History in the making Building on our heritage Dr Craig Cook, Principal, Woodstock School
Dear Woodstock Alumni Community,
To walk around the Woodstock School campus is to wend one’s way through history. Like the Himalayan foothills we call home, Woodstock is both timeless and ever shifting, with subtle changes brought about by every monsoon, and every new generation of students who live and learn at the school. The school’s history guides us and acts as a reference point, one that has kept the spirit of Woodstock alive and kicking over the years and continues to do so. In everything we do, we should consider it through the lens of the school’s heritage. Woodstock has been around a lot longer than any of us, and will continue to be long after we are gone. We are only its current custodians, and all we can do is try and retain and build on all that is special about the school.
This year will once again go down in history, where students and teachers rose to the challenges of education during the worst pandemic in a century. Also, of a year when we were able to find the positives in the situation, and make significant steps in our plans to create living and learning spaces which are fitting for a Woodstock School education in a way that meets the future. The year started with the finishing touches being made to the work which began in 2020, including the retrofitting and restoration of the Quad building’s top floor, and the complete refurbishment of Tafton as a fitting home for the Centre for Imagination. Then the area near the bottom of the ramp was redeveloped to provide a new home for the mailroom and an expanded terrace to add a new space for outdoor education and collaboration.
Developing cutting-edge science facilities In March students had to leave campus for a second time, in the wake of the second wave of Covid-19 spreading across India. Once again, we considered how we could take a strategic advantage of this less than opportune circumstance.
2
Our focus turned to the Science labs on the top floor of the High School building. Our Science labs were somewhat dated and fell short of the International Baccalaureate’s requirements for modern, certified laboratories. The roof over the laboratories was also in desperate need of replacement, and the
