When I wrote our welcome back letter in September, I chose my words around the theme of ‘journey’. Back then, in the days of late summer, we welcomed a full school with over 1,000 students. Two hundred of them, fresh faced and enthusiastic, arrived for the very first time. Our boarding community came together from 35 countries, representing every continent (apart from Antarctica, as far as I know), bringing a wealth of different views, experiences, and hopes for the future. Now, those students, faculty, and staff, can look forward to a well-deserved holiday as not quite a terminus, but definitely a station stop on our journey toward 2025.
Now our travelers are looking a little weary, uniform disheveled, with a sense that those important qualities of stamina and resilience will be necessary to propel us into several weeks of replenishment and reconnection.
For me, the theme of ‘journey’ continued to be a relevant one. First up, I visited a Head of School conference in Belfast where educational trends and ideas from around the world were presented and discussed. One that particularly captured my attention was the theme of ‘affluent neglect’. This is the idea that in some independent schools, students have many opportunities, advantages, and even privileges, yet often what they crave most are guidance, boundaries, and attention. These ideas seem to be increasingly relevant as we grapple with the fast-moving world of AI and the developing debates around iPhone and social media use.
Looking back over the last few months there also seems to be a significant shift in the political tectonic plates, that whatever our level of engagement, will directly or indirectly influence the values we hold and the way that we can live our lives. Our journey through 2025 looks as if it will be full of change, challenge, and opportunity.
My own journey took me east to Halifax to re-engage with the Heads of other leading Canadian schools, and then onto visit key hubs of SMUS cheerleaders in both Hong Kong and Shanghai. Shara Campsall, Director of Advancement, and myself, are most grateful for the warm reception that we receive whenever we visit members of the global SMUS diaspora. Enthusiasm for SMUS in general, gratitude at the attention of faculty, and interest in future developments of the school, never cease to amaze me.
Closer to home, we have been celebrating a strong start toward achieving the annual targets for the Middle School phase of the Journey For Life Campaign. Inspiring lead gifts, backed up by others who are prepared to put their shoulder to the wheel, give us confidence that this Middle School vision will achieve its aim of bringing state of the art STEAM and other facilities to allow faculty to deliver inspiring teaching, and students to engage enthusiastically in their learning process for generations to come.
As we journey through any term there are always traditions to be observed. This year, a poignant service to remind current students of the sacrifice made by 134 members of our two schools St. Michael’s and University School in two world wars, provided apt reminder for the current generation of the tragedy of war.
An additional Indigenous-led ceremony took place on October 22nd to awaken a Welcome Pole designed by Dylan Thomas, our Artist in Residence. This ceremony, attended by an audience of over 1,000, represented another significant step on our journey of reconciliation with our local Indigenous neighbours.
More recently at our Carol Service we were reminded of the peace and beauty of the Christmas message. One of my favourite carols, It Came Upon the Midnight Clear, contains the words, “and man, at war with man, hears not the love song which they bring, O hush the noise, ye men of strife, and hear the angels sing”.
For this brief break in our journey, I hope that noise will be hushed, men of strife will be quietened, and whatever angels may, or may not be to you, that you will enjoy sufficient quiet to perhaps hear them sing! I trust that over the course of the next few weeks, you will find time for refreshment and reconnection with friends and family.
After a brief pause at the holiday station, we will be setting off again early in 2025. I will be writing with a summary of our hopes and plans when we reconvene in January. All aboard. Buckle up.
Before then, happy Christmas.
Mark Turner
