As we prepare to welcome everyone back to school on Tuesday, September 8, please take a look at our Collingwood Reunited: Information and Learning Plan. We wanted to share information with our parents now with a caveat that some details may change when we hear back from the Ministry of Education. This page includes instructions for next steps and details related to the information we will need to gather from families before the school year begins.

Collingwood student, Jena Yue, competed in the World Individual Public Speaking and Debate Championship this past August. Students from all over the world from countries such as India, Hong Kong, Lithuania, to name a few, competed in this first-ever online championship. 

Jena placed as a finalist in two of the four events. Well done!!

Read the latest Bridge online here.

Inclusion Literacy & Fostering Psychological Safety at Home 

Diversity and Inclusion consultant, Alden E. Habacon, leads an introductory session for parents where participants will examine the different kinds of diversity that affect our Campus and Collingwood School. Participants will determine where they are in the journey, and how a more inclusive campus is a true measure of living the values of Collingwood School.

Monday, October 26

• Daytime Session: 9:30am - 11:00am
• Evening Session: 7:00pm - 8:30pm

Register Here

Registration is open to Collingwood parents only.

Due to COVID-19 event restrictions, this year's Parent Conference will be virtual.

We are seeking a Head of Senior School to work at our Morven Campus.

Full Description

The recruitment for this leadership role is being by facilitated Boyden – Executive Search. To explore this opportunity further, please submit your resume directly to: boyden.ca/canada/opportunities/head-of-morven

After the resounding success our Grads of 2019 had with fundraising to build a water well in partnership with the Obakki Foundation, Collingwood, as a whole, deemed it an important legacy to continue. Not only are we providing clean drinking water to communities within South Sudan who are in desperate need, we are also bringing about an awareness of Sustainable Development Goals and providing students with leadership opportunities to fundraise and share information with their peers. Due to Covid, we were cut short in reaching our fundraising goal to build a second well, however, we are committed to completing this project!

As the holiday season approaches, we encourage our families to take a different approach to gift-giving this year. Obakki has created a marketplace that supports independent crafters and tradespeople from across the globe. Their mission is to build a different framework of philanthropy where we can support sustainable business models from vendors around the world. 

You'll be seeing more about Obakki and our other charity partners in our Holiday Giving Marketplace launching in December. However, if you do want to get a jump start and shop with a purpose this holiday season, please visit obakki.com to view their collections. Don't forget to include Collingwood in the discount code so that we can receive credit for your purchase towards our water well goal.

The cross-country runners were the one and only team that actually got to compete this fall.  The North Shore high school cross-country coaches came up with a novel approach to run an unofficial North Shore Championships.  The competing schools were given a time slot over a three-day period and runners went out and ran as hard as they could against teammates.  The posted times were then cross-referenced with runners from each age category.

Collingwood had a large number of athletes who participated in cross-country practices this fall, but only six athletes entered the race.  Chloe Mee, Darcy Foote, Grace Virani, Kavika Taylor, Reese Tam and Severin Jackson all headed out to the Rice Lake course for some fun competition.  Collingwood's top finished was Reese who finished 7th in the Juvenile Girls competition.

A portrait series by Cara Tench

A community project for Morven Staff and Faculty to show off their smiles (including Gus, Morven Campus Therapy Dog).

View Slide Show Here

Our Holiday Marketplace has been created in order to allow for community-based initiatives to still take place within the safety of our campus walls. Typically, we would be out with students offering initiatives for connection. Hopefully this model allows enough opportunities for every student to engage in one or more holiday activities. Thank you for your support!

If you have questions about any of the following initiatives, please contact our Director of Service Learning, Shannon Bosa: shannon.bosa@collingwood.org

Visit Here

Ad Verum

Are you looking for something interesting to read and discuss this winter break?  Unwind with the latest issue of Ad Verum - a newspaper written for the students, by the students. 

Be inspired by winter-themed poetry...

Reminisce with Mr. Jacoby about Collingwood’s past service trips…

Engage in dialogue regarding “Collingwood’s Courageous Conversations”….

Read Ad Verum here:  https://www.theadverum.com/ 

CWArts Mag 

The Collingwood Community boasts so many artistic talents — both hidden and visible.  The Collingwood Arts Magazine (Arts Mag for short) is written by Morven students to bring the spotlight to creative students, faculty, and alumni. Budding poets, dancers, musicians and creators alike — each artist brings their own lessons, creations and talents to be shared. The Winter 2020 Season was just published; we entreat upon you to check it out and honour the accomplishments of Collingwood’s artists! Our latest issue will make for a fascinating holiday read.

Reads the Arts Mag here: http://www.cwartsmag.com/ 

Read the latest Bridge online here.

One of the things that was put aside during the sudden closure of schools last March was the delivery of the BC Alpine Championships Combined Banner.  Last year at the BC Alpine Championships, the ski team left the mountain uncertain if they had finished first or second in the Combined Championship.  The race for this title was so close that the organizers needed time to ascertain who had actually won.  By the time it was determined that the Cavs were triumphant, the team was well on its way home.

Obviously, the good news made everyone on the team incredibly proud, but unfortunately the banner did not reach the school before the doors were shuttered on March 9th.  In fact, the banner seemed to be in travel limbo throughout much of this fall.  Happily, the banner arrived in early January and the team members that did not graduate last year finally got to hold it yesterday for a long-awaited photo.

Congratulations to the team and coaches for bringing home another Alpine banner.

Back Row (Left to right) – Stuart Cooper, Toby Li, Sam Fuller, Nicholas Daal

Front Row (Left to Right) – Cassidy Foley, Liz Mathisen, Saylor Sprenger, Jamie Border

When schools shut down last spring, our Grade 12 athletes were denied a chance to compete one last time in Collingwood colours.  This was tough on our spring athletes, but particularly on the rugby, girls’ soccer and tennis teams who all had a legitimate chance to bring home provincial gold. 

Plenty of Grade 11 athletes who would have played key roles last spring also felt the devastation of losing out on a season of sport.  Those athletes are now in Grade 12 and once again they are not getting to play the sports they love.  This has been a frustrating ‘double-whammy’.

However, as always there are young men and women at Collingwood who rise up and show their true colours.  Throughout the fall season and now this winter, many Grade 12 athletes have refused to feel sorry for themselves and have come out ready to play. 

Soccer, volleyball, cross-country and basketball coaches have all seen Grade 12 athletes step to the fore and lead the way at practices.  They have helped to set the tone with their younger teammates. The senior field hockey players became junior field hockey coaches and worked with many of our younger athletes on an individual basis.

This is the sort of dedication and commitment has been inspirational to our coaches.  You can’t help but admire these student-athletes who have chosen to play and stay healthy.  It’s fantastic to see.

Senior Boys Soccer - L to R - Brodie Kristin, Simon Burns, Arthur Na (Missing - Kolbi Winckler)

The senior soccer boys were looking forward to another great year in the very competitive North Shore league. The soccer season always kicks off with a trip to Vancouver Island, where time off the field is just as important as time on the pitch in establishing team unity and culture. Missing this trip was a huge disappointment.

Senior Volleyball - L to R - Clare Reynolds, Sophia Garofalo, Justine Brongers

The volleyball team was given a chance to co-host the Vancouver Sea To Sky Zone Championships last year. This extended their season and gave the team a chance to play some of the best teams on the North Shore and in Vancouver. That experience had the coaching staff enormously excited about this season, especially as there was a great group of Gr. 12s to build the team around.

Senior Cross-Country - L to R - Chloe Mee, Isabel Drouin

Chloe is unique to all the Gr. 12 athletes in this article. She actually competed this fall. Chloe ran in the one high school race that was held this year on the North Shore. This event was run over three days with each school having a designated time to compete. Isabel missed the event, but hopes she will be competing this spring with the tennis team since Collingwood would be one of the favourites to bring home the BC championship.

Senior Field Hockey - L to R - Jena Abdel-Barr, Liz Mathisen, Lyla Mollard, Jacqueline Webb, Olivia Huebner, Sophie Kennedy, Seli Edstrand

This special group of seven young women were instrumental in bringing home three straight BC AA championships. This year, the Gr. 12s voted to move up to AAA. It was going to be a tough year, but the team was excited about the prospect of challenging the best teams in the province. With all their Gr. 12 experience and leadership, the Cavs would have been tough to beat.

Senior Boys Basketball - L to R - Arthur Na, William Zhang, Barry Castelli, Simon Burns, Jack Spouge (Missing - Kai O'Krane, James Borrill)

The North Shore AA league always sends one or two true contenders to the BC AA Championships each year. This season was going to be no different and the Cavs were looking forward to some enormous league tilts against Mulgrave and St. Thomas Aquinas. Arthur, Will, Barry, Simon and Kai all logged major minutes last year and were looking forward to stepping into the spotlight even more this season. James and Jack were looking forward to their first season of senior ball.

Senior Girls Basketball - L to R - Rachael Chete, May Chen, Stella Guernsey, Sara Ndlovu-Fraser, Tiffany Wu

Last year, the Cavs earned a spot in the Vancouver Sea To Sky Zone Championships and battled hard before being eliminated. Rachael, Stella and Sara were all starters on that team. May and Tiffany were super-subs. With all five of these players back and better than ever, Coach McLaughlin was looking forward to a fantastic year

A great group of student-athlete leaders altogether.

Visit Here

Coming to a screen near you this weekend!

January 30 and 31 ONLY

View Here

These are obviously interesting times.  Sport Writers across the world have literally nothing to write about.  Clearly, this is also true for a certain Collingwood Athletic Director who is used to bragging about the student-athletes he loves to cheer on every week. 

However, we're not going to let a lack of games stop this sports blog.  We're going to continue to profile Collingwood's top student-athletes.  We're starting with Grade 12's who by all rights should be starring in Term 3 sports right now.  Please enjoy learning more about these amazing young men and women:

GABI VILLAMIL

SPORTS PLAYED AT COLLINGWOOD:

Soccer, Field Hockey, Basketball, Tennis, Volleyball

 FAVOURITE COLLINGWOOD SPORTS MOMENT(S):

1. Winning 2 field hockey provincial banners

2. Making history at provincials with the senior soccer team in my Grade 10 year (Silver Medal)

3. Pre-game meetings with the field hockey team at Bridgman Cup

ATHLETES WHO HAVE INSPIRED YOU OR FAVOURITE ATHLETE:

I am definitely most inspired by my teammates and coaches. One in particular is a soccer coach I had a few years ago who still inspires me to this day. Ella Masar had a particular perspective on both life and soccer, that always pushed me to be better and to work harder. 

UNIVERSITY YOU ARE GOING TO NEXT YEAR:

University of British Columbia or University of Toronto

 FAVOURITE SPORTS TEAM:

Colombia's national soccer team, Real Madrid

OWEN HUSTON

SPORTS PLAYED AT COLLINGWOOD:

Soccer, Basketball and Rugby

FAVOURITE COLLINGWOOD SPORTS MOMENT(S): 

Winning the 2019 BC Rugby Championships – When I got into the game, I made one really nice inside break.  It was great to contribute and winning was an amazing experience.

Travelling to the Island with the Soccer and Rugby teams

2019 Hatch Shield victory over Rockridge

ATHLETES WHO HAVE INSPIRED YOU OR FAVOURITE ATHLETE:

Tracy McGrady, Lionel Messi

UNIVERSITY YOU ARE GOING TO NEXT YEAR:

UBC 

FAVOURITE SPORTS TEAM:

Houston Rockets, Vancouver Canucks

Memories: Even Small Ones Count

The friends. The classes. The teachers. Safeguard the memories, big and small, by ordering a 2020-2021 yearbook for $85.00.

Purchase Here

Last year when the alpine team headed home after another successful BC Championships, they were undoubtedly thinking that more glory lay ahead for many of them.  The team was losing some key individuals but the 2020-21 squad looked formidable.  Of course mere days later, the world changed completely and this year's alpine events and championships were cancelled months ago.  

However, coaches Ramsden, Waterhouse and Ravensbergen were determined to give the team a chance to get on the mountains again and as a result a five-week program was run after the Christmas Break.  Here is Coach Ramsden's report:

This season brought the opportunity for students to focus on their technique, tactics and mental strength. The athletes showed dedication and determination in the hopes that they will be able to show off their developed/enhanced skills next year. 

Conditions this season ranged from fresh snow and blinding wind to an arctic outflow that brought double digit negative temperatures rarely seen at Seymour. No matter the conditions, the athletes brought positive energy and looked forward to the training sessions every week. To say that these athletes improved is an understatement. In only 5 sessions, the coaching staff saw athletes go from little or no experience in a race course to calm, confident competitors who gained a need for speed. 

A big thank you has to go out to the Grade 12 athletes who came to help out this year. They joined the team knowing full well that they would not get to end their high school ski career as they would have hoped. We will miss this group of Grade 12's immensely next year!

Stuart Cooper, Sam Fuller and Nic Dahl would have been the backbone of a BC gold medal contending team this year.  Despite the disappointment of no season, they still came out to lead the younger athletes.

Carolyn Yu and Remi Li

Zach Bosa, Oliver Bosa, Inno DeCotiis, Harbour Dollinger

Maddy Kottmeier and Remy Rose Caplan

Coach Morgan McLaughlin has always done an amazing job of celebrating her Grade 12 graduating players at the end of each season.  This year's senior team had six terrific Grade 12's who would have undoubtedly led the team to a second-straight berth in the Vancouver Sea To Sky AA Zone Championships. 

Sadly, we'll never know how great this team may have been.  While this is disappointing for both players and coaches, Coach McLaughlin made sure that the grads were feted in outstanding fashion with a "Covid-friendly" Seniors' Night last Friday. 

Here is a summary of the night from Coach M:

Friday night saw the Senior Girls playing in their final practice of the 2020-21 season. Starting a new tradition, the graduating players were in charge of the practice, choosing all their favourite drills and games, and getting to dress up in celebratory outfits. 

After practice, the Graduating players were all honoured at their Senior’s Night festivities. Normally, this evening would occur after the final home game, but circumstances being what they are, the team made the best of the situation and had a lovely ceremony with the team while streaming the proceedings to the parents via the internet.

Each of the graduating players was honoured with a speech about them, a framed photo of an action shot, a bouquet and for the players who competed in all 5 years of their high school career, a commemorative gift. It was a very emotional evening as we said farewell to six very accomplished members of the Collingwood Basketball Programme.

Liz M made a triumphant return to the team last year after electing not to play last year. Liz contributed to this class’s early successes as a point guard with great drives and ball handling. Her athleticism was tremendous as she defended tough opponents and initiated fast breaks.

Tiffany W played all five years at Morven, contributing and stepping up in many important games. Timely shots and pin-point passing were Tiffany’s forte as she helped the group out of some tight end-game situations. 

May C was a tremendous rebounder and defender for the group. Often having to battle against the opposition’s biggest players, May never backed down from a challenge using her great “hops” to pull down clutch rebounds. Her offensive skills continued to develop over her 5-year career earning her the Most Improved Award in her Grade 11 year.

Stella G was the true “big” of the class – posting up and making life difficult for the other team around the hoop. Passionate and determined, Stella rose to any challenge presented to her. Her put-backs and rebounds helped keep the team within striking distance in tough games.

Rachael C was the sharp-shooting guard for the class. Going on double-digit runs, when Rachael was hot she could blow games wide open or bring the team back. Notable was a 24-point game last year when she rattled off 12 of those points in the 4^th quarter to help bring the team back from a 16-point deficit. Rachael was incredibly dedicated – always last in the gym wanting to get just one more shot in.

Sara N-F was clutch all through her career with the Cavs. Lock-down D, blow-by drives, and fantastic finishes – Sara was keyed in on by other teams often receiving individual defensive focus. Athletic and driven, she was a passionate leader for her teammates every game, every season.

As a group, they leave as one of the most decorated Graduating classes of Collingwood Girls Basketball. Their tenacity, dedication, determination, leadership, and wonderful personalities will be truly missed.

Collingwood's 2021 Senior Girls' Basketball Grads - Rachael, Sara, Stella, May, Liz and Tiffany.

Rachael, May, Stella, Tiffany, Sara and Liz all looking resplendent in neon.

The Varsity Letters blog is run by Howard Tsumura.  For years, Howard covered local high school and university action for the Vancouver Province newspaper.  He has a real passion for promoting young athletes and his blog has included many stories on Collingwood students and teams.  

This week, Howard wrote an article on the student-athletes who will be making a big splash next season in senior girls' AA basketball.  Lucy Xu and Reece Tam were the only two athletes going into Grade 10 on the list.  This is a fantastic accomplishment as everyone else on the list is going into Grade 12.

Here is a link to the article:

https://varsityletters.ca/15-players-to-watch-in-2021-22-b-c-girls-basketball-double-a-ranks-filled-with-a-class-of-rising-senior-talent/