Elmwood Emblem June 2018

JUNE 2018

Futureproof: Empowering Tomorrow’s Women A DECADE OF VISIONARY LEADERSHIP: CHERYL BOUGHTON Page 4

BEYOND THE THREE RS: ELMWOOD’S NEW ENRICHMENT PROGRAM Page 12

Elmwood School’s 29th Gala TH A N K YOU TO E V E RYONE W HO SU P P OR T ED T HIS Y EAR’S GA LA. TOG ETHER WE RAIS ED O V ER

$325,000

F O R T H E S C H O O L’ S S C H O L A R S H I P P R O G R A M A N D P L A N N E D S C I E N C E L A B R E N O VAT I O N S .

THANK YOU T O O UR GENERO US S PO N S O RS : GALA PATRON​: Jamilah Taib-Murray

DESSERT SPONSOR: Telus

CASH-CALL MATCHING SPONSORS: Whitney Fox and Dan Goldberg Kelly and Peter Hudson

CORPORATE PARTNERS: Debra and David Wu Star Motors Terlin Construction Vista Credit

ENTERTAINMENT SPONSOR: Clara and Simon Nehme PLATINUM SPONSORS: Avenai Klashwerks Marilyn Wilson Dream Properties COCKTAIL SPONSOR: DRTP Consulting WINE SPONSOR: The Shore Club

GOLD SPONSORS: Canopy Growth Capcorp Chinese Parents of Elmwood Claridge Homes Detour UX The Dilawri Family Dr. Maryam Haghighi and Dr. Jody Bothwell HP Urban KPMG Debra and David Wu

SILVER SPONSORS: Vana Andreou and Mario D’Addario Julie Deimling and Matthew Di Silvestro Veronique French and Benjamin Merkley Voula Karamanos and Emmanuel Simantirakis Costanza Musu and Patrick Leblond Nina and Peter Nicolini The Ottawa Citizen Francoise and Mike Slaunwhite Tactus Consulting Inc. (Liana and Malek Ladki) PSI Networks (Nicky and Brad Jacobs) BRONZE SPONSORS: 4office Automation Mobile Klinik Rowat Insurance Smith, Petrie, Carr & Scott

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A DECADE OF VISIONARY LEADERSHIP: CHERYL BOUGHTON

FUTUREPROOF: EMPOWERING TOMORROW’S WOMEN

Elmwood’s eleventh Head of School has led the school to a place of excellence.

The next generation needs to be equipped with a wide range of transferable skils.

By Brian McCullough

By Cheryl Boughton, Head of School

Message from the Head.......................... 2 A Decade of Visionary Leadership: Cheryl Boughton........................................ 4 Futureproof: Empowering Tomorrow’s Women................................. 8 Beyond the Three “Rs”: Elmwood’s New Middle School Enrichment Program...............................12

editor:

Teresa Stirling, Director of Communications photographers:

Dwayne Brown Karenna Boychuk Chris Snow Chandra Wiegand design:

Karenna Boychuk

contributors:

Elise Aylen Cheryl Boughton Karenna Boychuk Candice Butler Meagan Enticknap-Smith Jennifer Irwin-Jackson Brian McCullough Donna Naufal Moffatt Janet Uren ’68

12 BEYOND THE THREE “RS” Elmwood’s Middle School students are able to explore diverse subjects and skills through a new enrichment program.

News and Notes.........................................14 Winterim....................................................... 20 Cooking with Candice............................22

Alumnae Spotlight: Sarah Murray ’08..................................... 30 Alumnae Spotlight: Ginger Bertrand ’02................................32

Inspiring Girl: Bronte Assadzadeh ’18..........................24

Class Notes................................................. 34

Nancy (Chaplin) Chance, 1926 – 2017..................................................26

In Memoriam.............................................. 36 Staff News.....................................................37

Norma (Wilson) Davies ’42, 1925 – 2017...................................................28

The Elmwood Emblem is published twice a year for the entire Elmwood community by Elmwood’s Communications Department

By Teresa Stirling, Director of Communications

above:

Sophia Moloo ’22 and Avery Parkinson ’22 dissect a frog during their Mini Med Lab Enchrichment class.

on the cover: elmwood school

261 Buena Vista Rd. Ottawa ON K1M 0V9 Phone: (613) 749-6761 Email: info@elmwood.ca www.elmwood.ca

Problem solving, creativity, communications, team work, financial literacy, critical thinking, digital literacy and presentation skills are crucial for students’ future careers.

Illustration by Karenna Boychuk

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MESSAGE FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL Cheryl Boughton, Head of School

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Ten years ago Facebook was just gaining popularity, and I was mostly using it to find my old friends from high school. Netflix was a company that delivered DVDs...by snail mail!

Instagram and Snapchat didn’t even exist yet, and neither did iPads.

Ten years ago at Elmwood, our Senior School students were using IBM ThinkPads, many of our classrooms had furniture that was bolted to the floor, and there was no wifi anywhere!

It is incredible to think about how much has changed in the ten years since I became Head of Elmwood at the beginning of the 2008 – 2009 school year. In many ways, it was a very different school, and a very different world, back then. In order to remain at the forefront of girls education, we have needed to be nimble and adaptive—and that need continues.

After all, if the world has changed so much in the past ten years, what will the next ten years bring?

Even though the landscape in which we teach and learn is very different today, there are some things that haven’t changed. Our students are still at the centre of everything we do here at Elmwood. Improvements are made with their development in mind. Innovations happen in response to the changing needs of our girls. At the root of every decision

we make is the school’s mission “to inspire each girl to reach her full potential.” This is as important today as it was when I joined the school, and indeed, as it was at the school’s founding.

This issue of the Elmwood Emblem shines a light on how and why we are focused on “futureproofing” our students.

As we’ve seen over the past ten years, the pace of change is rapid and unrelenting.

Starting on page 8, we look at what skills our students will need in their future careers, and how we are addressing these skills through innovative new programming.

We also take a closer look at the lives and work of two of our successful alumnae starting on page 30. Sarah Murray ’79 and Ginger Bertrand ’02 have both thrived in their careers by using creativity, collaboration and problem-solving skills— the very same tools we are equipping our students with today. These inspiring women are both excellent exemplars of the success that can be found when you embrace the ever-changing nature of the future of work.

Warm Regards,

1 Middle and Senior School students wore their favourite sports team jerseys in honour of Athletics Week! 2 Head Girl, Bronte Assadzadeh ’18 with Head of School, Cheryl Boughton. 3 Olivia Fincham-Dinsdale ’28 and Sophia Teschendorf ’28 play educational games on their iPad. 4 Sophie Barbeau-O’Connor ’21 recounts the story of Elmwood on Founder’s Day. 5 Mikayla Martin-Mignott ’21 writes notes on the whiteboard during class. 4 The Grade 12 prefects blow out the Elmwood birthday cake candles on Founder’s Day.

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SUMMA SUMMARUM: A DECADE

CHERYL BOUGHTON ELMWOOD HEAD OF SCHOOL

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OF V I S I O NARY L E ADE RSHIP

By Brian McCullough It’s probably a good thing that Elmwood’s Head of School has an easy commute to work every day. Considering the hours she puts in at the helm of Ottawa’s topranked independent day school for girls, Cheryl Boughton’s short walk across the school parking lot from the historic Head’s residence she shares with her husband David Boughton is a valuable time-saver.

Since her appointment by the Board of Governors as our eleventh Head of School on August 1, 2008, Ms. Boughton has managed the day-to-day operations and long-term strategic direction of the institution that was established by visionary educator Theodora Philpot more than a century ago. Only two headmistresses in the school’s storied

history—Edith Buck (1920 – 1951) and Joan Whitwill (1969 – 1982)—have served longer terms than Cheryl.

Even if she were to take early retirement tomorrow, this 48-year-old daughter of school teachers from Dundas, Ontario will have already laid down an unassailable legacy. During her time as Head, Ms. Boughton has taken Elmwood School to a place of high standing in the international education community through her unyielding attention to academic excellence, her collaborative approach to team-building and innovation, and more than anything else, her fierce regard for the well-being of her students and staff.

One has only to look at the outstanding experience of Elmwood’s 2017 graduating

class to see what this looks like in terms of student success: All 49 of the bright young women who graduated last year—86 percent of them as Ontario Scholars—received impressive post-secondary admission offers from schools such as Harvard, McGill and Queens to continue their educational journeys in STEM, the arts, social sciences, business, management and other professional programs. Among them, they 1 Head Girl, Bronte Assadzadeh ’18 with Cheryl Boughton. 2 Cheryl Boughton with students Bronte Assadzadeh ’18, Khaliya Thawer ’25, Grace Goldberg ’19, Hailey Kay ’23, and Sophie Barbeau-O’Connor ’21. 3 Cheryl Boughton addresses the class of 2018 during the 50 days until graduation celebration.

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“ I consider leadership to be an evolving, exciting

challenge offering the potential to develop similar qualities in those on the journey with me.”

shared more than $1.5 million in university entrance scholarships.

This is normal for Elmwood. In fact, look at the performance numbers on anything the school does today and the story is pretty much the same, but trace the statistics back and it becomes clear that something significant changed when Ms. Boughton took up the reins as Head a decade ago.

School historian Janet Uren ’68 said that when Ms. Boughton walked through the doors as the new Head for the start of the 2008 – 09 academic year, the school was reeling financially. Elmwood had lost 20 percent of its senior students during the double-cohort graduation of 2003, and was still struggling to make up the enrolment when the economic recession hit. Not only was Elmwood in a tough financial situation, but morale had slumped badly. Even though finances were tight, Ms. Uren said the school saw the value of Ms. Boughton’s different style of leadership almost right away.

“Cheryl just dug in,” she said. “There was work being done on the roof, there was painting going on, and the school began to look better. There was a sense it was sitting up and taking nourishment—that someone was taking care of it. Cheryl was a listener and a morale healer. She was a team player who felt the community was larger than just the faculty and students. She turned the ship almost immediately.”

Jacob Polisuk, the Chair of the Board of Governors that hired Ms. Boughton, agreed that before her arrival Elmwood had been dealing with some serious challenges.

In early 2007, the Board established a senior management team to determine where expenses should be cut, and hired a

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professional recruitment consultant to begin the search for someone to fill the permanent Head position following the retirement of Helen Spence.

“It was clear to me that there needed to be a number of major adjustments done to right-size the operating model of the school,” Mr. Polisuk said. “We eliminated somewhere around 25 positions, and also started an exhaustive process to locate a new Head of School.”

Determined to do things right, over the next 18 months the Board carefully interviewed about two dozen candidates from all parts of the world, until they were left with their top three choices. As Mr. Polisuk said, the three finalists were all very deserving.

“It became readily apparent through our process that Cheryl was definitely the number one candidate,” he said. “The vote to offer the position to her was unanimous. She offered the right mix of skills we felt were needed to move the school past where it had been, and to set a new path. There’s no question that Cheryl was the right person at the right time, but I also think it was because we went through the right process to get there.”

From her background of private schools in the UK, Mr. Polisuk said, Ms. Boughton understood the different constituencies in a private school system, and did a very good job of connecting to all the various stakeholders in the community and building bridges between them. Her foremost skill, he said, was understanding the leading trends in education, and figuring out how Elmwood could adopt best practices.

“At the core of her success is that she’s created that vision of the school,” Mr. Polisuk said.

It might not have been chance that brought Cheryl Boughton to Elmwood at just the right moment, but neither was there anything random about the deep experience in education leadership she brought to the table. Returning to Canada after 11 years of working in progressively senior roles managing independent schools in the United Kingdom, her last as Deputy Head of Bedford Preparatory School, Cheryl knew what excellence looked like. She understood the importance of being respectful of Elmwood’s traditions, but also understood that there was a need to innovate without throwing everything out.

Her own formal education at Queen’s University and the University of Toronto during the 1980s and ’90s had shaped her teaching career with specialties in English, History and Education. She did a four-year stint as an English teacher in the same (Hamilton) Wentworth County school board she attended as a girl, and where her mother taught, before stretching her wings in 1997 to teach English at Kent College, Pembury, an all-girls school 90 minutes southeast of London, UK. It would mark the start of her personal development toward becoming a specialist in girls education, and with the International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme.

Her journey was not without a few bumps along the way. One of the most profound lessons she said she learned occurred when she moved to Bedford School in 2005.

Having taught mainly older girls since her arrival in the UK eight years earlier, she found her classroom management skills with an exuberant bunch of young lads at the all-boys school to be somewhat lacking. Her

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classroom was in chaos.

“It was a serious conundrum,” Cheryl said.

“Here I was the Deputy Head in charge of discipline for 450 boys at Bedford School, and was struggling to keep twenty 10-yearolds in line in my own English class. I didn’t have much control over them.”

Cheryl said she discussed the problem with her husband David who, with what might have been be his natural British forthrightness, suggested she go to the bookstore on the weekend and purchase whatever references she needed to figure it out.

“So that’s what I did,” Cheryl said. “I sat down and analyzed my problem, read the research on how to deal with it, and walked into school Monday morning with a system. My life changed in a day. The kids were happy, and they were engaged in their learning—it was great. What this taught me, more than just classroom management, was that no problem is insurmountable. I learned that whatever it is I need to do, I can do it.”

Ms. Boughton says she benefited from strong, inspirational female leaders during her time in the UK, one of whom was Barbara Crompton, Head of Kent College, Pembury (1990 – 2002), who taught her the importance of being humble—a reference to her perceived “Canadian forwardness.”

Another, the person she calls her greatest influence, was Clarissa Farr, Principal of Queenswood School (1996 – 2006), who fostered a teacher development program that would see Ms. Boughton move on to become a deputy head in less than five years.

“It was the most remarkable thing,” Cheryl said. “It never occurred to me that I would be anything other than an English teacher and a housemistress, and here was Clarissa helping

all of us to become leaders. This taught me how important it is to invest in people’s personal development. Clarissa didn’t just run a school, she created an environment that made leaders, and that’s what I’m trying to do here at Elmwood.”

Few people in the Elmwood community likely understand the nature of Cheryl Boughton’s development as an educator and administrator better than James Whitehouse, her Deputy Head for Middle and Senior School. Before joining the Elmwood leadership team in 2012, Mr. Whitehouse was Assistant Headteacher at Seven Kings High School in northeast London, one of the top-achieving state schools in the United Kingdom. He said that the pedagogy being taught at Elmwood today is not so different than what is delivered on the other side of the Atlantic, and that Cheryl drives it to ensure it gives the girls exactly what they need.

“First and foremost, Cheryl has an absolute love of education,” Mr. Whitehouse said. “Head teachers don’t always have that passion for education and the practice of teaching, and she came here steeped in that. She’s a teacher, and you see that in everything she does.”

Mr. Whitehouse said that Cheryl has an amazing ability to build teams, listen to everyone’s opinion and internalize it all before making her decision. Under her leadership, he added, the school is not only thriving, but getting stronger every day.

“Her focus on making Elmwood an academically excellent school is relentless,” he said. “The girls are absolutely number one for her. Every decision she makes is framed on what’s best for the girls, and she’ll

challenge anybody on this. She doesn’t accept mediocrity. I think her biggest achievement is where we are right now—a school that is academically top-notch, sustainable and growing. We are out-performing other schools in terms of our IB results, and have an international reputation for excellence.”

As Head, Cheryl Boughton brought stability to the school by establishing a positive and collegial learning environment, growing the enrolment, developing new revenue streams and reducing waste and inefficiencies. She has improved the quality of the academic program through effective teacher hiring, constant evaluation and mentorship, and by championing special IB innovation teams to create new courses, expand interdisciplinary learning and increase opportunities for team teaching. On her watch, Elmwood became the first school in North America to offer all three levels of the IB Programme.

“I’m very open-minded with whatever path the girls eventually want to take,” she said. “We don’t always have a crystal ball that shows what opportunities will be out there for them, so the more we can teach them transferable skills, the more successful they can be anywhere.”

Cheryl said she is especially proud of her first five-year strategic plan, in 2009, that rearticulated the school’s values and 1 Cheryl Boughton during her first year as Head of School. 2 Cheryl Boughton with Middle School students Sonja Swettenham ’23, Bianca Sugunasiri ’23, Lauren Jane Hudson ’22, and Kaylah Carruthers ’22. 3 Cheryl Boughton with the 2017 Gala CoChairs, Denise Carruthers and Whitney Fox.

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outcomes for graduates, and adopted the current mission statement: To inspire each girl to reach her full potential. Creating that plan and sticking to it was exactly what the school needed, she said. Under her inspiring leadership Elmwood’s faculty has used global research on best practices to create a learning environment for the 21st century. As a result, Elmwood’s classrooms are vibrant with an excitement for learning that is shared by teachers and students alike. Cheryl’s decision to establish a school-wide commitment to design-thinking has had a transformational impact on student experience. Students from Kindergarten through Grade 12 now use design-thinking principles and collaborative opportunities to engage deeply and critically with the subject matter. Cheryl’s educational vision for Elmwood has also enabled teachers to learn from experts such as JoAnn Deak and Rachel Simmons to ensure that the latest brain research and exemplary practices for educating girls are infused into Elmwood pedagogy. As a result, Cheryl and her faculty have established a dynamic culture of continuous improvement that has positioned Elmwood as one of the foremost IB Continuum schools in North America.

Cheryl’s educational vision now encompasses the School’s physical plant; she is overseeing Phase I of an innovative campus master plan to enhance the learning experience and to maximize the school’s resources.

“When we started refining the curriculum, and using new ways of thinking and engaging with people through design thinking, it was like we’d picked up an extra gear,” she said. “We’re in a different place now.” The campus master plan will be an exciting expression of this new reality.

It is exactly this type of boldness and flexibility in identifying, exploring and implementing leading-edge ideas in education and teacher development that current Board Chair Peter Hudson says is a key element of Cheryl’s success. It is also what helps keep Elmwood identified as one

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of the best IB schools in North America, and qualified as an Apple Distinguished School year after year.

“This was always a good school,” Mr. Hudson said, “but Cheryl had a lot of experience with the private school system in the UK and really pushed the academics. The academic outcome over the past 10 years is her greatest achievement.”

Mr. Hudson said that next to the academic success of the students, it is the sustainability of the school itself that is the Board’s highest priority. In fact, since 2008, Cheryl has led the school from deficit to strong annual surpluses each year in part by developing new sources of financial income, such as a summer camp for girls that generates both revenue and new enrolment. Her numbers are off the charts.

In 10 years, for instance, she has grown the annual giving campaign sixfold.

A major part of the sustainability initiative now includes a physical update for the Elmwood campus. With the Board’s mandate in hand, Cheryl collaborated with an architect to design the phased campus master plan to re-outfit the school’s classrooms and labs with everything that students and teachers need to succeed in a modern learning environment, and to start new construction to join the junior and senior school buildings. A new cafeteria and learning hub are also in the plan.

“We want Elmwood to be relevant and flourishing a hundred years from now,” Mr. Hudson said. “Cheryl understands the school, and she has confidence in her leadership team. When she proposes we go in a certain direction, we trust her lead. She has a lot of credibility.”

As if creating a supportive all-girls environment where students have the freedom to stretch themselves, learn to manage their setbacks and move on safely weren’t work enough, Cheryl somehow finds the time and energy to take on community leadership roles. She is a member of the CIS Ontario Board of Governors and Chair of the

Programs and Services Committee, a member of the eLearning Consortium Canada Board, a member of the Rideau-Rockcliffe Community Resource Centre Board and a member of the Finance Committee as well as a member of the CAIS Accreditation Council.. She is also completing her Masters of Education degree through Queen’s University and has recently been elected to the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools Board of Trustees. It all adds up to a daunting workload, but Cheryl appears to take it in stride.

“I like to keep a personal journal where I can reflect and set goals, and I do yoga and listen to music,” she said. In their spare time, Cheryl and her husband also enjoy the cultural opportunities offered by life in the nation’s capital, and are frequent visitors to the NAC. For the past 10 years Cheryl has had her feet firmly planted in the two vastly different worlds of tradition and innovation, and she seems to have found a workable balance.

“My job is the perfect mix of everything I love,” she said. “I consider leadership to be an evolving, exciting challenge, offering the potential to develop similar qualities in those on the journey with me.” Creating a shared passion for educational excellence with her faculty is one of Cheryls most significant achievements. “I’m so proud of everything our school represents and what we’ve achieved together.”

As Elmwood’s Head of School wends her way homeward across the parking lot at the end of the day to relax for a while with her husband David, who has his own busy schedule as Director of Capital Projects for The Ottawa Hospital, Cheryl Boughton should take comfort in the knowledge that the Elmwood community looks to her as the very embodiment of the school motto: Summa summarum—highest of the high— being the best she can be.

Below: Cheryl Boughton at the 2017 Closing Ceremonies.

FUTUREPROOF: EMPOWERING TOMORROW’S WOMEN

By Cheryl Boughton, Head of School Elmwood’s vision is to be the most innovative girls’ school in Canada and to operate at the forefront of girls’ education globally. Now, more than ever, women are at the centre of the social, political and economic dialogue, acting with courage and integrity in the face of challenge and leading change. This past

year in particular has been remarkable in its disruption and dialogue. This is a rare inflection point for our society, as we find ourselves in a game-changing conversation about the perception and treatment of women.

In this context, and against a backdrop of continued and rapid shifts in education

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CHARACTERISTICS OF GENERATION Z CARING

COMMUNITY-ORIENTED

INCLUSIVE

56% want jobs with social impact

26% already volunteer

Value diversity

ENTREPRENEURIAL 71% want to start their own business

more broadly, the strategic opportunities for Elmwood as a leader in girls’ education are evident. By the time our Pre-Kindergarten students graduate from high school, the world of work will look drastically different than it does today. According to estimates, 25-40% of all current work activities in Canada will be replaced by automation by 2030. In the near term, the job tasks that are least at risk of automation are management, stakeholder interaction, specialized expertise, problem solving, creativity and unpredictable work. In other words, uniquely human skills are what make us irreplaceable. In order to

PRUDENT

HEALTHY

54% say they are savers, not spenders

Less likely to engage in unhealthy behaviours

futureproof the next generation we need to equip them with a wide range of transferable skills developed through a rich and engaging curriculum. Through our curriculum innovation work, we are putting the building blocks together to ensure our students are ready for what comes next.

The generation that is currently moving through the school, ‘Generation Z,’ are a unique cohort. Born after 1996, they are the most connected, educated and sophisticated generation in history. All the research points to the emergence of a stellar generation: industrious, collaborative and eager to build

a better planet. They don’t just represent the future, they are creating it.

One data point that is particularly interesting about Gen Z is that 71% of high school students want to start a business someday.

Surrounded by DIY education and crowdsourcing, these teenagers dream of self-employment. Given the rapid pace of change we’re facing, being able to take risks, manage uncertainty and adjust rapidly will be hugely valuable skills in the future economy. In other words, entrepreneurial skills will grow in importance, not just for startups, but for all Canadian workers.

TOP 10 SKILLS

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IN 2020

IN 2015

1. Complex Problem Solving 2. Critical Thinking 3. Creativity 4. People Management 5. Coordinating with Others 6. Emotional Intelligence 7. Judgement and Decision Making 8. Service Orientation 9. Negotiation 10. Cognitive Flexibility

1. Complex Problem Solving 2. Coordinating with Others 3. People Management 4. Critical Thinking 5. Negotiation 6. Quality Control 7. Service Orientation 8. Judgement and Decision Making 9. Active Listening 10. Creativity

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PROFESSIONALS

MANAGERS

Creativity is demanded

260%

more frequently TECHNICIANS

LABOURERS

Digital literacy is demanded

JOBS OF THE

680%

FUTURE

more frequently Presentation skills are demanded

JOBS OF THE

110%

PAST

more frequently

SERVICE WORKERS

ADMINISTRATION

MACHINERY OPERATORS

Source: Foundation for Young Australians (2017) “The New Basics”

One of the exciting and engaging learning projects that we are in the process of developing, as a part of our curriculum innovation, is a program that focuses on teaching our students about business and entrepreneurship. This new program will give girls an opportunity to develop a wide range of skills they will put to use in their future careers— problem solving, creativity, communications, teamwork, financial literacy, critical thinking, digital literacy and presentation skills. These skills will enable our girls to engage with a complex world and navigate the challenges that they will inherit.

They also have a chance to develop innovative ideas and test their projects in a safe, realistic environment supported by mentors. They practice fast-to-fail, design-thinking experiments that will stretch preconceived notions and help them take ideas to the next level. They will learn how to receive feedback and see it as a tool for improvement rather than rejection. What is

SALES

Jobs of the future demand enterprise skills

70 % M O RE T HA N

JOBS OF THE PAST

more, they will find role models and mentors and learn how to use their voices to empower themselves and others. As entrepreneurs, women can take greater control of their lives, determining where, when and how much they work, reaching their highest earning potential, and gaining skills that cross over to any career path.

But even if our graduates choose another field of study, they will still possess skills that will make them highly sought after in a globally competitive workforce. The World Economic Forum listed complex problem solving, critical thinking and creativity as the top three skills needed in the workforce in 2020. Closer to home, a 2016 survey of 90 large Canadian private-sector companies, conducted by the Business Council of Canada, identified teamwork, communication and problem-solving capabilities as some of the most important skills for entry-level positions.

Developing these skills is already a strength of Elmwood and we expect that this will only

further develop with our new program.

Looking at our alumnae, they have already paved the way for our next generation of graduates and offer a dynamic network of successful mentors. This issue of the Elmwood Emblem features the stories of two of our many alumnae entrepreneurs who have used their creativity, problem-solving abilities and critical thinking skills to make their mark on the world. They are an inspiration to all of our students, and excellent examples of women who have “futureproofed” their careers.

We are excited to be enhancing this aspect of our curriculum to ensure that all Elmwood students graduate with the skills they need to be digitally-literate, financially savvy, innovative and adaptable, help them navigate complex careers of the future and thrive in every aspect of their lives. The decisions we make today will have positive impact on our graduates and will ensure they have all they need to flourish in the future.

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Beyond the Three “Rs”:

ELMWOOD’S NEW MIDDLE SCHOOL ENRICHMENT PROGRAM

By Teresa Stirling, Director of Communications 12

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Left: Marissa Wu ’22, Jane Covington ’22 and Kalyna Griffin ’22 dissect a frog during their Mini Med Lab Enchrichment class.

Top: Pauline Rubarth teaches her enrichment class about the lunar calendar while eating moon cake—a traditional Chinese treat.

Middle: Mackenzie Watson ’22 plays basketball with her peers.

Bottom: Adora Turland ’23 practices first aid on Ella Iles ’21.

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eek inside a middle school classroom at 12:30 on any given Tuesday and you might find girls working on their crow pose. If it is Thursday, you could see girls designing and coding their own online game, or learning about how to manage money. On Fridays, you might happen upon a drum circle. With the introduction of our new enrichment program, a typical day in Elmwood’s Middle School would be considered anything but typical to most.

Introduced in September 2017, the genesis of this innovative program goes back to the curriculum review the school undertook starting in January 2016. The guiding question for that review was “Does our curriculum meet the needs of our students?” Asking this question revealed that there was an appetite for an enhanced curriculum in the Middle School—one that would offer balance, and empower girls with choice and opportunity to try new things.

After careful consideration and research into best practices, the vision for the program was articulated by the MYP Innovation Team: to provide purposeful multi-grade activities that would support the development of the whole girl. The program runs four days a week in the period after lunch, and girls choose from a range of options under umbrella themes each day: creativity on Monday, activity on Tuesday, STEM on Thursday and life skills on Friday. The courses feature handson, real-world activities that are engaging and meaningful. The traditional middle school curriculum does not offer much in the way of choice, so enrichment is an excellent opportunity for girls to learn more about something they are already interested in, or to try something completely new.

Elmwood student Madighan Ryan ’22 has really enjoyed the program so far, “The enrichment program is a great way to explore areas and subjects that we would not typically be exposed to. It has given all middle school students a choice to select subjects they are truly passionate about—from fashion design, to coding, to a third language. My favourite enrichment subject has been vocal jazz, as I got to experience something completely

different and new. I love music and especially singing, so this was the enrichment for me.

Other students chose different subjects that they wanted to learn more about.”

In addition to offering choice to our students, enrichment also gives them opportunity for self-regulation and motivation. Enrichment classes do not result in a letter grade—though learning outcomes are developed and delivered for each course, and feedback is given to the students on their progress.

Gabrielle Merkley ’23, thinks the new program offers numerous benefits, “The enrichment program provides us with amazing experiences. I have enjoyed all of my enrichment classes. I love that we have the opportunity to choose what we want to do, have multiple options to pick from, and that there is a theme for each day of the week.” She goes on to say, “My favourites so far are yoga and Mini Med Lab. Although yoga challenges us physically and mentally, we also know that we are in an environment where there isn’t any pressure, where we aren’t being assessed and can focus on ourselves, and our self-improvement. Dissecting the frog was my favourite part of Mini Med Lab because we learned the concepts and techniques of dissection while being able to explore the frog’s anatomy and physiology.”

In addition to this excellent feedback from students, reports from those delivering the program have also been overwhelmingly positive. “The teachers are enjoying developing curriculum in these new areas, and seeing how it creates a buzz amongst their students,” said Deputy Head, James Whitehouse.

“There’s nothing like seeing the spark of interest in a student’s eyes when you introduce a concept and they discover a new passion.”

Though only nine months in to this new program, it is exciting to see how it has been embraced by our students, and how it is bringing balance to our girls. They are able to explore diverse subjects and skills beyond the traditional curriculum, and develop new passions and interests that will stay with them well beyond their middle school years.

There’s certain to be a future coroner, actress, programmer or financier in our midst.

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1 Grade 7 students Bianca Sugunasiri ’23 and Sonja Swettenham ’23 at the Welcome Back Festival in September. 2 The team swing was a popular activity at Camp Kandalore; Kailey Walker ’21 and Lilly Allen ’21 would agree! 3 Madighan Ryan ’22 and her dog, Hedwig, celebrate at Keller Dog Day 4 Sarah Black ’07, Kylie Brownlee ’17, Sijyl Fasih ’17, Janan Lewars ’13 and Heather Lounder ’17 received the Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award from Prince Harry during a ceremony in Toronto. 5 Christine Blackadar ’88, Cheryl Boughton, author Rachel Simmons, Meagan Enticknap and James Whitehouse following the BFF 2.0 presentation to parents. 6 Emma Beaudoin ’25 with her grandmother during Grandparents’ Day. 7 Olivia Combs ’24 is focused as she packages sandwiches for the Shepherds of Good Hope. 8 Award-winning band, The Hornettes, had guests singing and dancing during Elmwood’s first ever Octo-beer-feast.

9 Janet Uren ’68 and her talented cast and crew of Linden House put on a fabulous production of Enchanted April by Matthew Barber.

Karenna Boychuk, Communications Coordinator

NEWS AND NOTES Happy New (School) Year On September 6th, Elmwood School students, parents, staff and friends came out onto the athletics field to celebrate the beginning of the 2017 – 2018 school year with the annual Welcome Back Festival! The carnival-themed evening had many fun activities including a gumball bouncy castle, a jousting ring and an ice-cream truck, as well as various house competitions such as big-foot paddle racing, tug-of-war and cheer offs. Thank you to Billie Irving and the Elmwood Parents’ Association for organizing such a fabulously fun event!

Duke of Edinburgh Gold Awards from Prince Harry and Lieutenant Governor of Ontario Elizabeth Dowdeswell during a ceremony in Toronto this past fall. This internationally recognized program creates opportunities for participants to develop fresh skills, become involved in the community, get physically active and experience new adventures.

The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award strives to challenge, motivate and empower young people between the ages of 14 and 24.

Congratulations to Sarah Black ’07, Kylie Brownlee ’17, Sijyl Fasih ’17, Heather Lounder ’17 and Janan Lewars ’13!

Camp Elmwood Students in Grades 6 – 12 took part in Elmwood’s ninth annual Camp Elmwood at Camp Kandalore from September 13 – 15. The camp experience is invaluable for the girls. It gives our students the opportunity to develop their leadership skills, go out of their comfort zone and try new things, bond with their peers and faculty, and create memories that will last a lifetime. Not only were their days filled with fun activities such as canoeing, zip lining, wall climbing, stand up paddle-boarding, art projects and swimming, but the sun was shining brilliantly through it all.

BFF 2.0 Renowned author, educator and coach, Rachel Simmons, visited Elmwood on Tuesday, October 3rd to speak separately to both students and parents about the ups and downs of girls’ online lives, and the love-hate relationship they have with social media. In the afternoon, she connected with students in Grades 5 – 12 to share personal stories about her own experiences with the online world. In the evening, she provided parents with practical strategies to set limits on use, tips on how respond to cyber bullying, and how to parent with authority and compassion. It was a very informative day!

Keller Dog Day On Saturday, September 23rd, the Elmwood community came together to celebrate their love of dogs and to show their support for the Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind at the Keller Dog Day and Cookout. Congratulations to Head of Keller, Katherine Keough ’18, for putting together such a fantastic event complete with delicious food, dog competitions, raffle prizes, cotton candy and more. The fun afternoon raised $1,252.67!

Grandparents’ Day This annual event has become one of Elmwood’s favourite celebrations when we extend a warm invitation to our students’ grandparents to visit the school. On October 5th, our special guests were welcomed at both the Junior and Middle/Senior Schools; they participated in tours, attended lessons and enjoyed afternoon tea.

Duke of Edinburgh Gold Five Elmwood alumnae were lucky enough to receive their

The Sandwich Project During lunch on October 23rd, our Middle School students gathered in the auditorium to make 350 sandwiches for the Ottawa Mission and the

Shepherds of Good Hope. The girls were tireless and remained extremely focused as they strove to meet their goal—which they far exceeded, with a final tally of 1,300.

Congratulations to Avery Parkinson ’22 and her family for organizing this inspiring project, as well as providing the supplies needed to make all of the sandwiches!

Octo-beer-feast Parents, staff and friends gathered in the beautifully decorated gym on Friday, October 27th to celebrate our newest event, Octo-beer-feast. The evening included a selection of beer and wine from local micro-breweries and four delicious food pairings featuring house-made delights prepared by Chef Candice. The night also featured a dance floor where guests could demonstrate their best moves to the music of the award-winning Ottawa band, The Hornettes. Thank you to chair Malek Ladki and the Elmwood Parents’ Association for organizing this fun-filled event.

Enchanted April Every year we are delighted to lend out our auditorium to Linden House, a wonderful team of actors led by talented alumna Janet Uren ’68. This past November they performed Enchanted April by Matthew Barber, a play about the adventures of Lotty Wilton, a woman desperate to escape the dreary London winter and her oppressive husband. By chance, Lotty spots an advertisement in the paper to rent a castle in Italy for the month of April. She, along with three other women of her acquaintance, travel to this entrancing land and begin to find themselves again.

Congratulations to Linden House on such a rollicking and inspiring piece of theatre!

Curriculum in Action The morning of November 3rd, we invited parents to take part in Elmwood’s Curriculum in Action E L M WO O D.C A

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event. Parents had the opportunity to sit in on their daughters’ classes and enjoy a sneak peek of what daily learning is like at Elmwood. Our students were busily engaged in science, literacy and mathematic-focused classes. This yearly event is great way for parents to see our collaborative working spaces, animated students and talented teachers.

Superstar Sisters “Avery and Rowan Parkinson are going to change the world.” – Catherine Clark ’95 Two sisters and students of Elmwood, Avery Parkinson ’22 and Rowan Parkinson ’25, were featured by Catherine Clark ’95 as part of her 150 Great People campaign for all the work they have done and continue to do for the Ottawa community. The girls are cofounders of MapleWishes, a platform upon which 11 campaigns are designed and

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executed during their middle and high school years. These projects are aimed at awareness of charitable endeavors within Ottawa.

Avery and Rowan also received Canada 150 Sesquicentennial Pins, an honour award given in recognition of oustanding individuals in our comminuty after being nominated by their teacher, Ms. Holmes.

Way to go girls!

International Cultures Night The International Cultures Club hosted its annual International Night on Friday, November 24th. The entertainment for the evening included a rendition of Banana Boat by the Junior School Calypso Club, a fashion show, What a Wonderful World sung by Nuha Yousuf ’19 and Aviva Gerring ’21, gymnastics performances from Mackenzie Johnson ’20, Mikayla Johnson ’23 and Serena Chen ’22, a presentation from the Classics Club and

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a Columbian dance from the special guest artists of the event, the “Ballet Esmeraldas of Colombia” group. A special thank you to Mrs. Purran for all her hard work and dedication to this special evening.

Holly Tea and Art Show This year’s holiday festivities kicked off with the Old Girls’ Art Show Vernissage on Friday, December 1st. The evening featured over 90 pieces of artwork, including work by local artists, alumnae, alumnae parents, current students, current parents, and past and present staff. Congratulations to Liz Heatherington ’63, Lynne Evenson ’79 and the Old Girls’ Art Fair Organizing Committee for spearheading such a fabulous event.

On Saturday December 2nd, Elmwood parents, students, staff and friends gathered in our beautifully decorated gymnasium to browse the Holiday Marketplace. Vendors included: Arbonne, Cabi, Eagles’ Nest, Elmwood Bistro, Elmwood Theatre, Jacobsons, KANIA Couture, Carol Lim Pottery, ORESTA, Paint Er Up, Sohococo and Stella and Dot. Later in the afternoon, our guests were treated to tea and sweets as part of our long-standing tradition, the Holly Tea event. Congratulations to co-chairs Alexei O’Connor and Aileen Conway, and the Elmwood Parents’ Association for organizing such a holly jolly day.

You’re A Mean One, Mr. Grinch On the evening of Monday, December 4th, our Middle/Senior School students held Elmwood’s annual Winter Concert and our musicians all gave a wonderful performance. The one-hour programme featured an array of festive and ambitious

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pieces that the girls played with ease and professionalism. A highlight of the night was a dark rendition of You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch, which included a sinister narration by Mr. Lyons, and periodic screams by the musicians. While chilling, the spirit of the holidays also shone through!

Congratulations to our students and Mr. Lyons for the enjoyable musical evening!

Darcy’s Cinematic Life “Darcy struggles with issues that most teenagers deal with on a day-to-day basis. What makes her unique, however, is that she experiences the events in her life as short movies—or “daydreams,” as her teacher calls them. Often these movies grow out of her desire to fit in and be accepted. But during a class trip to a museum—complete with a romance, an evil nemesis, and a nerd fashion show—Darcy is able to find her way with the help of both her intelligence and her unwillingness to change who she is just to fit in.”

Congratulations to Miss Josselyn, Jacqueline Law ’18 and the entire cast and crew of Darcy’s Cinematic Life who put on two wonderful performances on December 14th!

Toy Drive For the eleventh consecutive year, the Rideau-Rockcliffe Community Resource Centre organized a family dinner and holiday celebration for families connected with their services. Like in past years, they offer a small gift to each child between the ages of 0 and 12 who attend the celebration. For many children attending this event, this is the only gift they receive.

Early in December, Elmwood reached out to its generous community for their support of this worthy cause and we are proud to

say that 152 new toys were donated. Our enthusiastic Grade 5 students were delighted to package-up and deliver all the presents for the families.

Jingle All the Way On December 12th, our Junior School hosted its annual holiday music concerts which were a magical success. Our students from PreKindergarten to Grade 5 charmed parents and friends with a wonderful selection of songs, poetry and instrumental pieces. The final song entitled This Little Light Of Mine featured every student holding a candle and was a beautiful way to end the concert.

Thank you to Mrs. Pike for her dedication to this event, and giving these young rising stars the opportunity to shine!

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1 Sophia Masia Mandala ’26 learns using flash cards during Curriculum in Action. 2 Elmwood alumnae Liz Heatherington ’63, alumnae Lynne Evenson ’79 and the Old Girls’ Art Fair Organizing Committee put together a wonderful evening that showcased over 90 pieces of artwork. 3 Sisters Avery Parkinson ’22 and Rowan Parkinson ’25 with Ms. Holmes 4 Mikayla Johnson ’23 performs during International Night. 5 Emma Farquhar ’23 as one of the Darcys in the Middle School production. 6 Our Senior School Concert Band gave a chilling performance of You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch 7 Atrissa Zabihi Sian ’32 sings during the Junior School holiday music concert.

NEWS AND NOTES Waterloo Math Winners In December, a number of our Grades 5, 6 and 8 students received the Beaver Computing Challenge (BCC) Certificates of Distinction for participating in the Waterloo Math Contest, representing the top 25% in our school: • Emma Bickerton ’22 • Noura Bukhari ’25 • Serena Chen ’22 • Emily Crook ’24 • Isobel Frauley ’25 • Ceili Halloran ’24 • Emma Hemsch ’25 • Grace Kremmel ’22 • Chloe Kwan ’22 • Sydney Little ’24 • Katherine Liu ’22 • Naila Moloo ’24 • Avery Parkinson ’22 • Rowan Parkinson ’25 • Victoria Puchko ’25 • Zahra Robertson ’22 • Madighan Ryan ’22 • Ellena Waddington ’25 • Nicole Watt ’22 • Linda Yin ’24 The BCC is a problem-solving contest with a focus on computational and logical thinking. It is designed to get students with

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little or no previous experience excited about computing. Sydney Little ’24 was the top student in the Grade 5/6 category and was named to the national honour roll. She was in the top 5.6% of 3200 students that wrote the contest. Grace Kremmel ’22 was the highest achieving student in our school, and was also named to the national honour roll. She was amongst the top 1.5% of nearly 6000 students that wrote.

Holiday Madness We kicked-off the last day of school before the holidays with a “So You Think You Can Dance Elmwood” competition that featured groups from Junior, Middle and Senior school!

Following that came the famous holiday door decorating event and holiday madness activities, which included a colouring contest, scavenger hunt and more! Everyone then got together for a wonderful lunch and a showing of How the Grinch Stole Christmas and finally a festive assembly.

Trips galore! Every year our students enjoy class trips with their peers and teachers.

It has become a wonderful tradition and highlight for our girls.

The Grade 9 and 10 students were ecstatic

to travel to New York at the end of October.

Flamboyant actor and tour guide, Nick Park, was incredibly knowledgeable as he escorted them around the city. While there they graced the steps of the New York Public Library, visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art, and enjoyed a journey to the past while watching Anastasia The New Broadway Musical.

Our Grade 8 students visited Toronto in October and were treated to a wonderful itinerary! The girls started off the trip with an improv workshop at Second City, and then rocked out to the Broadway production of Bat Out of Hell The Musical. Other features of the trip included a visit to the Toronto Zoo, the Art Gallery of Ontario and Ripley’s Aquarium!

The Grade 7 students enjoyed a wonderful three-day trip to Quebec City at the end of January where they had the opportunity to participate in various outdoor activities.

Our girls visited the Valcartier Winter Playground, and were treated to a traditional Sugar Shack dining experience as part of the annual Winter Carnival! Though the weather was chilly, the girls remained enthusiastic and were enthralled by all the historical city has to offer.

1 Sydney Little ’24 with her teachers Stephanie Chin (left) and Erin Mulcahy (right) 2 The Grade 8 Waterloo math contest winners: Front row left to right: Chloe Kwan ’22, Katherine Liu ’22, Avery Parkinson ’22, Grace Kremmel ’22 and Zahra Robertson ’22. Back row left to right: Stephanie Chin ’00, Madighan Ryan ’22, Serena Chen ’22, Emma Bickerton ’22 and Nicole Watt ’22. 3 SK students Avery Vorndran ’30, Lakshmi Krishnamoorthy ’30 and Layan Kuhail ’30 show off their reindeer apparel on the last day before the holidays. 4The Grade 8 students pose in Dundas Square during their trip to Toronto in the fall. 5 The Grade 9 and 10 students gather for a photo on the steps of the New York public library during their trip this past October. 6 Zafreen Abdullah ’23, Maya Allen ’23 and Hailey Kay ’23 happily take part in outdoor activities during the Grade 7 trip to Quebec city.

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WINTERIM 2018 For our annual Winterim, Elmwood’s dedicated faculty offer an exciting array of programmes that involve students in learning through direct experience. This concept lies at the heart of experiential education, a philosophy and methodology in which educators purposefully engage with learners in direct experience and focused reflection in order to increase knowledge, develop skills and clarify values. During Winterim, each student in Grades 3 – 12 participates in an intensive, enriching, small-group activity that goes beyond the boundaries of the regular curriculum. Elmwood’s Winterim programme also encourages deeper, more intense faculty-student relationships as the girls and their teachers participate in intensive learning opportunities and discover that learning is not restricted to classrooms and textbooks.

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1 Anya Sachs ’21 works diligently during the Creating the Classics Winterim. 2 Jagnoor Saran ’19 and Abigail Butler ’19 were committed to the science-fiction world of Gamma. 3 Isabel Morgan ’27 led the way during the Giddy Up! Winterim at Wynbrook Farm.

4 It was a topsy-turvy day at the Musuem of Science and Technology for students Stella Fisher ’23 and Ariana Kubelik ’23. 5 The rock climbing wall was no match for Grade 6 student, Victoria Powell ’24. 6 Hannah Vermeij ’25 along with an enthusiatic group of Junior School students made various tasty treats during the Baking Madness! Winterim activity. 7 Ambar Chaparro-Ojeda ’21 concentrates on creating a masterpiece as part of the Landscape Painting Winterim. 8 Senior School students enrolled in Spanish class danced the day away while also enjoying Spanish treats and learning about the culture. 9 Madighan Ryan ’22, Sophia Moloo ’22, Francesca JamesBrennan ’24, Emily Crook ’24, Naila Moloo ’24, Sydney Little ’24, Sonja Swettenham ’23, Laken Farrell ’22 and Bianca Sugunasiri ’23 with guest author, Caighlan Smith. 0 The Full STEAM Ahead Winterim activity was full of mechanical friends! 0 11 Aahana Uppal ’21 and Maggie Fyfe ’21 made felt gloves for the Elmwood Theatre production of Oliver Twist.

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Right: Olivia Howe ’23 and Bianca Sugunasiri ’23 try out the Elmwood Bistro wowbutter and honey chocolate squares recipe.

By Candice Butler, Chef, Elmwood Bistro

These sweet treats are a favourite in the Elmwood Bistro.

Staff and students alike scoop these up anytime they are available. Using Wowbutter instead of peanut butter makes them something everyone can enjoy. Best served with a tall glass of cold milk!

Wowbutter & Honey Chocolate Squares Yield: 16 squares Ingredients 5 cups crispy rice cereal 1 ½ cups Wowbutter ½ cup liquid honey ½ cup dark chocolate, melted

Directions 1. Line an 8 x 8 baking dish with parchment paper.

2. Place the crispy rice cereal and Wowbutter into a large mixing bowl.

3. Place the honey into a small saucepan and bring to a boil.

4. Carefully pour the hot honey over the crispy rice cereal and Wowbutter and mix until combined.

5. Press the mixture into the lined baking dish and refrigerate for one hour.

6. Cut into 16 squares and drizzle the melted chocolate over each square.

7. Chill for 20 minutes and serve.

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INSPIRING GIRL:

BRONTE ASSADZADEH ’18

By Donna Naufal Moffatt, Director of Academic Counselling

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student at Elmwood since she began school in Junior Kindergarten, Bronte Assadzadeh ’18 has flourished in Elmwood’s all-girls environment. Head girl.

Athlete. Actress. For some, these might be the first words that come to mind when describing Bronte’s time within these Elmwood walls.

However, we know there is so much more to Bronte. The only Elmwood “lifer” in the graduating class of 2018, Bronte is especially known for her kindness, her honesty and her openness to others and their ideas.

Since her earliest days in the Junior School, Bronte knew she would one day want to be Head Girl. Reflecting back, she remembers looking up to older students and Head Girls thinking she wanted to be just like them; however, achieving that goal was not something Bronte ever took for granted. Bronte knew that Elmwood is filled with confident, young women, many of whom had goals similar to hers. She never underestimated the talents and gifts of her peer group, and she always appreciated and respected the strong foundation she has been given because she has been educated in an environment focused on developing girls and young women. As a result, Bronte has never set limits on what she or any of her peers are able to accomplish.

Bronte is highly motivated and determined to use what she has learned and developed during her Elmwood years to move her forward in life. In fact, her future aspirations to study management or international relations stem from her experiences as Head Girl and the many other opportunities presented to her and her classmates in Elmwood’s supportive environment. Never shy to meet new people and engage in conversation, Bronte’s skills of diplomacy, collaboration, and

communication have served her well and will be an asset regardless of the direction she chooses.

Bronte always does her best to make everyone feel welcome at Elmwood. A friend to all, Bronte has been known for her kindness and her compassion for others. Always willing to lend an ear or a helping hand, Bronte is there for anyone who needs her. Her honest and caring nature draws others into Bronte’s circle. Her deep interest in others extends to also trying to put herself in someone else’s shoes. This year, Bronte organized a team of Elmwood students to participate in the Youth Service Bureau’s SleepOUT for Youth, with the purpose of raising awareness and funds in support of youth homelessness in the Ottawa area. One of the greatest take-away lessons Bronte has learned this year through this event and other volunteer activities is that success is not measured by numbers, but rather the generosity of the human spirit.

Highly motivated, Bronte is a go-getter, striving for excellence in all she does. Passionate about her future, Bronte’s work ethic will undoubtedly serve her well with all her pursuits and endeavours. As an International Baccalaureate Diploma student, Bronte has learned the value of hard work and pushing beyond the expected. This effort has paid off well for Bronte as she prepares to head off to university in the fall. To date, she has received many excellent offers, including three from her top choice university, Western University in London, Ontario, and is still awaiting a few final offers before she makes her final decision.

While at Elmwood, Bronte’s pursuit of excellence stretched beyond the classroom walls. She has always enjoyed being involved in many aspects of school life. Athletically,

Bronte pushed herself to excel in a variety of team and individual sports. As a member of the cross-country running and track and field teams, Bronte has shown her passion for running from an early age. Even as Junior School student, Bronte set running goals for herself. She remembers setting a particular goal in Grade 3 to beat the time of one of her classmates who was extremely athletic and the best runner in the class. Her early morning running routine brought her within two seconds of that classmate—a feat of which she was so very proud. Creatively, Bronte has been part of 13 productions at Elmwood School, five of which were under the direction of Mrs. Boychuck: Fair Cruelty, Oliver Twist, Les Belles Soeurs, Blue Stockings and The Madwoman of Chaillot. As a result of her dedication to theatre, Bronte has been nominated twice for CAPPIES awards, once as Best Featured Actress in Les Belles Soeurs and once for Best Ensemble in Blue Stockings, taking home the award for Best Ensemble. Starting at the age of three, Bronte has also studied many styles of dance, including hip hop, ballet and jazz, to name a few.

This talent awarded her the opportunity to be dance club leader in the Senior School and to share her passion at events such Arts Night and International Night.

Bronte has been deeply engaged in the school community. A natural leader, Bronte has represented her peers and school proudly. She has spent her formative years learning, growing, collaborating and leading on so many different fronts within these Elmwood walls. As she embarks on the next stage in her life, Bronte knows she will always have her Elmwood experiences to guide her along the way.

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BRIGHT SOUL:

NANCY (CHAPLIN) CHANCE, 1926 – 2017

By Janet Uren ’68 In winter, Canadians tend to wrap up in dark colours—in blacks, browns, dark blues—as if we are going into a collective season of mourning. Not Nancy Chance. In the last winter of her life, even as her strength failed, she always wore a bright, cherry red coat. You could see her coming, like a bright spot in a snowy landscape. Indomitable and joyful.

Nancy was a teacher whose students remember her as a pillar of wisdom. She was also a traveller and an artist, and her delicately bright watercolours have been snapped up at the Old Girls Art Fair in the last three years. She was also a dedicated member of the congregation at St. Bartholomew’s

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Church where, to the bitter end, she was a stalwart, smiling, upright figure in the centre pew on the left. This is the church where many former students came to say goodbye in November 2017.

Nancy Chance was born in Winnipeg as Nancy Irene Complin, and she grew up in Depression-era Manitoba. She took a Bachelor’s degree at the University of Manitoba, later continuing her studies at Queen’s University and—in Ottawa—at St. Patrick’s College. She married David Godwin Chance in 1950; they had three children (Christopher, Jennifer and Judith) and moved to Ottawa. Here, Nancy met the inspiring Father Corican, who—recognizing a born teacher when he saw one—urged her to attend teacher’s college. She obeyed. She also sent her daughters

to Elmwood in the 1960s and met the headmistress of the day, Joan Whitwill.

Mrs. Whitwill, headmistress from 1969 to 1982, was responsible for some brilliant recruits, including Nancy Chance, who came on staff in 1972 as head of the Junior School.

She remained at Elmwood for 16 years. When Mrs. Chance came on board, the Junior School included only grades 4 to 8. Within a few years, it had expanded downward to grades 1 and 2. In numbers also, it had swelled.

It is hard to recall now how different attitudes were to girls’ education in the early 1970s, when science and math were still regarded as not really appropriate to females.

Nance Chance herself was drawn to the arts.

Margot (Bethune) Hare ’79 remembers

“Mrs. Chance helped to lay the groundwork for today.

This she accomplished not just by pushing outward in new directions but also by inspiring her students to explore every aspect of life with joy and curiosity.”

learning from her how to approach books.

“She was tough, but probably the first person who taught me how to read as well as think and write about what I read.”

Yet Mrs. Chance was also one of those visionary women who helped to enlarge the horizons of girls in the areas of science and technology. As well as bringing on strength with a whole new cohort of teachers and students, Mrs. Chance inaugurated new programs, such as participation in the Science Fair and later in computer studies. A former student, Jennifer Leslie ’83, wrote of her: “Mrs Chance was more than a teacher: she encouraged a generation of girls to question everything, to be curious and to look for answers.”

Nancy Chance retired from Elmwood in

1988, at a time when the school was transforming into its modern self. As a member of the “middle” period of school history, the period of transition between the old-style school of the 1920s and the thoroughly modern institution of 2018, Mrs. Chance helped to lay the groundwork for today. This she accomplished not just by pushing outward in new directions but also by inspiring her students to explore every aspect of life with joy and curiosity.

That is Nancy Chance’s significance in the history of Elmwood. What students remember of her, however, was her strength, affection and stability. A few years ago, a letter arrived at Elmwood. It was addressed to Mrs. Nancy Chance; it came from a woman in the Middle East who as a child

had briefly attended Elmwood, where she was fortunate to fall into the warm, attentive care of this extraordinary teacher. The former student wrote that she was sure that Mrs. Chance would not remember her, but that she wanted to tell her old teacher how much she had helped to make her student strong. Mrs. Chance read the letter smilingly and exclaimed, “Well, of course I remember her!”

That was Nancy Chance. She was a great teacher, tough, affectionate and demanding.

She was also a woman who fully engaged with her students and who never forgot a face.

As a source of strength, joy and wisdom, she changed hundreds and hundreds of lives for the better. She was a bright soul who made the world brighter for others.

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A LIFETIME OF LOYALTY:

NORMA (WILSON) DAVIES ’42, 1925 – 2017

By Teresa Stirling, Director of Communications Elmwood has lost its most loyal supporter with the passing of Norma (Wilson) Davies ’42 on November 22, 2017.

Norma, who was the daughter of Cairine Wilson, Canada’s first female senator and an early Governor of Elmwood, started at the School when she was six years old. Over the next 11 years, she made a name for herself as an athlete and as a leader, becoming a Prefect and Vice Sports Captain in her graduating year. The first girl in her family to attend

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university, Norma went on to earn her B.A. at McGill University and then worked at Bell Canada. She later met and married James Davies, with whom she had four children: Janet, Caroline, Donald and Ken. After a number of years abroad, Norma returned to her hometown of Ottawa and followed in her mother’s footsteps, joining the Elmwood Board of Governors in 1965. She also chose Elmwood for Janet (’68) and Caroline’s (’69) education, and her grand-daughter Robyn (’99) is also an alumna.

For over 50 years, Norma’s voice was heard on the Board almost continuously, including a stint as Chair. During her time as Chair, she

oversaw the major reconfiguration and expansion of the original school building, rallied support for the School’s continuing commitment to single-gender education, and led with kindness and a vision to Elmwood’s future.

Her professionalism, quick wit and dedication is sorely missed by her fellow Board members.

“The love and devotion that Norma had for Elmwood was palpable and immense. During meetings of the Board, when Norma spoke, each and every one of us sat up and took notice because her contributions were always authentic and insightful. Norma radiated strength and quiet dignity, and her quick-wit and keen sense of humour kept us all on our toes,” said

“The love and devotion that Norma had for Elmwood was palpable and immense…Norma radiated strength and quiet dignity, and her quick-wit and keen sense of humour kept us all on our toes,”

current member of the Board of Governors, Jacqueline Palumbo. “I had the pleasure of driving Norma home after one of the last meetings she was able to attend last year. She told me how honoured she felt to have had the opportunity to serve on the Board of this outstanding School for as long as she had. It was indeed a privilege to have known her.”

Dominique Jacobson ’02 also has fond memories of Norma. “Norma was one of the first members I really got to know when I joined the board at Elmwood. Her appreciation for the School’s history, her dedication and her warmth were always so easily felt. Her thoughtfulness and continuous concern for the

School made an undeniable impact on anyone who knew her and will forever be woven into the fabric of our community. She will be greatly missed, but also greatly remembered.”

Throughout her many years as a member of the Elmwood community, Norma was a fierce believer in the School and its mission.

She was also a constant at Elmwood events, rarely missing an old girls’ event or a school play, and played a key role, Honourary Chair, in the School’s centennial celebrations.

Her loyalty and commitment are unmatched, and she leaves behind an incredible legacy at Elmwood. From her school days in the 1930s and 40s, to 2008, when she was

one of the board members invited to a parent’s house to meet Cheryl Boughton, a new prospective head, she knew, studied under or worked with every headmistress from Mrs. Buck to Mrs. Boughton.

“I feel very fortunate to have known such a remarkable woman and very sad that we will no longer enjoy the benefit of her wisdom, kindness and humour,” said Head of School, Cheryl Boughton. “There are not many people in this world today who demonstrate such loyalty and devotion. I will endeavour to learn from Norma’s example and to carry on leading the School in a way that would make Norma proud.”

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Urban Architect With Country Roots

SARAH MURRAY ’79

By Brian McCullough

Ottawa architect Sarah Murray has worked on many interesting projects during her 30 years in the business, but the one she said was the most fun was a small cottage that she and her husband, architect Nicholas Caragianis, and their three children built on their property in the Thousand Islands during the 2006 March Break.

“It’s really tiny,” Murray laughed. “It’s only about 14 feet wide by about 20 feet long. We worked with a couple of carpenters, built it in pieces on the barn floor, loaded everything up onto a hay wagon, drove it out to the middle of the field and popped up a cottage.

It’s a tiny, tiny little cottage, but my kids were swinging the hammer. That was fun.”

For an industry professional known for her expertise in planning creative and livable urban structures, the unbridled joy in Murray’s voice as she tells the story of building their Little House on the Island points to her rural roots in what used to be the Ottawa area countryside down Woodroffe south on the Jock River. She said she grew up riding ponies and going camping with her friends, and that the change to city life when she transferred to Elmwood for Grade 7 was something of a shock, especially after her family moved to Rockcliffe a year or two later.

“It was a big change to suddenly be plucked out of that rural milieu, but in the end, it was a great decision, there’s no doubt about it. Otherwise, I think I might have followed a different career path. I went through most of high school thinking I’d like to be a veterinarian, and even worked with some local vets during my high school breaks. At Elmwood, though, we never felt that there was anything we couldn’t do so long as we put in the work, the time, and the commitment. We had teachers who were amazing women who shared their life experiences as fascinating teaching moments.”

Murray left Elmwood shortly before the end of her last year to accept early admission 30

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Opposite top: Reknowned architect, Sarah Murray ’79.

Opposite bottom: “[Sarah] grew up riding ponies and going camping with her friends” Left top: A small cottage that Sarah, her husband Nicholas Caragianis and their three children built on their property in the Thousand Islands.

Left bottom: Photo of the finished cottage.

Right: Photo of the family (left to right): Nicholas Caragianis, Philip Murray, Laila Murray ’13, Jamilah Murray ’82, Juliet Caragianis ’11, Sophia Caragianis ’15, Tim Murray, Anthony Caragianis and Omar Murray.

at the University of Guelph, and came away with a B.Sc. degree. She travelled after that, working various jobs before landing a job selling chemicals to the oil and gas industry in Calgary. For Murray, however, working in a cube farm was more than this country girl could stand.

“Living in Calgary was fabulous,” she said.

“It was young and booming, and things were happening—but I was going to work every day in a grey cubicle inside a grey glass building, and I thought, I don’t think I can survive this, so I decided I would go back to school.”

Murray considered programs in police forensics and pharmacology at uOttawa, before taking her parents’ advice to follow a career path dedicated to the “more optimistic” side of society by applying to Carleton University’s architecture program. Her father and two uncles were architects, so she was already familiar with the landscape. She graduated with a B.Arch. in 1987, and settled into her career.

In 1993 Murray and her husband established their own firm, Nicholas Caragianis Architect Inc., and have had a practice in Little Italy for the past two decades. If she thought her family tree was full of architects before she got married, her husband is a third-generation architect whose 92-yearold architect/town planner mother Eva Caragianis still works for them five days a week. Murray and her husband have two daughters who attended Elmwood School (former head girl Juliet ’11, and senior prefect Sophia ’15), and a son Anthony who graduated from Ashbury College in 2009.

With the brood having interests in law, financial management and medicine, respectively, it’s probably a good thing they at least got to “swing the hammer” when they built their little cottage.

Murray, a keen industry observer, said that the practice of architecture is evolving with new technologies, references and

values. Construction, she said, is moving toward a more sustainable, systems controlled, integrated process of producing our built environment.

“When I started working in architecture in the eighties we were on drafting boards, and using T-squares with ink and fine pens on beautiful Strathmore paper for our presentation drawings. Today, everyone is using computer-aided drafting programs. We work with teams across Canada using live, webbased meetings where we discuss projects in 3D with participants doing coordination and mark-ups in real time.”

Murray is also a strong advocate for the social justice and environmental sustainability aspects of her profession, and adds her voice through the Ontario Association of Architects for a national policy that would provide basic benchmarks for good, responsible architecture. For her, it’s about giving all members of a community what they need in the way of healthy, livable shelter, and public spaces where they can feel safe and included, as well as inspired. Everything should be in harmony with nature.

“Architecture affects everyone’s well-being,” she said. “Good architecture articulates a society’s values, and an architect’s essential job is to provide an enhanced way of living.”

Sarah Murray still keeps in touch with her classmates from 40 years ago, and says that Elmwood gave her a good education in perseverance, and in how to think for herself. It seems to be serving her well.

“Being an architect is a great career with wonderful opportunities,” she said. “Everything is part of architecture—math, sciences, history, philosophy, art. There is room in this profession for many types of people to make a big difference in our world.”

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On Point with Ginger…(and Fred)

GINGER A. BERTRAND ’02

By Brian McCullough

There is a popular YouTube clip from the 1936 RKO musical comedy Swing Time that speaks to Ginger Bertrand’s love of dance, her bubbly zest for life, and her total respect for girl power. It’s a high-energy dance number from the movie, starring Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire, that shows the legendary hoofers cutting a rug in perfect step together.

“I’d love to have met her,” Bertrand says of her namesake. “She danced everything Fred Astaire did, but backwards and in high heels. That’s hard. I’d want to tell her, ‘You go girl!’”

The “backwards and in high heels” expression comes from a 1982 Frank and Ernest comic strip by Bob Thaves, as she knows, but 32

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the sentiment clearly resonates for this buoyant Keller House alum who used to dance competitively and still loves to go to the ballet. It’s no coincidence that there is also a Fred in her own life. He’s an adorable rescue beagle-boxer she adopted two years ago, and who for some reason seems to have his own Instagram account: @floppyfred. Woof!

For the past decade, the Toronto-based Bertrand has been making a name for herself as a go-to publicist in the Canadian food and entertainment industry. She was a key player in making Chopped Canada the highest rated series to ever premiere on Food Network Canada.

In 2015 she surprised a number of people

by bidding farewell to a plum position with the Food Network to risk everything on launching her own PR agency—GAB Communications. Today, Bertrand and her small team of publicity and talent management specialists work their behind-thescenes magic for valued clients such as Food Network’s Top Chef Canada, HGTV Star Mike Holmes and family, Order of Canada recipient Chef Jamie Kennedy, and one of Canada’s most reputable restaurant portfolios: King Street Food Company (Buca, Jamie’s Italian, Jacob’s Steakhouse, CXBO, La Banane)...to name a few. She says she’s never looked back.

“I was really excited about working for

myself, and my family has been so supportive,” she said. “But everything’s a calculated risk. If you fail, you have to think of it as a learning opportunity and an opportunity to reset. I’m such a positive person that, whatever I do, I feel I won’t have any regrets.”

Bertrand said she’d always intended to work in the field of entertainment, and after graduating from Elmwood in 2002 went on to complete a BA in Film & Media Studies at Queen’s before entering the industry. She said it took her a while to figure out that the communications side of the house—the writing, the projects, the presentations—was probably a better fit for her than the production side, so she went back to school to earn a postgraduate certificate in Public Relations from Humber College.

“I’m so proud of what we do for all of our clients,” Bertrand said. “We approach everything as partners to give them a platform for their message. If they already have a platform, we see it as a golden opportunity to leverage this and create something totally new for them, especially in the digital space.”

Bertrand only attended Elmwood for her Grade 12 and OAC, but she made the most of these years by getting involved in rugby, robotics, Classics Club, theatre and her grad committee. At the end of Grade 12 she received the Judy and Margot Toller Memorial Award as the student who demonstrates the following characteristics: warm and caring, courteous and respectful, humourous, helps others, has

a joy of life and determination, accepting of everyone, leadership and friendship.

And to think she had resisted switching to Elmwood from her public high school after Grade 11.

“I did not want to go to an all-girls school at first, but it was probably the best decision my parents ever made. It was where I met my best friends—four girls I graduated with—who are more like family to me now. I had great teachers, and a great experience. Elmwood gave me strength to be confident in taking leadership roles because nobody ever said we couldn’t try something.”

Bertrand said that Elmwood’s strong work ethic and supportive team environment made it possible for her to follow a creative route to university and into a successful career in public relations afterward. With business now on the upswing for this hands-on media strategist, and with her team excited to be settled into some new office space, Ginger Bertrand reflects that opportunities are what you make of them, and that teamwork is everything.

“Look at every opportunity as a jumping-off point for growth,” she said. “Finding a team, finding a community, finding a good fit when you are going out into the workforce is so important. I really care about my team, and that’s something that rubbed off on me from Elmwood. Find something you really love, because you only live once. Try to get what you want out of life.”

Opposite left: Ginger at Gab Communications.

Opposite right-top: Best friends, Ginger and Fred, pose for the camera.

Opposite right-bottom: Ginger on the TIFF red carpet.

Top left: Ginger and her sisters, Krista and Jordana ’13 in Jerusalem.

Top right: Ginger and her mom Jeannie.

Above: Nathalee Martin ’02, Sophie Bifield ’02, Ginger, Dominique Jacobson ’02 and Lindsay Appotive ’01.

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CLASS NOTES

Luise Birgelen ’05

Rosemary Telles-Langdon ’36

Patti Willhauk ’03 and her daughter Lainey

Marielle McGovern ’05 and her son Thomas

Naomi Bigeault, daughter of Eva Hitschfeld ’05

1930s Rosemary Telles-Langdon ’36 Rosemary celebrated her 100th birthday in the fall of 2017. Over the many years that she has lived in London, Rosemary has remained active by taking part in a Scottish Country dancing group and acting in a little theatre group at the Palace Theatre.

1980s Jennifer Magnuson ’86 Jennifer and her husband have been sailing since last July upon retirement from the Government of Canada. They left Lake Ontario, sailed the St. Lawrence and made their way to the Atlantic Ocean. They stayed along the East Coast all the way to Biscayne Bay in Florida. Once they found the window to pass the Gulf Stream, they headed to the Bahamas.

They played with the pigs in the Exumas and are now in Puerto Rico.

They plan to sail the Caribbean and land in Trinidad to put their boat on the hard for the 2018 hurricane season. In May, Jennifer will return to Canada and visit with friends and family that she has dearly missed.

2000s Stephanie Tannis ’06 Stephanie her husband Eli Aramouni, were married on August 19, 2017 at the St. Elias Cathedral. Their reception was held at the Fairmont Château Laurier.

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Patti Willhauk ’03 Patti and husband Daniel welcomed daughter Lainey Catherine Ransome to the world December 11, 2017. Born in Edmonton, Alberta. Little Lainey is full of life, looks exactly like Patti and loves to giggle while having baths. She is a very happy girl. Grandpa Doug Willhauk is looking down from heaven and very proud.

Luise Birgelen ’05 Luise attended Elmwood for grades 7-10 and then returned to Germany. She studied engineering at Oxford University and then worked as a consultant in the industrial goods industry, helping automotive, steel and aerospace manufacturers.

She quit her job last year to sail around the world on the “Clipper Round the World” yacht race (clipperroundtheworld.com), where eleven 70-foot ocean racing yachts race from Liverpool to Liverpool, with 18 to 20 amateur crew on board.

She says “It’s been fantastic, but also really tough! Living on and sailing a boat in extreme conditions is mostly wet, almost always either too hot or too cold, but also really fun and a great learning experience. I started sailing about three years ago, but mainly for Leiste in the Mediterranean, nothing like this, with 40-foot waves crashing over the boat! We’re about halfway round now, in southern China, and will be heading across the North Pacific in April, to Seattle, Panama, New York and then back to Liverpool by end of July!”

Morgan Wallack ’08

Stephanie Tannis ’06

Clare Funston ’07

Eva Hitschfeld ’05 Eva Hitschfeld ’05 is currently living in Montreal, working as a physiotherapist in a sports clinic. She is the proud mom of Naomi Mulinda Bigeault, born September 18, 2017.

Marielle McGovern ’05 Marielle McGovern ’05 and Norman Hladik are proud parents of Thomas John Vincent born on January 17, 2018.

Clare Funston ’07 Clare Funston and John Sparks were married on September 3, 2017 at the Sea Cider Farm & Cider House in Saanich, British Columbia.

In attendance were several former Elmwood Girls, who behaved themselves for the most part. John and Clare are now settling back into life in Vancouver, British Columbia where they are both practicing law and enjoying the West Coast.

Morgan Wallack ’08 Upon graduating from Elmwood in 2008, Morgan Wallack spent 10 years travelling around the world and soaking in the experiences and cultures from everywhere she’s visited. Recently, she has moved back to Ottawa and is running the Wallack Galleries framing department.

She loves all the interesting people she meets! She will also be participating in a motorcycle trip across North America in 2018.

Sarah Dost ’09

Sarah Dost ’09 After graduating from Elmwood, Sarah Dost spent a year travelling in India before moving to Germany to study Studio Fine Art and English as teachables at the Muthesius Kunsthochschule (northernmost art school in Germany) and the Christian Albrecht University of Kiel. Upon completing her post-secondary education, Sarah received a Master of Education, and now teaches outdoor education.

2010s Kelly O’Connor ’10 Kelly O’Connor married Christian Medina on August 19, 2017 in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. Kelly was delighted to have fellow Elmwood “Old Girls” Monica Mikhaiel ’10 and Nimrat Obhi ’10 join her as bridesmaids. Elmwood friendships are strong! The happy couple now live in Montreal, where Kelly is studying law at McGill University and Christian is working.

Sarah Pullen ’10 In November 2017 Sarah graduated from Carleton with a Masters of Infrastructure Protection and International Security.

This unique program combines elements of public policy and engineering to produce graduates capable of facing the unknown threats of the future. Her area of specialty within this program E L M WO O D.C A

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CLASS NOTES

Kelly O’Connor ’10

Sarah Pullen ’10

was emergency management and business continuity. While in school, she began doing her own research into how more isolated and vulnerable communities that lack resources and infrastructure can be better prepared when disasters strike. She presented this research in 2016 at the prestigious Canadian Catastrophe Conference in Toronto.

Since completing her Masters, developing a better understanding the impacts that large-scale, ever more frequent disasters have on Canadians and helping them to become more resilient has gone from personal interest to lifelong passion. In the last two years Sarah has worked in both the public and private sector to help Canadians to better prepare themselves for disaster. She also spent some time volunteering in the spring of 2017 during the flooding in the Ottawa/ Gatineau region alongside friend and Elmwood alum Madison Ellas ’10. Her ultimate goal in gaining experience while working during graduate school was to build her qualifications to move into an operational emergency management job.

In January of 2018 Sarah moved to Edmonton and accepted a position with the Alberta Emergency Management Agency in their Recovery Branch. Now, she spends her days working with an exceptional

Charlotte Murfin ’13 team to help coordinate resources, provide advice, and support the Alberta Government’s disaster recovery program in both pre-planning for disasters and in the months of recovery following a large incident.

Charlotte Murfin ’13 Charlotte recently finished her masters degree (LPC MSc in Law, Business and Management) and graduated from the University of Law in the UK, with distinction. She also won the Peter Clark law prize, awarded by the law firm Dawson Cornell in London. Charlotte was nominated for the prize as a result of her marks in her final family law exam, where she scored one of the highest marks in her university.

She started her graduate job in October, on the Civil Service Fast Stream, which is the UK government graduate development scheme.

She is currently in the Ministry of Justice, where she is working on creating a strategy to develop and nurture rehabilitative cultures in the eleven London and Thames Valley prisons. She has spent a lot of time visiting prisons and consulting with prison governors in order to really understand the current operational difficulties and how best to implement this culture change and reduce reoffending rates. She will begin her next placement in April, and will be moving to the Department of Health to work on Clinical Negligence policy.

IN MEMORIUM Miriam (Mimsi) Lewis ’34 (nee Cruikshank) Mimsi’s first words when she woke up the morning she turned 100 in November 2016 were: “I made it!’ She probably thought that reaching 101 would be an anti-climax, so she left this world on November 10, 2017, 11 days short of her next birthday. She was the daughter of Dwight Phelps Cruikshank and Elizabeth Babcock Cruikshank, and sister of Donald (deceased). Predeceased by her husband and dearest love, Daniel. Mimsi is survived by her three daughters Bibi Withers (John), Cassie Stanley (Doug) and Eloise Lewis (Jock McGregor). Also survived by eight grandchildren Amanda Withers, Meredith Withers (Brad Lewis), David Withers, Daniel Stanley (Liliana Soto), Matthew Stanley (Terisa), Barbara Stanley (Patrick Bard36

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sley), Kylie McGregor and Blair McGregor.

Mimsi also leaves seven great-grandchildren, Matthew and Jack Baillargeon, Connor and Toby Lewis, Owen Stanley, Padme Stanley and Andrew Bardsley. The last of her generation of Cruikshanks and Lewises, Mimsi also leaves a cousin and many nieces and nephews in Canada and the United States.

Gloria MacKenzie ’39 (nee Vaughn) Passed away peacefully in Brockville on Friday, February 2, 2018. Gloria married her childhood sweetheart, John MacKenzie. John predeceased her after 67 years of marriage.

Together they loved entertaining and were blessed with a host of friends from coast to coast. Surviving are their two dearly loved children, Kenneth MacKenzie (Wendy) of

Calgary and Jill Russell (Alan) of Brockville.

Also surviving are their five grandsons and two great granddaughters. She was predeceased by two brothers, Robert Vaughan and Dr. Peter Vaughan, and by her sister, Elizabeth Arnold. She leaves many nieces and nephews.

Jenny Farrell (May 3, 1972 - February 24, 2018) Jenny Farrell passed away suddenly on February 24, 2018. She was the loving wife of Matthew Scoppa and the adoring mother to Maya Farrell,​​Grade 10, Laken Farrell, Grade 8 and Astyn Farrell, Grade 5. She was very involved in the Elmwood ​community as a parent and as a volunteer. She worked on our Gala Committee and was dedicated to our ​ archival project. Jenny will be dearly missed by her Old Ottawa South neighbours and the entire Elmwood family.

WELCOME TO ELMWOOD! We welcomed the following new staff members this year:

Stephanie Dore

Early Childhood Educator Stephanie is a Registered Early Childhood Educator with over ten years of experience in the education field. She spent the first few years as an educator in preschool and toddler group care settings. She then moved on to a position in the kindergarten and school-age extended day program where she strived to provide a home-like learning environment. This allowed her to implemented an emergent, inquiry-based curriculum program with a focus on long-term projects stemming from current interests and emerging skills. She also spent time working as a casual Early Childhood Educator for the Ottawa Catholic School Board. Stephanie is very much looking forward to bringing her skills to the students at Elmwood School.

Erica Eades

Library Media Specialist Erica is a dedicated and resourceful library professional who recently returned home to the Ottawa area. She has spent the last decade working in public and school libraries, having most recently worked in the senior library at Trinity College School. She holds a BA in English from Dalhousie University and a Master of Library and Information Science degree from Western University. She brings to Elmwood a lifelong passion for literature; a passion for the arts; and a longstanding commitment to innovative library programming.

Paul Labrosse

French Teacher Mr. Paul Labrosse is a French teacher for both the Junior School and Senior School at Elmwood. Born and raised in Ottawa, he and has studied in French from Kindergarten all the way to Grade 12. His undergrad studies took place at the University of Ottawa, and he continued his education there, receiving his Bachelor of Education. Outside of the classroom, his passions lie within the field of sports and recreation where he has been a coach for many different sports teams in Ottawa.

Emblem

Erin McMahon

Early Childhood Educator Erin is a passionate Early Childhood Educator, in the pre-kindergarten program at Elmwood. Before joining Elmwood, Erin worked with high-risk families in a Headstart nursery school in Ottawa. She attended St. Francis Xavier University, where she studied International Development and Women’s Studies and has her Early Childhood Development diploma from Algonquin College. In her free time, Erin is an active cyclist, cross-country skier, and volunteers with children with Down syndrome.

Ann Moran

Senior School PE Teacher Ann joins Elmwood after spending over 20 years teaching in both the public and independent school systems in Vancouver. After moving to Ottawa a few years ago she worked with organizations like Ottawa 2017 and Badminton Canada while teaching as a substitute at Ashbury College when needed. Ann enjoys participating in sports of all kinds, back country hiking, canoeing and kayaking, coaching, reading and playing strategic board games.

Liz Pitfield

Grade 5 Teacher Liz is a lifelong learner who loves to travel and explore the world. She enjoys building homes with Habitat for Humanity and spending time outdoors in nature. Liz studied abroad in New Zealand where she completed her teaching qualification at at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand. She also lived in Scotland where she completed her Masters in Education Studies at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. Liz loves teaching in the PYP program and spent the past seven years teaching in the Primary grades at Branksome Hall in Toronto.

The Emblem is published twice a year. To ensure your news is included in the next issue, please submit your story and a high resolution photo to tstirling@elmwood.ca by August 1, 2018.

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“Elmwood Summer Camp is ALWAYS our #1 choice for our daughter. The range of camp themes offered is second-to-none.” - Pragash, 2017 camp parent

All girls welcome!

Visit camp.elmwood.ca for more information or call (613) 749-6761 for details and registration.

DISCOVERY CAMPS

ELMWOOD SKILLS ACADEMY

FOR GIRLS AGE 4 TO 12 • WEEKLY UNTIL AUGUST 24

FOR GIRLS AGE 8 TO 17 • WEEKLY UNTIL AUGUST 24

With exciting new weekly themes such as Robot Academy, music camp, “Lab Rats” chemistry camp and Sleuth Academy, girls from Kindergarten to Grade Six will discover new challenges, develop lasting friendships and enjoy a dynamic range of hands-on, interactive activities.

Elmwood’s Skills Academy offers an outstanding range of academic and special interest programs. Taught either by Elmwood’s talented faculty or by other experts in their field, our Skills Academy combines superb instruction with dynamic activities, sure to appeal to girls of all ages and skill levels.

Led by skilled and experienced educators, our camps have the perfect blend of learning, active play and creative exploration, all within Elmwood’s beautiful and safe campus.

Camps are half or full day and costs vary.

Please visit camp.elmwood.ca for full details.

DISCOVERY CAMPS RUN FROM 8 A.M. – 5:30 P.M.

“I couldn’t have asked for a more wonderful camp experience for my 3 and 1/2-year-old daughter. She truly thrived in the girls-only camp dynamic!”

Cost is $305, including a delicious lunch and snacks, excursion or special guest, fun “giveaways” and a cool camp T-shirt.

Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: ELmwood School, 261 Buena Vista Rd. Ottawa, On K1M 0V9

BETSY, 2017 CAMP PARENT