Crescent School • Fall 2013
Upcoming Events 2013/2014 NOVEMBER
DECEMBER
FEBRUARY
MARCH
Wednesday 6
Remembrance Day Assembly
Wednesday 8 - Monday 11
Midterm Break
Saturday 16
FIRST LEGO League
Wednesday 26
Holiday Sale and CPA Cocktail Party
Thursday 27
Holiday Sale
Friday 29
American Thanksgiving Luncheon
Thursday 5 - Saturday 7
Upper School drama performance of That’s Absurd
Tuesday 10
Lower School Winter Celebration
Thursday 12
Middle School and Upper School Winter Celebration
Thursday 19
Bidiak Basketball Challenge and Alumni Holiday Reception
Friday 20 - Friday, Jan. 10
Winter Break
Wednesday 5 - Saturday 8
Upper School drama performance of Anything Goes
Friday 14 - Monday 17
Midterm Break
Friday 14 - Friday 21
March Break
White events are of most interest to current families Grey events are exclusive to Alumni Green events are of interest to the entire Crescent community
Past and Present is published for the entire Crescent community twice a year by Crescent School’s COMMUNICATIONS & MARKETING DEPARTMENT
Clayton Browne Director of Communications & Marketing Betty-Ann Armstrong Webmaster/Photographer Laura Pink Communications Coordinator ADVANCEMENT OFFICE
John Lynch Chief Advancement Officer Anne-Marie Newton Major Gifts Officer and Associate Campaign Director Kathryn Rutherford Alumni Relations Officer Valerie Morrison Advancement Officer Lizz Armstrong Advancement Services and Database Coordinator Sue Iwan Advancement Coordinator Jill Cannon Advancement Consultant
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CRESCENT SCHOOL 2365 Bayview Avenue Toronto, ON M2L 1A2 416-449-2556 info@crescentschool.org crescentschool.org
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DESIGN Chris Simeon September Creative Communications PRINTER • Fall Printing Ltd.2013 PastHarmony and Present
Table of Contents Headmaster's Message ...........................2
The Most Important Room at Crescent ....24
Tooting Our Horn....................................4
News From Advancement .....................25
Staff & Faculty News ...............................6
Message from the Chair of the Crescent Alumni Executive .............26
Crescent Says Goodbye ..........................8 Board Report ...........................................9 New Board Members ............................10 CPA Report............................................12
Alumnus of the Year ..............................28 University Placements............................29 Alumni Profile ........................................30 Alumni Profile ........................................34
Robotics World Champions ..................14
Events ....................................................36
School Leaders ......................................18
2013 Golf Tournament ..........................38
Prize Day................................................19
Life After Crescent.................................40
Athletic Awards .....................................22
Lowndes’ Last Word ..............................44
Athletic Achievements...........................23
Crescent by the Numbers .....................45 1
Message from the Headmaster I
n 1978 when I walked up the driveway on the first day of school, parents had to dig into their wallets for a hard-earned $2,750 to have their children attend Crescent School. (It was a 7.9 per cent increase over the prior year, by the way!) There were 340 boys enrolled. My annual salary was $13,000, and I was deliriously happy to have a job. My mother was quite proud, my father equally surprised.
I am still very happy to have a job, I might add; however, many of those historical numbers have clearly changed. Parents now have to excavate $29,150 from their after-tax revenues, and a first-year teacher right out of Teachers’ College is paid $58,110. Our enrollment is 705 boys. I’m not an economist, but even I can see that the ratios have not stayed consistent. It’s quite obvious to everyone, however, that it’s expensive to attend a Canadian independent school, and many of the top ones in Canada just happen to be here in Toronto, which intensifies the anxiety—and competition. I can assure you that when the Board agenda comes around to discuss and then project the tuition for the upcoming year, there are a great deal of data crunched, hypotheses challenged, and expenses evaluated. Tuition setting sparks some of the more lively conversations around the Board table. Despite the annual comprehensive and exhaustive analyses, and the scrutiny of the financial ins and outs of the School, tuition goes up every year, and has done so every year I’ve been here, much to the chagrin of parents. If past history is any predictor of future trends, the slope on the graph will continue to rise. There have been numerous attempts to explain this continual rise in cost. Perhaps the most famous, if for nothing more than for the use of a delightfully descriptive metaphor, is Baumol’s cost disease. Baumol and Bowen were charged to study the rising costs in the performing arts sector. They noted that in 1960, it 2
took four musicians to play a quartet, the same number it took in Beethoven’s time. While productivity hadn’t increased, the wages of musicians had increased significantly. The authors noted, and this is where the disease metaphor arose, that in jobs that relied heavily on human interaction, and they mentioned education and nursing in particular, that productivity had stayed flat while costs increased. Baumol and Bowen suggest that if one was to pay musicians what they earned in the 19th century, they would all throw away their violas (and there is a viola joke here just waiting to be uttered) in order to become mechanics, for example. Therefore, as the authors suggest, salaries in the performing arts—and teaching domain—
have increased because of productivity and wage increases in other domains. That’s the disease, and there is no clear remedy unless we put 50 boys in every class, pay the staff significantly less and risk quality-flight as the good ones become mechanics, or find ways of nibbling around the edges for increased efficiencies—which in fact, we do. The reality of the rising costs of an independent school education reflect the emerging realities and concerns of North American society. There is a sense that our boys are at a greater safety risk than ever before in the history of the world. Accordingly, we spend huge amounts on managing risk. Staying current with technology, so necessary to our boys’ Crescent School
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education, threatens to be an economic Pyrrhic victory. We provide our students with the brightest and the best tech platforms, but the cost, even though flattening out somewhat, significantly puts pressure on the tuition number which might keep people away. We could also stop improving our campus— no Innes Field, no Lau Family Wing, no Latifi Family Commons, and no Library— but none of our competitors are ceasing their bricks-and-mortar improvements. The costs are certainly high, but being a less desirable destination for potential students in the future is far, far too risky. Education has become boutiqued. It is labour-intensive and increasingly personalized. In North America, there is an “I” before everyone’s operating system, and it’s not just on their phones; the focus on the self is not going anywhere
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soon. Everybody now knows what an IEP is (and 15 years ago they were unheard of, at least at Crescent), and serving the broadening spectrum of student education needs is what a good school does. Parents have increased presence and higher expectations of what independent schools should deliver. The pressure to produce and succeed in this small town we call Crescent has never been greater.
The answers are as complex as the questions. I can assure you that the Board and the Leadership Team will continue to find ways of being smart, efficient, responsive and financially responsible. We are also going to look very seriously into various structures of financial aid which, for many schools especially in the United States, is the lifeblood of diversity.
So what does the future hold? As I wrote above, past behaviour is the most dependable predictor of future behaviour: tuitions will rise. The question then follows, given that tuition will increase over time, how will Crescent manage to improve the quality (and diversity) of the student body? How can we enable our alumni, for example, to more readily afford the cost at the school they, themselves, attended?
We have grown considerably in enrollment, physical size, and reputation since I strode through our front doors so many years ago. We will continue to grow in our second hundred years, in different ways, and will continue to be responsive to the emerging education needs of new generations of learners and their parents. — GEOFF ROBERTS, HEADMASTER
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Tooting Our Horn
Head of Mathematics and AP Calculus instructor Greg Tessaro had students hitting the ball out of the park last spring. Every student in his class scored a perfect five on their AP exam.
On a team fittingly called the Coyotes, five students—Adam Murai (Grade 11), Max Liu (Grade 11), Nick Haughton (Grade 12), Ian Lo (Grade 11), and Jeffrey Seto (Grade 11)—competed in the MasterCard NXT Developer Challenge at the MaRS Research Centre on September 28/29, and were the only high schoolaged competitors in the student division after receiving special permission to compete against university students. In a “hacka-thon” format, teams were given less than 30 hours to program a NFC application using MasterCard’s new simplified credit card transaction software. The Coyotes developed Nimja and placed second. Stage two involved online voting in the CIBC People’s Choice Award. Crescent did all we could to promote voting through Twitter and Facebook but didn’t have the results before going to press! But what an accomplishment for our students—pitted against teams made up of Canada’s best developers, coders, and programmers! Congratulations Team Coyote on the development of your app.
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Crescent won its first OFSAA track and field gold ever this spring, thanks to Will Christodoulou. Will was this year’s 1st place winner in javelin. On the 7th of June, soaking wet and sitting in fourth place with one throw remaining, Will launched the final throw of his Crescent career. It hung in the air that much longer than all of the other throws and won him, and Crescent School, a first place finish. And maybe, above all else, a great retirement gift for our beloved coach Paul Craig! Will (with Jack Hayward) won Athlete of the Year and is now on Western’s varsity track and field team—an impressive accomplishment. Crescent School
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Mr. Volpe’s Middle School Jazz Band won the provincial Kiwanis Championships after cutting a demo CD at The Canterbury Music Company on Dufferin Street. Because the students won at the Toronto Kiwanis Festival, they were selected to represent Toronto in the Ontario championships, and part of that honour included a professional recording session. The students were in good company as the last recording artists at Canterbury were the Barenaked Ladies!
Better late than never, this should have appeared in our last issue. Last year’s Senior Division 1 Basketball Team had a phenomenal year. Last November, they won the CAIS National tournament against 24 teams. This was a first in Crescent history and a truly significant accomplishment. Then in March, the team had another just as significant accomplishment in qualifying for OFSAA. It was the first time in more than 15 years that a Crescent basketball team had made it that far in the provincial qualifying round.
Crescent did exceptionally well last year in the Canadian National Math League high school math contest, ranking 13th among more than 150 schools across Canada. Kevin Chien ’13 ranked 15th while Crescent as a school was the highest ranked independent school. Congratulations!
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Staff & Faculty News Upper School faculty member (robotics, physics and mathematics) Shawn Lim married lawyer Linh Tran in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic on the 6th of July. The wedding was held under a garden gazebo at the Ocean Blue and Sand Resort. Guests included Upper School Technological Studies Head Don Morrison and his wife.
Middle School science and geography teacher Sheryl Murray and her husband Tom Nixon welcomed daughter Ellie into the world on the 25th of July.
Crescent’s new Attendance Coordinator and past parent Barb Mason (P’11,’12) wed Upper School Learning Coach James Mason on June 15. Not surprisingly, many in attendance were from the Crescent community, and the ceremony and reception took place in the Formal Garden.
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Staff member/Robotics engineer Rob Stehlik, wife Tania and daughter Danika welcomed baby Elianna to their family on the 4th of June.
Lower School teacher Nicole Whale is now Mrs. Whitlam. She was married at the Ukrainian Church of St. Demetrius on the 10th of August with a reception at St. George’s Golf Club. A honeymoon in Thailand is planned during the weeks of our Winter Break holiday this December/ January. Crescent School
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Upper School faculty member Jillian Cooper (geography) and environmentalist Simon Jackson were engaged last year. It was not until Simon came to the School on September 30 to present to Grade 7 students on his important work with the BC spirit bear that we were able to insist on a picture from camera-shy Jillian.
Middle School and Upper School French teachers Andrea Schrauwers and Sébastien Bigaignon married at Saint Basil’s Church on the University of St. Michael’s College campus at UofT on June 6. The wedding planner for the day was the couple’s friend and Middle School faculty member Candace Harrison while Head of Music Brian Crone—together with four talented alumni musicians—played a jazz set during the cocktail hour at Saint Lawrence Hall where the reception was held. Later in the evening, the quartet accompanied the groom as he surprised his bride with a solo performance of “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face.”
Upper School faculty member Mike Jansen (chemistry) presented at the Chemical Institute of Canada Conference in Quebec City in May. Mike also gave two presentations at Chem Ed 2013 at the University of Waterloo in July. Mike also writes a column for Chem 13 News—a magazine for chemistry teachers— published nine times a year by the University of Waterloo, and he is also a member of its editorial board.
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Head of English Aggie Maksimowska published her debut novel Giant last year and continues to enjoy its success. A finalist for the 2013 Toronto Book Awards, Aggie made a public appearance and read at the Yorkville Library last month. Earlier in September, Aggie was also a part of Toronto’s Word on the Street festival at Queen’s Park delighting audiences with her tales of a Polish girl moving to Toronto and acclimatizing to her new surroundings. 7
Crescent Says Goodbye Paul Craig Following is an excerpt from Upper School faculty member Greg Michalski’s presentation to Paul Craig at Mr. Craig’s retirement party on the 12th of June in the CCL. Paul, you are a friend to all. You make special connections with people that they remember forever. You listen to others, and you care about the details in their lives. You have an educated heart. I often cringe when I hear the word “successful” being used—typically the connotations involve financial reward. I think that true success is really measured by two things: your own personal happiness and a state of well-being as you move through the challenges of life, and the respect that you garner from those you deal with along the way. By this measure, Paul, you have a wealth of which most can only dream. You give credibility to the notion that nice guys really do finish first! You do everything for all the right reasons. On a personal note, you have been the older brother I never had. I know that I can never live up to your standard, but it sure is nice to have a model to which to aspire. You are the finest example of a man that I know.
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Board Report 2012/2013 support—and draw—the very best faculty as well as promote enriching programs that have, in combination, made our School stronger than ever before. We can be very proud.
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nd so it begins. Crescent School has now started its second century of educating boys. From very humble beginnings, we have grown to become a leading Canadian institution whose reputation for character-based academic excellence is unparalleled. We have transformed our campus into a worldclass facility within just the last five years. Our accomplishments in this regard are significant. The Lau Family Wing, Innes Field, and the soon-to-be opened Library and Latifi Family Commons help
The start of our next 100 years heralds the implementation of new technologies that will further improve our ability to support our boys and their educators. This past summer saw the flawless installation of an IP-based communication system that is fully integrated into what was already a first-class network. We have upgraded our wireless capabilities such that 100 access points can be used by every one of our 700 students simultaneously. This network supports the most comprehensive BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) program among Canada’s independent schools. Ours is the model emulated by our peers; we have led the way in implementing cost-effective, device-independent solutions. The Board of Governors is an 18 member group of thoughtful and talented volunteers from all areas of the Crescent community. Their enthusiasm is infectious and their dedication unwavering. Our Governors embody the four core values of Crescent: Respect, Responsibility,
Honesty and Compassion. Debates are lively, interactive and respectful of all members. Our goal is universally shared: to ensure that Crescent delivers on its commitments to its students, their parents and our alumni. None of our accomplishments would have been possible without our dream team. More than 140 devoted and talented faculty and staff work long days to make the Crescent community so unique and close-knit. On behalf of the 2013/2014 Board, I would like to thank them for making our job so much easier. The Board is keenly aware that the next century is not without its challenges. The landscape in which we compete is fluid; we can’t simply relax and become complacent—and we won’t. While being confident is a critical component to success, being self-aware is, perhaps, more important. We know our values; we love our culture. With these principles top-of-mind, we stride forward, eyes open, eager to embrace the opportunities that will arise, and those that we will create, in our second century of educating boys. — BRYAN KERDMAN (P’13), BOARD CHAIR
Board of Governors 2013/2014 Bryan Kerdman Bill Fielding Tara Borg Michael Donnelly Sam Duboc Barry Gordon May Lee Kate Lisus Doris Loo Peter Osborne Stuart Raftus David Sculthorpe Glenn Shyba Paul Spafford Paul Tompkins Amanda Walton Rob Watt Andrew Williams ’83 Charlotte Youngson
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New Board Members 2013/2014
Charlotte Youngson Dr. Charlotte Youngson, wife of Dr. Bruce Youngson and mother of Robert (Grade 12), Andrew (Grade 9) and Peter (Grade 8) will be joining the Board this year. Charlotte graduated from McGill University with a B.Sc. in neurobiology in 1984, followed by a M.Sc. in physiology from the University of Toronto in 1986. She worked in the Department of Pathology at The Hospital for Sick Children as a lab researcher, entering the PhD program in pathology at the University of Toronto in 1989. During this time, she authored over 10 peer-reviewed publications and presented her research at international conferences, completing her PhD degree
in 1993. In 1993/1994, she completed a one-year post-doctoral fellowship in neurobiology at Cornell University in New York City. Returning to Canada in 1994, she resumed teaching physiology at Ryerson University while continuing her research at Sick Kids. Since that time, she continues to teach at both Ryerson and UofT while she and her husband raise three energetic boys. Charlotte has been an active volunteer at Crescent since her eldest son started in 2004. She has been a Class Parent, Social Convener, Garage Sale Convener, Centennial Party volunteer and, most recently, the Co-chair of the Crescent Book Club.
Doris Loo Doris Loo is a native of Vancouver and joins the Board this year as a newcomer to Toronto. She looks to bring a diverse, unbiased and fresh perspective to the Board of Governors.
Prior to her move to Toronto, she was an active contributor to a wide variety of community and school programs as a volunteer and also to various charitable interests.
Doris has a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of British Columbia. She began her career with Canadian Airlines and held positions in the training and inflight departments.
Doris and her husband Vijay have one son, Matt, who is in Grade 8. As a family, they enjoy travelling, biking and also spending time with their families in British Columbia.
Rob Watt Rob graduated from Crescent in 1985 but remains closely connected to the School through his son, Jack, currently in Grade 12. Rob has been married to Lea Anne for over 22 years and has a daughter, Caroline, who is in Grade 9 at Havergal College. Rob is co-founder of the DMS Group, a property management, project
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management and technical services company managing over $2B in real estate assets. Rob is a professional engineer and completed his bachelor of engineering (mechanical) from McGill University, followed by a master of engineering (management) from The University of Western Ontario.
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Peter Osborne Peter is the father of James (Grade 12) and Michael (Grade 7). He is joining the Board and its Governance Committee. Peter is a partner with the litigation boutique Lenczner Slaght Royce Smith Griffin LLP where he has a varied counsel practice with an emphasis on commercial litigation, cross border restructurings, class actions and securities matters. He routinely advises boards, directors and governments with respect to regulated professional responsibility and corporate governance matters, and he prosecutes and defends regulated professionals across Canada. Peter is passionate about education and about Crescent’s future for its second
century. He has taught for many years at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law and at Osgoode Hall Law School, as well as at the bar admission course in Newfoundland and Labrador and at various law societies and advocates’ societies continuing legal education programs in Canada and abroad. Peter graduated from Queen’s University with a BA in 1987 and from Osgoode Hall Law School with an LLB in 1990 before being called to the Ontario Bar in 1992. He has been recognized in various legal peer reviews. Peter and his wife Christine have a daughter, Laura, who is at Havergal College.
Tara Borg Tara Borg has been an active volunteer at Crescent School prior to fulfilling this year’s role as president of the CPA (Crescent Parent Association) and joining the Board of Governors. Tara has a BA from The University of Western Ontario with a major in English. Following this, she studied graphic communications management at Ryerson in Toronto. Her education led to a career in marketing communications where Tara spent over 15 years with multi-national advertising agencies as well as in senior
marketing management roles in financial services. After devoting several years to raising a family, Tara continues her work by providing communications expertise and project management to a select number of clients. She has been and continues to be an active committee volunteer for a number of school, community and business associations. Tara and her husband Jeff have two children. Matthew is in Grade 8 and Meredith is at Havergal College in Grade 4.
Paul Spafford Paul Spafford and his wife Jean Davidson have two sons, Alex (Grade 8) and Graham (Grade 4), both of whom started at Crescent last year, and they are delighted with their new school. Since the boys arrived at Crescent, Paul has served as a member of the Finance Committee and Jean has been a volunteer in the Coyote’s Den, so all are fully involved with their new Crescent family. Paul is a Vice Chairman and Managing Director of CIBC World Markets where he has worked for many years, focusing mainly on mergers and acquisitions. Although spending most
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of his career as an investment banker, Paul graduated from the University of Waterloo with a BASc in electrical engineering and later with an MBA from IVEY Business School. Paul is no stranger to involvement with not for profit organizations, being a past Governor of the University of Waterloo and currently a Director and past Chair of the Board of the Canadian Opera Company. Jean is an ENT surgeon at Sunnybrook Hospital, and the family has lived in the Lawrence Park area for many years. All are keen skiers and spend winter weekends at their chalet at Craigleith Ski Club.
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CPA Report 2012/2013
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hen people ask me why I choose to be involved with the CPA (Crescent Parent Association), I tell them I love the mission. School parent associations are different anywhere you go. Many share a common goal of fundraising. The CPA’s broader mandate to build community within the School, support our surrounding community through outreach programs and to fundraise brings diversity in both the events and the parents who volunteer. I have the pleasure of working with many of these parents each year. With such variety in our programming, we have an interesting and assorted pool of talent lending a hand. We have library enthusiasts, party planners, art curators, clothing retailers, plant lovers, accountants, class trip supervisors to name only a few! Each of our over 300 parent volunteers finds something that is meaningful to them. And when they do, it brings such value and enthusiasm to all of the CPA initiatives. The year 2012/2013 was one of growth and success thanks to the thoughtful leadership of President Mary Wellner and a dedicated CPA Committee. The CPA’s long running Birthday Book Program continued to support our growing libraries. Over the past few years, the CPA has gratefully administered over 400 donations which have yielded in excess of 600 new books for the libraries. This program helps to ensure our library resources continue to
be current and relevant. The CPA’s Holiday Sale also generated a lot of enthusiasm this year. As always, past and present parents came out for opening night when the CPA sponsors the cocktail party. While sipping wine and mingling with friends, they enjoyed our newest project, an art exhibit featuring local artists and some parent and faculty talent too. The show provided a lovely atmosphere and a fantastic fundraising opportunity as well. Last winter, the annual parent luncheon was hosted again at the Granite Club. That afternoon of fine food and entertainment featured the provocative Margaret Wente. Ms. Wente spoke about letting boys be
boys, and thrilled the audience with her notorious style geared for heated debate. The spring Garage Sale yielded excellent results. The team of parent volunteers running the sale achieved an all time record profit for this event. The Garage Sale seems to have hit its stride. The sale receives many repeat visitors as the date is highly anticipated by savvy Toronto dealhunters. Also, current parents familiar with the event know to save their garage sale goodies for the spring instead of throwing them out. Good supply and good demand made for a successful event. The CPA’s current fundraising objective supports the Great Boys campaign. In
CPa CoMMITTee 2013/2014 PRESIDENT ........................................................................................................Tara Borg VICE PRESIDENT ................................................................................Lynn Porter Zechner PAST PRESIDENT ...........................................................................................Mary Wellner SECRETARY .............................................................................................Marianne Eaves TREASURER ............................................................................................... Nicole Swales COMMUNICATIONS CHAIR ...............................................................................Laurie Foote HOLIDAY SALE CHAIR ....................................................................................Alison Smith COYOTE’S DEN CHAIR ........................................................................... Jennifer Ferguson GARAGE SALE CHAIR ....................................................................................... Karen Tang SOCIAL EVENTS CHAIR .......................................................................Lynn Porter Zechner GRADE PARENTS CHAIR ................................................................................... Lori Fisher PARENT AMBASSADOR PROGRAMS CHAIR .......................................... Florence Chapman SCHOOL & COMMUNITY PROGRAMS CHAIR ...................................................Diana Allion
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CPA COORDINATORS 2013/2014 COYOTE’S DEN USED UNIFORMS .................................................................. Pam Binns HOLIDAY SALE VICE CHAIR .............................................................................. Tina Carl GARAGE SALE VICE CHAIR ..................................................................Vivian Greenberg SCHOOL & COMMUNITY VICE CHAIR ....................................................... Sue Sundaram Buy-A-Book CONVENOR .................................................................................Irene Kou MDL Volunteers..............................................................................Domenica Ganguli LOWER SCHOOL LIAISON............................................................................Joelle Corona MIDDLE SCHOOL LIAISON............................................................................... Lori Fisher UPPER SCHOOL LIAISON................................................................................ Ritu Gupta UPPER SCHOOL LIAISON........................................................................Natalie Williams COFFEE IN COURTYARD...............................................................................Susan Silma HALLOWEEN PARTY....................................................................................Kelly Haskins FUNDRAISING...................................................................................................Lisa Dale PAST PARENT REPRESENTATIVE......................................................... Florence Chapman ANNUAL PARENT LUNCHEON.......................................................................Nancy Baker PARENT AMBASSADORS.......................... Carol Port, Sharon Cheng, Matilda Mavroudis, Pam Yoannou, Helen-Claire Tingling, May Wah Lau
2012, the CPA pledged $600,000 to this campaign supporting new libraries and a commons area. All proceeds of CPA fundraising, including the proceeds from the Coyote’s Den, will be directed to this cause for five years or until an earlier date if the pledge can be fulfilled ahead of target. I am pleased to report that the CPA has already contributed over $236,000 toward this goal. The Centennial Scholarship is presently at work supporting the tuition of one Centennial Scholar who enrolled in Upper School last year. Thank you to the many, many Crescent parents whose efforts contributed to making this a reality. Looking forward to the year ahead, we have an enthusiastic and committed group of volunteers, many of whom are new to the CPA. The mix of new and old volunteers promises to bring fresh ideas and experience. This is something we celebrate each year. The CPA will continue to support the School all the while providing parents with the opportunity to connect with one another and have fun. How do I summarize this 300 person strong volunteer organization? It is one which is founded in positive energy and commitment. My nine-year-old daughter suggested I find some “juicy adjectives” to help illustrate the CPA to the many parents past and present. Well, here they are. The CPA is innovative, growing, relevant, friendly and inclusive. Welcome new CPA volunteers to what promises to be a great year. — TARA BORG, CPA PRESIDENT 2013/2014
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What Happens on the Way to a World Championship Win
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hen interviewing five students recently about the monumental FIRST robotics win last spring in St. Louis and the team’s overwhelming experience and the chaotic month that followed, what was revealed in that interview was much more interesting than just a story of a once-in-a-lifetime event.
inadvertently providing the team with the raw materials to build a game-changing attachment. Then, later in the day when elimination from the tournament was imminent, a suggestion from a mentor into the ear of our drivers changed the destiny of Team 610 forever.
The events of that day were, in and of themselves, quite extraordinary: the 27th of April was a day of extreme highs and lows. The success of the team hinged on details that were as miniscule as they were critical. Examples include a sister team playing a prank on the Crescent team by “decorating” their work area with flowers and pink boas and
But two other stories came to light during the interview, and within one of them a robotics reality was revealed. If you are familiar with this world, you may already know how it works. But for those who don’t, it was fascinating to discover that like some Olympic sports, the robotics playing field is not really level— it is simply just the nature of the beast.
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And the third story to emerge was the most unexpected—equally interesting as it is charming. This is the story of the spirit division and how the gentlemen of the robotics team learned how to turn it up a notch by demonstrating some emotion, waving a glow stick, sporting a hoodie with swagger, jumping up-and-down-andaround, and partying a bit—all great practice for a huge win at FIRST Championship. And at the end of the year, the RoboJam was a celebration for students by students that was choreographed beautifully—just like the beautifully choreographed dance of the threerobot-winning-alliance that was the FIRST World Championship Robotics win. Crescent School
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The Robotics Scene: Not an even playing field The world of FIRST high school robotics is composed of students and mentors. These mentors are volunteers who include teachers, engineers, and anyone with or without a background in science, technology, engineering or math who can contribute. Participation ranges, but Crescent has always insisted that the goal of its program is student development and learning—and that means students are participating and doing everything they can themselves, and it is handson. Students lead each division and run and develop the divisions with a mentor there for guidance. In some cases, for other teams, the mentors (in many cases professional engineers) will design the robots and build the components, leaving the students with the assembly of the robot to complete, but with the complex work done by professionals. This is all viable within the FIRST program and is just one way to go about it. This is not the way the Crescent program works. Our mentors are just as involved in the process, but in a different way— one that is focused on student learning. It takes a mentor more time and effort to work beside a student and teach a student how to do something than it would for the mentor to complete the work themselves.
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When you understand what sort of playing field our students are in, their win is even that much more incredible. A good analogy is the Olympics and that of the US men’s basketball team. They most likely will always win the gold medal— their advantage is always that great. And this is almost like the same advantage other FIRST teams give themselves, by allowing adult mentors who are professional engineers to design, build and program their robots, whereas Crescent insists on letting its students complete the build as much as possible and work with mentors as true mentors who teach, and not who do.
The Events of April 27th The robotics season begins with about 2,500 teams from around the world. Only 400 teams qualify for the World Championships by winning a regionallevel competition. While the events leading up to the World Championship Finals (aka Einstein division) are too extensive to cover in this article, we will start with the Finals and go from there. At the World Championships, only 12 teams make it to the Finals. These 12 teams are broken down into four alliances of three teams each. This is like the Final Four in March Madness NCAA basketball. At this stage in Team 610’s journey, Crescent was counting its lucky stars
that they had come this far—so much had been dependent on good luck. For everyone, the dream had been realized; making it to Einstein was it. Anyone at FIRST would agree—you make it to Einstein and the world sees you as one of the best teams, and Crescent was happy being in the top 12; they had proven themselves on a world stage. This accomplishment was already so huge. Crescent and its alliance partners Team 1241 (Rick Hansen Secondary School
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from Mississauga) and Team 1477 (Texas Torque) were ready. But who knew what was still to come. The story was still to unfold. And what a story. Personal assistants suddenly arrived, and towels and water appeared, as the drive team settled down and settled in, knowing they were only two steps away from being world champions. They didn’t know what to expect from the opposing alliance team, because
they had not faced them before. Like every match, it was a best two out of three. They were confident in their strategy, and played it the way they had throughout the tournament, and weren’t surprised when they lost their first match. No one was bothered by this—they had nearly lost all of their first matches, and had learned to think of these as test runs, the opportunity to feel out opponents’ strengths and weaknesses and how they strategized.
During their semi-final match, Crescent used the same strategy and performed extremely well, putting up the highest score of the tournament. To their surprise, when the official score was posted, the opposing team put up an even higher score, and had been declared the winner of the match, eliminating the Crescent team. Team 610 patted themselves on the back, thought wow, what a run for us, and turned to go home; the satisfaction of making it to Einstein had been achieved. But a suggestion from a new mentor to the team (a friend of Mr. Lim’s named Nick Lawrence who was in St. Louis with the team) changed the course of history. While other team members—in the stands and watching from home— thought it strange that the opposing team had scored so high (the score was so incredibly high it seemed odd), the thought of questioning the officiating or scorekeeping and asking for a recount was uncomfortable. But time was of the essence and a decision had to be made quickly; there was only a five minute window. Luckily, Crescent’s alliance Team 1241 had filmed the match, and after a quick review of the video, there was proof that there was a counting error and the officials were alerted. All of a sudden the opposing team (which had already taken the field to start the finals) was pulled from the field and told there was a miscount; it had in fact lost the semi-final match. A third and deciding semi-final match had to be played. Crescent had fresh legs and a new-found momentum and easily won. The rest is Crescent School history.
Spirit Division: The PR Machine Before all of this glory at FIRST Championship, at what point did the Robotics Team realize it had an image problem? It was some time during a competition in 2012 when the team walked onto the stadium floor. Other teams were welcomed with moderate fanfare. But when Crescent hit the floor, there was relative silence compared to the cheers other teams received. It was a bit embarrassing, and Team 610 realized something was missing. Great robot, check, cheering? Wait a minute... 16
Crescent School
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Since 1913
The reality and realization that the team was doing exceptionally well in most practical aspects of robotics was clear, but they were ignoring one important aspect of the program. Because in the big scheme of things, robotics is a culture; FIRST is a culture. And part of that culture was demonstrating team spirit through enthusiasm, cheering and having fun. While the programming and engineering aspects of robotics are what ultimately will win the team the trophy, some Crescent students had to understand and learn that being a team player involves other aspects of sportsmanship. The team had provided counsel to St. Clement’s on other robotics-related issues, so asked for help on this one in return. St. Clement's students held a mandatory workshop for Team 610 one Saturday. And it worked. Shortly after, Crescent won its first Spirit Award. Coincidentally, Crescent also won the tournament. In today’s world, image is everything, and the team’s brand is now known throughout the States due in most part to the championship win. But thanks to the spirit division, having Canadian flags on hand to wave and flutter during tournaments certainly has made a difference in educating the masses in the stands on where these winners are from. Canada doesn’t register on many American teams’ radars, who still refer to FIRST championships [world] as the national championships. The flags—a simple PR tactic—has promoted the team, invigorated spirit and inspired pride. Championship apparel has been distributed to all three alliance teams, and championship rings were produced and made available to any robotics member (alumni, teachers, students) who was interested in purchasing one. Why not? This is how you celebrate something BIG.
Sara Seager who was recently awarded a MacArthur Foundation fellowship (commonly known as a “genius grant”) for her work studying exoplanets. Not many students would recognize her name. But this year at Crescent, the members of the Robotics team were veritable rock stars. The entire community understood the weight of the win; it was the pinnacle— world champions. And boy did we celebrate. There was a media frenzy (with the Toronto Star and CTV), letters from the Mayor and Premier, an invitation to the Prime Minister’s Office, a visit from our Member of Parliament, a formal reception
was held, and RoboJam capped off the year. It was the team’s version of an “after party” to end off the season, with all of the planning being student driven. Rumour has it an original song was composed for this special event. RoboJam included robotics teams from across the GTA being invited to celebrate together so this group of like-minded teens could bask in the glory of a Canadian world championship, FIRST robotics win, and enjoy this time in their lives, right here at Crescent School. We are the champions. Extremely proud of the accomplishment, and now, spirited as well.
But the point is: Crescent is a special place and respect here is a core value. The robotics program is admired, and the students who participate are as valued as members of any sports team, or as admired as the lead actor in the production of the School play. But for most students at other schools, that is not the case. In mainstream culture, Drake, Sidney Crosby and Will Ferrell are recognized as more significant contributors to society than someone like Canadian astrophysicist Past and Present
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Fall 2013
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School Leaders 2013/2014
HEAD BOY
PORTFOLIO PREFECTS
HOUSE PREFECTS
Alex Karayannopoulos
Assembly Hytham Farah
Cartier Tyler Kerdman
HOUSE CAPTAINS
Assembly Eton Ziner-Cohen
Hudson Ryan McCabe
Arts Eric Noble-Marks
Mackenzie Cole Rosenberg
Communications Jordan Grant
Massey Jory Birbrager
Grad Class & Alumni Liaison Barrett Geisler
Simcoe Evan Shibuya
Lower School Liaison Cole Halbert
Wolfe Scott McFarland
Cartier John Mackie, Jack Sexton Hudson Jordan Botines, Dean Perlman Mackenzie Bradley Carlin, Keith McRae Massey Ethan Birbrager, Jason Liebovitz Simcoe Aidan Potts, Jack Hutton
Middle School Liaison Jake Fisher
Wolfe Naveen Gupta, Lucas Verde
Social Trevor Noskiewicz Sports Peter Milazzo Upper School Liaison Alex MacNicol
The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Recipients 2013 GOLD Scott So, Cole Halbert SILVER Jack Hayward, Ben Pitfield, Stefan Losberg, Michael Hatsios, Stefan Whittaker-Lee, Daniel Shane, Chester Davidson, Jonathan Allion
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BRONZE Matthew Riley, James Osborne, Kenneth Chan, Hugh McCauley, Griffin Baker, Grant Lillie, Tyler DiMenna, Sean Webster, Tyler Rose, Colsen Centner, Ryley Mehta, Rick Martell, Jordan Abramsky, Ronald Chow, Michael Kwok, Jeffrey Seto, Jack Evans-Krstajic, Quinton Yau
Crescent School
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Since 1913
Prize Day Lower school awards 2013 ★
★
Sheila Barber Citizenship Awards Grade 3 Will Newall Ethan Silverberg Grade 4 Jack Wallace Will Matthews Grade 5 Ryan Chang Evan Ibbitson Farrell Fitzpatrick Grade 6 Troy Pinkney Edward Morneau Lower School Spirit Awards Grade 3 Ryan Scarlett Jake Weisz Grade 4 Will Christodoulis Connor Colfer Grade 5 Matthew Davis Cameron Overvelde Adam Berry
Past and Present
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Grade 6 Cory Gill Campbell Hunter ★
House Captain Award Ekansh Chandaria
★
CPA Effort Prizes Grade 3 Jack Silverman Andrew Guo Grade 4 Micah Schneider J.T. Dean Grade 5 Michael Farkouh Matthew Lampard Ekansh Chandaria Grade 6 Coulson Wiggan Alistair Bell
★
French Prizes Adam Zufferli
★
Language Arts Prize Aidan deVilla-Choi
★
Art Prize Manvis Xia
Fall 2013
★
Drama Awards Liam Livingstone
★
Music Awards Vocal Spencer Charlton Band Kevin Kwan
★
Mathematics Prize Spencer Soo
★
Coyote Award Tucker Wilson
★
Science Prizes Joonyoung Lee
★
★
Social Studies Prizes Decker Rudka
★
★
Health and Physical Education Award Edward Morneau
★
Valedictorian Andre Corona
★
Proficiency Prizes Grade 3 Luke Devlin Jacob Davidson Grade 4 Christopher Law Andrew Oprescu-Havriliuc
Grade 5 Ian Devlin Andrew Ng Scott Robertson Grade 6 Cory Gill Kyle Chang
★
Philip Ambrose Award Jonathan Voutsas
Board of Governors Boys of Promise Awards Grade 3 Mattias Kim Grade 4 Nicholas deVilla-Choi Grade 5 Charlie Newall Grade 6 Kyle Chang
★
William Burridge Scholarship Caleb Oravecz
David Heaney Character Education Award Jordan Kronis
★
J. Sean Buckley Awards Grade 3 Matthew Quinn Grade 4 Ryan Rakusin Grade 5 Tristan Sharma Grade 6 Will Webster
★
J. W. James Award Andre Corona
★
Colonel J.B. Rogers Trophy Hudson House
★
House Captain’s Cup Cartier House
★
The Lamp of Knowledge Hudson House
★
Dean Voutsas House Cup Massey House
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Prize Day Middle school awards 2013 ★
CPA Effort Prizes Grade 7 Charlie Fisher Grade 8 Andrew Cook
★
Public Speaking Prizes Grade 7 Christian Gnam Grade 8 Yale Sussman
★
Sheila Barber Citizenship Awards Grade 7 Will Bellamy Grade 8 Alex Logan
★
English Prizes Grade 7 Christian Gnam Grade 8 Christian Metivier
★
★
Spirit Awards Grade 7 Alex Malone Grade 8 Kyle Mahoney Anniversary Ties Art Greyden Buchholz Music Charles Ju Drama Yale Sussman
★
John Tansey Award Christian Metivier
★
Art Prizes Grade 7 David Sellers Grade 8 Will McKay
★
Drama Prizes Grade 7 Daniel Goldman Grade 8 Josh Limpert
★
French Prizes Grade 7 Henry James Grade 8 Christian Metivier
★
Creativity and Innovation in Science and Geography Prizes Grade 7 Andy Mavroudis Grade 8 Richard Robinson
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Science and Geography Prizes Grade 7 Max Bennett Grade 8 Kabir Kahlon
★
History Prizes Grade 7 Christopher Witte Grade 8 Elwyn Zhang
★
Mathematics Prizes Grade 7 Jackson Bere Grade 8 Kabir Kahlon
★
★
Mathematics Contest Prizes Grade 7 Ryan Cheng Grade 8 Elwyn Zhang Health and Physical Education Prizes Grade 7 Jared Horwood Grade 8 Kyle Mahoney
AWARDS AND SCHOLARSHIPS ★ Ronald Memorial Award Gabriel Mok ★
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★
Denise Manikas Crescent Spirit Commemorative Award Matthew Kasperavicius
★
Middle School Liaison Award Stefan Losberg
★
Proficiency Prizes Grade 7 Henry James Charlie Fisher Grade 8 Kabir Kahlon Matthew Kasperavicius
★
C.B. Gordon Award Andy Mavroudis
★
Pat McDonnell Award Andrew Youngson
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Bronze Medal of Knowledge Andrew Youngson
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Board of Governors’ Boy of Promise Award Grade 7 Andy Mavroudis Grade 8 Charles Ju
★
J. Sean Buckley Award Grade 7 Matt Jenkins Grade 8 Sam Charlton
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House Captain’s Cup Massey House
★
The Lamp of Knowledge Hudson House
★
Colonel J.B. Rogers Trophy Hudson House
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Dean Voutsas House Cup Massey House
★
William L. Scandrett Award Andrew Youngson
★
The Music Award Grade 7 Nicholas Rockandel Grade 8 Gabriel Mok
★
Middle School Valedictorian Award Andrew Youngson
Director of Admissions Award Cole Turner
Crescent School
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Since 1913
Prize Day Upper school awards 2013 ACADEMIC AWARDS ★ Business Studies Prize Alex McRae ★
★
★
★
Symons Canadian Studies Award Matthew Riley
Vladan Milic/Ontario Association of Architects Award Clement Cheng
★
John Grenfell Wright MC Prize in History Spencer Belyea
Crescent School Staff Prize Austin Stein
★
Philosophy Prize Hytham Farah Eric Noble-Marks
George S. Blodgett Memorial Prize Spencer Belyea
★
The Creative Writing Prize James Chapman
★
CPA Effort Prizes Grade 9 Adam King Alex Johnston Jack Williamson Grade 10 Dean Perlman Jordan Botines John Conlin Grade 11 Cole Rosenberg Jory Birbrager Cole Halbert
★
James Ballard Memorial Award/French Sword Taylor Keating
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Spanish Prize James Chapman
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Geography Prize Alex Tso
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Mathematics Prize Taylor Keating
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Man Family Mathematics Prize Junior Hongyi (Max) Liu Senior Winston Xing
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Jerry Friedman Award Ronald Cho
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Computer Studies Award Warfa Jibril
Burgess Award Hugh McCauley
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Health and Physical Education Award Matthew Crull
Grade 11 Academic Award Jake Fisher
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Silver Medal of Knowledge Hugh McCauley
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Governor General’s Academic Medal Taylor Keating
★
★
★
Science Prize Kevin Chien
★
University of Toronto Book Prize Spencer Belyea
UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER AWARDS ★ Bausch & Lomb Honorary Science Award Jake Fisher ★
★
★
Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony Award in Humanities and Social Sciences Ben Pitfield George Eastman Young Leaders Award and Scholarship Alex MacNicol Xerox Award for Innovation and Information Technology Ryan Tam
Past and Present
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ARTS AND TECHNOLOGY AWARDS ★ Anniversary Ties Grade 9 Music Rick Martell Abhishek Chandaria Omar Elmor Harrison Hui Ryley Mehta Grade 9 Visual Art Matthew Wong Grade 9 Robotics Abhinav Dhar Adrian Chan Edwin Xu Gorav Menon Jamie Kilburn Neal Ganguli Thomas Herring Ryan Harrs Tyler Young
Fall 2013
Grade 10 Music Winston Xing Sam Goh Ross Hilliard Mark Richardson Grade 10 Robotics Joseph Kachura Alex Coburn Max Liu Tyler DiMenna Grade 11 Model UN Eton Ziner-Cohen Grade 11 Chemistry Education Research Michael Kwok Grade 11 Business Team Competition David Cai James Weiss Ryan Walderman Grade 11 Music Ryan Jang Hytham Farah Rob Youngson Grade 11 Robotics Nick Haughton Nikesh Pandey Grade 11 Visual Arts Sean Chung Grade 12 Diversity Council Caleb Williams Grade 12 Music Luke Doerge Matthew Kowal ★
Art Prize Kelvin Li
★
Drama Award Christopher Morritt
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Technical Merit Award Kevin Chien
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Appoggiatura/Music Prize Kevin Chien
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Ronald Memorial Upper School Music Prize Tally Ferraro
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Norris Family Robotics and Technology Award Austin Bianchini Warfa Jibril
HOUSE AWARDS ★ House Captain’s Cup Cartier House ★
Colonel J.B. Rogers Trophy Hudson House
★
The Lamp of Knowledge Hudson House
★
Dean Voutsas House Cup Massey House
COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARDS ★ Ian Roberts Community Service Award Kevin Chien ★
★
Lieutenant Governor’s Community Volunteer Award Nicholas Lao Bruce M. Hicks Public Service Award Cole Halbert
CHARACTER AND LEADERSHIP AWARDS ★ Board of Governors Awards Grade 9 Gorav Menon Neal Ganguli Grade 10 Alex Coburn Aidan Potts Grade 11 Eric Noble-Marks Cole Rosenberg ★
Dentonia Scholarships Vlas Chekhovtsov
★
Ron Bertram/Quill and Quire Award Kevin Chien
★
Headmaster’s Medal Alex Johnston
★
Founders Award Naveen Gupta
★
Graduating Class Trophy Tim Melis
★
G. H. Corolis Crescent Spirit Commemorative Nicholas Lao
★
W.R.E. Williams Award Jeffrey Carlin
★
Osler Trophy Giorge Voutsas Jack Hayward
★
Thom Family Award Stefan Losberg
★
Susan Denton Massey Award Toms Black
★
Old Boys Watch Jack Hayward
★
Board of Governors Medal Jack Hayward
★
Head Boy Pin Alex Karayannopoulos
GRADUATION DAY AWARDS ★ Board of Governors Award Kevin Chien ★
Mathieu Wong Award Connor Bevans Adam Scott
★
Effort Award Nicholas Mehta
★
Crestissimus Crescentium (Improvement Award) Keith Myers
★
Valedictorian Stefan Losberg
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Athletic Awards Spring Term 2013 SPORT
TEAM DISTINCTIONS
BADMINTON Senior MVP—Bernie Yeung, Quinton Yau Junior MIP—Danny Liu Coaches Choice Award—Matthew Tang U14 MVP—Charles Lit U14 Coaches Choice Award— Christopher Howard GOLF Senior MVP—Tyler May Coaches Choice Award—Sean Chung Junior MVP—Will Leak Coaches Choice Award– Nicolas Corbett RUGBY *The Dave LaForest Memorial Senior Rugby Award: Colin Williams * Senior Rookie of the Year— forward Scott McFarland, back Jack Hayward MVP—Peter Milazzo Wounded Warrior Award—Ryan Reeson Junior MVP—Ben Goldstein Coaches Choice Award—Alex Coburn U14 Most Outstanding Player—Andrew Youngson Game Changer Award—Devan Hunter Mr. Consistency Award—Nick Lehoczky Heart Award—Frank Kelly Leadership Award—Carter Brown U13 Most Dedicated Player—Owen Cumming MIP—Grant Chesney Heart Award—Charlie Fisher SOFTBALL U14 DI MVP—Eric Cislak Coaches Choice Award—Ryan Boyd U14 DII MVP—Jeff Liebovitz MIP—Victor Kobayashi U12 MVP—Ty Sullivan MIP—Evan Ibbitson
SPORT
TEAM DISTINCTIONS
TENNIS
Senior MVP—Matt Erdman Coaches Choice Award—Liam Caven, Geoffrey Sculthorpe Junior MVP—Jason Liebovitz Team Spirit Award—Colsen Centner U14 MVP—Zack Erdman MIP—Marc Flekei TRACK & FIELD Senior MVP—William Christodoulou Lofty Heights Award—Nicholas Mehta Coaches Choice Award—Matthew Corolis Junior MIP—Christopher Fournaris MID MVP—Ryley Mehta Coaches Choice Award—Abhinav Dhar Leaper Extraordinaire—Deen Choudhury U14 MVP—Rees Ferguson MIP—Christian Metivier U13 MVP—Andy Mavroudis Coaches Choice Award—Taylor Eccleston U12 Coaches Choice Award—Will Webster, Max Walters U11 MVP—Rhys Holman Coaches Choice Award—Matthew Bisset U10 MVP—Jack Wallace Coaches Choice Award—Will Matthews ULTIMATE FRISBEE D1 MVP—Tim Melis Coaches Choice Award—Austin Bianchini D2 MVP—Michael Jaunkalns MIP—Ross Hilliard BASEBALL Batting Title—Lucas Verde Money Ball Award—Spencer Belyea Rookie of the Year—Matthew Jenkins Cy Young Award—Matthew Kowal
Athlete of the Year Awards: UPPER SCHOOL
Lawson Athlete of the Year Award Will Christodoulou, Jack Hayward
Fitzpatrick Award Alex Gerlings
MIDDLE SCHOOL
Athlete of the Year Award Devan Hunter
Lachowicz Award Eric Cislak
LOWER SCHOOL
Duane Livingstone Athlete of the Year Award Ty Sullivan
Wylie Coyote Award Troy Pinkney
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Crescent School
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Since 1913
Athletic Achievements Spring Term 2013 Rugby U13—CISAA Champions U14—CISAA Silver Medalists Senior—CISAA Semi-Finalists
Tennis U14—2nd place CISAA Junior—3rd place CISAA Senior—3rd place CISAA
Badminton U14—CISAA Champions Junior—3rd place CISAA
Baseball 2nd place East 2nd place Welland Tournament
Softball U12—CISAA Silver Medalists U14 D1—CISAA Silver Medalists
Ultimate D1—CISAA Silver Medalists Spirit Trophy Winners
Track & Field U12—3rd place 4X100m U11—CISAA Champions U11—1st place (CISAA record) 4X100m Midget—3rd place CISAA U10—1st place 4x100m
Golf Junior—CISAA Champions Senior—3rd place CISAA
Noteworthy CISAA Accomplishments Tennis: Matt Erdman – 1st Singles, champion Reid Bianchini – 2nd Singles, 3rd place Jake Erdman and Asher Weiss – 1st Doubles, 2nd place
Track and Field: U10 Connor Colfer – 1st place, Shot Put Owen Coulter – 3rd place, HJ U11 Rhys Holman – 1st place, 800m (CISAA record); 2nd place, 100m; 2nd place, 400m
Past and Present
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Fall 2013
Tate Wilson – 3rd place, 800m Caleb Oravecz – 3rd place, TJ Greydon Newell – 3rd place, Discus U12 Will Webster – 3rd place, 200m Jack Duboc – 1st place, TJ U13 Jackson Bere – 1st place, TJ; 3rd place, 80m Hurdles; 3rd place, LJ Andy Mavroudis – 2nd place, HJ MIDGET Abhinav Dhar – 3rd place, 800m
Ryley Mehta – 1st place, PV; 2nd place, 800m; 2nd place, 1500m Ray Kang – 2nd place, 100m Hurdles Deen Choudhury – 1st place, LJ; 1st place, TJ SNR Matthew Corolis – 3rd place, 200m; 3rd place, 400m Hurdles Nicholas Mehta – 1st place, PV Will Christodoulou – 1st place, Javelin; 1st place, Discus
OFSAA Nicholas Mehta – 14th place, PV Will Christodoulou – Gold Medal, Javelin
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The Most Important Room at Crescent
L
ast year was a significant year for the School as we celebrated our centennial, but the Drawing Room itself had a noteworthy year. The Drawing Room received more than 200 visitors during Doors Open Toronto on May 25. Crescent participated for the first time in this city-wide celebration of Toronto’s architecturally, historically and culturally significant buildings.
The Manor was built in 1931 by Frank P. Wood and in his home sat what became
24
the AGO’s permanent European collection. Wood donated his personal art holdings to the gallery upon his death in 1955. In what is now Crescent’s Drawing Room, there once hung a Renoir, a Hals and a van Dyck as well as many other European master works of art. Wood’s daughter rejected a van Gogh, and the painting was returned to the dealer. Visitors to Crescent loved hearing these fascinating anecdotes and interesting facts about the history of art collecting in our city.
Just as exciting has been an updated look in the Drawing Room that is elegant, welcoming and warm. The Drawing Room plays an important role in the lives of all Crescent families. It is the room in which families wait to meet with the admissions team when first visiting Crescent, where parents wait during their son’s interview and where new parent dinners are hosted; it is the room they remember the most. That is why it was important to update the room’s décor in order to continue to make the Drawing Room a special place for families to feel comfortable and welcome. An internal design team consisting of Headmaster Geoff Roberts, Executive Assistant Carmela Casuccio and Director of Human Resources Stephanie Holtforster worked from their own experience, great taste and design know-how this summer to achieve just that. Antiques from Dentonia Park were refinished, solid existing furniture pieces were reupholstered, and statement pieces were brought in new. Overall, the room is a quiet oasis in the heart of the School ready to receive parents and prospective families and welcoming every boy of promise. Crescent School
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Since 1913
News from Advancement H
as anyone seen Hyland Hall recently? The only answer to that is a resounding, “No!” The aging gym/theatre/dance hall will be fondly remembered by alumni for assemblies featuring Mr. Cumner in a dizzying array of costumes, clandestine after-hours games of tag in the rafters, and Middle School dances in which boys and girls lined up on opposing sides, locked in standoff until a brave few ventured to the centre for the inevitably awkward slow dances. Outmoded in its utility and in need of a complete overhaul, Hyland Hall went out, in the immortal words of T.S. Eliot, “not with a bang but a whimper.” The building was taken down piece by piece over the summer of 2013 to make way for what promises to be a truly transformational learning space at Crescent School. Like many of the new capital projects provided by the Great Boys campaign, the Library will offer numerous types of study and research space to meet the varied needs of our Middle and Upper School students. With individual study areas, breakout rooms for small group work, large spaces to accommodate entire classes and ample analog and
Past and Present
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Fall 2013
digital resources, we are constructing a Library for the 21st century. Books, online resources and teacher-librarian expertise all have a part to play in today’s study and research landscape, and we are keen to hone that multi-pronged approach in our students to best prepare them for university and beyond. Our goal is to nurture the research skills and ease of library navigation that will enable every Crescent alumnus to step confidently into his university library, with full capability to access the information that he needs. Additionally, the new CPA Amphitheatre—generously supported by a $600,000 commitment from the Crescent Parent Association—will provide an inviting entrance to the Library that will double as a gathering and performance area. The scheduled Library opening date is fall of 2014. Our top fundraising priority for the coming year is to finish funding the Library and Latifi Family Commons, the latter of which will transform the existing Library into prominent, dedicated space for University Counselling and Crescent Student Services. Combined, these final Great Boys building projects have a total cost of $13
million, and we have secured $9 million in Major Gifts commitments thus far. There is a total of $4 million left to raise for both new spaces, plus there are smaller outstanding goals to reach for programmatic priorities that include International Outreach, Robotics and Technology and Crescent Student Services/Research and Development in Boys’ Education. We are deeply grateful to the entire Crescent community, and particularly to the 66 families who have already made Major Gift commitments to the Great Boys campaign, for their role in bringing us to over $27 million raised to date. With the generosity of even more parents, alumni, grandparents and past parents, we are confident we will reach our $30 million goal this year, and we sincerely thank all donors for their investment in our boys. For more information on ways to make a gift, please contact John Lynch, Chief Advancement Officer, at jlynch@ crescentschool.org. To make a secure Great Boys campaign contribution online, please visit greenroom.crescentschool.org/ donate.
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Message from the Chair of the Crescent Alumni Executive and will provide the foundation for the Alumni Executive’s overall mandate for the next five years. While the feedback from the survey will undoubtedly present some new information, there are a few essential strategic objectives that will remain constant. The first objective is to consistently strive towards strengthening the relationship with Crescent School and the alumni. This, in particular, has been a primary focus for the alumni in the past, and today, more alums are getting involved in the day-to-day life at Crescent School than ever before. The second
Rob Watt ’85 (P’14) CURRICULUM VITAE
PERSONAL
» born in 1966 in Toronto » met his wife of 22 years, Lea Anne, at McGill in 1985
» one son at Crescent, 17-year-old Jack
I
am pleased to report another successful launch of the 2013 Crescent Alumni Executive (CAE) Board. On September 10, our executive board of 12 Crescent School alumni ranging from the class of ’57 to the class of ’02 met around the table of the Board Room in the Centre for Creative Learning to commence the new year. A new academic year equates to a new year for the Executive, which means new committee mandates, exciting and new program changes and events for alumni.
I have been a member of the Crescent Alumni Executive since 2009. Originally a Member-at-Large, I assumed the roles of Chair of the Fundraising Committee, Chair of the Alumni Campaign Cabinet and last year, Chair of the Class Representative Committee. Crescent has played an integral part of my life, and I am honoured and excited to move into my next phase in my Crescent alumni career as the Chair of the Alumni Executive. The Alumni Executive has been led by 14 different Chairs in the past, each one 26
bringing his own unique passion and leadership style to the table, but all with the same goal in mind—to serve Crescent and the alumni community. The sole purpose of the Executive is to develop programs, opportunities and events for Crescent alumni that are wrapped around the pillars of professional and personal development, socializing, networking and remaining connected to the School and to each other. Typically, during the summer, the Chair, with the assistance of the Alumni Relations Officer, drafts the mandate for the upcoming year. This year, we approached things differently due to the impending results of the alumni survey, which was distributed to the alumni community in March 2013. From March until the end of August, the School, in partnership with the Alumni Executive, worked with an independent consultant to execute the survey. By the end of the summer we had over 450 alumni responses. The draft survey results will be available this fall, and the responses will be presented to the Alumni Executive and the Crescent Board of Governors
’14, and one daughter at Havergal College, 14-year-old Caroline » lives in Wanless Park » spends about 30+ weekends a year at his cottage in Muskoka
EDUCATION
» graduated from McGill with a
bachelor in engineering; followed by a masters in engineering at Western University
CAREER
» 16 years ago he co-founded the
DMS Group (one of Canada’s largest property/land management companies)
FAVOURITES
» place to holiday: St. Simons Island in Georgia
» food: fried oyster Po’ boy » pastime: duck hunting each fall with Jack
» team: Green Bay Packers and Georgia Bulldogs
» Crescent memory: winning the sevena-side rugby tournament in 1985
» subject: physics » teacher: Doc Atkinson
Crescent School
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Since 1913
objective is to further enhance alumni opportunities after graduation, with the goal of engaging and fostering stronger relationships with the alumni and with each other. And, thirdly, to continue to encourage alumni to give back to the their alma mater in whatever capacity they can. Since graduating in 1985, Crescent has remained a key part of my life through
friendships, business partnerships and my own son’s experience as a Crescent student. Experiencing firsthand the many positive changes that have taken place on campus, I know for certain that one constant that Crescent has maintained year after year is that the School proudly graduates Men of Character. In June 2014, my wife Lea Anne and
I will watch our son, Jack, graduate. I am optimistic that the alumni network that is established at Crescent School will ensure that Jack is well supported and that his relationship with Crescent School will continue to grow long after he graduates. — ROB WATT '85, (P'14)
CresCenT aLUMnI eXeCUTIve 2013/2014 Chair Board Members
Rob Watt ’85, (P’14) (Chair, Class Representative Program) Bruce Burgess ’57 (Dentonia Representative) Ryan Bell ’98 (Faculty Liasion) Chris Candy ’02 (Chair, Marketing & Branding Committee) Jamie Coulter ’87 (P’21) (Co-Chair, Alumni Internship Program) Andrew Day ’80 Hessam Ghadaki ’99 (Chair, Activities Committee) Jamie Lougheed ’87 Myles Slocombe ’92 Jason Steel ’93 (Chair, Mentoring Program) Tim Usher-Jones ’01 (Chair, Fundraising Committee) Tim Watson ’01 (Chair, Governance & Nomination)
STUDENT FINANCIAL AID AT CRESCENT SCHOOL Crescent School offers needs- and meritbased financial assistance to deserving Boys of Promise who qualify under the terms of each award. For the 2014/2015 school year, the following opportunities are available:
Financial need is evaluated by Apple Financial Services, a third-party financial assessment firm. For more information on scholarships and bursaries, please contact Chris White,
Grade 7 entry: B.B. Boden Scholarship (full tuition) Two Headmaster’s Merit Awards (maximum value of $17,500 each) Two Financial Aid Awards (maximum value of $10,000 each) Grade 9 entry: Two Dentonia Scholarships (maximum value of full tuition each) Two Financial Aid Awards (maximum value of $10,000 each)
Past and Present
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Fall 2013
Director of Admission and Financial Aid, at cwhite@crescentschool.org or 416-449-2556 x228. The application deadline for this year is December 6. applefinancialservices.ca crescentschool.org/admissions
27
Alumnus of the Year 2013 Award Recipients
Alan Diner ’87 is recognized for the tremendous work he has accomplished in the public and private sector and in the community. Alan’s success in building a Canadian immigration practice for Baker & McKenzie LLP is noteworthy, and his tireless work in the community is reflective of the kind and generous person he is. A recent recipient of the Queen’s Jubilee Medal by the City of Markham for his outstanding community volunteerism, Alan was instrumental in the initial inception and development of the Class of ’87/Pat Mills Family Bursary Fund in support of student financial aid, which has made the class of ’87 the most generous class in Crescent’s history.
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Cam Heaps ’92, co-founder of Steam Whistle Brewing, is honoured as a 2013 Alumnus of the Year for his outstanding success in building Steam Whistle Brewing into one of Canada’s leading breweries. Due to Cam’s tireless commitment, Steam Whistle Brewing is considered a national brand and has been named one of Canada’s Top Employers for Young People. Cam has also been the recipient of various personal awards and accolades. He was recognized by another alma mater, Wilfrid Laurier University, as one of its distinguished 100 Alumni of Achievement. Cam and his business partner were recognized as “Entrepreneurs of the Year” by Ernst and Young. Cam has also been a tireless supporter of Crescent School through sponsorship at the Crescent School Golf Tournament, Centennial Party, Friday Night Lights and other initiatives.
Robbie Mitchnick ’09 has earned a place among our 2013 Alumnus of the Year in recognition of his tremendous success at Queen’s University. Robbie achieved the distinction of standing first overall in his class for his four consecutive years in Queen’s Commerce Program. He graduated from Queen’s with both his BComm and his BA in Economics. In addition, Robbie was the CEO of the Queen’s University Investment Counsel (QUIC), where the $600,000 he and his team managed outperformed the market by 4.4 per cent last year. Robbie has been a continuous supporter of Crescent as a young alum. He is often involved in mentoring the Middle and Upper School students, has participated in the speaker series, sits on the Headmaster’s Search Committee, and is a representative for the Class of 2009.
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Dr. Greg Wells PhD ’89, Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education, Department of Anaesthesia at the University of Toronto and Associate Scientist in Physiology and Experimental Medicine at The Hospital for Sick Children, has earned his spot as an Alumnus of the Year in recognition of his tremendous success in his profession. A scientist who specializes in extreme human physiology, Greg has made tremendous inroads in the field of “exercise medicine,” where he uses specific exercise protocols to test the limitations of the human body in various diseases. He was the host of the GeminiAward winning Superbodies segments for Canada’s national Olympic broadcast in 2010 and the on-camera sport science and sport medicine analyst for the CTV Broadcast Consortium, ABC News and ABC’s 20/20 during the 2010 and 2012 Olympics. He is also the author of Superbodies: Peak Performance Secrets from the World’s Best Athletes, a book which decodes the science behind the Olympic performance to understand the magic of the human body and offers tips for people of all ages and abilities to improve their health and fitness. Greg is a great supporter of Crescent School, providing summer internships to one of our young alums through the Alumni Internship Program, and providing ongoing support to Crescent’s Athletics Department.
University Placements Ontario
Overseas
Queen’s University....................................21 The University of Western Ontario.........18 Wilfrid Laurier University............................9 University of Waterloo................................4 McMaster University...................................3 University of Toronto..................................2 Carleton University.....................................1 Brock............................................................1 Ryerson University......................................1
University of St Andrews............................2
Gap year...........................................3
Other provinces McGill University.......................................10 Dalhousie University...................................5 The University of British Columbia...........3
United States Adelphi University......................................1 Brown University.........................................1 Carnegie Mellon University.......................1 Cornell University.......................................1 Dartmouth College....................................1 Wake Forest University...............................1 Past and Present
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Greg Sacks ’91 and Sean Hoff ’02
Alumni
Profile
T
o travel is to live, and for Greg Sacks ’91 and Sean Hoff ’02, no statement could ever be truer.
Greg and Sean live, work and breathe travel. It’s what they do; it’s who they are. Greg and Sean are two Crescent alumni whose independent love for travel has not only led them down unique career paths, but also to an unlikely partnership. Greg is Co-Founder and Director at Trufflepig, a custom trip planning company based out of Toronto, while Sean is the Founder and Managing Partner at Moniker Partners, an organization that focuses on corporate incentive travel and leadership retreats. Over 10 years apart in age, Greg has taken on the role of mentor to Sean, and today they share office space from which they run their respective companies. With a little bit of help from the alumni network and a lot of persistence, hard work and determination, Greg and Sean have carved out a niche for themselves within the Crescent alumni community that sets them apart from the rest. After graduating from Crescent in 1991, Greg moved out of province and attended McGill University to pursue a degree in psychology. After university, he worked for Butterfield and Robinson as a bike guide leading tours in countries including France, Cuba, Argentina, and Morocco. Greg then left in 2000 to embark on a new career path as a photographer, where he spent some time in Montreal filming a documentary with a friend, until he was hired by Cirque du Soleil and spent three years touring with them and running VIP events. In 2003, Greg returned to Butterfield and Robinson and worked at head office building custom trips for highend clientele. It was during this time that 30
Greg really found his niche. In 2004, with colleagues Charlie Scott and Jack Dancy, and with the blessing of the partners at Butterfield and Robinson, he left his job to found Trufflepig. It was an enormous leap of faith, Greg recalls, but realizing his own ambitions and with years of experience, travelling, photographing and trip planning, he knew it was the right time to venture out on his own. If everything else was unknown at the time, the name and the philosophy of the company had been determined. Charlie Scott had come up with the company’s title, Trufflepig, prior to leaving their jobs. A truffle pig is a hog used to find truffles (rare mushrooms) in temperate forests. Using their strong sense of smell, these hogs sniff out the rare mushrooms, which are then sold at a premium in the culinary world. Charlie identified with these pigs and felt that as custom-trip planners they, too, had to use their senses to unearth the gems and unknown attractions in other countries. Their
philosophy was, and continues to be, to seek, unearth and extract the best the world has to offer in experiences, not focusing on price, but worth. In its infancy, life for the founders at Trufflepig was not glamorous. They rented a small apartment in Kensington Market which also acted as their office. Living on the cheap, they were unable to afford Internet service and would drive around in an old Saab looking for a Wi-Fi signal they could borrow. Like any other start-up, the first few years were tough, but the three partners were determined to succeed. In the beginning, they spent as much time in Toronto writing and rewriting their business plan as they did travelling around the world on trips, researching local towns, gathering names of unique hotels, determining the best restaurants and mapping out the most effective travel routes. Every trip they offered was one a founder had experienced firsthand, for they felt Crescent School
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it important to be able to personally speak to the specifics of the trip they were crafting for a client—something Trufflepig still promises. Today, Trufflepig is a well-known travel planning company in Toronto, with approximately 70 per cent of their clients repeat customers. In fact, Trufflepig spends no money on advertising and marketing because word of mouth brings new business their way all the time. They have guides, or “pigs,” in over 35 countries, and although they still make it a priority to see the world, today the co-founders are primarily situated in Toronto running the business. Greg, who is Trufflepig’s African expert, makes a point of travelling three to four times a year, but with a two-year-old daughter at home now, the length of each trip has decreased drastically. A company that once only consisted of three has now grown to over 13 located in Toronto and throughout the world. The apartment in Kensington is long gone, as is their Saab, and the new headquarters are at Bathurst and King in what used to be an old garment factory. The décor can only be described as worldly, for the office space is decorated with pieces they have collected over the years on their trips, including two antiqued worn brown leather chairs bought for c50 total in Ireland and eventually brought over to Toronto. The service clients receive from Trufflepig is world class, and virtually every request can be fulfilled. A visit to their website will not only transport you half way around the world via photos from their travels, but will also outline in full detail the services they provide. Trufflepig is much more than a travel agency; a glance through the client comments will further highlight the firstPast and Present
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rate attention that each client receives. For the “pigs,” no request is too big or outlandish—they’ve been there and done it—and multifaceted, tiered trips are their specialty. While Greg and his partners were in the process of building Trufflepig into the company that it is today, young alum Sean Hoff was just setting out in the world. An individual whose interests were always piqued by travel, Sean graduated from Crescent in 2002 and began to study for a career in finance at Western University, where he completed a degree in finance and administration.
During his summers, he took advantage of the time off and traveled abroad on working-holidays, and ended up taking on fun jobs to cover his travel expenses, like being a hotel bartender in Galway, Ireland. After graduation, he turned his attention towards working in the travel industry and pitched the idea of building the student division for a large travel company back home in Canada. Over the next year, he spent a lot of time in the Caribbean and Mexico managing trips and strengthening the new business, but decided he wanted to go back to school and set off abroad once again. In 31
and launched the new company, calling it Moniker Partners.
2007, he moved to Barcelona to study at the ESADE Business School, obtained a master’s degree in marketing, and completed an internship in Dubai. From there he traveled to Paris and studied at the HEC School of Management, where he graduated with a second master’s, this time in International Management—a field he felt would fit in well with his ambitions. Sparked by his experience abroad, Sean realized there was nothing more that he enjoyed than immersing himself in foreign cultures, eating local food, and meeting new people. However, at the back of his mind, he felt he was being steered towards working in the finance and banking industry back home in Toronto. In 2011, he did just that by securing a position as an International Associate at Scotia Capital, with an eye to move to their Latin American offices with his new-found Spanish skills he picked up in Barcelona. For over three years, Sean worked in the investments world in both Canada and South America but was never quite satisfied with his position and felt something was missing. Though his friends and family insisted he had a good situation going, Sean felt that if he continued down the career path he was on he wouldn’t end up happy or fulfilled. Coming to that realization, Sean started reaching out to people he knew in the travel industry, and a friend mentioned that he should contact the founders of Trufflepig. Tucking that information into his back pocket, Sean spent that very same evening on the Crescent School Alumni’s Online Alumni Mentoring Database and coincidentally came across Greg Sacks’ name—who just so 32
happened to be one of the co-founders of Trufflepig! Not having known this connection beforehand and inspired by what Greg was doing, Sean saw this as the perfect opportunity to reach out to the Trufflepig founder. Two weeks later, Sean was enjoying a couple of beverages with Greg out by the Beaches and picking his brain about the travel industry. Sean had already built the framework of what he wanted to do, and Greg was impressed with the passion and ideas Sean had. The idea was to leverage Sean’s understanding of the Bay Street culture and combine it with his passion for travel and planning trips. Today, Sean credits Greg for encouraging him to leave his secure position at the bank and taking the leap. However, recalling his personal experience when starting Trufflepig, Greg made sure to forewarn Sean that it wouldn’t be easy and there would be rocky times—but if the passion was there, it would be beneficial to stick through it. Greg first encouraged Sean to take some time off and fully immerse himself in the business before making any huge decisions. On the heels of Greg’s advice and utilizing some connections he made, Sean took a three month leave of absence from Scotia Capital and got his hands dirty working as a bike tour guide for Butterfield and Robinson in France and Spain—a far cry from the suit and tie environment back home! This experience gave Sean the final push he needed to seriously consider launching his own business. When he arrived home, he went back to work for Scotia Capital during the day and at night he built his business plan. In April 2013, Sean officially resigned from Scotia Capital
Moniker Partners is a trip planning company that focuses on the corporate world, falling somewhere between a full service travel agency and corporate event planner. They plan and manage unique Incentive Travel programs across the globe and coordinate meetings, offsites, and corporate events like conferences or product launches anywhere in the world. Moniker Partners will cater to the needs of the client, handling everything from booking flights, hotels and meeting space, down to smaller details like restaurant reservations, entertainment, and unique excursions to add to the overall trip experience. Sean’s understanding of the business world and his love for travel blend together to create unforgettable work trips that merge business needs with leisure activities. Renting space from Trufflepig, Sean’s office is conveniently placed across the hall from Greg, which has only further enhanced his experience and given him a convenient mentor a stone’s throw away. While Greg and Trufflepig are wellestablished, the newly arranged partnership between these Crescent alumni has been equally beneficial. Sean credits the alumni mentoring database and Crescent alumni network for playing a key role in facilitating the first steps towards building a strong working relationship with Greg, who has become a mentor for him. Greg has been pivotal in helping Sean make key decisions, who often finds himself across the hall in the Trufflepig office asking questions and seeking advice, something that Greg is only happy to facilitate. Similarly, since Sean’s company tackles the corporate world, Sean is able to refer some of his clients to Trufflepig for personal trips and has provided an open door into the corporate world for Trufflepig, a market that Greg and his partners have been eager to explore. Greg and Sean are examples of two successful Crescent alumni who took a path less travelled, who threw caution to the wind by exploring and subsequently working in an industry they were passionate about and believed they would be successful in. To learn more about Trufflepig and Moniker Partners, please visit their respective websites at trufflepig.com and monikerpartners.com. Crescent School
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Christian Hepfer ’91 & Family’s Trufflepig Experience
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lanning a two-week trip anywhere in the world can be a stressful undertaking. There’s the flight, the hotels, the excursions, the train tickets, the car rentals, not to mention drastic time changes. Layers upon layers of extensive logistical planning need to take place to ensure that when the holiday finally begins, everything and everyone is fully accounted for. So, when Christian Hepfer ’91 and his wife Anne wanted to take their family of six on a trip to New Zealand in March 2013, you can only imagine the anxiety they faced when they started planning. Parents of two sets of twins— identical seven-year-old boys, Jack and Charles, and four-year-old fraternal twins, Amelia and Alexander, Christian and Anne knew that this trip would have to cater to the needs of not only the twins, but the adults as well. Oh, and to just add another layer of complexity to the trip, they were meeting Christian’s parents in Auckland.
would ease their minds and take over the planning of the trip. Classmates from Crescent School, Christian and Greg had lost touch, but Christian used this as an opportunity to reconnect. One phone call later, and after some much needed reminiscing and catching up, Greg instantly knew that he could help the Hepfers and did so by connecting them with Mike, Trufflepig’s “pig” for New Zealand.
At a dinner party one evening, while talking about their planned adventure, a friend mentioned that they should reach out to Greg Sacks ’91, co-founder and director at Trufflepig. Greg, this individual proclaimed,
Although it is certainly difficult to list only a handful, Christian notes that some of the highlights of the trip include visiting Hobbiton (the movie set for the Lord of the Rings trilogy), a helicopter flight from
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Mike, trip planner extraordinaire, organized a once-in-a-lifetime experience that the Hepfer family will never forget. From booking the flights, organizing the meet-up with Christian’s parents in Auckland, booking a self-driven 12 person mini-bus, as well as including every imaginable adventure, sightseeing jaunt and tourist attraction one would ever want to do when in New Zealand, Mike did it all. What thrilled Christian and Anne the most about Trufflepig was the effort Mike put towards building a custom trip suitable for the needs of the family.
Queenstown to Milford Sound and a visit to a traditional Maori village, and some wine tasting—adults only, of course—in Hawkes Bay. After a whirlwind two weeks, the Hepfer family arrived home, exuberant and extremely satisfied with their vacation. So, it was no surprise that in June, when Christian and Anne were due to celebrate their 10 year wedding anniversary, they turned to Trufflepig again to plan a trip to Italy that combined luxury with elements of adventure. One of the highlights of this trip was the Sentiero Degli Dei, the Path of the Gods, a six hour hike along the Amalfi coast, a lesser known attraction to most tourists in Italy but an experience that Christian and Anne won’t ever forget. With a life that can only be described at the best of times as hectic, Trufflepig has made an everlasting positive impression on the Hepfers. The convenience, the attention to detail, and the support they received was simply priceless. A trip planning service that the Hepfers will recommend to their friends for years to come, there is no doubt in their minds that when it comes time to plan the next Hepfer family adventure, Trufflepig will be there every step of the way! 33
Jonathan Norris ’07, Cobi Druxerman ’02, Aaron Glazer ’02, Andrew Norris ’03
Alumni
Profile
The world of technology moves at a dizzying pace. Smart phones, computers and tablets are considered new until the next version makes the last one obsolete. And now an industry in its infancy (at only five-years-old) is having an enormous impact on the way we live. Apps have changed the way we interact, shop, game, work and communicate. Andrew Norris ’03, Jonathan Norris ’07, Cobi Druxerman ’02 and Aaron Glazer ’02 live and breathe this world. They founded Syrp Inc. in Toronto, and have immersed themselves in the domain of app development—a rapidly changing, fast paced industry. 34
Each of the Syrp founders plays a key role in the company. Jonathan is responsible for the tech side, starting the company with his brother, Andrew, after graduating from Queen’s in 2011 with a B.Sc. in mechanical engineering, while Cobi’s portfolio focuses on sales and marketing. Cobi was entrepreneurial from the time he graduated from Queen’s in 2008 with a bachelor of commerce, evidenced in the success of his gourmet grilled cheese restaurant The Construction Site—a popular hotspot now located in Sherway Gardens. Aaron is responsible for the operations and tech side of things, graduating like the others from Queen’s in 2006 with a B.Sc. in mechanical engineering. He then completed his MBA at Rotman in 2010. Andrew is responsible for the finance and business development side
of Syrp. Previously an analyst at Shaw Communications, Andrew graduated from Queen’s in 2007 with a B.Sc. in mechanical engineering. Together, these Crescent alumni, alongside their advisors, make up what can only be described as a dream team for the industry of which they are a part. Andrew, Jonathan, Cobi, and Aaron were all Crescent students involved in the FIRST Robotics program, and now as professionals, they have been working together since March 2012. Currently situated in the MaRS building at University and College, their day is spent around a couple of desks with MacBooks and mobile devices. They sit in what is called the MaRS Commons, a collaborative workspace within the MaRS facility. Their days are spent brainstorming or out in Crescent School
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meetings with investors and potential clients. But evenings are spent at home coding and programming, usually into the wee hours. Syrp was initially launched in 2011 by brothers Jonathan and Andrew whose entrepreneurial flair and love for technology spearheaded the start-up. The first app they developed was Cloud
Photos. Available on iTunes for $1.99, this photo management application keeps mobile photos organized in the cloud, while saving up to 40x the space on the user’s phone. This app also allows the user to share and sync photo albums with family and friends. A few months later, Cobi and Aaron joined the team. Shortly after that they released an app called Jukeboxer, a free social music game offering the user the ability to preview a song, record an interpretation of the song, and send it to their friends. Part of the fun included friends having to guess what song it was.
industries, such as web development. Until recently, app designers brought the needs of a client to app developers. They then worked separately to develop one product for the client. This process was time consuming. If there was a change to be made (in the font for example) it could take two weeks for the designer and developer to coordinate the change.
and Aaron, Andrew and Jonathan were team leaders during their Grad year. They believe the program was a powerful outlet through which to engage their passions for engineering and technology. Recently, Jonathan was a mentor for the FIRST Robotics championship team and travelled with students this year to St. Louis for the championships.
As developers, waiting for designers was a luxury they could not afford. But then the developers at Sryp realized they didn’t have to.
“At Crescent, Robotics was our life for six weeks of build season and the competition weeks that followed,” Jonathan recalls. “FIRST Robotics shows you how much a passionate group of individuals can accomplish in a short period of time. Learning to manage that time crunch, and execute on your ideas quickly, translates very well to the real world. It helps prepare you for the same constraints of entrepreneurship.”
Through this experience, they went about developing a service that provided the freedom to fix and update an app in real time. It sounds zany to develop an app for an app—but that is what innovation is. The foundation for Syrp’s new business was established, and in October, Syrp launched their newest venture: LaunchPad.
Developing Cloud Photos and Jukeboxer gave the team great insight into the mobile app industry, and it was through this experience that the framework for Syrp’s next venture was born.
LaunchPad is a cloud-based mobile app optimization and development platform, which allows designers, marketers, and any other team member the ability to independently control, manage and update the way an app looks and feels in real time. Therefore, should an app team want to change the font style, for example, they can do so immediately by utilizing LaunchPad. This platform is revolutionary for app builders as it allows them to take control of their app and gives them the ability to provide the best product possible for their consumers by removing a layer of complexity, expense and time.
The four young developers found that the process of building and updating apps was old fashioned compared to other more mature software development
Was Crescent’s Robotics program the launch pad for four successful entrepreneurs? All four were involved with the Robotics team while at Crescent,
While the initial feedback was positive, the team’s first foray into building a game had many challenges. From competing with large players with massive ad budgets, to dealing with the intricacies of game mechanics, it became clear that their strengths lay in areas other than game development.
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Any entrepreneur will tell you about the stress and describe the angst that accompanies running your own business. Andrew, Jonathan, Cobi and Aaron explain that although there is stress in the job, and very long hours, at the end of each day, knowing that they are able to create applications that make people’s lives less complicated and more entertaining, and have fun while doing it, is what makes it all worth it. “We are four guys who went to Crescent, spent a lot of time on the Robotics team, and who all then went on to Queen’s,” says Jonathan. “And now we all spend our work day together just loving what we’re doing. Our friendship and the skills we developed during our time at Crescent have, more than anything, allowed us to consistently strive for success.” 35
Events Alumni Leadership Dinner The Alumni Leadership Dinner was hosted on May 8 at Crescent. The Leadership Dinner welcomes current Alumni Executive or Committee members, past Head Boys and past Alumni Executive Presidents. This dinner provides a great opportunity for Crescent to say thank you for the leadership they have shown as alumni.
Dentonia Luncheon A fine Crescent tradition, the Dentonia Luncheon welcomes alumni from our Dentonia era (1937-1975) to the School. On May 3, 19Â Dentonia alumni arrived to the CCL Lobby where they browsed photos and apparel brought out from the Archives and then enjoyed a lovely lunch with Headmaster Geoff Roberts.
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2013 Alumni Reunion The Alumni Reunion was hosted on September 28 at Crescent. The reunion, celebrating the classes of ’77, ’83, ’88, ’93, ’98, ’03 and ’08, welcomed back over 110 alumni and faculty to campus for the event. The class of ’88 celebrated their 25th reunion with a pre-reception in the Drawing Room that welcomed 15 members of their class. The 2013 Alumnus of the Year Award winners, Alan Diner ’87, Greg Wells ’89, Cam Heaps ’92 and Robbie Mitchnick ’09, were also recognized and celebrated at the event.
Welcome to the Grad BBQ On June 10, after all exams were completed and uniforms were packed away, the 2013 graduating class met in the CCL one last time as Crescent students for the annual Welcome to the Grad BBQ hosted by the alumni. This event takes place each year during the week of graduation and is the Alumni Executive’s way of saying congratulations to the graduating class and welcoming them as part of the alumni network.
BSS & Crescent School Young Alumni Networking Event For the first time, Bishop Strachan School (BSS) and Crescent School teamed up to host a Young Alumni Networking Event. Tim Watson ’01 hosted the event in the board room of Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, where over 60 alumni from BSS and Crescent listened to four panelists, including alum Gerald Chan ’99 and Karim Ismail ’78, talk about building a personal brand.
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Crescent’s 2013 Golf Tournament swings into the history books! O
n June 8, alumni, current parents, students, past parents, faculty, and friends of Crescent took to the links in the spirit of friendly competition for the 27th annual Crescent School Golf Tournament on the North Course at Angus Glen Golf Club. The cloudy skies and cool day did little to dampen the spirits of the 135 golfers who birdied, eagled, bogeyed and chipped their way around the course in support of student financial aid at Crescent School. It was a tournament that proved to be one for the history books! Not only was the tournament the start of Crescent’s centennial day of celebration, it also welcomed more alumni, students, current and past parents than ever before. And it raised a record $34,000 in support of The William L. Burridge Alumni Bursary Fund.
Now in its 27th year, the Crescent School Golf Tournament is an indelible part of the School’s event landscape. The tournament is driven by Crescent’s alumni to raise funds in support of the William L. Burridge Alumni Bursary Fund. The keys to Crescent’s successful tournament are simple, with participation and sponsorship playing essential roles. Golfers’ fees cover tournament costs, while sponsor dollars contribute directly to the bottom line. “Our committee works hard to bring golfers out, and to generate sponsorship revenue,” says tournament Chair Hessam Ghadaki ’99. “Our goal is to sell out the tournament, and to generate between 10 per cent and 25 per cent more funds for student financial aid each year. Our ultimate goal is a tournament that runs to 288 golfers and requires two courses.” “Over the past decade, more than 100 students have benefitted from student financial aid,” says Barry Gordon ’87 (P’21) whose company First Asset has generously supported the tournament as presenting sponsor for the past three years. “Given the end result, First Asset is proud to sponsor the tournament, and it makes good business sense— increasing product and brand visibility to a key demographic. On a personal 38
level, it also gives me an opportunity to give back to the school that helped shape who I am today, and the school my son now attends.” Andria Coppa (P’22) of Zanchin Auto Group, Gold Sponsor at the 2013 tournament, agrees. “We saw the tournament as a great way to support the School and get our company name in front of people,” says Andria. “We’re proud to be a part of the Crescent community, to volunteer at School events, and to support student financial aid.” In 2013, more than 40 Crescent alumni, families and their businesses lent their support as sponsors of the tournament. “We were thrilled to have so many sponsors return again this year,” says Hessam. “Chris Slightham ’89 and Royal LePage Signature Realty, Sisley Honda (Hugh Sisley (P’03,’10)), Gluskin Sheff (Jeremy Freedman P’16), the Lynde Family Dermatology Centre (Andrew ’99, Eddie ’00, Jamie ’02, and D.J. Lynde ’03), are just a few of the many, and we appreciate their support!” In 2013, the committee was delighted to welcome many new sponsors as well. “For the 2014 Tournament, our hope,” says Hessam, “is to build on this tremendous
base of support to increase sponsor numbers and support for student financial aid.” The event thrives through the support of golfers and sponsors, and while the committee is jazzed about the opportunities to increase awareness and support for student financial aid, the focus of the tournament is not only fundraising, but friendraising. “At the end of the day, we want to make sure we have a tournament that delivers great experiences, great fun, great contests, good competition, and offers great value to the Crescent community,” says Hessam. “We’re always looking for fresh ideas, new contests, and better prizes to make the tournament better and more valuable to our golfers. Suggestions are always welcome.” Planning is now underway for the 2014 Crescent School Golf Tournament, scheduled to take place on Saturday, June 7. It promises to be a day of spirited competition, good times, great golf, and possibly the odd pair of plaid pants! We hope you will mark your calendars now and plan to join us. Crescent School
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Life After Crescent Fraser McKee ’38, a writer of naval histories, was awarded the 2013 Admirals’ Medal on May 2 at a ceremony in Ottawa. This medal is awarded once a year to those who have made a contribution to the well-being, advancement or awareness of Canada’s Navy. It was established in 1985 as the Admirals’ Medal Foundation by three Canadian Vice Admirals, Dan Mainguy, Nigel Brodeur and Bob Stevens, in memory of their fathers, also earlier Canadian RCN Vice and Rear Admirals, Rollo Mainguy, Victor Brodeur and George Stevens. Fraser noted that “there is no more prestigious award for contributing to the Navy’s advancement than this recognition, and I am greatly honoured. It is of particular interest to me, as I know many of those who have received it in earlier years, and know quite well the three founders.” Fraser credits his English teachers at Crescent for his passion and skill for writing, stating that they “laid a better foundation than they could ever have known.” Fraser has written seven books, has made several contributions to other books and has written up to 75 book reviews.
s Chris Svirklys ’82 was awarded a Town of Caledon 2013 Volunteer and Citizenship Achievement Award this past spring. Chris is an active participant and advocate for more and better bike trails. He has volunteered for trail construction in Caledon and other trail clubs for 13 years. He has been a trail construction volunteer in the GTA for 20 years, is a certified trail construction crew leader, a Humber Watershed Alliance committee member, and the Director of the Humber River TORBA (Toronto Off40
Road Biking Association). Chris also sits on the Nashville Tract Subcommittee, has developed new trail-building techniques and materials to create more sustainable trail systems all over the world, and has donated trail construction materials to conservation authorities. Ernest Chan ’84 successfully published his second book, Algorithmic Trading: Winning Strategies and Their Rationale, in May. This is the second book Ernest has published since graduating from Crescent School. Ian Palm ’85, who served as leader of McCarthy Tétrault’s private equity group, joined Gowling Lafleur Henderson’s Toronto office as a partner in April. Ian’s practice includes corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions and private equity. He acts for domestic and international clients in the energy, technology, mining, infrastructure and life sciences sectors.
in Business Development. Andrew’s daughter, Nicole, just started Grade 1 this year at York House School in Vancouver. If you find yourself in Vancouver, Andrew welcomes you to connect with him at apwebb@shaw.ca to go for a bike ride. Gavin McOuat ’87 (P’19) joined Raymond James Ltd. as Managing Director and Co-Head of Investment Banking, Mining and Metals in June. Gavin moved from Barclays, where he was the Global Co-Head of Metals and Mining. Prior to that, Gavin was a Managing Director in the Mining and Metals investment banking groups at Citigroup Global Markets and National Bank. Gavin holds a LLM in Mineral Law and Policy and a B. Comm. C.J. Gauss ’90 checked in from Boulder, CO where he has been living for nearly 20 years. C.J. is a Resident Director for Merrill Lynch running their office in Boulder. He is married to Melanie, who works in technology, and has two little boys, Chance (age 5) and Mason (age 3). If you find yourself in Boulder, CO, please stop by and say hello. Congratulations to Professor Gabriel Leung ’90, who has been named the 19th Dean of Medicine at the University of Hong Kong Medical School. He is described by his predecessor as an outstanding scholar, teacher and clinician who brings with him the unique experience of public service, and his appointment heralds an extraordinary term of leadership, vision and energy.
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Jamie Coulter ’87 (P’21) and Andrew Webb ’86 coincidentally found themselves in the same biking group where they accomplished a 145 km bike ride from Sumas, Washington state to Mount Baker and back. It was a ride described as “a lot of climbing through spectacular rain forest.” Jamie, who is currently living in Toronto, is the Co-Chair of the Alumni Internship Program and a member of the Class Representative Program. His son, Owen, is currently in Grade 5 at Crescent. Andrew has been living in Vancouver since 1991 and is working at SAP
Jason Melbourne ’90 (P’23), whose son Clayton just started Grade 3 at Crescent, was promoted to Co-Head of Sales at Canaccord Genuity in August. Nick Chilikoff ’92’s Better World Organic Fertilizer was showcased this past March and received great press in the Gardens West Magazine newsletter that same month. His Better World Plant Food will be used to fundraise for private and public schools in Toronto and the Better World Organic Fertilizer will be packaged with Seeds of Change organic seeds. Crescent School
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Patrick describes this as “… an incredible opportunity to work for a growing company in an interesting sector, working alongside leaders in the field of logistics.” Thomas Lang ’96 was married to Nichole Marie Drake in a private ceremony on June 18 at the Miami Beach Courthouse in Miami, Florida. Ryan McAskile ’97 married Kristen Murphy on May 25 at Blessed Sacrament Church with a reception that followed at the Toronto Hunt Club. Receiving a promotion a year ago, Ryan is now the Senior Vice President and Manager in the Toronto West office for DTZ and is responsible for the overall office with a staff of over 25. Ryan and Kristen are currently living in the Dundas and Ossington area.
s Ariel Vinizki ’92 and his wife, Erin Miller, welcomed their first baby boy, Oscar Sasha James, on June 9 at 10:29 in the morning. Apart from being a dad, Ariel is working as Vice President, Account Director at BBDO, and volunteering as a member of the Alumni Executive’s Marketing and Branding Committee. Jason Steel ’93 and his wife, Sarah, look forward to welcoming twins to their family in December. Big sister-to-be Clark is eagerly awaiting the arrival of her new siblings and has affectionately named them Bubba and Dude…the parents are actively thinking of alternatives. A wonderful example of the power of networking with fellow Crescent alum! Ian Menear ’95 met Patrick Shoniker ’02 at the annual Crescent School Hong Kong Branch Reception five years ago. The two have kept in touch and have done business together. When Patrick was ready to transition out of the manufacturing industry, he met with Ian in Hong Kong. The meeting led to a move from Shenzhen to Shanghai and a position with Ian’s company, Century Distribution Systems (Int’l) Ltd. Past and Present
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s Paul Kingston ’99 married Leslie Seiler on May 31 at the Eglinton Grand in Toronto, ON. Standing beside the groom was his brother and best man Blake Kingston ’02 and groomsman Adam Tesché ’99. Fellow grads in attendance were Jeremy Dickstein, Derek Rambeau and Mark Mahoney (all class of ’99). Paul and Leslie’s unique Star Wars themed wedding photo, shown above, was featured on the Canada Huffington Post Living page on June 11.Paul is an actor and writer living and working in Toronto. He is also a youth and teen improvisational instructor at The Second City Training Centre. Paul was welcomed back to Crescent School to teach an air band workshop for the Grade 7 drama class this past spring.
s Charlie Mills ’99 song “Lakes & Bays” (from the album Work in Progress) made it as a top 10 finalist in CBC’s Indie Song of the Summer contest. Daniel Goldenberg ‘98 played keyboard on the album, which was produced by Jeff Scott ’95, owner of NuVintage Recording Studio. The official release party for the album was in May 2013, where Charlie successfully raised $500 in support of the Toronto Kiwanis Boys and Girls Club. To learn more about Charlie and his team, please visit charliemills.bandcamp.com. Tim Usher-Jones ’01 married Jess Shain in April at the Art Gallery of Ontario. Included in his wedding party were fellow class of ’01 alum Steve Hull and Will Nelson.
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Richard Harris ’92 hosted a reading and book signing for his first novel, A Father’s Son, on September 15 at the Chapters bookstore on John Street, with resounding success. The standing room only event was attended by a number of Crescent alums, including fellow Class of ’92 alums Jay Mansoor, Ariel Vinizki, and Joel Hay. Richard spoke to our Middle School boys in late October. He is currently working on his second novel in Toronto. To learn more about Richard, please visit his website at www.harrisrichard.com.
Chris Homer ‘01 is the Co-Founder and Chief Engineering Officer for a relatively new startup online company called thredUP, now based in San Francisco. thredUP now has 200 employees and has raised $25 million in venture capital. Chris was married this summer at the Homer family cottage. To learn more about thredUP visit thredup.com. 41
s D.J. Lynde ’03 proposed to his girlfriend Jenna Harild in June and they will be married at the Royal Canadian Yacht Club in July 2014. D.J. continues to practice business law at McCarthy Tétrault LLP in Toronto.
s Ruston Martin ’04 married the girl of his dreams in May 2012. Ruston is a manager of Commercial Accounts at the Royal Bank of Canada. He is currently competing in the local Ontario triathlon circuit. Upon graduating from Western University, Christopher Briggs-Lawrance ’05 spent three years working in financial services at State Street Bank and Trust in Toronto. In June 2013, he left the company to begin a 20 month MBA program at the Desautels Faculty of Management at McGill University.
has been exploring the world of portrait photography, as well as the creation of a video game centred on a physics thought experiment. Also, Willy was featured in the most recent issue of Uppercase Magazine, a publication based in Calgary, Canada. Willy is in Chicago in September where he plans to finish and release his video game, although no firm date has been set. To learn more about what Willy is working on, please visit willychyr.com. Jeff Hong ’05 started his MBA at Yale University this past August. He completed his undergraduate degree at Wilfrid Laurier University, holding internship positions at Pepsi and CocaCola while in school. After graduating, he worked for Disney and then for Mattel until June 2013. In 2012, Jeff ran his first marathon (with minimal training) and this year he spent the month of May visiting Budapest and Prague. Sam Hall ’07 joined Colliers International as a sales representative in July 2013. Also, he recently joined the Alumni Marketing and Branding Committee at Crescent School. Geoff Wong ’07 spent some time in Hong Kong before returning to Canada to earn an undergraduate degree from the University of Waterloo. He recently finished his master’s degree in finance at Queen’s University, where he was named valedictorian for his class. He is now living in Toronto and pursuing a career in finance.
s Over 30 Crescent alumni and faculty turned out to support the Tournament including Don Haag ’86, Ian Carl, Duncan Bull, Mike Robinson, Jordan Thomson, Will Thornburrow, Derek McFarland, Scott Fletcher, and Haley Mann, all from the Class of ’08. Daniel Moor ’08 started working as an Analyst at Birch Hill Equity Partners Management Inc. in May. Upon graduating from the Engineering Program at Waterloo University, Andrew Yeung ’08 moved to Seattle in September to work as a Program Manager for Microsoft.
s John Crossley, Chris Dickinson, Nick
s Willy Chyr ’05 was living in Shanghai, China as an artist-in-residence at the Swatch Art Peace Hotel for six months. Whilst living among 11 other resident artists, Willy has been inspired to pursue some other creative interests and has taken a hiatus from his installation projects. In their place, he 42
Studley, Brian LeNguyen, and friends, all from the Class of ‘08, organized the first ever Dave LaForest Memorial Golf Tournament on July 27 at Nobleton Lake Golf Club in memory and honour of their late friend and Crescent graduate, Dave LaForest ‘08. The golf tournament raised $21,800 in support of The Jack Project, an organization that focuses on building mental health awareness support for young adults. Crescent School and the Crescent Alumni Association were proud hole sponsors for this very important event.
s Chris Galt ‘09 spent this past summer in Melbourne, Australia working for Peter Lalor ‘92 at Blue Rock Chartered Accountants, a position he obtained through the Alumni Internship Program. Chris recently finished his undergrad at Queen’s University in Economics and Computer Science; in September he began his Master’s in International Business at Queen’s University. Crescent School
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Christopher Leung ‘09 recently graduated from Western University with a degree in Business and Aviation with his Commercial Pilot License. Christopher is planning on writing his GMAT in the next month and hopes to apply to some MBA programs in the next two years.
FIRST robotics. This past year, he and several other Western Engineering students founded a FIRST robotics team. The team competed extremely well in their rookie season and became finalists in the Curie Division of the World Championships. He looks forward to mentoring more FIRST robotics teams in London. Furthermore, he is eager to continue his proteomics research at Western.
Ryan Yau ’09 has just completed an internship that he obtained through the Alumni Internship Program at CMLS Financial. Ryan has since secured a job at Mattel as a marketing intern.
s Nicholas Freund ’12 was the lucky winner of a Hyndai Veloster at Crescent School’s Centennial Party on June 8! The car was generously donated by Crescent past parent Hugh Sisley (P’03,’10) of Sisley Motors.
s Darren Chu ’10 is the President of Scientists and Engineers for a Better Society (SEBS) at Columbia University. SEBS is a Columbia University student organization dedicated to bringing an increased awareness to the Columbia community about scientific and technological issues of social relevancy.
Graham Orr, Devin Watson, and Spencer Rose, all class of ’12, won the Ivey Case Competition for first year Business course students at the Ivey School of Business, Western University. Nicholas Chiu ‘12 will be entering his sophomore year in the 7-year accelerated BA/MD program at Boston University in September 2013 and Leonard Chiu ‘12 is entering his sophomore year at the University of Pennsylvania studying biochemistry. Jethro Kwong ‘12 is in his second year at Western University studying Physiology and Pharmacology. In addition to his academics, Jethro is still very active with
s Dr. Raymond Goh (P’15) is a strong supporter of the Alumni Internship Program, and he has been instrumental in providing young alum the opportunity to gain firsthand medical experiences at Scarborough Grace they wouldn’t otherwise have. He participated in the program for the third year this past summer, offering opportunities to three recent Crescent grads, Jethro Kwong, Nicholas Chiu and Leonard Chiu, all class of ’12. Crescent faulty member Kee Ip met up with these three alum, along with Dominic Chu ‘11, Nicholas Lao ‘13, Marko Popovic ‘12, and Ronald Chow ’16 in Berlin this past summer. Past and Present
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Jess Rhee ’12 spent this past summer interning at The University of Toronto: Physiology and Exercise Science Lab with Dr. Greg Wells ‘89, a position facilitated through the Alumni Internship Program. Jess is currently pursuing a degree in Biological and Medical Sciences at Western University and will seek internships under other doctors at the recommendation of Dr. Greg Wells for a more refined portfolio and resume, but has the welcomed option of coming back next summer. Matt Buckles ’13 was selected in the fourth round of the NHL draft by the Florida Panthers in July.
Do you want to be included in Life After Crescent? Send us an update, and tell us your news! Kathryn Rutherford at krutherford@crescentschool.org. And please keep in touch! Update your contact information at alumni.crescentschool.org.
In Memoriam Selwyn Owen ’61 Selwyn Owen ’61, one of our esteemed Dentonia era alum, passed away in April at the age of 66. A dedicated father, husband, and friend, Selwyn was a realtor and part of The Owen Team at Re/Max Hallmark, where he worked with both of his children. He was also a prolific and talented abstract painter for over 45 years, and his works will be unveiled in the coming months and years at www.selwynowen.com. Selwyn was a proud supporter of Crescent School, a member of the Alumni Executive, and a popular speaker and panelist at events. He will be greatly missed.
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Lowndes’ Last Word boys, but for others whose passions may lie elsewhere, or who may not yet have discovered their passion/life’s calling at the ripe old age of 16 or thereabouts, it may not work so well. In fact, for boys in courses in which they are neither personally invested nor have the ability to excel, the stress can escalate dramatically as they do not achieve the kind of results they or their parents feel is required of them. Moreover, parents’ stress levels rise concomitantly as they succumb to their worst nightmare of their son returning post-university to live indefinitely in their basements. And so we enter a negative spiral that can be damaging for everyone.
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recently received an article in the mail titled “What do you mean I can’t get a job with my medieval feminist studies degree?” This is part of an increasing trend in professional and general communications about the ROI for various undergraduate programs and, in some cases, for a university education in general. I follow this trend with increasing alarm. The same article advocates the creation of “incentives for high school grads to enter nursing and skilled trades, while leaving poetry majors to foot the majority of their higher education bills themselves.” My alarm is not solely because I happen to be a literature major with a special focus on poetry. My concern is that such messages serve unnecessarily to increase the already high levels of anxiety that I observe among both parents and boys as they approach the university admission process.
I’m sensitive to the anxiety; I’m a father of a recent university grad, have been through the process, shared the pain, and I know that what we all most want for our children is that they be happy, fulfilled and independently successful in their lives. However, messages like the one above are not helpful and, in fact, can be destructive. They serve only to feed the panic. I sense that many parents have come to view the Upper School as a kind of high-level vocational institute, at which there are only really three vocations: finance, engineering and medicine. This works well for some 44
I continue to believe that boys are best served by taking courses in which they are, if not passionate, at least interested, and in which they have demonstrated strengths—even if there isn’t a clear career goal in the immediate line of sight. They are much more likely to do well and to gain entrance to their university and program of choice, and to continue to excel once admitted. I frequently hear from concerned parents during the course selection process that they do not want their sons to close any doors. It’s important to understand that, in high school, there is no such thing as a closed door. Almost all universities offer the equivalent of high school prerequisite courses for various programs. My daughter has a friend whose undergraduate degree is in psychology. She invested a year to pick up the science prerequisites and is now in medical school and thriving. It may take a year (or two) longer, but life is a marathon, not a sprint. We all spend 40 years, give or take, in the workforce; does it really matter if it’s 39? The world really does not need one more unhappy accountant, or mid-level, restless banker; nor does it need more anxious parents and highly stressed students. My plea is to moderate the stress and give our boys the space they need to find themselves and their life’s work. Most of us, I suspect, did not enter the workforce after our first degree, nor are we doing what we originally trained to do. Harvard College offers some excellent advice on their website:
In today’s fast evolving world, leaders across the spectrum of vocations and professions need a broad imaginative and critical capacity, not a prematurely narrow point of view. In terms of the actual world, a solid liberal arts and sciences education will generally prove the most practical preparation for many demanding, high-level careers, or for the several careers that an increasing number of adults will eventually pursue. No particular concentration or area of study is inherently a better ticket to security, leadership, or personal satisfaction than another. Students should be encouraged to follow their passions and interests, not what they guess (or what others tell them) will lead to a supposedly more marketable set of skills. (The emphasis is theirs.) So maybe your degree in poetry, or medieval feminist studies, won’t necessarily land you a job. However, it might prove to be excellent preparation for a post-graduate professional program, and it might turn out to be the best possible experience to discover what it is that really excites you and through which to construct the foundation for a “happy, fulfilled and independently successful” life. You may recall Peggy Noonan, speechwriter for Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. In her memoir What I Saw at the Revolution: A Political Life in the Reagan Era, Noonan writes: A speech is poetry: cadence, rhythm, imagery, sweep! A speech reminds us that words, like children, have the power to make dance the dullest beanbag of a heart. Maybe an undergraduate degree in the humanities can not only help, but perhaps can even provide the one truly invaluable skill: what sort of meaningful job can you have in any field where there will never come a moment when you must stand on your feet and muster all your resources, with everything depending on your ability to speak precisely, clearly and with conviction, to make dance the dullest beanbag of a heart? — COLIN LOWNDES, DEPUTY HEADMASTER/ HEAD OF UPPER SCHOOL
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Crescent by the Numbers
Hyland Hall has been demolished, and construction on our new state-of-the-art Library has begun! What does it take to prepare the site for this new building sitting so close to the Don Valley ravine? We asked our Director of Facilities Lorne Rabinovich for an idea of what goes on to secure the foundations of a structure before the build can start. A lot of work goes into the preparation of the actual ground and site before the bricks and mortar construction can begin. Check out these numbers. Dump trucks required to remove soil
Soil removed
Concrete footings
Depth of footings
Concrete trucks required
8
1,760 tonnes Past and Present
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114
30
8 metres
47 iii
Introducing
our
Newest
Alumni
Class of 2013
Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: CRESCENT SCHOOL 2365 Bayview Avenue Toronto, ON M2L 1A2
40018682