1Winter 2016

Summer 2016

AuCourant

THE MAGAZINE OF WEST ISLAND COLLEGE

Au Courant Magazine

Editor-in-Chief Mr. Cheney, Director of Communications and

Strategy

WIC Copy Editors Ms. Buckingham, Former Senior English Teacher Ms. Webb-Briscoe, Information OfficerMs. Ryder, Executive Assistant Ms. Huhn, Manager of Corporate and Human Resource Services

Graphic Designer Mr. Sengaus

Photographers Edward Ross (Edward Ross Photography) WIC Yearbook Club Members Ms. Meckelborg, Director of Grade 7 Studies

West Island College is proud to be associated with:

The Au Courant is published twice a year for WIC parents, alumni and friends of West Island College.

Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: West Island College, 7410 Blackfoot Trail SE, Calgary AB T2H 1M5

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This Issue 04 Connection and Confidence06 Field notes from The Board Chair08 The World as Our Campus09 Backpacks for Success10 Perspective: Life Through an African Lens12 Making a Case for the Case Method14 Vrai ou Faux? Four myths and facts about French Immersion 16 Hosting the CAIS Conference at WIC was a success18 “Going Big” Around the Globe20 Grade 9 Celebration22 Inspirations of Creativity24 WIC’s new website is live! 25 One Lunch Bag at a Time 26 WIC goes to Disneyland!28 WIC Swiss Summer School30 Leadership Development the S.E.A. Program 31 2016 Post-Secondary Scholarship Recipients34 Duke of Edinburgh Award Winners 36 Engineering Institute Experiences 38 WIC’s Spring Productions 42 WIC’s Foundation for the Future 44 2016 Alumni Achievement Awards 48 Graduation 2016 55 Alumni Class Notes

Perspective:Life through the African Lens

“Going Big” Around the Globe

2016 Alumni Achievement Awards

Graduation 2016

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Carol Grant-Watt HEAD OF SCHOOL AND CEO

Connection and Confidence

4 Au Courant

Spring is the time of year that many of last year’s graduates return to WIC after a year abroad, at university or working. They are eager to talk about the previous year and their adventures and there is a confidence that is evident. There is a connection to their school that is reassuring; a touchstone so to speak. In preparing this article, I have reflected on the various definitions and meanings of the word, the inherent complexity of the concept of connection and why it is such a foundational aspect of the WIC experience.

Connection is one of the three commitments that our strategic plan identifies. In print and in action, we boldly commit to being a close-knit community, who knows and cares about each other. We foster an environment where students can feel supported while building their futures. We also commit to ensuring WIC students are ready for the challenges and opportunities life presents them. They grow strong, self-assured and motivated by each WIC experience. Through academic rigour and

a nurturing environment, our students become resilient problem-solvers who believe they can and will achieve what they set out to do. Bold statements, yes, but I believe this is what we strive to do each and every day. I also believe that we are successful in doing so in partnership with our parents.

Confidence is developed when our children know they are cared for and supported by a strong network of peers and adults. It makes sense to me that connection is inextricably linked to the development of confidence. While it has never been easier to stay in touch or connect with others all over the world, I still believe in the importance of the quality of connection. It seems increasingly expedient and efficient to text, email or use social media and count this as connection. On some level it is and sending an e-birthday card is very convenient. The question I ask myself is, “Do we ensure we have a meaningful connection with our children, our family, our colleagues and our community?” This is achieved when we truly commit to nurturing the important connections in our lives. It means slowing down from time to time to make sure we are nurturing what is important. Meaningful connections take time and investment. As I think about the WIC journey, one of the things I truly value is that opportunity to take six years to know our students, then continue the relationships as they fulfill their life goals. I love it when a student comes back into my life restoring a connection made earlier.

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On a shelf in my office is a collection of children’s books by some of my favourite authors. I began collecting them as a teacher in a K-12 school. In this environment I would take my grade 12 Social Studies class to the library for research and they would be working next to the grade 1 class enjoying story time. I would watch as the students tuned into the stories and truly enjoyed what was happening. After the elementary and high school were split into two as the result of a new school build, I started reading some of these stories to my students when it was approaching diploma exam time or when some world event shook us out of our comfort zones. My students loved to be read to regardless of how old they were. I found this fascinating.

A recent addition to the collection is by Peter H. Reynolds and is called Playing from the Heart. It tells the story of a young boy who has a natural talent for playing the piano. The young man plays for the love of the music and when he returns home as an adult to care for his ailing father. The only request the father has is that he

“Through academic rigour and a nurturing environment, our students become resilient problem-solvers who believe they can and will achieve what they set out to do.”

play a song. As the boy begins to play, returning to the piano after years of not playing he is reconnected to his happy childhood, his father’s love and his love of music. It is the intersection of each of these which makes this simple story so powerful and compelling. The importance of true connection is priceless.

Sometimes I fret that the world is becoming too frenzied or impersonal. I worry (I think needlessly) about the world these young people are entering and then I realize, what I have known all along, that as parents, teachers and as a community, we have done our best to prepare them for this moment. I also know, they are ready. They are also connected to a strong support system and they have the confidence of youth that will see them through. It really is inspiring to watch our children, full of hope and excitement, take the next step. You can see it in their eyes, a twinkle of adventure and the realization that they have got this. It is also comforting to know that with any luck, they will be back because we took the time to nurture their confidence and the human connection. It is those connections to people and places and events that give us confidence to try new things and to embrace all the world has to offer.

6 Au Courant

Dr. Tish Doyle-Baker CHAIR, BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Field notes from The Board Chair

WIC’s Chair of the Board of Directors, Dr. Tish Doyle-Baker, shares some fieldnotes highlighting Board activities over the past few months, while looking ahead to continuing to foster a safe and effective learning environment here at WIC.

Fieldnote April 26th: Do you know that a rhinoceros weighs 5,000 lbs? Recently, the Board of Directors had a retreat at the Calgary Zoo. We were treated with a behind the scenes experience of feeding yams to Sabari, a one horned rhino who belongs to the largest of the rhino species. We were astonished to learn how much Sabari actually weighs and were equally impressed by the thoughtful and detailed planning put towards developing a safe environment. Sabari is the lone resident living in what was the elephant house and he is a very valuable attraction for the Zoo. Sadly, this species of rhinoceros is currently listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as a vulnerable population.

Dr. Clément Lanthier (CEO, veterinarian and researcher) told us that the Zoo brings together an incredibly diverse team of staff. These animal care professionals know that they have a higher purpose and that is to ensure the specific welfare needs of each animal. Their goal is to provide a first-class environment so that Sabari thrives in this unusual and perhaps temporary habitat. This statement resonated with me as WIC’s Board chair. The Board’s purpose is to support the faculty and staff so that WIC

provides a first-class environment for our students and their temporary place of learning.

Fieldnote May 20th: I recently attended the week long Canadian Academy of Sport and Exercise Medicine Conference in Victoria, BC. Four-time Olympian, Simon Whitfield was the keynote speaker on May 19. I have met Simon before and he is not only a world-class triathlete and leader but a very good storyteller. In this keynote he didn’t disappoint and told the story about how he threw off his main competition by telling them there were sharks in the harbor at the Sydney Olympics before the swim. Of course there is more to the story… ask me and I will tell you the rest.

Simon also spoke about how over the course of his athletic career he had to grow and learn about creating a safe environment to compete in. Despite participating in an individual event he still needed a team surrounding him. At one point in his career he lost focus of ‘the team’ and tried to lead, “…it was my way or the highway. I was stuck in the silo mentality”. This did not result in the performance he wanted. He shared this disappointment to remind the audience that when you participate in a team environment and have a common vision, you are empowered.

My thoughts drifted to WIC and how our website announces to the world that we are a dedicated community. We are in fact a team that is composed of the board, students, faculty,

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parents and alumni. We have a common vision communicated through our manifesto, Be Bold, Be Brave, Be Ready. The Board has had many conversations on how we best prepare the College for the future.

Fieldnote May 29th: As I was alone in the Hall of Nations (although Andy Tesfaye-Keto, Facilities & Supervisor of Rentals was almost certainly close by) after the last regularly scheduled board meeting I realized that

thriving under pressure in a team environment is exactly what WIC does. Therefore, we should not be surprised that our highest enrolment in the history of WIC will occur this coming September. Nor should we be surprised that the CAIS Student Leadership conference was an amazing success. Or, that we have very successful alumni such as Manjit Minhas on Dragons’ Den and a Board member and faculty member such as Mr. Malcolm Rennie, who has taught at the college for 30 years.

Lastly, we should not be surprised that we have moved to a culture of philanthropy, one in which everyone’s a fundraiser; the board, students, faculty, parents and alumni. After all, our successes have been obtained through thoughtful and detailed planning and our culture of philanthropy emphasizes this team relationship. Our fund development will support the mission-aligned components of expanding our community capacity, including projects such as the Campus Core.

The Board’s purpose is to support the faculty and staff so that WIC provides a first-class environment for our students and their

temporary place of learning.

In summary, our mission is to be prepared and our higher purpose is to provide a safe and exciting learning environment so that our students will thrive under pressure now and in the future.

8 Au Courant

The World as Our CampusGord Goodwin DEPUTY HEAD OF SCHOOL

The “world,” a vast and expansive place that can in fact be as far away as India, Tanzania and Paris or as close as the next town or just down the street. How can both situations and places be considered a part of the WIC campus?

We in education have a long history with the “classroom” as the central physical space where the instructional process occurs. Counting minutes of instructional time that students have their “bums in seats” has traditionally been the way we make sure classroom time is spent. As education delves into new and varied methods of delivery, it becomes evident that learning can and does happen in many different ways, in many different places, and at many different times. Anyone who has worked with or coached a sports team realizes that each of the players on the team is an individual that brings uniqueness to the team. Each member learns and performs in their own way and it is the master coach that is able to bring the individuals together to form the “team.”

Similarly, a classroom of students is a group of individuals, and to that end, the teacher must be able to bring the individuals to the point of true learning. The phrase “the world is at our fingertips” has never been more truly spoken than right now. Technology allows this to occur where on one day we can work through a digital simulation on the computer and the next speak with a researcher from Harvard.

In a similar way, the physical world and our ability to visit and experience that world has greatly improved in recent years and is critical to enhanced student learning. Studying the sacrifices of Canada’s armed forces during World War I in Europe from the classroom

is important to a student’s understanding of the Canadian identity. But to physically visit these areas, dress as they dressed, walk in the trenches they toiled in, and walk through their resting places brings a whole new level of meaning and understanding to the topic. To actually experience a place or event can embed learning deeply into the mind of the student. Close to home our students work closely in their grade 10 Career and Life Management (CALM) 20 class with the Boys and Girls Club of Calgary. Although this is an experience closer to home, the students will tell anyone they highly value the time they spend weekly working with younger children associated with the Boys and Girls Club.

The value of getting out of the traditional classroom to experience the real world cannot be understated. This past year our school hosted 150 students from across Canada for the CAIS Student Leadership Conference. Our four student leaders went on a year-long learning experience where they learned more about leadership and organization than they would ever be able to learn in the classroom.

Whether it is in a teacher-organized event, an activity closer to home, or one that spans the globe, the ability to immerse oneself in an experience is critical for our students to fully imbed learning and to become truly knowledgeable ambassadors in whatever endeavors they take on in the future.

9Summer 2016

Tracy Armitage HEAD OF JUNIOR SCHOOL

Backpacks for Success

A couple of weeks ago, my daughter and I swapped backpacks for a few days; hers is sturdier and more supportive than mine. Before I could use her backpack, she needed to take everything necessary for school out of her bag and put it into mine. A discussion ensued as to what she really needed for school. It was determined that she needed basic supplies but that she also wanted a variety of other comfort and “just in case” items because “you never know what the day could throw at you.” Our conversation got me thinking about the essentials that all students, in particular junior high students, require in order to have both academic and social-emotional success at school.

Every junior high student should have items in their backpack to help them take and organize their notes, record and erase their ideas and learn specific subject areas. They also require food and liquids for effective brain functioning and specific clothing items for physical activity and varying room temperatures. However, none of these items will be of any use if the student arrives to school too fatigued to concentrate.

More important for success than the materialistic tools in their backpacks are the student’s executive functioning skills and character traits. The ability to focus, think critically, adapt and problem solve are key skills for scholastic and lifelong success. Respect and empathy for others as well as integrity are crucial traits for today’s youth to navigate the interconnected, global world in which

we live. When life gets challenging (as it does frequently for every teen), we want our students to be resilient, creative and motivated to bring about positive change. It is no wonder that the students’ backpacks bulge and break periodically under the weight of all that they must carry!

WIC students enter the College with a wide variety of physical and psychological backpacks, each one filled with or limited in terms of supplies, experiences, knowledge and skills. A portion of the Grade 7 students arrive to school almost fully equipped and in search of deeper knowledge and enrichment experiences while others arrive functionally disheveled and in need of executive functioning and relationship skill-building. During their three years in junior high, the teachers and staff work with both sets of students helping them to reach their personal potentials and meet their academic goals in a supportive environment. In order to best support the students, it is imperative that teachers and parents know what each student needs, so we also want our students to self-advocate, to request new items or backpack replenishments when required.

In the years to come, our junior high students will benefit from more intentional executive skills training and character development as we believe that they represent the body of the backpack within which all other learning can take place, ensuring that they have the sturdiest of backpacks as they enter the world of senior high and beyond!

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Perspective: Life Through an African LensClaire Allen HEAD OF STUDENT SERVICES

It’s Easter Monday and we are driving east in a convoy of five jeeps through the Tanzanian countryside, passing villages filled with the songs of the church choirs and the sounds of a busy market day in Africa. Before we came on this journey many people told us that Africa changes you, that it reaches in and touches your heart and soul and you are never the same. While, I think, we each discovered this in our own way, we also discovered that Africa can teach you many things. Among other things, we learned that one of this continent’s most important lessons is perspective. Life is different viewed through an African lens.

It’s early morning when we load up the jeeps and head east from the city of Mwanza, on the shores of Lake Victoria, having just completed our service project at the Village of Hope. There are 36 of us in all, 31 students and 5 staff, who for three days were split into work groups building sidewalks, mixing and pouring concrete and repainting the six classrooms in the modest primary school that serves the 88 children at the Village of Hope as well as another 200 from the surrounding area. The hard but rewarding work finally completed, we’re excited for the next part of the adventure and our safari in the Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Crater before we finish off this trip of a lifetime with a few days on the island of Zanzibar.

It’s difficult to put into words the awe-inspiring natural beauty of the Serengeti landscape or the majesty of the different animals who call it home. Different but equally difficult to explain is the impression, as you descend into the lush Ngorongoro crater, of stepping back in time to see the herds of zebras and wildebeest, thousands strong, roaming the ancient volcano’s floor. But perhaps even more amazing than the expanse of the Serengeti or the serenity of the white sand beaches of Zanzibar, were the people we met on this trip. Without exception they greeted us with a joy and love of life that was infectious and made me think again about the idea of perspective. The day to day challenges of our comfortable Calgary lives are nothing compared to the struggle to survive and thrive in east Africa. However, while we worry about exams and effort marks, they go right on doing their best with a smile and a joy that is inspiring and humbling in equal measure. While we wish for more hours in our day to do the things that seem important, they live every moment to its fullest.

There is much to be discovered in a country as diverse and beautiful as Tanzania and much to be learned from looking at life through an African lens.

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Making a Case for the Case MethodScott Bennett HEAD OF STRATEGIC PLANNING AND INITIATIVES

In 2010 Mrs. Grant-Watt shared with me her vision of creating the Business Institute offering enriched student learning experiences. That same year we met with a small group of WIC parents to seek their guidance in the design and implementation of this program. We are greatly indebted to Michael Tims for introducing us to the case method; little did I know the impact he would have on my teaching pedagogy and on the WIC business program! Mr. Tims is a graduate of the Harvard Business School, which is renowned for the case method; cases there may range from 2 to 40 pages in length. A “case” addresses an issue faced by an individual or company; students are asked to identify the problem, seek alternatives and provide a recommendation on the best course of action. Case topics may include ethics, human resources, accounting, marketing, operations management, organizational behaviour, and leadership. Students work in teams to analyze and collaborate on a proper response to the situation at hand and much can be learned from the class discussions which follow.

The case method helps students develop many key skills: problem solving, critical thinking, working in teams, managing time, and working on effective oral presentations - all key attributes a student will need regardless of the profession they choose. In their article Case Learning: How does it work? Why is it Effective? Thomas Angelo and John Boehrer explain:

It is difficult to define, but also difficult to overestimate, the impact of the fact that case learning is more than a sterile, academic exercise. By challenging the student to adopt an action perspective, experience the raw data of a problem, and determine his or her own means of coping with it, by engaging students in the relatively unstructured, but highly charged enterprise of case discussion, the case method involves the whole person, the emotions and the intuitions as well as the intellect. Such qualities as persistence, patience, and persuasiveness count, along with mental agility and power, just as they do in the real lives of professionals. Case learning educates the person who will become the professional, not just the mind.

The WIC Business Institute has grown to include the case method in a variety of different forms. Business 10 students follow the Junior Achievement program, learning how to create and run their own businesses. We have incorporated 10 Ivey School of Business cases into the course. Ontario’s Ivey, like Harvard, is known for using the case method for much of their program of studies, and students learn key business concepts while working in teams and improving their presentation skills.

The Institute also runs a weekly Case Club that provides a variety of cases or projects where students can gain more case experience.

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Students may read cases dealing with social media issues with companies such as Mountain Dew, Domino’s Pizza, and Abercrombie & Fitch. One case explores the Denver Broncos football team and helps students better understand consumer behaviour. The Mongolian Grill case requires analysis of their restaurant layout, seeking a more efficient use of various resources. Leadership and organizational crisis are explored in the Westjet case. Decision-making skills in a marketing strategy are addressed in the case Sports Unlimited (Halifax) Inc. Students may choose to work on “live” cases, partnering with a Calgary Farmers’ Market vendor to help them with issues such as a storefront redesign layout, social media communications, or marketing strategies.

Farmers’ Market clients have included Wildfire Wing Co., 2 Greek Gals, Shef’s Fiery Kitchen, and Frank and Mabel’s Gourmet Hot Dogs to name just a few.

Over the past six years WIC students have participated in an increasing number of case competitions, including five Ivey High School Case competitions, four SAIT competitions, three U of C Health Science cases (working with WIC Board chair, Dr. Tish Doyle-Baker), and eight Haskayne School of Business cases, working with our great mentor, Dr. Bob Schulz. Over the years, our students have worked with many different companies: TransCanada’s Keystone Pipeline Project, Enactus Canada, Kidoodle.TV, Fig Tree Foundation, Screamfest, and Coco Brooks, to name but a few.

The case method helps students develop many key skills: problem solving, critical thinking, working in teams, managing time, and

working on effective oral presentations.

At case competitions, students make their presentations in unfamiliar environments, with a variety of evaluators, speaking in a horseshoe shaped university lecture theatre in front of parents, business community members and university students. This is very different from presenting in a classroom to peers and well known teachers, and the experience is an education in itself. The highlight of the experience is observing the growth in each student throughout the competition: the confidence, pace, eye contact, and increasing comfort level and ability to respond to challenging questions from the panel of judges.

We believe the wide ranging real world case presentation experiences provided by the

Business Institute will serve these future learners, leaders, and world changers well as they navigate the community beyond WIC.

14 Au Courant

Vrai ou Faux?Four myths and facts about French Immersion

Jean Francois-Schell & Carla McIvor

The French Immersion program is a cornerstone of West Island College and has been since the foundation of the College in 1982. We are thrilled to see our French Immersion program growing as we head into 2016. In this article, we attempt to set the record straight on some myths surrounding French Immersion.

Myth

Parents have to know French in order to support their children in French Immersion.

Fact

Most parents who enrol their children in French Immersion are not native speakers. Indeed, the French Immersion program is designed for those students who do not live in a francophone environment. Regardless of their comfort level with French, parents can provide opportunities for learning in many ways. Parent support in English with a particular subject (math or science) will naturally transfer and reap rewards in the French Immersion classroom. Parents can also help by encouraging their children to read French at home and explore French cultural opportunities, both local and beyond.

Myth

French Immersion students are disadvantaged in English.

Fact

Studies have shown that French Immersion students regularly outperform their non-immersion peers in English language reading. A 2004 study of 15-year old Canadian French Immersion students found that across the country, students in French Immersion programs performed significantly better in English reading than other students.1 Furthermore, French Immersion students have the opportunity to explore a variety of texts in both English and French which enhances critical thinking skills, reading strategies and ability to effectively analyze literature. In effect, they learn similar material in both ELA and FLA, which doubles their exposure to academic concepts.

1 Mary Allen, 2004. “Reading achievement of students in French immersion programs”. Educational Quarterly Review, Volume 9, number 4, pages 25-30. Catalogue 81-003-XIE.

Myth

French is no longer an important or relevant language to learn.

Fact

French is spoken by 900 million people worldwide. French is an official language of 29 countries. French and English are the official languages of Canada where, according to Statistics Canada, 7.3 million people consider French to be their mother tongue. Knowledge of French opens doors to both student exchange programs across the country and abroad, as well as to employment opportunities. In our dynamic economy, knowledge of French can give a candidate that extra edge.

Myth

French Immersion inhibits chances for success at the university level.

Fact According to Malcolm Rennie, Director of Post-Secondary Placement at WIC, universities are increasingly looking for students who have pursued a more rigorous program. Indeed, many Ivy League universities insist that graduating students have a second language. French Immersion goes above and beyond these requirements. In Grades 11 and 12, students are only required to take two classes as part of the WIC French Immersion program: Études Sociales and French Language Arts. This leaves them with substantial room to complete other course options in those key university preparatory years. In addition, language courses are included in the core academic courses accepted by universities. French Immersion courses demonstrate that a student has been willing to challenge themselves and commit to a highly academic program; it is this push for rigour that may set a student apart in the admissions process.

West Island College is extremely proud of its French Immersion program. We wish our 2016 Immersion graduating students all the best as they head off to universities across the country. Throughout their years at WIC, these students have gained so much more than a second language. They leave with a profound insight into a new culture, deeper literary analytical skills and advantages that will stay with them long after they transform from WIC student to WIC alumni.

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4 mythes et faits au sujet de l’immersion française

Le programme d’immersion française constitue l’une des pierres angulaires de West Island College depuis la fondation de l’établissement en 1982. À quelques mois de la rentrée 2016, nous sommes ravis de constater que notre programme d’immersion est en pleine croissance. Dans cet article, nous allons tenter de mettre les choses au clair en dissipant certains mythes sur le programme d’immersion française.

Mythe

Les parents doivent connaître le français afin de pouvoir aider leurs enfants en immersion française.

Fait

La plupart des parents qui inscrivent leurs enfants en immersion ne sont pas des locuteurs natifs. Et à juste titre : le programme d’immersion a été conçu pour les élèves qui ne sont pas issus d’un milieu francophone. Cependant, quel que soit leur niveau de français, les parents peuvent participer aux apprentissages de leurs enfants de bien des manières. Les élèves d’immersion française que les parents aident en anglais dans un sujet défini (les mathématiques ou les sciences, par exemple) font naturellement le transfert dans l’autre langue et tirent ensuite parti de cette aide en classe. Les parents peuvent aussi aider leurs enfants en les encourageant à lire en français à la maison et à explorer diverses expériences culturelles, à la fois chez eux et à l’extérieur.

Mythe

Les élèves en immersion française sont désavantagés en anglais.

Fait

La recherche montre que les élèves d’immersion française obtiennent régulièrement des résultats plus élevés que leurs pairs inscrits dans des programmes non immersifs sur des évaluations de lecture en anglais. Une étude menée en 2004 sur des élèves d’immersion française canadiens de 15 ans a révélé que partout au pays, les élèves inscrits dans ce programme lisaient nettement mieux en anglais que les autres.11 En outre, ces élèves ont la chance d’étudier une multitude de textes différents à la fois en anglais et en français, améliorant par là même leur sens critique, leurs stratégies de lecture et leur habileté à analyser la littérature. En fait, les compétences et apprentissages visés en ELA et en FLA sont très comparables, ce qui sensibilise doublement cette population d’apprenants à un certain nombre de concepts.

1 1 Mary Allen, 2004. “Reading achievement of students in French immersion programs”. Educational Quarterly Review, Volume 9, number 4, pages 25-30. Catalogue 81-003-XIE.

Mythe

Le français n’est plus une langue importante ou pertinente.

Fait

À travers le monde, 900 millions de personnes parlent français. C’est aussi la langue officielle en usage dans 29 pays. Le français et l’anglais sont les langues officielles du Canada, où, selon Statistique Canada, 7,3 millions de personnes considèrent le français comme leur langue maternelle. La connaissance du français ouvre la porte à de nombreux programmes d’échange au sein du pays et à l’étranger ainsi qu’à de nouvelles possibilités d’emploi. Dans le contexte dynamique de notre économique, connaître le français peut conférer un avantage supplémentaire à n’importe quel candidat.

Mythe

L’immersion française freine les chances de réussite à l’université.

Fait Selon Malcolm Rennie, directeur du placement étudiant au postsecondaire à WIC, les universités sont de plus en plus à la recherche d’élèves inscrits dans des programmes rigoureux. De fait, nombreuses sont les grandes universités à insister pour que les étudiants sortis du système secondaire possèdent une seconde langue. L’immersion française s’acquitte de ces exigences et les dépasse même largement. Il faut aussi noter que dans le cadre du programme d’immersion française de WIC, les élèves de 11e et 12e année sont tenus de suivre seulement deux cours spécifiques à ce programme : études sociales et French Language Arts. Cela leur laisse assez de temps pour inclure dans leur emploi du temps les diverses options à valider au cours de ces années essentielles de préparation à l’université. Par ailleurs, les cours de langue font partie des cours généraux acceptés par les universités. En suivant leurs cours en immersion française, les élèves prouvent leur désir de se mettre au défi et de s’impliquer dans un programme scolaire très exigeant; c’est cet élan de rigueur qui peut différencier ces élèves des autres durant le processus d’admission à l’université. À West Island College, nous sommes extrêmement fiers de notre programme d’immersion française. Nous offrons nos meilleurs souhaits à tous nos finissants et finissantes alors qu’approche pour eux le moment de sillonner le pays en direction de l’université. Au cours de leurs années passées à WIC, ces jeunes gens ont acquis bien plus qu’une seconde langue. Ils partent enrichis de vastes connaissances sur une nouvelle culture, de compétences plus affûtées en matière d’analyse littéraire et d’avantages qui les suivront longtemps après que leur vie d’apprenant à WIC aura cédé la place à leur nouveau statut d’ancien de l’école.

Chaz Sutton, Kaya Prokopchuk, Lauren McMahon, and Zach Johnson, GRADE 12 STUDENTS, CAIS CONFERENCE DIRECTORS

Now that the CAIS Conference has come and gone, we are in disbelief that this incredible experience, which encompassed so much of our lives, is over. Hosting this conference was an incredibly rewarding experience. We have learned much from working together and from our wonderful mentors.

The conference exceeded all of our expectations and was a huge success. We could not have imagined the extent of the impact that this conference has had on the WIC community, delegates, and guests.

The opening ceremonies were surreal. After nearly a year of planning, and imagining the conference, it had finally arrived and the school was full of excitement and delegates. We were thrilled to present them with the itinerary, on which we had worked so hard, and couldn’t wait to see the events unfold. We thought it would be appropriate for Calgary’s Mayor, Naheed Nenshi, to be the first to welcome the guests to our city, followed by the Honourable Randy Biossonnault, Member of Parliament. Their messages differed in many ways, but their passion for student leadership was a common theme.

On day two, after a fun and inspiring morning at Winsport Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame with two-time Olympian Gold Medalist Catriona Le May Doan, the delegates got a taste of our stunning back yard here in Calgary: Banff National Park. The student POD teams, and the teacher team were put to the test in what can only be described as an Amazing Race around the town, taking in some of the views unique to Banff. Fitting with our theme, Seek Your Summit, the delegates certainly saw some stunning peaks.

Day three capitalized on the adventure, and fun of the previous day in Banff, as it started with a speech from Laval St. Germain, the first Canadian to summit Mt. Everest without oxygen, among many other feats. After that inspiring start to the day, our delegates participated in numerous workshops ranging from yoga, to stress relief, to leadership within schools, to djembe drumming. The day finished with an authentic Calgarian line dancing hoedown. Saturday morning began by giving back to the Calgary community. Our delegates were sent all over the city to do volunteer work. Upon their return, they finished up their workshop rotation, and left early to get ready for the final banquet. The banquet was truly moving; our keynote speaker, Amanda Lindhout, shared her message of hardship, and hope. For us, the final banquet was a truly heartwarming event. The gratitude shared with us was deeply touching.

Hosting the CAIS Conference

at WIC was a success

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As students planning such a large-scale, national conference, it was hard to know what to expect when everything came together. Right from the beginning, our competitive team was determined to create a conference that rivaled, or even transcended all those that came before. In our initial stages of planning, we were ambitious in our ideas—we wanted a knockout

John Davidson DIRECTOR OF STUDENT LEADERSHIP

The 2016 Canadian Student Leadership Conference was the perfect opportunity for the West Island College learning community to showcase our values and abilities to independent schools from across Canada. It posed a daunting logistical challenge that our four student chair’s embraced wholeheartedly. Over the course of a year they streamlined a process that, within a five-day period, would include an opening ceremonies, a flash mob, five world class speakers, a rotation of five excellent workshops, an aptly named “Amazing Race” in Banff, a work project for 136 individuals at multiple charitable organizations throughout the city and a final formal banquet at Hotel Arts. Not to mention the fact that WIC had to house, feed and transport 136 students and 40 teacher delegates over the course of the five days. It was astounding the way that the WIC parent community graciously stepped up to billet the 120 “out of town” delegates. I have lost track of the number of student delegates who made a point of relating to me the remarkable efforts that were undertaken to make them feel at home. In addition, the efforts made by our over 100 staff and student volunteers were exceptional. They did everything from washing dishes to driving shuttle buses to and from Banff, and from decorating our gymnasium to resemble a traditional “Western Hoe Down” to acting as student POD leaders and ambassadors for our school. We may have had a few “hiccups” along the way, but they certainly were not evident to those attending the conference due to the incredible efforts of our four co-chairs, multiple committee chairs, and numerous selfless volunteers. It was truly one of the most rewarding experiences of my twenty-three year teaching career and I wish to thank Chaz, Lauren, Zach, and Kaya for inviting me to be a part of it.

“Every once in a while, we as educators get to participate in an event that appears to be transformative to a school community. This was such an event….truly one of the

strongest examples of student leadership I have had the opportunity to be party to in my career as a teacher and administrator. I couldn’t be more proud!”

- Mrs. Carol Grant-Watt

lineup of speakers and workshops that would have a lasting impact on our delegates, just as the 2015 conference had on us. Come April, we were lucky enough to see our ambitions in action; however, it was without a doubt the delegates, the POD leaders, and the WIC community that made the event so special. It was truly humbling to play a part in CAIS 2016.

17Summer 2016

Tara Law DIRECTOR OF INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

During Spring Break 2016, WIC students planted shrubs and painted walls. They played, raked, dug, swam, danced, read, conversed, drew and celebrated with local peoples. They enthusiastically embraced what may have been considered foreign or strange to them two weeks before. As they engaged deeply with local communities of students and teachers, their courage, awareness, and generosity bloomed, positioning them to be strong leaders, both now and in the future.

Many moments, such as the above, continue to demonstrate the commitment in WIC’s Strategic Plan to provide students with an academic advantage through “unparalleled, real world learning experiences.” WIC continues to be bold in offering its students opportunities that allow them to “explore, take risks, and learn beyond the walls of the College.”

Accordingly, as we pondered direction for our 2016 International Studies Program, Mrs. Grant-Watt and I actively embraced this mandate. We decided to go big, connecting students with the biggest and best experiential learning opportunities that the world has to offer. In concert with WIC’s Board of Directors, we decided to bring back Africa, give the Grade 9s a big trip, and expand our program to a new and very exciting destination: India! What ensued were some truly magical experiences.

By “bringing back Africa,” we resuscitated WIC’s travels to the beloved and cherished country

of Tanzania. WIC successfully sent groups to Tanzania in 2005, 2008, and 2012. We seized a renewed opportunity to send a group of students in 2016, where they participated in community projects supporting access to, and quality of, local education, walked on the white sand beaches of Zanzibar, met the friendly, jumping, Maasai people of the Tanzanian game parks, and observed the remarkable animals of the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater. WIC students learned and grew in Africa! We’re so glad they did.

Due to a cancellation of their original Europe trip to France, Belgium, and the Netherlands, sixteen Grade 9 students signed up for the more “outdoorsy” destination of Belize in addition to the five senior high students already registered. The twenty-one students experienced unparalleled, real-world learning experiences, including tubing through unique cave ecosystems, interacting with tropical fauna such as toucans, snorkelling coral reefs with reef sharks, and hiking ancient Mayan ruins – a direct connection to their Social Studies 8 curriculum. Although our International Studies program has historically seen great value in grouping trips by grade (the grade 9 trips have traditionally been exclusive), this year’s trip to Belize proved that wonderful things can happen when something new is tried.

This brings me to India, the newest International Studies destination, and a country of anomalies and dichotomies. The journey to Frankfurt and subsequently Delhi, was both exciting and nerve-racking. There was so much unknown ahead. As many travel tips and helpful hints as the WIC community had shared with us, most of us still didn’t know what to expect. Once in the country, our fears were almost immediately assuaged, as we were taken under the wings of very kind, caring, and competent guides. To quote Mr. Davidson, the tour company that we worked with was “top drawer, a first class

“Going Big” Around the Globe

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institution all the way.” As they drove, hustled, strolled, rickshawed, and danced through the mystical streets of Delhi, Agra, and Jaipur, WIC students were immersed in experiential learning, in its purest form. It is hard to put into words the power and impact touring a small fraction of India had on all of us. I can only speak for myself, but visiting India was an experience that will not be forgotten.

Through the International Studies program, WIC works to “unleash the potential” of its students, so they can “learn without limits” and “wonder without walls,” and develop the essential skills and knowledge to contribute to a better world. Exploration, risk-taking, and exploring are at

the core of WIC’s current Strategic Plan and, I would argue, at the WIC community’s heart. From small-scale acts like trying a new food or reading a new genre of novel, to large-scale acts such as digging a well at a rural school in the Indian desert, going big in 2016 paid off, as students and staff alike created experiences and memories that will undoubtedly last a lifetime.

19Summer 2016

On May 17, 2016, our grade 9 students and their families gathered at the Petroleum Club in Calgary to celebrate a significant milestone in our students’ lives.

Everyone enjoyed a delicious dinner, the presentation of individual certificates, and a video montage of our grade 9’s first three years at the College.

The evening was a wonderful opportunity to celebrate our grade 9’s outstanding achievements and to look forward to all that awaits them in the next years!

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Grade 9 Celebration

21Summer 2016

Inspirations of Creativity

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Kimberley Lewis TEACHING AND LEARNING LEADER, FINE ARTS WIC continues its rich tradition of inspiring and celebrating student creativity by providing opportunities for students to showcase their talents and push the boundaries of their artistic curiosity.

Student art on display at Leighton Art Centre

Abby Longworth GRADE 9

On December 15th, 2015, ten visual artists from WIC participated in the Student Art exhibition at the Leighton Art Centre, a non-profit Art Gallery and Art School located in Millarville, AB. The students, led by Ms. Lewis, were given a hands-on experience in preparing, curating and meeting the requirements for this exhibition. While we congratulate all participating artists, we would like to give special recognition to Darren Strydom who won the award for Best in Show in the Senior Category winning a $100 gift certificate from Swinton’s Art Supply, Instruction and Framing for his effort. Congratulations are also in order for Liz Bentley as she sold both of her pieces. The Leighton Art Centre graciously gifted all the participants with free memberships.

14th Annual Student Art ExhibitionMaggie Ghobrial GRADE 12

WIC held another wonderful celebration of its visual arts program, during WIC’s 14th Annual Student Art Exhibition, giving students a chance to share their works of art with students, staff and parents. WIC showcased a vast selection of artwork in various mediums, and all grades were able to submit artwork in the appropriate grade category (junior or senior) within the exhibition’s four main categories for the People’s Choice Awards: drawings, paintings, sculptures and mixed media. Along with the Art Exhibition, the Art 30 students created themed chairs for our annual Chairs for Charity event, and raised a total of $350 for the Calgary chapter of Dreams Take Flight. These students (Steven Egege, Tony Ye, Maggie Ghobrial and Josh Mennis) took initiative in this project by creating a variety of diverse chairs with different themes to appeal to a wide audience. With our team of student curators who volunteered their time in organizing and displaying the exhibit, as well as volunteering time during each night of the exhibition, we were able to host the show during parent-teacher Interviews. During our Viewers Choice Awards, which allowed the staff, students, and parents of WIC to vote for their favourite works of art, eight winners were prized in their select categories, along with one student who was prized for Best in Show.

Here are the winners of the art show:Junior Drawing: Ellie JudsonJunior Mixed Media: Danielle ColeJunior Painting: Emelie SeahJunior Sculpture: Ella HandsSenior Drawing: Maggie GhobrialSenior Mixed Media: Ava Matin-NejadSenior Painting: Natalie Tai Senior Sculpture: Sarah ThomsonBest in Show: Darren Strydom

23Summer 2016

Oeuvre: Our Collection of CollectionsDarren Strydom GRADE 12

The 2016 Senior Graduate Art Exhibition, Oeuvre: Our Collection of Collections, showcased the years of artistic venture that Art 30 and 31 students have developed during their time at WIC. Featuring nine graduating students (featured above), the art exhibition consisted of a collection of art pieces from each student, as well as a detailed artist statement expressing each artist’s growth and development within the realm of Visual Arts. Suffice to say, each artist spent incredible amounts of time and effort towards their advancement in Visual Arts, providing a vast abundance of magnificent pieces for WIC students, faculty, and families – as well as the public – to enjoy and appreciate. On behalf of all the students who participated in their final art exhibition, WIC would like to thank those of you who stopped to view Oeuvre: Our Collection of Collections from June 2 - 9 for a wide variety of artistry.

Introducing the Fine Arts PinLauren McMahonGRADE 12, PRESIDENT OF F.A.M.E.

The Fine Arts Movement Executive is excited to unveil a new addition to the WIC pin collection: the Fine Arts Pin. In the club’s first year, the Fine Arts Tie was distributed to meriting students who participated in at least one Fine Arts course, and two or more Fine Arts clubs or activities. The tie, designed by Stephanie Isilebo, is very popular with the students, as it is WIC’s only zipper tie! This year, those who still merit a tie, but have already received one, have the opportunity to strive for the Fine Arts Pin. To receive this pin, designed by Nik Leaf, one must participate in two or more Fine Arts courses, one master class, and three Fine Arts related clubs or activities. We were thrilled to present the Fine Arts ties once again, and the new Fine Arts pin in May.

For information on how to achieve the Fine Arts Pin or Tie, please see the Fine Arts Handbook or an arts teacher.

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In the upper left hand corner of our new website are buttons for

WIC’s social media channels. We are currently doing more to engage with our audiences through Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn with special announcements, photos, videos and general news related to WIC.

The Alumni Association is also connecting with graduates of WIC via social networks as well. They are actively seeking to reconnect with alumni while posting information about upcoming events and ways to support WIC on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

If you haven’t done so already, please join, follow or add yourself to WIC’s social media channels. Help us grow our social network community!

Fred Cheney ACTING DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS AND STRATEGY

Since the launch of the new WIC brand last fall, Marketing and Communications has been working hard to ensure that all internal and outward facing resources align with this new style. While the new logo and treatment made its way to WIC’s existing website last year, the campus community has been eagerly anticipating an entirely brand new site that not only more clearly displays the design of the new brand but also provides more functionality and accessibility to information. We are very proud to say that, after many months of planning and hard work, the new WIC website went live on February 26.

So far, feedback on the new website has been positive. Generally people have commented that they like the fresh new look, although not everyone has had a chance to play with all the bells and whistles just yet. While the look and feel of the new website is very different, all of the relevant information from the old website is still there, albeit packaged slightly differently. However we are certain you will be able to find what you need more easily on the new site.

One of the features that we were looking forward to rolling out with the new site is portability. You may have noticed that if you view our website on multiple devices it dynamically reacts to whichever device you are using, whether it be a smartphone, tablet

or laptop computer; this is called responsive design. The new website was created with this in mind as many in our community are consuming their media on mobile devices these days. Give it a try! You’ll notice that the site adjusts to the orientation and size of your mobile device automatically.

Another feature that we deliberately focused on while designing the new site was the ability to update the website in house when necessary. This means that there are staff members at WIC who have the authority and ability to make changes to our website so we don’t have to wait for a third-party to assist us.

While we have done our best to capture all of the information from the previous site, we are constantly looking at ways to improve it for our viewers and to update it with relevant information as necessary. It is considered an “evergreen” project in this regard. So if you have ideas about how to improve how we package and display information for the WIC community, please do not hesitate to share your ideas with us.

WIC’s new website is live!

Summer 2016 25

Aleena Virani and Samantha Wong GRADE 12 STUDENTS BROWN BAGGING COORDINATORS

Brown Bagging for Calgary’s Kids (BB4CK) is an organization that partners with Calgary schools to make and deliver free, healthy lunches for students who would otherwise go hungry. Proper nutrition is essential to a child’s academic growth and development. By enabling better education outcomes, BB4CK gives students a hand up, not just a hand out. West Island College began partnering with BB4CK in 2010 under the leadership of WIC student Christie Chalifoux. Wanting this partnership to continue after Christie’s graduation, we took over as school coordinators beginning in January of 2014. Working with BB4CK appealed to us, as we both wanted to do something that had a direct, tangible impact on the lives of others.

As coordinators of WIC’s Brown Bagging branch, our responsibilities each week include tracking inventory, shopping for supplies, and overseeing lunch preparation. We also actively recruit volunteers from Peer Support to assist with preparation and packaging. Once the lunches are prepared, grade 10 Career and Life Management (CALM) students deliver them to schools where they mentor elementary school students. When we first took over as coordinators in grade 10, our group was making approximately 12-16 lunches a week. We now deliver to two schools each week, preparing a total of 39 lunches. Some of the lunches we prepare are delivered to the children of Syrian refugees that have recently arrived in Canada.

The impact of BB4CK’s work is profound and far-reaching. The students receiving lunches are not the only ones who benefit from the arrangement. As school coordinators we

One Lunch Bag at a Time

“After brown bagging, I eat my lunch feeling fulfilled, knowing that I’ve helped to feed deserving kids

around Calgary.” - Sarina Virani, 7

“I love working with an organization that helps kids being able to learn, grow and play because without a

proper meal none of that would be possible.” - Bella Marsin, 12

have also benefitted immensely from our experience with the organization. Working with BB4CK has allowed us to develop essential leadership attributes, such as accountability, teamwork, critical thinking and problem-solving. In addition, the measurable impact of our contribution gives us a feeling of satisfaction and fulfillment. With so many blessings in our lives, we feel that this is one way for us to pay it forward. We find it remarkable that small steps, such as the provision of lunches, can have such a significant impact on a child’s educational success.

It is very encouraging to meet so many students in the WIC community who are willing to make a positive difference in a child’s life. We are proud to announce that current grade 10 students Maria Quintero Garcia and Jenny Wei will be taking over our roles as school coordinators after we graduate. We are beyond thrilled that WIC will continue to partner with this remarkable organization, and we are truly honoured to have been part of this legacy.

*** WIC’s Brown Bagging group meets one to two times a

week. Exact dates vary depending on the semester. If you are interested in getting involved, please contact Ms. Joy

or one of the Peer Support co-facilitators. Please also visit http://bb4ck.org for more information.

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WIC goes to Disneyland!Emma Boyne GRADE 9

The senior band trip to California was an unforgettable one. It started with a long and tiring morning. California awaited as we boarded the plane. The flight was a bit long, but well worth the time. As soon as we got off the plane, the sun shone hot and bright, and a bus arrived to take us to Sony Studios. When we arrived, a tour guide showed us around the facility. We were able to see a preview of an upcoming movie and take one or two photos of the Studio’s props and sets. We also saw the rehearsal and recording studio where the musicians create and play the soundtracks to the movies we all know and love. It was a great start to the trip. The next day, we had the opportunity to visit the Grammy Museum. It was incredible to see some of the most talented musicians and learn about the history of music culture. We then took a tour of Los Angeles and took photos of the whole city. To end the day, the entire band attended a performance of the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.  Although the performance was long, it was interesting to see the skill of the musicians. On the third day, we woke up bright and early to prepare for the most dreaded day. It was the day we would perform at Disney. Everyone was nervous, but when we began to play, the jitters were gone and the performance ended up being incredible. With the happiness of our success, we continued the day by going to Disneyland itself. The whole day was spent with laughter and screaming while enjoying rides. Finally, it was our last full day. We spent the morning recording in the Disney Studio and ended up having some impressive covers. With another accomplishment under our belts, we travelled yet again to the Park and spent our remaining hours having fun. The next day, we travelled back to Calgary. It was sad that we had to leave California behind, but everyone came back with new memories and friends. Overall, the trip was a blast. I have only touched on some of the highlights of the trip and they do not even begin to explain the incredible time we had in California!

Summer 2016 27

WIC Swiss Summer SchoolScott Bennett HEAD OF STRATEGIC PLANNING AND INITITATIVES

The Alps, Roger Federer, Toblerone and fondue are just a few of the things that Switzerland is famous for. Switzerland is a collection of 26 cantons that make up the Swiss Confederation, each with their own distinct culture and identity. I was fortunate enough to live in Switzerland for two years as a sports teacher at the international private school, Institut Le Rosey in addition to working 10 of their summer camps over the past 17 years. Goal 4 of WIC’s 2015-18 Strategic Plan is to provide unparalleled real world learning experiences for students. The WIC Swiss Summer School supports this goal and provides students with the opportunity to explore, take risks and to learn beyond the walls of the College.

The Swiss Summer School will officially run from July 4-30, 2016. Students will spend the first week here at the College studying five full school days of English 20/30 course material before heading overseas on the 9th. Over the course of the next three weeks the group will stay in the mountain town of Gstaad (canton Berne). The

Gstaad area allows you to discover the deep gorges, alpine valleys, and high mountain peaks – with 300 km of well maintained trails and paths. The group will stay in a traditional Swiss chalet and use this residence as their main home base. The Chalet Jacqueline is owned and operated by the Institut le Rosey. English teacher, Ms. Shelley Buckingham will spend the weekday mornings working with students

refining their English 20/30 reading, writing and comprehension skills. Students taking the English 30 course may choose to write their Diploma exam upon arrival back in Calgary in early August if they so choose.

A wide variety of adventure programs will give students the full Swiss experience.

Unforgettable activities will see students working with guides from the outdoor adventure company, Alpinzentrum testing their skills at the Zweisimmen high ropes course, a via ferrata course, and rock climbing in the Gstaad area. The Parc Adventure in the town of Aigle will challenge the student’s ability

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on the wobbly cable bridges and zip lines. In addition to hiking on a few of the surrounding trails the group will also take in Gstaad’s men’s Association of Tennis Professionals and Fédération Internationale de Volleyball tournaments. One of the highlights of the trip will be the gondola lift up to the Glacier 3000 to get a 360-degree panoramic view of 24 peaks over 4,000 meters. Students may then also ride the alpine coaster that has you go in 360 degree circles heading upwards of speeds close to 40 km/hour over a 1 km stretch.

Gstaad is conveniently located in the heart of Suisse that will facilitate many day-trip excursions. Stops will include the cities of Geneva (Europe’s United Nations and spectacular view of the Mont Blanc), Lausanne (Olympic Museum), Bern (UNESCO World Heritage Site), Montreux (Chateau de Chillon) and a day trip to Interlaken and Kleine Scheidegg which gives an incredible view of the Eiger, Monch, and Jungfrau mountain range.

Switzerland has a lot to offer in terms of cultural and linguistic experiences. Not many countries are known for having 4 official languages (French, German, Italian and Romansh). Students will be exposed to the German language as Gstaad is located in the German-speaking region of Switzerland. On a number of occasions the group will head into the French speaking region of the country when they will visit the western area in and around Geneva. The WIC group will have a number of

opportunities to meet with students from all around the globe when they head to the Institut Le Rosey campus located in the town of Rolle (30 km east of Geneva). The Rosey Summer Camp hosts over 400 students each July coming from countries as far away as Kuwait, Russia, Brazil, Japan and Saudi Arabia to name a few. Our students will be able to interact with their camp participants in a variety of activities that may include archery, tennis, swimming, or taking in one of their weekend discos/BBQs. We also hope to meet up one afternoon with summer camp students at the Leysin American School to learn more about their camp program and to see what activities they have to offer.

Without a doubt the group will make sure to take in all that this land of cheese and chocolate has to offer. Students will be sure to enjoy a traditional Swiss fondue and raclette dinner. An afternoon visit to Gruyeres will see the students walk around the medieval castle and village in addition to touring their cheese factory, La Maison Du Gruyer. We won’t be able to drive past the neighboring town of Broc without a stop at the Maison Cailler Chocolate Factory to sample some of their sweets. The WIC Swiss Summer School will have a lasting impact on the students. These academic, athletic and leadership experiences will shape these young individuals, help them to forge strong friendships both here and abroad, and guide them on the path to ‘own your future.’

29Summer 2016

Steven Smith DIRECTOR OF POST-SECONDARY PLACEMENT

For over twelve years now, WIC has been developing leadership in the grade 10 class by selecting twelve students to participate in a program called Sailing Educational Adventures (S.E.A.). The goal of the program is to develop leadership skills through teamwork, and by sharing a close personal experience for five days aboard a 70-foot sailing boat in the Gulf Islands of BC. The twelve students are selected by a faculty committee based on their written applications as well as nominations by teachers and fellow students. Over the five-day outing in May, the students are introduced to the basics of sailing, navigation, weather and engineering. On the last day of the trip students are assigned to specific roles and are then required to work together to direct the sailing of the tall ship back to port (with a little bit of guidance). This is never an easy task but by working together they learn that it is possible. In addition to sailing skills, students discuss a variety of topics related to school life and about how they can make their grade and the WIC community an even better place to learn. Every year students also enjoy learning about the rich marine ecosystem by exploring tidal pools and observing bird life and marine mammals. This year we sailed by a colony of harbour seals and California sea lions. It is always a pleasure to

see how these students come back and take on formal and informal leadership roles in school.

While the S.E.A. program is a great way to develop leadership at WIC, students must realize that there are multiple leadership opportunities just waiting to be taken advantage of. Being involved in a club such as Global Awareness, Peer Support, or Roots and Shoots is a great way to see how other students take on leadership. WICAA, sports teams and Fine Arts Council are other avenues to learn about leadership. Ultimately, leadership is not about the title a person might be nominated for or elected into, but more about doing the right thing, at the right time, day in and day out, especially when no one is looking! I love touching base with WIC alumni and they will often comment how the leadership opportunities they had at WIC gave them the confidence to contribute to their communities for years to come. I am very proud of this year’s student participants in the S.E.A. program. They showed a very strong commitment to trusting each other and to teamwork. This year’s participants were: Samantha Allison, Rylie Essington, Alexa Krala, Sofia Maruschak-Love, Emma Paidra, Sara Zulyniak, Hunter Graves, Maxwell Hancock, Glen Hebert, Aly Rana, Sean Sutton, Curren Ward. The supervising teachers were Ms. Donna Joy and myself.

Leadership Development The S.E.A. Program

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Raising resilient childrenClaire Allen HEAD OF STUDENT SERVICES

In February, the West Island College Wolves Den Speakers Series was proud to present an evening with Dr. Alex Russell, author of Drop the Worry Ball: How to Parent in the Age of Entitlement. Dr. Russell is a clinical psychologist who helps children develop resilience and their own personal relationship with school and achievement. The heart of his message—and his book —is that children learn by experiencing non-catastrophic, painful failure, and it is through the process of these failures that they mature into resilient, resourceful and emotionally balanced individuals. Dr. Russell believes that parents need to see failing—whether it’s

a test, a course, or a tryout for a team as a normal part of growing up and not a sign of parental incompetence. Speaking to over one hundred parents, faculty and guests from other schools, Dr. Russell offered a fresh perspective on raising children and challenged his audience to reexamine their relationship with their children and specifically their education. He encouraged parents, and educators, to allow children to learn through failure and develop the resiliency necessary to carry them into post-secondary education and the adult world.

2016 Post-Secondary Scholarship RecipientsMalcolm Rennie DIRECTOR OF POST-SECONDARY PLACEMENT

Please note this scholarship information is current as of May 13, 2016. Information received after this date regarding students who have received major scholarships will be published in the Weekly Au Courant.

West Island College students are very successful in major scholarship competitions due to their focus on excellence in academics and their involvement in leadership and community support. The following are some of the students from this year’s class who were offered major and highly selective scholarships from universities they applied to. It should be mentioned that all WIC students tend to receive scholarships at university to some degree – each year virtually every student in the entire class has won the Government of Alberta’s Rutherford scholarship, and the majority of WIC students win an additional automatic entrance scholarship from the universities they attend due to their strong

academic entrance average. Thus the following students are recognized for these special awards which are often the top awards offered from these various universities – given out to students based on their outstanding contributions to learning and community.

Maggie Wang Chancellor’s Scholarship, Queen’s University

Maggie applied for as many different scholarships as she could just to see what would happen. She was offered major scholarships to the University of Toronto and the University of British Columbia before deciding to accept the Chancellor’s Scholarship to Queen’s University where she will be on track for a

Bachelor’s of Commerce. Until grade 10 Maggie aspired to become a surgeon, but quickly decided that endeavor was not for her. “I realized that spending fourteen years in school while pursuing

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a specialization in neurosurgery wasn’t for me,” she says. Maggie discovered her true passion after meeting Mr. Bennett and immersing herself in the real-world applications of business, health sciences and engineering through the WIC Institutes. “Participating in the institutes helped me discover my strengths, and my weaknesses,” says Maggie. She leaned on WIC’s post-secondary resources to help bring her personality out in her applications and advises fellow students to highlight things that bring you as a person out of the paper. She is hoping to make the most out of her university experience by branching a bit outside of academics.

Aleena Virani Chancellor’s Scholarship, Queen’s University

Aleena is incredibly honoured to be receiving a Chancellor’s Scholarship from Queen’s University which is awarded to students who have demonstrated superior academic ability, creative and original thinking, and proven leadership qualities. The scholarship will cover the full cost of her tuition during her

four years at Queen’s and will provide her with opportunities to network with faculty and other major award recipients. Aleena developed a keen interest in the health sciences at WIC, and will be enrolling in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences this fall. Her participation in WIC’s Health Sciences Institute solidified her interests and opened her eyes to the wide variety of disciplines and career opportunities in the sector. Aleena found it rewarding to be one of the coordinators of WIC’s Brown Bagging Program partnering with Brown Bagging for Calgary’s Kids to provide free, nutritious lunches to students who would otherwise go hungry. She encourages any students who may be applying for scholarships in the future to take full advantage of the services and the Post-Secondary Advising team at WIC provides. “I owe a large portion of my success to them,” Aleena says.

Sarah Nearing Dalhousie University

Sarah will be taking her talents to Dalhousie University on a major scholarship with significant financial award next year, where she will be on track for a Bachelor of Music and hopes to combine honours in Music and Theatre by the end of her first year. Sarah honed her musical abilities in WIC’s Guitar Club, Improv Club and many

theatrical productions. With the support of faculty and classmates at WIC, she gained the confidence to pursue her dreams to grow as a vocalist, performer and person in a completely new environment. “The opportunity to play Fagin in Oliver! at WIC in Grade 10 gave me a much-needed confidence boost and the lessons I learned from that role have aided me in pursuing the performing arts,” says Sarah. She has successfully earned a host of merit, academic and fine arts awards at WIC and hopes to continue that success at Dalhousie. She encourages students applying for scholarships to never sell yourselves short and conduct your due diligence when researching universities and what they offer. “You will save yourself a lot of stress!”

Marcus Memedovich Western University Marcus is the recipient of an automatic entrance scholarship to Western University to study Business Management. He will be attending this very prestigious Canadian university despite receiving a very significant financial scholarship to Seton Hall University in the U.S. He is very grateful for this opportunity which is the result of many years of hard work. “It definitely makes me feel rewarded for the work I put in for my grade 11 and 12 years and reinforces the importance of extracurricular activities to gain experience,” he says. Marcus says joining the Business Institute and participating in the Case Competitions made him enjoy the competitive nature of the business world. “Participating in debates for social class also gave me a taste of on-the-spot arguments, which are one of my favourite activities,” says Marcus. He is especially proud of being chosen as a prefect and the co-chair of a regional youth council this year. His advice for students at WIC who are seeking similar scholarship opportunities to look for schools that want to offer you scholarships even if they aren’t your top choices. He also encourages students to

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not be afraid to approach Mr. Smith or Mr. Rennie for advice.

Kaya Prokopchuk University of British Columbia

Kaya is very honoured to have her hard work and dedication recognized in the form of a major scholarship that considered her personal achievements as well as her academic accomplishments. This fall, she will be following her dream of studying biology by pursuing a Bachelor of Sciences degree at the University of

British Columbia. Kaya has always aspired to studying medicine, however, when her grandmother was diagnosed with cancer and underwent chemotherapy, she realized alternative medicine could have major benefits after traditional treatment. “By taking part in the Health Sciences Institute, I’ve had the opportunity to intensify my purpose and one day I hope to be an advocate of a blended treatment of traditional and alternative medicine,” says Kaya. “Because of WIC’s fostering environment, I feel prepared to realize my dream, take risks and take the necessary steps to maximize the possibility of this becoming a reality.” Kaya was also a member of the group of students who secured WIC as the host venue for this year’s successful CAIS National Youth Leadership Conference.

Amelia Srajer Academic Scholarship, University of Toronto

WIC’s Psychology and Biology courses inspired Amelia to learn more about the physical effects and causes of psychiatric disorders. While working on a research project called the STS Journal for Biology 30, Amelia discovered her passion. “I found it fascinating and it really solidified my decision to study neuroscience at university,” she says. Amelia will be following that passion when she embarks on her quest to study Life Sciences at the University of Toronto this fall. She was awarded a major scholarship with significant financial award based purely on her high academic standings. She was also awarded the University of Toronto National Book Award as the leading applicant to

the University from WIC. Although her hard work in the classroom is what earned her this scholarship, she says persistence also contributed to her success and encourages others to also take chances. “I applied for many scholarships which I did not receive and I learned that it had little to do with me or my achievements. Try your best but don’t get discouraged. If you work hard now, it will pay off in the future.”

Logan Carver Athletic scholarship (Golf), University of British Columbia

Logan is a very passionate and accomplished golfer who is taking his talents to the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia to study commerce this fall. Logan is very proud to have earned a golf scholarship to university because he has worked very hard at improving his game for many years. He is very excited

for the opportunity to compete against the future PGA Tour Players who often participate in Division I tournaments. His passion for golf was sparked in 2006 when Sergio Garcia asked Logan to caddie for him for a few holes. He has been playing golf since then and has made many lifelong friends along the way. WIC provided Logan with the opportunity to pursue his dreams of continuing to compete in golf by enabling him to play in the city and provincial championships. WIC went on to win the provincial championship by 21 strokes and Logan won the boys individual title by four strokes, earning him the Sportsmanship Award. “The combination of being team, individual and sportsman champion really impacted my chances of receiving this scholarship,” Logan says. Although, maintaining a high academic standing including an honour roll average since grade 7 helped tremendously as well.

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Congratulations to WIC’s Duke of Edinburgh Award winners Kristie White WIC is very proud to recognize the following students who, at the timing of print, were named as recipients of the Duke of Edinburgh Award this semester. For the first time ever, WIC is celebrating three Gold level awards in one year.

The award programme comprises four sections. The Service Section is intended to develop a sense of community and social responsibility. The Adventurous Journey Section aims to cultivate a spirit of adventure and discovery and an understanding of the environment. The Skills Section develops cultural, vocational and practical skills and the Physical Recreation Section encourages improved performance and fitness. The Residential Project (an additional requirement at Gold level only) aims to broaden horizons through a worthwhile residential experience.

WIC congratulates Michael Comessotti, Amelia Knapp and Kaya Prokopchuk for accomplishing their Bronze level Duke of Edinburgh Awards this semester.

Amelia was inspired to pursue the Duke of Edinburgh Award after her older brother completed it. Her participation in the programme provided her with rewarding experiences helping others at a Calgary soup kitchen. Some of the challenges she faced while on the programme provided her with lifelong skills to carry forward. “I was really pushed towards putting my head down and being dedicated to completing each section of the award and balancing out my busy life, another important life skill I learned,” says Amelia.

Kaya also gained a valuable and rewarding experience by helping others while participating in the award programme. She says her most fulfilling moment was volunteering at the Mustard Seed Society. “Giving back to the community is important to me. I’ve learned a lot about personal initiative and priorities because of this

program,” she says. Kaya really had to strive for balance with all the different activities, including leading the CAIS Student Leadership Conference at WIC, which took up a lot of her

Kenzie Vaandering University of Calgary President’s Admission Scholarship Athletic scholarship (Volleyball) University of Calgary

Kenzie is extremely excited to have been awarded a scholarship for what she loves most, which is playing volleyball. She will be attending the University of Calgary next year not only on an athletic scholarship, but also on an academic President’s Admission Scholarship. Both amount to very significant financial awards

for which Kenzie is very grateful. “Being awarded for both my academic and athletic achievements accurately reflects my high school years and I feel very lucky for that,” says Kenzie. She will be going into the Bachelor of Science program run through the Faculty of Kinesiology majoring in Biomechanics. Kenzie says she feels extremely prepared for her university experience because of WIC. “The support I have received from teachers and the staff at WIC has been unparalleled,” she says. “Several teachers have gone out of their way to aid me through writing reference letters, providing me with great advice and making the university application process ten times easier.” For those who will be applying for scholarships in the future Kenzie offers the following advice, “Be honest in your applications and don’t be afraid to apply for anything, you never know what you might receive.”

Congratulations to all of our scholarship recipients as well as our entire graduating class of 2016!

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time. Despite completing the programme, Kaya continues her volunteer efforts.

WIC is also very proud to congratulate Maggie Wang, Tiana Comessotti and Zach Johnson as the three Gold level award winners this semester.

Maggie found value in volunteering while on the programme by seeing that her efforts were making a difference. She also ventured outside of her comfort zone by meeting the challenge of the Adventurous Journey head on. Although she loves nature, she is not very comfortable roughing it. Her time in the programme

taught her valuable lessons about commitment and facing adversity. “I’ve learned how to persevere through challenging times and thrive under pressure,” she says.

Tiana also had to break out of her shell a bit to explore the outdoors outside her comfort zone and fine tune her survival skills in pressing situations. “The Duke of Edinburgh Award has challenged me to explore the outdoors and embrace the beautiful Canadian Rockies,” she says. Tiana also pushed herself to improve her public speaking skills by participating in workshops and a mock Parliament. She says developing this skill improved her self-confidence “astronomically.” By meeting the challenges of the programme, Tiana fostered skills she will use in the future. “The program fostered an appreciation for journeys, service, physical recreation and skill development. By keeping all these components balanced, I will be able to have a healthy and well-rounded future,” she says.

Zach was also a part of the student leadership responsible for organizing this year’s CAIS Student Leadership Conference. He was also very busy studying abroad in France and participating in many school athletics including volleyball, badminton and track & field. Zach has given back to his community by volunteering with a number of well-known support organizations around Calgary such as Big Brothers and Sisters of Calgary, the Salvation Army and the Interfaith Food Bank. He is very proud to have accomplished the Gold level of the Duke of Edinburgh Award. “After recognizing the great fit between the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award programme and myself, I used it as source of motivation to do more,” he says.

WIC is extremely proud of the students who are participating in the Duke of Edinburgh Award programme and are especially pleased to recognize these outstanding students for upholding the spirit and philosophy of WIC’s mission, vision and values. We hope that many other students continue to gain value and reap the benefits of the participating in the programme for years to come.

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ENGINEERING INSTITUTE EXPERIENCESDr. Claire Sumner TEACHING & LEARNING LEADER, SCIENCE WIC’s Institute Programs enable students to discover their passion and build their own unique experiential portfolio. As students journey through the grades, these experiences can build towards achieving any of the WIC Institute certificates – supporting them on their pathways towards relevant post-secondary endeavors and into the world beyond university. The premise of WIC’s Engineering Institute program is to challenge students with relevant, rigorous, engineering focused content, helping students to think critically, to work in teams, and to apply knowledge and skills to solve engineering related problems. This is just a glimpse into some of the activities in which the students have participated, alongside the prescribed curriculum.

Following last year’s successful launch of the Engineering Institute, a number of students attended WIC’s Engineering Camp in July, providing them with valuable petroleum engineering experiences: visiting Cenovus and Encana, McDaniel & Associates, and Fluor; flying to Fort McMurray to visit the Oil Sands Discovery Center and to tour the Suncor facility. This impressive field experience inspired faculty and students to continue pursuing and developing activities throughout the 2015-16 school year to support the Engineering Institute.

In September, a number of students formed an Engineering Club to have fun with a variety of activities. These activities included hands-on construction builds, as well as software experiences such as constructing 3D shapes within Tinker Cad and learning how to use MakerBot. This enabled some students to understand how to prepare object files for printing on WIC’s 3D printers (MakerBot Replicators). The students have also been working with visiting alumni, Kodie Becker (Class of 2015), who presented a workshop that introduced them to SolidWorks, a professional 3D computer automated design (CAD) program.

A programming club was also launched, meeting on Friday afternoons, and the students learned the basics of BYOND programming while making online multiplayer games. Using a language that is very similar to C# and JavaScript, the students learned the basics of object-oriented programming, simple algorithmic logic, and how to design graphics. The group, as a team, is working on one project, and has begun their game design documentation, which will be eventually added as systems and mechanics into the game.

The Junior Robotics Club once again registered with F.L.L. (F.I.R.S.T. Lego League) and designed an EV3 robot to complete a number of missions. This year’s focus was on the issue of waste. The team chose to complete a project researching radioactive waste, learning about its sources, and current and developing solutions. The club concluded with a WIC tournament between two teams and involved a technical interview, a team challenge, project presentation, and the competitive robot mission games.

In grade 7 Science, students built bridges while learning about forces in structures, and Grade 8 students designed and built catapults, and researched gears and pulleys as part of a simple machines topic. Grade 8 students have also designed and programmed Lego EV3 robots in their Robotics Explorations Option, and those wishing to pursue this further will be encouraged to join the Junior Robotics Club next year in preparation for the official F.L.L. tournament in Calgary, January 2017.

In the Grade 9 Business and Technology option, students worked with a program called PencilCase, developed by the company Robots and Pencils. The students created apps that targeted topics such as travel, babysitting and restaurants, and a variety of games were produced.

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PencilCase Studio provided everything they needed to create fully interactive apps for their ios devices. Using the built-in cards and supplies, the students incorporate the features seen in mobile apps, from menus to buttons to galleries. A visiting engineer from GKD industries introduced the students to SolidWorks, (a professional 3D-CAD software) and they designed an iPhone case. In the same option, students were also introduced to a comprehensive range of basic skills in Excel. This experience was also offered to all students in a weekly Friday afternoon club session.

Grade 8 students visited TELUS Spark in September, taking part in a Hydraulics Workshop, having fun in the Exploratorium, and listening to visiting astronaut, David Saint-Jacques. In November, a number of Grade 8’s took part in an Engineering Workshop, answering the question ‘What is Engineering?’ and competing in a Marshmallow Challenge. The Grade 7 students took on the Annual Grade 7 Engineering Challenge in May and showed great team spirit as they competed in two rounds to decide the winning finalists this year.

WIC has fostered a close relationship with University of Calgary’s Schulich School of Engineering and senior high students have connected with engineering students from Schulich through visits with their Discover Outreach Team. Grade 10 students also visited the University to participate in the annual Women in Engineering Day, allowing them to tour different Engineering departments and take part in a design challenge.

A partnership with community businesses is another key facet of the Engineering Institute. This year, grade 12 students visited Alta Injection Molding, (A.I.M.) an Airdrie company, to learn about this useful process and observe how a successful engineering company competes in a global market. Two teams of students then designed a solution to a problem posed by engineers from this company. The students worked on their projects over four months with support from A.I.M., culminating in a presentation to the engineers. The teams worked through the Engineering Design Process and found this process very valuable as they move towards University courses next year.

The inaugural WIC Senior Engineering Challenge was held on Saturday, April 16, and four teams were pitted against each other as they designed, built and tested prototypes, and prepared presentations. A professional panel then assessed the teams against a rigorous rubric, ultimately providing students with important feedback, and announcing the competition winners at the end of the afternoon. This was a fantastic experience for all involved and the event is set to build momentum next year.

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Senior cast member, Sarah Nearing, and grade 10 student, Alexandra Cook, provide their expert reviews of WIC’s two well-received Spring Productions; Mirrors and The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-moon-marigolds.

MirrorsSarah Nearing GRADE 12

The initial silence is broken only by the striking of a match. A lone figure pensively examines the lit match for a few moments before blowing it out. The first few moments of Mirrors puzzled its audiences; indeed, much of the play was confusing at first. The staccato dialogue between Fred, played by Chris Dalton, and the rest of his family initially seemed disjointed and random. However, Mirrors was revealed to be a complex production about a man living in two realities: one imagined, one not. In one, he is at home with his family, who are happy, prosperous, and experiencing normal, everyday trivialities. In the other, he is in a care facility, and his family is dead. The audience is left with more questions than answers at the play’s conclusion: which world is real? Which world does Fred choose? The complex themes and ideas present in Mirrors, coupled with its staccato dialogue which relies entirely on subtext to convey meaning, makes it a challenge even for experienced actors. The

production presented to audiences by WIC’s cast was very nearly professional calibre. I had very little idea what to expect the first time I saw Mirrors. I have worked with each of the actors in the production, but I was completely shocked by the depth of understanding of character that each actor showed. Under the direction of Mr. Ackerman, actors who had previously played smaller roles proved their acting mettle, and WIC’s more experienced actors showed new depth.

Amelia Colborne played the loveable Marita, Fred’s youngest daughter. Amelia not only gave a believable performance, her character played a key role: she emerged onstage whenever the dialogue amongst Fred’s family began to steer towards the “truth” which Fred conveys to the doctor. Amelia’s character added a necessary endearing naiveté to a show fraught with serious themes, and her sense of timing was extremely impressive.

Cameron Bailey, who also played Sebastian in Cinderella, delighted the audience with his comedic timing and his evident distress over his dinner date. Cameron brought a vivacity to the stage, but also an unprecedented severity. Although Cameron has played “stock characters” in the past, he demonstrated that he is more than capable of portraying multi-dimensional roles.

Matt Lutz played Freddie, Fred’s oldest, and displayed remarkable depth of character. His

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obviously, carefully thought-out tone and facial expressions not only made his character believable, but contributed to his remarkable stage presence which he showcases in every role he plays.

Aly Rana brought forth an extremely moving performance as the Doctor, and proved just how much he has grown as an actor over the last year. The contrasting kindness and firmness Aly portrayed in his role were key to the progression of the plot, and he managed to stun audience members with his intensity.

Alex Cook, relatively new to the WIC community, played Fred’s wife. I was particularly impressed by Alex’s portrayal of Fred’s wife. It is a role which requires thoughtfulness and maturity, and Alex displayed both of these, switching between the loving wife and mother and the apparition determined to keep Fred in a world which may or may not be real, with ease.

During his acting tenure at WIC, Chris Dalton has played simpler characters who lack much dimension, but portraying Fred was no easy task. Chris made it look easy. The roller coaster of emotions Fred experienced was felt acutely by the audience members, and Chris delivered a performance which was, quite frankly, brilliant.

Mr. Ackerman certainly has much to be proud of; he chose and directed an extremely complex production, and worked for hours with the cast members to perfect their lines. As the lights

faded to black and another match was lit, the actors can feel satisfied in the knowledge that they succeeded in conveying the message of Mirrors: that each of us must choose to live in reality. However, defining reality may be a difficult task. It is up to each of us to determine what reality is, and to live with our mistakes.

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The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-moon-marigolds Alexandra Cook GRADE 10

The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-moon-marigolds, written by Paul Zindel, is a one act play centered around a dysfunctional family, the Hunsdorfers, in the 1970s. Tillie, the youngest daughter, played by Sara Owad, is a reserved young girl, with a passion for the sciences. However, Tillie’s enthusiasm for learning and education are not shared by her older sister Ruth, played by Lauren McMahon, or her mother Beatrice, played by Sarah Nearing. Beatrice is a single mother trying to raise two daughters as well as provide for the family. To earn her income, she boards and looks after the elderly, a job she resents because of her lack of empathy and disdain for those who show weakness. Hardened by the death of her father and her divorce, Beatrice struggles to find her place in adult life, in a town that she has always resented, and vice versa. Her misfortunes cause her to often act rashly and harshly in situations and to neglect and verbally abuse her children. Ruth, who starts off being played as a ditzy and spoiled-rotten, older sister, is a recovering psychiatric patient with an intense fear of death. Tillie strives to overcome her mother’s abuse and pursue her passion in science by entering the science fair with her Man-in-the-moon-marigolds, which have been mutated with Cobalt 60. Unfortunately, Beatrice is not so keen on the idea of her daughter embarrassing herself and the Hunsdorfer family in the process.

The production gave a very real portrayal of life in the seventies for a lower-middle class family. Costumes and makeup were quirky and personalized to each character’s different traits, as well the set was very accurate to the time period and the modest and slightly cluttered props were an excellent symbol of the chaos and domestic drama that was plaguing the household. Sarah Nearing’s portrayal of the slightly cynical and off-beat mother was exquisite. Her voice and presence on stage evoked a reaction from the audience and her sarcastic remarks and pessimism were very humorous. However, Sarah was also able to add depth to the character and remind the audience that Beatrice had feelings too. Nearing was not only capable of making the audience fear and despise her character, but allow many members of the audience to empathize with her.

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Lauren McMahon’s portrayal of Ruth was flawless. Not only was she able to portray Ruth perfectly as the ditzy older sister and shallow high school bully we have all hated in the past, but Lauren was able to express the inner mind workings of a recovering mental patient on stage. Lauren’s mannerisms and body language worked perfectly with her character and her delivery of Ruth’s final episode on stage gave the audience literal chills, and left them in suspense about what was to become of her character. Sara Owad, as the shy and ambitious Tillie, was moving and struck a chord with the entire audience. Sara’s honest portrayal of her character and heartfelt delivery of lines allowed members of the audience to personally identify with Tillie. Tillie’s inner monologues delivered on stage were unique and entertaining. Although speechless, Megan Switzer’s portrayal of the sweet and silent “Nanny” was perfectly done. Megan was able to convey Nanny’s thoughts and feelings on stage, all through body language and facial expressions. It takes lots of talent to be able to make an audience empathize with a silent character, and even more to have the audience laughing with the character. Megan was able to achieve all of this in a very short time frame, the mark of a true actress. Kaya Prokopchuk as Janice Vickery was absolutely hilarious! Her eccentric facial expressions and wild makeup made the character even more full of life. Her voice and presence on stage as well as comedic timing made audience members breathless with laughter.

Overall, the play was a brilliant balance of both tragedy and humor. The actresses were able to convey the dark themes of the play without becoming too heavy through use of clever one liners and snappy comebacks. I was very impressed with all of the actors’ performances as well as costumes and set. All of this could not have been done without Mrs. Irvine, the dedicated director. Mrs. Irvine put in hours of work and without her, this production would not have been what it was. The play was stunning.

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WIC’s Foundation for the futureDebra Klippenstein EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF ADVANCEMENT

I was fortunate to attend WICelebrates on April 13 and was inspired by all of the Alumni Achievement Award recipients this year (see page 44). Congratulations to you all!

Kathryn Waslen’s acceptance speech for WIC’s Alumni Achievement Award for Philanthropy resonated with me. Kathryn’s speech brilliantly expressed community and philanthropy. This is the important work of WIC’s new Advancement department.

She spoke about the role of community saying, “I’m proud of and grateful for our community. It is community change that develops great leaders. It is communities themselves that transform and create progress. WIC is a phenomenal example of this. I’m so impressed by all that’s going on here.” I concur with Kathryn. WIC’s current students, learning leaders, volunteers, the alumni, and the WIC community at large are making a purposeful, positive impact. Being a member of the WIC community offers the distinct advantage of a common history and belonging. As Kathryn shared, being part of a House or aspiring to be a Head Girl or a Prefect were significant in shaping her simply as an intention of being part of something bigger than herself. As she noted, WIC’s new strategic plan even includes philanthropy and the commitment to developing leadership through creativity, connection and confidence. “We are a tribe and I have no doubt, our tribe is making our world a better place.”

WIC is at a defining moment in its 34-year history. The College has grown from 39 students in 1982 to more than 530 today. As our programs and students’ needs continue to grow, we will continue to evolve and respond to these changes and challenges in proactive ways. Our focus is serving our stakeholders in an engaging and responsible way, and creating a bright future for our students, past, present and future.

We will continue to explore the possibilities of improving our facilities to enhance our learning and academic support spaces, and create vibrant outdoor spaces to provide room for play, reflection and collaboration. Facility

modifications have already been made in the library, the Performance Centre and the Grant building. Additional modifications and improvements to the WIC campus are planned for summer 2016 and into the coming school year. The chemistry lab will be reconfigured and new fixtures will be added to enhance teaching and learning. The front of the Davies building will see landscaping enhancements and the placement of new flagpoles and outdoor seating. The cafeteria and kitchen will receive a new commercial grade range and upgrades to the HVAC system to improve efficiency. Flooring in the Great Hall and hallways in the Davies building will be replaced, and the washrooms near the Performance Centre will be enhanced to double as change rooms for drama productions.

This fall WIC is preparing to launch the first Annual Fund campaign in the College’s history. The Annual Fund is part of an on-going fund development program that, with the generosity and spirit of the WIC community, will provide us with invaluable resources to allow us to offer exceptional educational and extracurricular experiences and facilities for our students. Funds raised through this yearly campaign will provide a crucial bridge between tuition revenue and the actual cost of running the school. Most importantly, these gifts, regardless of size, will allow our Head of School to respond to WIC’s most pressing financial concerns and provide the flexibility to seize unique and worthy opportunities.

Dollars raised through the Annual Fund will ensure that facilities are maintained at an optimum level, will support the operating budget, will fund the important learning opportunities offered to students through vehicles like our Institute Programs, International Travel Programs, Outdoor Education, arts and science programs, and will allow for the expansion of facilities and faculty. With a successful Annual Fund campaign, WIC can move towards bigger and better things for our WIC families, in addition to providing a steady flow of income for the programs, services and activities that it currently provides to our educational community.

It has been said that Calgary is, on a per-capita basis, one of the leading philanthropic cities in North America. From the west coast to the east

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coast, Canadians follow Calgary’s example by being generous in both giving of their time and their financial resources. Our WIC community, and the community-at-large, is made up of people who truly care and who recognize the importance of investing in education, in community, and in our future leaders. It’s a wonderful and earned privilege to belong to such a well-intentioned community.

WIC has an exciting school year ahead with new students arriving, new travel destinations, transforming facilities and our first ever WIC Legacy Gala. I look forward to sharing more information this fall in regards to the Annual Fund campaign and the opportunities available to support it. We’d also encourage you and your families to participate and share in distinct and meaningful memories.

To quote Ms. Waslen once again, “So WICers, my request to you is to stay connected, believe in and invest time in building strong relationships with each other and in your communities…I firmly believe, that in our core, we are all great philanthropists. Keep celebrating and stay focused on the spirit of generosity. Give openly with your minds, your hearts and your talents. Keep evolving and being excited. We have the opportunity to be involved, to contribute and to pay our good fortune forward.”

My door is always open. If you would like to learn more about the Annual Fund campaign or to participate, please contact me directly at 403.255.5300 Ext. 308/ debraklippenstein@mywic.ca

Have a great summer!

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2016 Alumni Achievement AwardsEach year the West Island College Alumni Committee honours outstanding Alumni for their achievements in four areas: Business, Personal Achievement, Arts and Philanthropy. In the acceptance speeches, the recurring theme of the evening was the importance of community and of giving back. As the award recipients explained, you do not need to graduate at the top of your class to participate in a positive and vital way to your community – a theme that continues today as students are recognized for their contributions to society (Headmaster’s List credits) in addition to and separately from their pursuit of academic excellence (Honour Roll). They have certainly given of themselves, and we thank them for their continued contributions.

Rameez Virji Class of 2011 Alumni Achievement Award for Personal Achievement

Rameez, a graduate of WIC in 2011, is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Computer Science and a Bachelor’s of Commerce degree in Finance at the University of Saskatchewan. While at WIC, he authored two publications, received the Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award from the Governor General in 2010, and founded an award-winning software and web design company, “Big Tree World” which has maintained websites for 15 businesses, as well as offered free web design for non-profit charities.

During his last year at WIC, Rameez competed in the SHAD Entrepreneurship Cup where the challenge was to design a product that would benefit the aging population. He thought of family first as his grandfather would shy away from vaccinations due to a fear of needles. This inspired Rameez to invent a flu vaccination taken as a pill. The innovation won the “National Best Application of Scientific Principle” at the competition and Rameez was granted four patents.

During his first year of university, Rameez was named one of Canada’s Top 20 under 20 and received five awards from I-STAR: Student of the Year, Math/Science/Technology, Arts & Culture, Academic Achievement, and Youth

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Leadership & Community Service. Rameez cares deeply for civil rights and social action, education and human rights. His compassion was fostered and developed at WIC, specifically during his travel studies program in Vietnam. He is currently supporting a number of projects and causes as a volunteer including Project LOVE, which is building a sustainable school in Zambia and the Kids Cancer Care Foundation. Rameez also conducts non-profit work with Big Tree World, engages with Enactus USASK and helps aboriginal youth learn about entrepreneurship and the environment.

Katie Drummond Class of 2004 Alumni Achievement Awards for the Arts

Katie Drummond graduated from WIC in 2004 after attending WIC from grades 7 to 12. During her time at WIC she co-founded and led the student newspaper, the WIC Voice, and performed in every drama production throughout high school. She credits this experience with influencing her creativity, confidence and self-awareness.

Katie’s passion for performing arts led her to New York City where she has lived and worked since graduation from Queen’s University in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Philosophy. Over the past six years, Katie has built an impressive career in journalism. She is currently the editor-in-chief of Gizmodo, a science and technology website with more than

30 million monthly readers. Prior to Gizmodo, she was the deputy editor at Bloomberg.com, where she oversaw the website’s high-profile redesign. She was the assistant managing editor at The Verge and a reporter covering national security for Wired. Katie’s work as a writer, editor and video producer have been nominated for a National Magazine Award and won best short documentary from the American Film Institute in 2013.

Manjit Minhas Class of 1998 Alumni Achievement Award in Business

Manjit served on student council and was a member of the debate team before graduating from WIC in 1998. She studied at the Universities of Calgary and Regina, earning a degree in petroleum engineering while completing several internships with local oil companies. At 19, Manjit and her brother Ravinder, co-launched Mountain Crest Liquors. In 2006, they acquired the Wisconsin based Joseph Huber Brewing Company and re-launched as the Minhas Craft Brewery, operating the 10th largest beer producing facility in the world, making them the youngest large scale brewery owners. In 2012, the team launched the Minhas Microbrewery and the Minhas Micro Distillery. Minhas Breweries and Distillery have over 90 brands of beers, spirits, liqueurs and wines sold in five provinces, 45 states and 16 countries. The company has sold over six billion pints of beer, and brought in over $155 million in

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revenue last year.

Manjit’s leadership has introduced a number of ground breaking initiatives. She is the first brewer in Canada to voluntarily put a management warning on all beer cans; has focused on initiatives that will save millions of pounds of packaging materials; has used her engineering background in producing beer using the least amount of cleaning and water treatment chemicals, gas, electricity and water; and used her knowledge and experience to innovate a method of making the best tasting Gluten Free beer from Sorghum, sold at half the price of the competition.

Manjit has also co-authored a book on her story, business philosophies, and the history of her brewery, titled “Brewing Up a Damn Good Story.” Manjit has won several business industry awards including Calgary Top 40 Under 40, the Alberta Centennial Medallion, the India Abroad’s Power List Award, and was a finalist for the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of The Year.

Manjit has joined the CBC television series Dragons Den for its 10th season as one of the Dragons. She currently serves on the boards of directors for The TransCanada Trail and West Island College.

Kathryn Waslen Class 0f 2001 Alumni Achievement Award in Philanthropy

After graduating WIC in 2001, Kathryn pursued a Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a Minor in Kinesiology in 2003 from the University of Texas – Pan American. She continued to

McGill University where she completed her Graduate Diploma in Management with a concentration in Leadership Studies. Aspiring to change the world, Kathryn continued her education in Philanthropic endeavors, completing a Non-Profit Management Certificate through Mount Royal University, A Community Economic Development Certificate through Simon Fraser University, the Certificate Level 1 and The Training Certificate through the Partnership Brokers Association.

As a professional, Kathryn has worked with the Calgary Foundation helping over 900 families grant over 30 million dollars, and with the SIMPACT Strategies Group working with the Safe Communities Innovation Fund. She currently consults with JS Daw & Associates in Partnerships and Developing Community Investment Strategy as well as with a boutique wealth management firm, Algar Virtue and Associates. Kathryn is passionate about Family Wealth and the important role philanthropy can play for generations to come. Kathryn has shown how we can be successful in business and also make the world a better place.

Not only is Kathryn an altruistic professional, her volunteer efforts exemplify her spirit of generosity. Kathryn organizes many voluntary community initiatives such as Community Socials and Ladies Lunch & Learns. Her work and volunteering demonstrate that, over time, small efforts can contribute to making a community well and vibrant.

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On May 31, 83 WIC students crossed the stage at the Jack Singer Concert Hall to officially become the graduating Class of 2016.

From all the faculty, staff, alumni and board of directors at WIC, we are so proud our outstanding students.

Congratulations to the Class of 2016 and welcome to the West Island College Alumni family!

Read the speeches from Alumna Saskia Knight, Valedictorian Amelia Srajer and Chair of the Board of Directors Dr. Patricia Doyle-Baker on the following pages.

WIC Alumni Welcome the Class of 2016Saskia Knight (Class of 2005)

Alumni Address

Good Evening & Welcome- Mums, Dads, Sisters, Brothers, Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Family Members, Teachers, Mrs. Grant-Watt, Mr. Grant, and of course the people we are here for: Graduates!

It is my absolute honor and pleasure to represent the WIC Alumni Community! My name is Saskia Knight and I am a proud graduate of the class of 2005. I remember the day I went for my interview at WIC, with Mr. Grant and Tina, and yes, at 11 years old, I was already taller than Tina. I sat in that meeting

nervous, scared and unsure about the next six years. Six years that turned out to be as instrumental in my life as I am sure the time each of the graduates has spent at WIC has been on them.

To the graduates, you may not have had understood or agreed with all of the practices or structure of WIC, the houses, the daily assembly, the strict dress code, the regular summative exams, I guarantee though, consciously or subconsciously, you have been shaped by them. The uniform has taught you how to pull yourself together, dress professionally, and to carry yourself with pride. The houses and assembly have taught you to come together as a community, united in commonalities. Finally, the dreaded summatives. I never understood the value of summatives until I finished my first year of university. But it turns out, writing exams on a regular basis since the age of twelve made midterms and finals just another thing that I had to do. I know that all of you have been well served by this regular practice and that you will reap the benefits as you move on to your post-secondary journeys.

Being a part of the WIC community instilled in me a love for being involved and giving back. Whether it was peer support, playing on sports team, being part of the drama productions, spending time on class afloat or travelling and helping in new communities, I know that WIC

GRADUATION 2016

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gives it’s students the confidence to pursue all of their diverse interests and to do so with pride, with the knowledge that you are creating a lasting impact on our community. As a personal example, in addition to the typical WIC activities, during my grade 12 year I became the first prefect to announce lunch specials. I can assure you all that this was not the coveted position it is today, in fact my friends still bug me about it. However, I have heard from a reputable WIC source that you now get knighted for this honour! Joe Woods, you’re welcome.

I challenge you all to continue on the path of exploration and innovation- whether you go to University, college, into the workforce, or take a year off (don’t worry parents, I am not encouraging this) get involved- find your passion – join a video games club, help in a community garden, volunteer at a retirement home, or, as I did, be a dork and join the Model UN club. You never

know where these choices will lead you, who you will meet through these activities and the options that will be available to you as a result.

One of the most important lessons I can share with you is to hold onto your ideals- dream big – take risks – chase your dreams – and, in a phrase that is familiar to all of the WICers in the room- pursue excellence – your own unique excellence. Set goals but be flexible with how you get there and compassionate with yourself when you make mistakes. Eleven years on, my classmates have become lawyers, doctors, successful entrepreneurs, CFOs, and teachers. They have joined organizations such as IBM, Arts Commons, aided the Minister of Trade and even worked on Game of Thrones! I want you all to know that upon graduating from WIC, the world is truly your oyster.

After ten years away from Calgary- studying and working abroad- I left New York City a little over a year ago to come home and was lucky to become the newest member of the WIC Alumni Committee. I want to give you, graduates, this final message as you transition from students to alumni. You are entering another amazing chapter of your life’s journey, and your WIC journey. You will always be a part of this community; it is an indelible part of you and a badge of honour.

There are many ways to honour this badge- join your class Facebook page, stay in touch with WIC via email and on social media. Visit the school when you are in town, attend one of the totally exciting (and free) events the

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Alumni Committee hosts like homecoming, the alumni achievement awards (yes, WIC gives awards even after you graduate) and the golf tournament. We will always be here to welcome you back from your many adventures.

The moral of this story is: dream, make mistakes, wander, but know that you will always have WIC and that we are here for you.

In closing, I leave you with an excerpt from my Dad’s favorite poem - IF by Rudyard Kipling:

If you can keep your head when all about you

Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,

Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,

And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;

If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim;

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

And treat those two impostors just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken

Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,

And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools:

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch,

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,

If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,

Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,

And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!

Congratulations Class of 2016 – Now go change the world!

Valedictorian Speech WIC Class of 2016

Amelia Srajer “Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment, until it becomes a memory.”

This is a quote by Dr. Seuss and while somewhat cliché, it reminds us to appreciate the value of the present moments. The moments we are living in right now, which will one day simply be memories. It’s crazy to think we’ll look back on this day, maybe even this very minute, and think, “That was my high school graduation.

This quote also reminds us to appreciate not only the present, but the past as well.

Because, quite often in life, we simply live in the present, not realizing how significant a seemingly “ordinary” moment can be. And it is not until these moments have become memories, that we truly realize how important they were.

From junior days and outdoor ed, to travel studies and spares, I have made so many incredible memories during my last 5 years here at WIC that at the time, seemed no more significant than any other day.

Yet, so many of these memories have influenced the person I am today. WIC has influenced the person I am today.

I entered a shy yet stubbornly determined young eighth grader. And I leave as an ambitious, self-assured yet still stubbornly determined graduate.

While I am still the same person that I was, I am bolder, braver and ready for this next chapter in my life, as I believe we all are.

I have one distinct memory actually from my time here at WIC. It was simply a moment, one that I had neither planned nor rehearsed. And while I did not know it at the time, it was a moment where I realized the person I had become as a result of my time here at WIC.

It was during my prefect interview back in grade 11 actually. I was pretty nervous and my tie was done up the tightest it had ever been. I remember going into the interview and the selection committee commenting on my resume.

I was quite involved in a variety of activities and they asked how I was able to handle it all. And my response to these highly respected and intelligent staff members was “just fake it ‘till you make it”.

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Now the point of this personal story is to demonstrate that it is okay to be uncertain and unsure at times. There is no one way to approach life and its obstacles. But, it is how we handle ourselves in times of uncertainty which influences the people we become.

No matter how uncertain we feel, the future is inevitable. And sometimes, you just have to keep “faking it” until one day, without even realizing it, you will have made it. And it’s when you come to this realization, that you’ll look back and wonder, “did I really just achieve all of that?”

I imagine this is something many of us are feeling right now. We’re here at our high school graduation, thinking back over the last 12 years of our lives and wondering, “How did we make it to this moment?”

It wasn’t easy, as I’m sure many of us can attest. Whether it was trying to write a position paper, studying for a math exam or even trying out for a sports team, we all had those days when we didn’t think we’d make it; times when we didn’t think we could survive one more week, one more day, or even one more class.

But take a step back, and realize where you are right now. Realize that you made it to graduation and that you succeeded.

And be proud of all of your accomplishments.

Because everything that we have learned during these past 12 years, whether big or small, has helped us get to this day.

Now you may be wondering how the things we learned in kindergarten or elementary school have helped us get to our high school graduation. I’d liketo tell you how, through a tribute of sorts to all those award assemblies we sat through.

In kindergarten, we learned the basics of socializing. We were taught the fundamentals such as how to make friends, how to share and how to be inclusive. And I think we can all agree that sharing is important, as we’ve all had to borrow a tie or blazer at one point. As well, we were taught that it was okay to ask for help when we needed it, something our teachers encourage even today.

Then in elementary school, we learned how infinite the world around us truly was. We learned that certain topics such as math and science were limitless and that every day we could learn something new and still never know it all. We also learned that we had the unlimited potential to create. Whether through writing, drawing or music, our imaginations were endless.

Eventually we transitioned into junior high where we unfortunately learned that braces were painful and green eye shadow did not suit everyone. It was a time of trial and error but it was also a time where we explored our identities. While we may have made some mistakes and wrong turns, we came to realize who we truly were and what we could be.

Then finally, we reached high school. In grade 10, we learned that black blazers did not automatically grant us authority and that respect was something to be earned. We enjoyed new freedoms, such as driving and going down the hill for lunch, but with these new freedoms came new responsibilities. As well, we didn’t realize how easy grade 10 was, until we got to grade 11.

Grade 11 was a difficult year, but I believe it was truly the most rewarding. We learned that in order to succeed, we had to work hard. Yet, we also learned when to take a step back and see the bigger picture. We realized that one bad math test or one bad paper did not define us or determine our worth. We tested our limits but also learned how far our drive and ambition could take us.

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Board of Directors Address to the GraduatesDr. Tish Doyle-Baker

Board Chair

Good evening, faculty, parents of graduates, family, distinguished guests and the class of 2016. To all the graduates and you the families, the board of directors wishes to congratulate you on your accomplishments.

I am soon to be the past Chair and therefore I would like to publicly thank our Board for the tremendous work they have completed this year with respect to: Finance, Nomination and Governance, Strategic Planning, Advancement and Fund Raising, which includes events such as the upcoming Gala in October and the Alumni.

I would also like to welcome Mr. Ward Mallabone as the incoming Chair. The Board and our community will be superbly served under his direction.

Parents and Guests it is such a privilege to be speaking with you today and with your permission, I would like to turn and address the students.

Graduates, by way of an introduction, I am a university professor and I admit to being bias about student outcomes. To paraphrase from one of Adele’s songs (Love in the Dark), I want you to live and not just survive university. This evening I would like to speak about the definition of success and share one of my student’s journey.

Imagine sitting you are sitting in your first class of the university semester. The professor asks you to define success.

In the next few seconds perhaps you will recall Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington’s definition of success which, includes the metrics “money and power” but also a third, consisting of four pillars: “well-being, wisdom, wonder, and giving”.

Others of you might recall Winston’s Churchill’s definition: “Success is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.”

Or some of you might think about inventor Thomas Edison, who recognized that success is a grind with his definition: “Success is 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration.

Ah, but your thoughts are interrupted when you’re asked to define success from the perspective of an animal.

And finally grade 12. Throughout this past year, we’ve all had to make some very big decisions. And I think in making these decisions, we’ve all come to learn a lot about ourselves. We’ve had to decide how much we are willing to sacrifice in the pursuit of our dreams and where we want these dreams to take us. While we may have second guessed the decisions we made, I strongly believe each and every one of us has made the right decision. Now the right decision, may not lead us down the most convenient or easy path. But, it will be the best decision for the people we are today.

Now I reminisce about the past 12 years to show you how much we have grown since our days of colouring in kindergarten. Every single mistake, achievement, and decision we’ve made had helped us in some capacity.

And, as we leave behind the familiarity of our kilts and blazers, I want us to remember these lessons we learned as children.

Because quite often, children teach adults the lessons they have forgotten.

So let your inner (or outer) child guide you through these upcoming years as we all go onto our different paths. Do not just bring the knowledge you have learned in class, but also bring these life lessons which have made you into the person you are today.

And, as I stand here, I would be remiss not to thank all those people who have helped us learn these life lessons. So to our parents, friends and families, thank you for your unconditional love and support. It is through your support that we have the courage to pursue our dreams. And to the teachers and faculty, thank for you for inspiring in us a sense of hope and imagination when we needed it most.

And to the class of 2016 congratulations. Now be Bold. Be Brave. Be Ready. Because honestly, this is just the beginning.

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You have to choose between a lion or a zebra.

This is a two-part assignment I give my students in my upper level Epidemiology course on the study of human diseases. The foundation of the course is risk, and in particular risk versus benefit. The students in this course hand in by the end of the first lecture which animal they choose and in last lecture they hand in their definition of success through their animal choice.

What animal choice do students make? Mufasa. The lion’s roar is the epitome of boldness and precedes it everywhere it goes. To many the lion’s voice is its reputation. A lion is also arguably the most fearsome animal and often considered the bravest. Lions likely don’t experience the feelings of bravery quite like we do, but they’re not afraid to hunt big and dangerous prey. Maybe some of you saw this on your recent trip to Tanzania?

To take down a buffalo requires brute force. This example is a classical risk versus benefit problem and may involve both risky behavior and/or a snap decision. The line between bravery and stupidity can be narrow, just as with humans. Hmmm… Sometimes that type of courage bleeds into foolishness, because the lion will try to catch a rhinoceros or an elephant and in the end they get killed. Not the desired outcome as the risk greatly outweighed the benefit.

The majority of students who complete this assignment chose the lion. Why not the Zebra? It seems that the Zebra and their stripes don’t lend themselves easily to assisting in matching a student’s definition of success. I see the zebra, however, as the perfect fit because success can not be tied to a black and white definition! To quote one researcher “the striping is kind of extraordinary, so you need something extra-ordinary to explain it.”

Zebra’s stripes maybe involved in thermoregulatation, whereas stripes on their legs where they are more likely to get bitten may help them avoid most disease-carrying

flies. The stripes might also dazzle predators at close range when moving, or provide some benefit of distortion at a different range. A zebra’s stripes likely serve multiple purposes and this helps prepare them for their hot climate and multi-predatory environment. There’s no reason to think that only one factor drove the evolution of zebra stripes. The only way to tell is to do more research so as to learn more.

The lion is bold by virtue of its voice and brave by choice of behavior and the zebra’s genetics help prepare it to succeed in its habitat.

Returning to my assignment. I am looking for my student’s level of motivation and their measurement system of success. I want them to reach beyond the definition because I am interested in how they plan to achieve success and if they prepared for the journey to succeed. It is a little bit like some of the lines in the Star Wars movie, The Force Awakens. “Who are you?” “Will you step into the light, or retreat to the darkness?”

This brings me to my students’ story. She was one of 5 students who applied to medical school at the completion of my course. She was the only one not offered an interview despite having a 3.97/4.0 GPA, (that translates into one A- and all her other marks over 4 years were As) and a very high MCAT score. The following year she reapplied and received an interview. The night before her interview she texted me to say her Dad had died from brain cancer. Although this was not unexpected it was still traumatic. I advised her not to do the interview. She, however, chose to sit the interview and was not offered a spot that year for med school at University of Calgary. She applied again the next year while working as a study coordinator in a research lab and again the next year when she started a masters graduate program. Last year she was conferred with a M.Sc in epidemiology. Here is her most recent email.

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May 4th 2016.

Dear Dr. Doyle-Baker,

I hope you are doing well?

I wanted to share some amazing news with you… (drum roll)….. I GOT INTO MEDICAL SCHOOL!!! I wanted to tell you because you have been such a supporter of me and my dream over the last 6 years. I am so grateful for all of the reference letters you wrote for me and always believing in me and pushing me to keep working for it. I totally understand now why you made us define what success means in KNES 493. These last 6 years I learned to deliver more than is expected of me, particularly with my research. Now I am prepared to be the best clinician–scientist.

Thank you again, and I hope to see you soon.

This is an extraordinary outcome where the risk of staying focused, sticking to the plan, embracing the journey and maintaining enthusiasm has produced not just the desired benefit but the best outcome.

As the legendary basketball coach John Wooden states: “Success is peace of mind, which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best you are capable of becoming”.

Let me conclude with Dr. Seuss, “There’s no end to the things you might know, depending how far beyond Zebra you go!”

Thank you, have fun tonight and Friday and I wish you success along your journey to becoming who you will be!

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Alumni Class NotesWant to be featured in Class Notes? Email us at alumni@mywic.ca

Steve Major ’87, never imagined his two children would be attending his alma mater thirty years after his graduation from WIC. His daughter Jess ‘17 and son Luke ‘20 are both thriving at WIC. He and his wife Jenn couldn’t be prouder of them and the school.  

Shannon Thompson ’01, moved to Edmonton in March after accepting a job with Finning Canada as a Change Management Specialist. In May, surrounded by close friends and family, Shannon married Steven Ridders, at Calgary’s Market Restaurant. The newlyweds will celebrate their marriage with a cycling tour of Cuba in the New Year.

Saskia Knight ‘05, moved home to Calgary in May 2015 after ten years studying and working abroad in international relations and human rights. Knight is a Development Officer with Arts Commons and was recently elected to the West Island College Board of Directors.

Colin McLean ’05 and Matthew Berard ’05, have opened Banded Peak Brewing along with another childhood friend, Alex Horner. Colin left his job in the oil and gas industry and Matt returned from law school in Australia to begin construction on their production facility and taproom in December. They opened their doors to the public in May and have begun distributing to local bars such as National, Beer Revolution and Midtown. Banded Peak Brewing is located at #119 519 34th Ave SE, Calgary, AB.

Mary Morrison ’89, has been living in Malawi, Kenya since graduating from university to work for a Canadian NGO that provided aid and relief to Mozambican refugees at the end of its civil war. Morrison is presently working for the Safari Collection and managing the beautiful Sasaab Lodge in Samburu National Park for the summer before taking over one of Africa’s most iconic properties, Giraffe Manor. She attributes her life in Kenya to the trip she took there while in her graduating year at WIC.

Steve Major ‘87, with his 2 children Jess and Luke

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