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2017-2022 STRATEGIC PLAN WRAP-UP
As
we head to the finish line of our 2017-2022 strategic plan, we reflect on the hurdles faced over the past two years and the smooth sailing that enabled us to move forward with speed and passion.
You might think spending two years in a global pandemic would slow us down, but the constant flux provided by COVID-19 provided just the impetus needed to test out new ideas.
“A clear win throughout all pillars of the strategic plan was the compassion and empathy shown over the pandemic, which clearly reflects the school culture,” says Courtenay Shrimpton, Deputy Head of School. “Given the impact COVID-19 has had, the accomplishments of the last few years have been remarkable.”
It would take an entire Andrean to showcase all the investigated and implemented tactics, but here are a few key highlights that staff and students can agree have been a real boon to the SAC experience.
Outdoor Education
In a technology-focused school, closing the laptop is an important part of the educational process. Getting outside allows students to step away from their screens, focus on their mental well-being, and learn to become good environmental stewards. For Middle Schoolers, that means heading over to Willow Farm on Wednesday afternoons to participate in various activities, including carving wooden spoons, archery, tobogganing, cross-country skiing, building fires, and planting trees. In Upper School, we’ve transformed Cadets into Outdoor Leadership to integrate outdoor education into the weekly schedule. Terms 1 and 2 focus on leadership training, which sees every student active outdoors on Thursday afternoons, participating in shelter building, high ropes, cooking, and more. “Students love the new experience,” says Courtenay. “We have protected the traditional Cadet experience by cementing Term 3 as parade season when students prepare for the Church Parade, Head of School’s Parade, and Cadet Inspection.” Every Grade 10 student now participates in an excursion focused on outdoor survival as part of their summative. Students have spent time winter camping, portaging, canoeing northern lakes, mountain biking, and night hiking.
Makerspace
As part of the science and technology appeal, McLaughlin Hall was renovated to bring the 50-year-old building into the 21st century. The state-of-the-art facilities opened in February 2021, and students and staff were thrilled. One big addition was the makerspace. Students in all grades have the opportunity to use the makerspace for things like robotics and the engineering design challenge. Next year, all Grade 9s will take a design thinking course specific to using the makerspace. More information on the importance of the makerspace can be found on page 12.
Arts/Co-Curricular Plus
Whether you have a passion for music, knitting, or financial investment, the ACPlus program offers Upper School students dedicated time and space to explore anything and everything. When first launched, it was expected that 30 per cent of students would register for this elective program, but when the sign-up sheets went out, nearly 90 per cent picked something to participate in after school on Thursdays.
The sessions comprise more than 30 activities, and students can sign up for one or two hour-long blocks. Activities include music, learning to cook, developing skills in debating, robotics, public speaking, painting, video production, pizza making, knitting, canoe building, chess, ceramics, pillow making, singing, and so much more. At the end of each term, students showcase the activities, so others can see what they might like to try the next term. Throughout this strategic plan, there has been a revamp of the schedule to focus on student engagement and wellness. Integrating wellness became even more of a priority when the pandemic hit, as we realized how critical mental health was during an uncertain global environment. The pace of life dramatically changed, students were learning online, and teachers were teaching online. Our school community was spread out worldwide, trying to learn and work together.
From these challenges, we created wellness days when students and staff took time out of their day to focus on their health and wellness. We introduced mindfulness sessions into classroom time, and the Wellness Council was initiated to conduct activities and spread positive vibes.
No matter where you are walking inside a school building, wellness notes and quotes follow you in the form of floor stickers. These serve as key reminders to take care of ourselves and each other. This special program ensures that students can be their best selves at SAC. Any student who appears to be “at-risk” is swept under the wings of the Circle of Care team, which comprises members of the Health and Wellness Centre, counsellors, academic specialists, and our Associate Director, Student Affairs.
It’s a simple process whereby a student is identified, usually by a staff member, as struggling in some aspect of their time at SAC. The team immediately jumps into action to create a plan to get the student back on track. Sometimes this means adjusting academic responsibilities, counselling services with our full-time counsellor, or reducing co-curricular expectations.
Wellness Circle of Care
Other key areas that received attention as part of the strategic plan were Memorial Chapel and the introduction of St. Anne’s School. You can learn more about these two areas on pages 14 and 24, respectively.
As we close in on the finish line of our 2017-2022 strategic plan, a new, exciting race is right around the corner as we begin to create the blueprint for the next five years.
Community Connections Campaigns for Science and Endowment
We can put a big checkmark next to this area of focus. Over the past five years, we have hosted lunch-and-learn sessions for Old Boys and virtual education seminars for everyone in the Andrean community. Throughout the pandemic, we achieved our goal of connecting with our community members across the globe, something we would not have been able to do in a usual year. The inaugural parent and alumni parent golf tournament was held in 2019, and we launched SAC Connect, a place for all Andreans to re-connect, post jobs, and seek mentorship. The Advancement team set to work revitalizing McLaughlin Hall from its original 1971 footing to the state-of-the-art facilities perfect for the 21st-century learner. At the same time, the team also took on the big challenge of growing SAC’s Endowment Fund to $100 million. Knowing this is a long-term goal, great strides have been made in this area.
The goal is to raise $100M in combined assets among three asset groups: endowment, planned bequests, and life insurance policies owned. At the campaign launch, the SAC Foundation had total combined assets and pledges of $66.9M. The Legacy Campaign has added more than $5.2M in donations toward the endowment.
“An annual average across the four years of $1.3M far exceeds the annual average amount contributed in the previous ten years of $320,000,” explains Ryan Bryce’05, Associate Director of Advancement. “In addition, there are currently $3M in endowment pledges outstanding.” Since 2018, when the quiet launch of the Legacy Campaign began, 23 new endowment funds have been established: 18 for scholarships and bursaries, four Prize Day awards, and one curricular program.
As of April 2022, the SAC Foundation’s combined assets stand at $83M toward the $100M goal. But that’s not all. With the launch of the St. Anne’s School Dream it Forward Campaign, the team has raised $7.25M for endowment funds designated for scholarships to St. Anne’s students. X
