Where We’re Going
“You can't really know where you are going until you know where you have been.”
– Maya Angelou
It’s often said that, to determine whether the path you are travelling is the right one, you need to understand where you have come from. Three seminal events at Crescent this spring have driven home this concept for me.
– Maya Angelou
It’s often said that, to determine whether the path you are travelling is the right one, you need to understand where you have come from. Three seminal events at Crescent this spring have driven home this concept for me.
The first was the CAIS accreditation peer review team visit in April. As I mentioned in last month’s Open Mike, this visit capped a year-long self-assessment involving all of Crescent’s constituents. We examined every aspect of the School’s strategy, education program, and operations against twelve CAIS National Standards; we then sought to identify the School’s greatest strengths, areas for growth, and possible next steps. The four-day peer review team visit aimed to validate the self-study and support the school in prioritizing growth opportunities. It’s an incredibly intensive and reflective process that will inform our next strategic plan and determine our areas of focus for the coming four to five-year horizon beginning January 2025. It is an ideal exemplar for knowing where you are going by understanding where you have been.
The second was a recently hosted BBQ for past faculty and staff. The turnout was tremendous with former headmasters John Tansey and Geoff Roberts, former dean of studies and 42-year Crescent veteran James Wright, former head of Lower School Ross MacDonald, and beloved teachers and coaches Stuart Cumner, Mark Suckling, Rob Cranston, Steve Davies, Dick Howard, and many, many more, in attendance. The names of these Crescent icons routinely come up when I meet with our alumni worldwide, who credit these individuals for having had a massive impact on their lives and for helping them become the men they are today. We are so fortunate for the imprint they and others like them have had on our school culture and community, and we strive to build on their legacy every day.
The third of these seminal events was the May 9 public launch of Our Way Forward, our $65 million fundraising campaign. Through a combination of capital improvements and growth in the endowment that supports student financial assistance, the Our Way Forward campaign will promote community, identity and legacy. This campaign builds on the successes of our earlier Great Boys, Crescent 2000 and Above and Beyond campaigns, which added many of the buildings and programs we enjoy today, including the Latifi Family Commons, Lau Family Wing, Cortellucci Family Theatre, and Hudson Family Field House.
The Our Way Forward campaign will fund a new Community Hall to celebrate and nurture the spirit of our school community while providing much-needed space for over one thousand students and staff to enjoy lunch each day. A new Entryway will give Lower and Upper School students a more direct and secure way to access and move about the School. The new Student Commons will be a multi-functional learning and gathering space that encourages collaboration, connection, and belonging. The largest commitment ever to grow the school’s endowment will support student financial assistance to ensure we sustain the legacy of a Crescent education for future generations of mission-fit students. Finally, the transformative $12 million gift from Ming Wai Lau enabled Crescent to acquire the Rumball property in 2021. While its development is for a future campaign, securing this adjacent parcel of land on our north border was an early crowning achievement.
The Our Way Forward campaign is a clear roadmap to where we are going, as will be our next strategic plan which we begin working on in September. As we move forward, we are fortunate to draw upon the legions of former faculty and staff who established our mission and purpose, as well as the previous generosity of Crescent parents, past parents, and alumni who helped build the campus of today. Our way forward is both a vision of where we are headed and a celebration of where we have been as one of Canada’s leading boys’ schools.
