a trusted climate leader, and the certificate is a stamp of validation especially important for those who aren’t getting encouragement or validation anywhere else.” While the pandemic has temporarily shifted the Rooted & Rising program online, Roxy has big plans for its future.

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“I want to expand the curriculum. I want to reach more youth. I want to extend the timeline to nine months. I want to secure more funding. Eventually, I would like York to offer an interdisciplinary minor in climate leadership—and hire me full time to run the program. That’s the dream.”

oxy is clear that the origin of her dream reaches back to life at CDS. A member of the debate club, concert band, and jazz band—one favourite memory is playing a solo on the Great Wall of China—she also played some basketball and softball while her passion for climate change grew. One blip she recalls within an otherwise productive life as a student was her failure to establish a cheerleading club.

“That idea never took off,” she laughs. “But it’s also a good experience to fail sometimes. There’s learning in it. I had the full support of my teachers and the school in most of my other interests—academic and extracurricular. And also in me, as a person. My years at CDS have played a big role in my life. The school taught me to be bold, to speak up, to see other perspectives. And the trips I took actually inspired me to see more of life before beginning university.” Roxy is looking forward to completing her dissertation while continuing to lead the Rooted & Rising program at York and to volunteer with the St. James Town Community Co-op in the area of food security. She is especially excited by its plan for a climate-resilient and self-sustaining food hub right in the neighbourhood and encourages the CDS community to learn more about the Co-op, food insecurity, and community activism. What else would Roxy say to the school community, and especially the students? “I would ask senior students to at least consider the possibility of a gap year. That time clarified my path in life. I would also encourage each of them to seek experiences out in the world that take them beyond their home-family-school bubble—whether in another city or country or any unfamiliar setting that stretches them. Last, I would ask them to play their part in creating a better world, one that is more equitable and that preserves the health of our planet.” ■

CONNECTIONS

We’ve launched a virtual Winter Wine and Beer Tasting Series! Each event features an alumniowned winery or brewery, including a presentation about the product delivered in advance of the event, and a virtual tour of the facility. Of course lots of great conversation and laughs as well! Stay tuned for news of our Summer Tasting series!

Upcoming Events

ALUMNI NEWS AND UPDATES

This series, led by CDS alumni already in the profession, kicked off in December with Bryn Davies ’04 hosting us at Black Bellows Brewing Company in Collingwood, which he opened with his brother early last year. Bryn took us on a tour of his refurbished building located in Collingwood’s historic downtown (built in the 1800s and formerly a blacksmith and carriage-making shop) and described the brewing process of four of his seven different beers. Guests RSVP’d so that they received their eight-pack of beers in advance of the evening. In January, Andrew Redelmeier ’09 of Southbrook Vineyards led a wonderful tour and presentation of three wines as a certified Sommelier himself. He shared the story of how Southbrook Farms evolved from its family-run roadside stand in the 1980s to a boutique vineyard in Niagara and Canada’s largest certified organic winery today. In March, Steven Locilento ’13 and Julia Brown ’13 introduced us to the elements of a traditional winemaking experience with the emerging craft wine concept of Vin Bon and Julia’s Best Ever Almond Butter collection. This CDS couple has combined their drink and food-related passions to help continue to grow the Vin Bon family business, a 40-year-old craft winery with 20 boutique micro-winery locations across Ontario. Julia launched her delectable collection out of a passion for healthy eating and now retails in stores across Canada.

Join us for the second annual virtual Alumni Coffee House

Calling all members of the Class of 1996!

A Celebration of the Arts Music * Art * Dance * Poetry Reading Thursday, May 13 at 7pm Please send submissions to alumni@cds.on.ca

It’s your 25th Anniversary Virtual Reunion Thursday, June 3, 7:30 pm Please email us at alumni@cds.on.ca to ensure we have your current contact information.

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ALUMNI NOTES

According to Philip, “It creates this wave like an ocean wave, but it’s a sound wave that’s passing through the body which is vibrating the cells at that level.”

Thank you to Mike Laceby ’98 for your years of service on the Alumni Executive from 2006-2017 and the Board of Directors from 2014-2020. We wish him well!

Alicia (Glenn) Webster ’99 performed at our first-ever virtual Alumni Coffee House last May from her home in Doha, Qatar, where she moved with her husband Mark and their two children in 2017. Alicia is a stay at home mom and still enjoying music, having sung and played in various bands and duos over the last 10 years in Toronto, Edmonton, California and now Qatar. She is looking forward to being able to play live shows again soon, and is grateful for the Qatar’s winter weather, which keeps her and her family active and outdoors during this pandemic!

CDS ORIGINALS

Erin (Renaud) Torraville ’87 graduated from CDS in Grade 8 as one of our Originals and writes that she has been living in Newfoundland for six years and feels “out of touch with the mainland!” She remembers CDS as being a wonderful time in her life.

Philip Jacobs ’91 was one of our 27 performers at the first-ever virtual Alumni Coffee House last May. He is a retired Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner (TCMP), a Registered Acupuncturist (R.AC) and an integrated health practitioner offering online virtual healing sessions. Integrating multidisciplinary training from Schools, Institutions and Life experience throughout UK, Canada, Guatemala, and China, Philip is currently practicing (Virtual and in Person Sessions) as an Integrative Therapist in Toronto and New York City teaching and

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speaking in the Art of Healing. Philip combines his love of music with his training in Integrative Health, Eastern Medicine (Ayurveda, Tibetan, Indigenous), Herbal Medicine, Mindfulness & Contemplative Psychotherapy, Relational Psychosomatic Therapy and Sound Therapy to create a safe space for clients to attain their mind and body connection. He is deeply committed to helping people draw from their own inner wisdom in order to facilitate self-healing. Philip has found that with heightened stress and anxiety brought on by COVID, this ancient art of sound therapy delivered through sound, songs and vocal chanting is helpful to people’s mental health. He uses an array of large crystal bowls to create powerful vibrations to help the brain waves retrain themselves.

Kim Joy (Bartle) Lake ’03 recently released her debut album, Flesh and Bone, “in celebration of connection and finding one’s place in the world …. The title comes from the idea of craving human connection, in the flesh, which was a sentiment that ran deep over the summer,” she explained in a recent interview with The Grapevine, a community-driven arts and culture publisher serving the Annapolis Valley near where she lives in Avondale, NS. Kim wrote most of the songs over the

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past few years, with some as recently as last spring, attributing the initial shutdown in March as the impetus for making an album. “I was suddenly faced with time to focus on music, while simultaneously needing a project to bring order to an otherwise uncertain time.” Since releasing the album, she has been touched by friends and family from around the globe who have reached out to offer praise and support. Check it out on Spotify!

pany for seven years before moving to Prince Edward County in 2017 to join Parsons Brewing Company. Having discovered his true passion, Bryn took the plunge in 2018 and started Black Bellows Brewing Company in Collingwood. He hosted CDS’s first virtual Alumni Tasting Series event on Zoom in December.

Danielle (Healy) Diggins ‘06 and her husband Curtis Diggins welcomed their first child Theodore on May 15, 2020. Danielle is currently an Account Director at a Marketing Agency. She and her husband live in Toronto.

Nicole Arrigo ’08 is working full time as a Lead RECE in a preschool room at a daycare in Innisfil and has recently moved to Barrie to be closer to work. When she is not working, Nicole is either spending time with her parents or playing soccer since all extra-curriculars like community band are postponed.

Courtney (Boehmer) Caughey ’03 is living in Virginia with her family – husband Bobby, daughter Reese who is six and son Graham who is almost one. She is living the COVID life working as a nurse practitioner in the emergency department at a level 2 trauma centre. She writes, “I am stuck down here right now and missing home life!”

Bryn Davies ’04 iattended CDS from 1995 to 2004 and went on to graduate from Queen’s University in 2008 with a Bachelor of Applied Science (Chemical Engineering). From there he pursued a Masters in Management from the University of Sydney. Bryn returned to Canada to start his career working at a largescale solar construction and development com-

David Petrasovic ’08 graduated from Carleton University in 2015 with a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering. He has since completed four years of post-graduate work experience as mandated by the Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO) and was granted licensure by the PEO last summer to conduct his affairs as a Professional Engineer (P.Eng.). He has worked in Ottawa/Kanata, the largest Technology Park in Canada, often referred to as Silicon Valley North, first for WindRiver, an Intel Company, and currently for Nokia Inc.

Andrew Redelmeier ’09 has worked full time at Southbrook Vineyards, Canada’s largest certified organic winery, since 2015. A Certified Sommelier, preCOVID he worked most Friday and Saturday nights at GEORGE Restaurant on Queen Street East in Toronto. Andrew graciously hosted our second virtual Alumni Tasting Series in January, which included a virtual tour of his family’s vineyard located in Niagara.

Kelsey Houston ’12 continues her essential work as an Infection Control Practitioner with the University Health Network at Princess Margaret Hospital. Last summer, she joined the CDS virtual Medical Consulting Team and has proven invaluable in offering up-to-date medical advice and best practice videos on mask-wearing protocols and the importance of handwashing and physical distancing for our community during this pandemic. Watch her videos here: https://bit.ly/2Pcw8UB Thank you Kelsey!

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JP Saxe ’11 and Julia Michaels performed “If the World Was Ending” at the MTV Video Music Awards in August 2020 and were nominated for a 2021 Grammy Award for Song of the Year. JP also received five Juno Award nominations, including Single of the Year.

Lyndsay Reddick ’14

Baking delicious gluten-free treats Lyndsay Reddick ’14 recently launched her own gluten-free bakery last October! She became certified as a Holistic Nutritionist in 2017 and went on to become a Holistic Chef at Bauman College in Berkeley, CA. The Holistic Lu Bakery is a culmination of Lyndsay’s passions, education and experience in the field of nutrition, “We at Holistic Lu believe that snacks should be delicious, nutritious and convenient. The Holistic Lu Bakery is a manifestation of our gluten-free dreams; all of the snacks that you love the most, available online and delivered straight to your doorstep.” You can take a look at all of Holistic Lu’s delicious offerings at holisticlu.com or @holisticlu on Instagram. Orders are baked fresh and delivered throughout Toronto and the GTA each Monday.

Keegan Myers ’10 is working at the British Columbia Centre on Substance Use as an interviewer for a study they conduct called The Vancouver Injection Drug User study (VIDUS). As an interviewer, he is involved in data sharing and data collection

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through one-on-one qualitative interviews with participants in the study.

Kerrigan Brown ’12 joined CDS as the Before and After Care Coordinator and Coach in the Junior School in September 2020. She earned her BA (Hons) in Kinesiology with a minor in Psychology from Wilfrid Laurier University and a B.Ed. from Cardiff Metropolitan University in Wales. Kerrigan has

always dreamed of becoming a teacher and is excited to be returning to CDS in this role where she will strive to create a welcoming space for students to come everyday. She also serves as Vice President of the CDS Alumni Executive and can often be found outside of school on her family farm with her horses. Niki Kalergis ’12 after graduating from Queen’s University with a BComm (Honours), Niki obtained her Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) designation in September 2019 while working at BDO Canada LLP in Newmarket. Upon obtaining her CPA designation, Niki moved to California to undertake an 18-month secondment at the BDO San Francisco office where she has been auditing private equity firms, tech start-ups and public pension funds. After spending over a year working for the SF office, Niki will undergo a permanent transfer to the Bay Area to continue servicing clients in the technology and asset management space while pursuing her California CPA license. Outside of work, Niki has enjoyed spending time learning how to surf in Pacifica, running with her mini Goldendoodle in Golden Gate Park, and spending weekends skiing in Lake Tahoe.

Tabitha (Chan) Ma ’12 married Chung-Hin Ma, her high school sweetheart, on June 6th in an intimate ceremony held in their new home with their immediate families and pastors. Despite COVID restrictions preventing them from having a larger ceremony as originally planned, it was beautiful and special nonetheless. CDS alumni in attendance for their livestream included Cecilia Hui ’12, Niki Kalergis ’12 and Joey (Ho) Ling ’10. Tabitha and Chung now reside in Markham and look forward to when they can travel together for their future honeymoon! Tabitha has worked at CDS in the Office of Community Relations as Communications Coordinator and Webmaster since 2018.

Taylor Heyman ’13 graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Business Marketing from The Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University last summer and resides in Ohio.

Tara Henechowicz ’14 is a MaHRC PhD student at the University of Toronto and was recently awarded a GRAMMY Museum Grant along with Director Dr. Michael Thaut to investigate the prevalence of the Val66Met BDNF polymorphism in musicians vs. the general population. MaHRC is an inter-disciplinary, inter-laboratory, inter-departmental, inter-institutional research centre focused on four areas of research questions around music, basic and clinical neuroscience, and applications to health.

Megan Davies ’17 is in her fourth year at St Francis Xavier in Nova Scotia pursuing a BSc degree in Human Nutrition. In

Sam Cantor ’17

Developing cutting-edge research solutions I am currently working at Distributed Compute Labs (DCL), a start-up in Kingston that provides unparalleled computing resources for researchers and industries by making use of idle computers and devices. As a machine-learning engineer, I am involved with the development of internal software that runs the system, as well as external applications of the product involving artificial intelligence and data science. I have the privilege and opportunity to be developing cutting-edge research solutions that will change the way decentralized computing and machine learning is implemented. I first heard about DCL through their partnerships with my engineering design team at Queen’s University. I was an executive and project manager at QMIND (Queen’s Machine Intelligence and Neuroevolution Design Team), a student-run design team at Queen’s aimed at developing modern software solutions using artificial intelligence. During the conference that QMIND hosted and presented in spring 2019, I had the opportunity to showcase my team’s project to investors and sponsors, one of which was DCL. After meeting and talking to Dan Desjardins, CEO of Distributed Compute Labs, we both decided that working as an intern with them the following summer would be the perfect role for me. This past summer, following my third year in university, I decided to return to the company to start a longer 12-month internship as part of my degree. I am currently studying Computer Engineering at Queen’s with an extended 5-year program to include a professional internship. I will be graduating in 2022.

December, she received her X-Ring at a scaled back COVID-friendly ceremony. The X-Ring is a big deal for StFX graduates. Their website explains the significance here: “The X-Ring is said to be, after Super Bowl and Papal rings, the third most recognized ring in the world. It’s a permanent reminder of the StFX experience and its lasting solidarity.” Julia Garbe ’17 answered an open casting call for a REAL female engineer in their 20s last summer, not knowing it would lead to a job offer. She spent a day on set in a home in Toronto for a LinkedIn ad with her own soldering iron, toolbox and circuit boards and made

the prop of the device given to the visually impaired boy in the commercial. No actors involved—just REAL LinkedIn people. Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/EEikRQ58NwM. Stay tuned for an update on Julia’s Apple internship in the next issue!

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Vanessa Chychrun ’20 is pursuing Astrophysics at the University of St. Andrews and busy balancing a full academic and golf schedule! Read the full story at www.cds.on.ca/news.

Corson Panneton ’17

Lands 12-month internship with Tesla Corson Panneton ’17 is now in his third year at the University of Waterloo pursuing a Mechanical Engineering degree and has already completed four internships so far. The Waterloo Engineering Co-op program follows the format of four months of school and four months of work, and he has been alternating back and forth for three years. Corson’s most recent internship with Tesla Motors was extended to 12 months amidst the pandemic and was one of his two all-time favourites along with Hendrick Motorsports (NASCAR). His completion of his Tesla stint in December brought his total internship work experience since starting university to two years! From January until December 2020, Corson worked as a Battery Module Design Intern at Tesla Motors while living in sunny Palo Alto, California. This incredible experience culminated in a month long trip to Prüm, Germany to visit Tesla’s manufacturing design facility from November 23 to December 19 (while abiding by Tesla’s extremely-strict COVID protocols), and he returned to Canada in time for the Christmas holidays. We thank him for sharing some highlights from his Tesla experience with our Senior School students in a video he sent from Germany before the holiday break! Watch the video here: https://bit.ly/3qNmFki Throughout his time at Waterloo, Corson has also been involved in student design teams, notably both Formula SAE Electric and Combustion teams, including two years on the electric car team and six months on the combustion car team. Corson is on track to graduate in spring 2022, whereupon he will decide whether to enter the work force or pursue a master’s degree.

Jill Sward ’18 is on track to be CDS’s first graduate from Quest University. With a passion for marketing and advertising, her thesis is tailored to the effective use of rhetoric, the law of attraction, charisma, and manipulation. One of her more recent

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persuasive papers was used as part of a successful criminal trial (introduced as evidence) to vindicate a falsely accused defendant. Perhaps there is a future in law? Concurrently, Jill is actively pursuing opportunities to present a TED Talk and participate in a Forbes 30 under 30 panel and discussion. Challenged by a National Snowboard Cross season on hold due to COVID-19, Jill is excited to return to competition in the upcoming 2022 season with a pending Quest degree in hand.

Swilcan Bridge at St. Andrews in Scotland

Berkley Brown ’18 was able to continue her freestyle mogul training as a member of Team Canada during COVID, albeit very differently than previous years, including a seven-month hiatus from skiing on snow between March and October. However, she was back training in Zermatt and BC as of October in preparation for competing in Ruka, Finland and Idre, Sweden before Christmas. Berkley finished 15th in the dual moguls finals in Sweden and qualified for the FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup finals in Women’s Moguls at Deer Valley, Utah in early February and placed 12th overall. She is now training in Quebec and will headed to Kazakhstan in March for the last competition of the season.

Stacey Speranza ’19

Sisters Launch Networking Podcast Abraham Litwin-Logan ’19 is pursuing a law degree at University College London and was recently accepted to a highly competitive program whereby UCL law students spend their last two years studying law at Columbia University in New York and graduate with law degrees from both institutions.

Jonah De Simone ’20 honoured his late grandfather by raising more than $3,000 during his Movember campaign last fall. Sam De Simone passed away from prostate cancer last summer and never stopped fighting his diagnosis, using his strengths to help encourage others as an executive member of Prostate Cancer Canada—Newmarket. Inspired by his grandfather’s example, Jonah initially set a goal of $2,111 because Sam always loved his hockey number #11 and did his best to compute as many transactions as possible with it. Jonah is still a member of OHL’s Niagara IceDogs, but due to COVID restrictions, they are limited to being at home and training as it was during the offseason. He awaits news on when it will be safe to start their season and resume life as a team.

Stacey Speranza ’19 and her sister Marianna ’22 recently launched their own interview-based podcast geared toward helping women grow both professionally and personally, aptly named The Business Casual. A second year student in U of T’s Rotman Commerce Management program, Stacey is the show’s host, and a natural one at that. Not only does she have a voice for radio but also a penchant for networking, technology and managing the business side of things. “When I started at university, I didn’t know what Coffee Chats were or what it meant to network and connect with people on LinkedIn.” She hit the ground running during her first semester, set up her LinkedIn profile and discovered she really enjoyed having inperson conversations with business women and reaching out to connect with others she had never met. In a recent podcast with Nicole Lee, Senior Director of Sports Marketing for the NHL, Stacey shares the story of how Nicole was one of the first professionals who she connected with on LinkedIn and how that buoyed her confidence to continue to reach out to others. Meanwhile, Grade 11 student Marianna is this year’s Executive Provincial Officer for DECA Ontario and the podcast’s producer. She is now taking the Grade 12 Communications Technology course at CDS, and credits Ms. Stefanescu and Ms. Weening for teaching her many of the skills that serve her well as creative director. “My forte is the computing side. I handle the editing and design side of things.” Marianna plans on studying computer science in university and enjoys graphic design, editing each show to roughly 30 minutes, and creating the graphics for their Instagram and LinkedIn pages. The sisters had always talked about starting a business together, and last year Stacey’s university guidance counsellor suggested the idea of podcasting during a conversation about her interest in technology. However, both sisters agree that had COVID-19 not arrived, The Business Casual may have remained an unrealized dream. Recent interviews have been with Chloe Elise, CEO of Deeper than Money; Brooke Miccio, Social Media Influencer; and Marissa Papaconstantinou, a 21-year-old Paralympian. They just started their second season, during which Marianna gave Mr. Moorlag a shout out for inspiring her to pursue computer science in the first episode!

IN OUR MEMORIES … Dr. John Mollard, former CDS parent and Board Chair from 1988-1990 (having served on the Board from 1984-90), passed away peacefully on December 25, 2020 surrounded by his beloved family. John and his wife Jane’s four children, Peter, Andrew, Megan and Chloe, all attended CDS. Our founding

families still remember the compassion and humour John demonstrated as a veterinarian during his 44 years of practice in Richmond Hill. Hanna Valle ’13 passed away on July 14, 2020. Her brother Max ’11 also attended CDS.

Ian Sokullu ’19 passed away on December 14, 2020 after a courageous journey with cancer. Ian’s family has established an endowment fund in his name. For information on how to donate, please contact brent.johnston@cds.on.ca.

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85 %

Ontario Scholars

Grads

19 Lifers

100% Resiliency

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL’S CLASS OF

2020

Our 85 graduating students demonstrated immense grit and resilience during their ﬁnal term of high school and received offers of admissions to programs at a diverse group of post-secondary institutions across Canada and around the world. Well done, Class of 2020! We could not be prouder of you and wish you all the best! POST SECONDARY INSTITUTION DESTINATIONS Acadia University Brock University Concordia University Dalhousie University Fanshawe College George Washington University Huron University College at Western McGill University McMaster University

Memorial University Ohio State University Queen’s University Royal College of Surgeons Ireland Ryerson University University of British Columbia University of Guelph University of Ottawa University of San Francisco

University of Southern California University of Toronto (including Rotman School of Management) University of Toronto Mississauga University of Waterloo Western University Wilfrid Laurier University York University

The Country Day School offers JK-12 in a co-ed, non-denominational environment located on 100 beautiful acres in King. 13415 Dufferin Street, King, Ontario L7B 1K5 T: 905 833 1972 www.cds.on.ca 48

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OUR CLASS OF 2020 Bayley Abrams, Lauren Adams, Ariana Akbarieh, Stephany Aslezova-Khanine, Ryan Bannerman, Sam Benbassat, Jack Benjamin, Hillary Bennett, Anthony Botticchio, Isabella Bousada, Abby Boyd, Carly Campoli, Taylor Caruso, Vanessa Chychrun, Ryan Cianchetti, Caleb Clarke, Anna Croxon, Mackayla Dabit, Breanna Di Battista, Jamie Dibble, Andrew Easterling, Taylor Ewert, Noah Fodor, Spencer Fullerton, Daniel Gaeta, Maddy Ganzhorn, Nika Ghasimi, Erica Ghezzi, Sarah Gibbons, Taryn Goldberger, Jeevan Gosal, Damian Grant, Kira Gupta-Baltazar, Gedon He, Sam Henderson, Cassie Hui, Dominik Jedrzejewski, Joey Johnson, Peter Karabatsos, Drew Kennedy, Michael Khaykin, Yasmin Kirby, Arsalan Koosha, Maria Kostiounina, Brahms Krever, David Kuntz, Evan Lajoie, Hailey Law Fauchere, Jack MacDonald, Henna Mangat, Charlotte Martin, Lucio Masini, Ava Morson, Nusha Naziri, Reagan Nediu, Holly Nichols, Channing Noxon, Leo Palerma, Luisa Paolicelli, Sabrina Pietrangelo, Maximillian Railton, Anthony Rea, Siavash Robb, Matthew Roberts, Karsen Roy, Jonathan Scarth, Hanna Segal, Arthur Segalin, Serena Sethi, Daniel Shaw, Allison Simpson, Lev Smekhov, Benjamin Smylie, Sean Song, Eve Stewart, Angelica Tait, Lauren Tsilker, Billy Tsiolis, Georgie Tsiolis, Anel Tursunbayeva, Dillan Walker, Liam Wishart, Lauren Youmans, Maija Youmans, Amber Zabel

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