These Precious Moments

As the end of school draws near – only six more days of class including House Island Day! – this is the time to make the most of our moments together. We’ve embraced challenges and discovery as we pushed the boundaries of learning and collaboration. After an exciting, intense school year, it is wonderful to see students taking some time to relax and simply enjoy each other’s company before exams.

Down-time has immense value, in and of itself. For our driven and engaged students, it is especially important to step back and make the time for it. Over the last two weeks of school, students are taking part in annual UTS traditions, some new and some old, and it is a beautiful thing to see our students relax and just enjoy being together.

Last week, we launched our expanded community-building program for our Foundation and Middle school students with the M3 Dinner. Laughter and general excitement filled the Multipurpose Room as the students enjoyed lasagne with their friends, as well as musical performances from M3 and S5 strings players. The excitement ramped up after dinner with a friendly quiz game of Kahoot! (for this party, a cell-phone exception was granted). UTS students take their trivia very seriously and there was much jumping, wringing of hands, clapping and cheering for their friends as students vied to top the leaderboard. After the Kahoot! came Karaoke. Amid fits of laughter, students (and one staff) belted out the words to Spice Girls’ Wannabe, John Denver’s Take Me Home, Country Roads, many Rosé and Ariana Grande songs, and more.

As our students came together in chorus – sometimes as many as 17 students singing at once – the audience joined in and a sensation of irrepressible joy took hold among our students and staff. This is it! These are the moments we cherish together.

On Monday this week, students gathered outside the school for the annual Fajita Fiesta, a decades-long UTS tradition. The aroma of fajitas and the sounds of electric guitar wafted over the sunny plaza as singers and student bands took to the stage to entertain their peers. Students enjoyed eating fajitas in the sunshine, while marvelling at the vast depth and range of musical talent in our school community. Special thanks to our new 2025-26 School Captains Max and Angela, Student Council and staff who organized the event, in community collaboration with the UTSPA Parent Volunteer Group, who did the most important job – serving the fajitas. These moments of collaboration strengthen our community and help make the Fajita Fiesta one of the highlights of our year. 

The fun continues: tonight there’s S6 Prom and next week is House Island Day on Wednesday. Later in June, more Foundation community events will include F1 Community Reflection Week (as they don’t write exams), the F1 Birthday Party and the F2 Dance, where our students will make more memories together. We also have the pinnacle event of the UTS experience: Graduation Day.

All of this goes to say learning doesn’t just happen in the classroom. We also learn from the friendships we forge and the moments we share that become memories to last a lifetime.

Joy: a Celebration of Cultures and Community

Every story matters. Every culture deserves to be celebrated in its full richness. Yesterday, the UTS community came together for the Asian Heritage Month Assembly. A moving and vibrant celebration of the diverse Asian cultures and voices that enrich our community, the assembly was also about starting conversations that matter.

In the words of one of the student emcees: “Representation isn't about putting a couple of cultures on a poster and calling it a day; it’s about making sure every person feels seen, valued and respected at UTS.”

Centered around the theme of joy, the event showcased the incredible talents of our students while creating space for critical reflection on representation, inclusion and cultural identity. 

We were treated to a rich mix of artistic expression, including the Senior Orchestra's stirring rendition of Ode to the Yellow River, an upbeat and captivating performance of Feel Special by the K-Pop Club and an energetic showcase by the SHOW Indian dancers that celebrated the dynamism of Bollywood dance. Each act reminded us of the shared joy that music and movement bring across cultures.

To close the assembly, a student performed O Canada on the guzheng, a beautiful fusion of tradition and national pride that left the audience deeply moved.

The celebration and conversation continues with more events this month. 

May is also Jewish Heritage Month, and our annual tradition of Buns and Buddies returns on Friday. A collaboration between Advancing Equity for Asians and our Jewish Culture Club, the event celebrates Asian Heritage Month and Jewish Heritage Month together with music and food like samosas, bagels and momos.

We’ll also have screenings of the Assel Akhmetova film Faceless and a conversation with the director and Reel Asian Film Festival’s Education Manager and Programmer Samir Ballou, and an excerpt from the delightful and moving Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó, as well as a discussion about the model minority myth.

These celebrations and conversations bring us closer together as a community as we uplift every voice and celebrate the diverse cultural legacies that shape who we are.

Navigating the Changing Landscape of Adolescence: Implications for UTS and Families

I look forward to having a compassionate and timely conversation with UTS families this evening about the growing tensions faced by today’s youth and what we as educators and parents can do to help.

Now seems like a challenging time in history to be young with an ongoing youth mental crisis in Canada, the impact of social media and the looming threat of climate change, all of which can negatively influence students’ sense of wellness  and their engagement at school.

Across North America and all types of school systems, students are showing similar patterns: more frequent absenteeism, increased feelings of isolation, reduced social engagement, and a declining connection to school spirit and community life.

For ambitious UTS students, the challenges can be heightened as they strive for perfectionism in their academic and social lives. Managing the tension between students’ drive  and their personal well-being can become an issue.

Together, we’ll explore what’s happening, why it matters and how we can respond. Neither schools nor parents can solve these issues on their own. More than ever, partnerships between education institutions and families are the key to finding solutions that make a difference for our youth.

This event offers a space for families to come together, share concerns, and reaffirm our shared commitment to supporting our children in leading vibrant, connected and meaningful school lives.

By understanding the unique challenges faced by our students, as well as the broader landscape for our children today, we are better able to give them the support they need to be happy and successful as students and in life. 

Tonight, we look forward to learning more from you about your concerns and observations of your children, and will continue to use your insight to inform the UTS education curriculum and co-curricular programs going forward. I look forward to our discussion this evening.

You are the Spark: UTS Together

This time of year the learning comes together in surprising and exciting ways as students work on final projects, present their AP research and prepare for ArtEx, drama and music nights and more. Our students have worked so hard and learned so much and deserve praise for their efforts and dedication as they enter the final stretch of the school year.

None of this would be possible without your support behind the scenes in the many ways you care for your children. You are the spark that ignites the power of a UTS education.

This week, you have the tremendous opportunity to have an impact on our school community in another way: by donating to UTS Together, our annual Giving Days Campaign for parents and families, which runs from May 5 to 9.

For five years now, UTS parents have come together in a tradition of solidarity to help our school.

With a focus on participation by grade, typically there is an increase of support by our parent community by 50 percent across all grades in just one week. What does this mean for our students? Your gifts impact the day-to-day lives of UTS students, providing enhanced programming, capital improvements, financial aid and more!

Thank you to the six Class Ambassadors, who are current parents or guardians for helping unite your grades in this effort, and thank you to everyone for your generous support. It is truly wonderful to see how UTS comes together for the good of our students and the joy of our community!

The Shift into High Engagement

As cherry blossoms herald the arrival of spring all over the University of Toronto campus, UTS is deepening its engagement with pressing global challenges of our time.

Along with the Federal Election yesterday, where many of our students took part in Student Vote Canada’s mirror election, over the last week UTS has been bustling with two major events dedicated to creating solutions to the challenges facing our world – of which there are many to choose from!

Last Friday, UTS hosted the Global Ideas Institute Final Symposium, the culmination of months of effort where 141 students from 21 schools spent the school year developing innovative solutions to the challenge: “How can we bridge the digital divide and ensure equitable access to digital technologies, particularly in underserved communities and developing nations?” In a world where 2.6 billion people remain offline, lack of access to technology means lack of access to opportunity. Students pitched their solutions to volunteer judges targeted at different aspects of this challenge – the UTS team developed an app to make it easier for smallholder rural farmers in South Africa to access technology to support their farms with microfinancing and weather forecasting. A Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy program, the Institute runs in partnership with UTS and the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. High school students work directly with university student mentors from Munk and other University of Toronto departments to prepare their solutions. Also, UTS alum Samaa Kazerouni Shah ’14 is a director of the organization, epitomizing our school’s pillar of impact with integrity with her work.

From Global Ideas Institute on Friday, we dove directly into the 52nd iteration of Southern Ontario Model United Nations Assembly (SOMA) on Monday for three days of diplomacy in action, with our student Secretariat welcoming 600 student delegates from across Ontario. From cybersecurity to tensions in the South China Sea, U.S.-China tariff disputes to affordable housing and much more, students immersed themselves deeply in the countries they represented and put forward resolutions that advocate for their interests, collaborating with other nations to create solutions on model United Nations committees. By doing so, their understanding and empathy for other societies and cultures deepens.

This long-standing UTS tradition is organized by UTS students, with support from our dedicated staff, providing invaluable leadership opportunities for our students to take the helm of a major event, while creating a vital experience for their peers at other schools.  

With global tensions on the rise, experiences where young people think deeply about issues of national and global concern, such as SOMA, Global Ideas Institute and Student Vote Canada, are paramount to their education. Skills they develop at events like these such as critical thought, effective collaboration, skilled communication and kindness can prepare them to make a difference when it matters most, wherever their futures might lead.

As for the results of Student Vote Canada, nearly half of our student body voted in the electoral district of University—Rosedale, with a total of 335 students participating. The results were 149 votes for Chrystia Freeland P '19, '23, '27 — Liberal Party of Canada, followed by 81 for Liz Grade — Conservative Party of Canada and significantly less support for the other parties.  

See the national results of Student Vote Canada here.

Bringing Democracy to Life at UTS: Student Vote Canada

The right to vote is a precious thing.

Next Monday, Canadians will cast their ballots in a pivotal election for our country at a time when politics and democracy matters more than ever, here and abroad. Most of our students are too young to vote in this election, with the exception of S6 students who have turned 18, but their lives and their futures will feel the impact of the results. 

This federal election we will continue the UTS tradition of giving students the opportunity to experience the democratic process firsthand by taking part in Student Vote Canada. Students in elementary and high schools from coast to coast will mark their ballots for real candidates, voting in a mock election that mirrors the real one. Student Vote Canada brings democracy to life in our school, creating real-world learning and inspiring valuable conversations about the future of Canada. This exercise is part of our commitment to provide students with tools to analyze the vast amount of digital information around them, and to relate their curricular learning to real-life situations that shape their world. 

Last week, our school community enjoyed a dynamic assembly, led by a team of four students and supported by our staff, which provided background on key election concepts, including ridings, voter turnout, political parties, elections and our constitution, and the importance of participating in the democratic process. Their passion for democracy and the political process was contagious.

As part of the assembly a group of six students, one from every year, took the stage to share how important it is to exercise your right to vote. One student said: “Voting is a way for regular people to make large amounts of change, because many issues like racial equality, access to active health care and environmental policy are all heavily influenced by government policy. And even if one vote might not seem very significant, if many people decide not to go out and vote, it impacts the results of the election.”

Another said: “Voting is an opportunity for people to have a stake in their future and change the status quo, whether that's if something is wrong or something to change.”

On election day, UTS students will volunteer to take on the roles of election workers, assisting in organizing and running the Student Vote process under staff supervision. This hands-on experience encourages civic engagement and fosters active citizenship. The national results will be tallied by Student Vote Canada to provide an understanding of where our country’s young people stand in this election.

Monday, April 28 is an important day for the future of our country and our students will be a part of it. Their vote may not count yet, but by taking part in the process, we hope they will gain an understanding and commitment to democracy that will carry forward into their future lives.

Seeing is Believing: The Girls in Tech Conference

On Saturday, 128 grade six to eight girls from more than 40 schools across the Greater Toronto Area converged at UTS for the eighth annual Girls in Tech Conference, an exhilarating day of technology, community and possibility. They took part in workshops like Your Voice is Power, blending hip-hop music production with Python coding. They infused artistry into their coding projects using artificial intelligence in a session led by Hackergal. They explored mobile game development in Unity with a professional game developer from Girls Make Games, as well as learning about animation, micro:bits, animation and teachable machines in other workshops and learning from inspiring women technology leaders in career panels.

The Girls in Tech Conference is organized by girls for girls ‒ all of these amazing learning experiences came together thanks to UTS student organizers, who planned the conference. Back in 2018, a group of UTS girls with a passion for technology were concerned about the lack of women’s representation in the industry. In typical UTS fashion, they set out to be the change, creating a space where girls could meet positive role models face-to-face, learn about the possibilities for women in technology as well as meet other girls their age from across the city who share their high-tech interests.

Seeing is believing. When young women meet female engineers, programmers, entrepreneurs and leaders, hear their stories and then have a chance for hand-on learning experiences with technology, they begin to truly understand the potential and excitement of a career in technology.  

Eight years later, the Girls in Tech Conference continues to be a highly anticipated UTS event, and the lack of women’s representation in the tech industry remains an ongoing issue. A 2024 report from the Tech and People Network (TAP) found that women’s representation in Canada’s tech sector made some progress over the last year, increasing from 36.9 per cent to 38.6 per cent of technology employees among 149 employers surveyed, but is still far from being on par with men. The phenomenon of girls losing interest in tech and science careers when they hit adolescence is still ongoing (although not common at UTS).  

The Girls in Tech Conference creates a space for solutions. Keynote speaker Lauren Epstein, an investor and lawyer, inspired with her work finding, mentoring and investing in ground-breaking early-stage technology companies. Girls attending the conference had the opportunity to learn from 23 professionals in robotics, coding, animation, programming and much more, including alums Rachel Ma ’19 and UTS Alumni Association President Avanti Ramachandran ’09.

Our students who organized the event are role models as well, collaborating to create this extraordinary technology experience for their peers. This learning and community that takes shape at this conference has the potential to level the playing field, resonating throughout the lives of young women. Today they’re experimenting with micro:bits and Python coding; tomorrow anything is possible.

Love, Acceptance and the Day of Pink

What an incredible day of joy and learning at UTS! This International Day of Pink on Wednesday, April 9, we joined together with the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in the continued fight for equality and acceptance. Around the school, office and classroom doors were resplendent in pink with messages of love and hope, and our students and staff wore pink in celebration of this very special day at UTS.  High notes rose through the Fleck Atrium as student bands played over the noon hour, and a sense of genuine joy took hold among our school community that will stand out as one of the highlights of this school year, in keeping with UTS Day of Pink tradition.  

This year, the Day of Pink Committee, which consists of students and staff, diligently planned for months behind the scenes to bring our celebrations to life. A group of 20 UTS staff offered a broad array of workshops for our older students, while our F1 and F2s participated in Day of Pink button-making. From theatre to intellectual freedom, inclusive ecology and sports to current and historical issues facing 2SLGBTQIA+ communities, M3 and S6 students learned about a topic of their choice. Many more staff and students worked together behind the scenes to make the day a success in a true school-wide effort.  

The keynote speaker for the schoolwide assembly, Dennis Mawala, a human rights activist from Rainbow Railroad, spoke about the organization’s work to help 2SLGBTQIA+ people around the world, who face violence and oppression for simply being who they are. His message was one of hope for the future. 

The Day of Pink is about more than just a colour. It's a message that we stand in opposition to judgment and to hate, and that we offer care and compassion for all in our community, and elevate our support and celebration of those in our 2SLGBTQIA+ community. Together we enjoyed a wonderful day of learning and understanding that brought us closer together, for the betterment of our school and ourselves.

Brilliancy and Resiliency

Next week, UTS is honoured to host an important event for the Conference of Independent Schools of Ontario (CIS) – Brilliancy and Resiliency 2025, the third annual CIS Ontario-supported Black Student Conference.

The conference epitomizes all of the pillars in the UTS Strategic Plan, brought to life: leading in learning, inclusion by design, belonging and wellness, impact with integrity and better together. It’s one of many benefits our school community enjoys from being part of organizations such as CIS and Canadian Accredited Independent Schools (CAIS), where we are able to forge strong connections and learn from other students and educators.

This event is the annual conference of the Black Student Affinity Network, an initiative created by Black students at independent schools. Often, Black students find themselves in a small minority of the overall student body at independent schools, called upon to take on leadership roles in equity and inclusion. Students came together to establish the Affinity Network to give them a space where they can connect, build community and share their experiences.

Approximately 120 Black-identifying students, staff and families from CIS member schools across Ontario will gather together at our school for an empowering day of hands-on activities with the theme Celebrating the Arts, Centering Wellness on Tuesday, April 8 (a UTS professional activity day with no classes). There will be dancing and drumming, collage-making and spoken word workshops, led by leaders in the Black community who are all role models of Black excellence in their own right, as well as a discussion on mental health and wellbeing led by a social worker and entrepreneur. UTS parent and award-winning filmmaker Sudz Sutherland P ’21, ’25 will lead a workshop about directing and producing.

Heads of school from CIS schools, who have been invited to take part in the conference, as well as staff from CIS schools, will attend a panel moderated by Dr. Carl James, Professor and the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora at York University that will help centre the experience of Black students and parents at schools.

The keynote speaker is Dwayne Morgan OOnt, known as “The Godfather” of Canadian Spoken Word poetry. A Canadian multi-award winning spoken word artist, poet, and motivational speaker, Dwayne is a two-time Canadian National Poetry Slam Champion and an appointee to the Order of Ontario. He has published 14 books and nine albums, and performed for and shared the stage with figures like Barack Obama, Alicia Keys and Drake.

This incredible roster of activities and speakers for our guests is all the result of amazing leadership from our student and staff members of the UTS Black Equity Committee, who have been diligently planning the conference behind the scenes since September 2024.

This embodies the leadership we nurture at our school, offering students potentially transformative experiences that expand their horizons, fuel their ambitions and help them chart new possibilities for their future.   

A Bridge to Greater Understanding

As we prepare our students to become good citizens, we seek to foster their deeper understanding of life beyond the walls of our school, our city and even our country. We believe in the power of learning through firsthand global connections: vital face-to-face meetings that build bridges to greater understanding. Strengthening relationships and mutual understanding, learning about and from other cultures, and reflecting on our place in the world as Canadians has perhaps never been more important. 

For the second year in a row, UTS was honoured to host students and teachers from Tokyo’s Hachioji Higashi School, in partnership with the Centre for the Study of Global Japan at University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy. This partnership is built on the basis of our reputation ‒ they sought us out because UTS is known to be an exemplary school and they wanted to learn about the work we do while building relationships between students.  

On Tuesday evening, UTS student captains and Ms. Amdemichael, Dean of Academics, attended a reception and dinner at the Consulate General of Japan in Toronto along with 28 Japanese high school students, both an honour and an eye-opening experience to the workings of global diplomacy. Earlier in the afternoon, the students from Japan visited UTS for a collaborative session with our students as well as those from U of T’s Centre for the Study of Global Japan. Each Japanese student came with a learning mindset, working on research projects focused on Canada, looking at areas such as immigration, our health care system, education and other cultural aspects. Their projects considered how this new learning might be applied to their home country. All of the students shared their experiences in education through invigorating round table discussions, providing a window into each other’s lives. This visit was facilitated at UTS by our school’s Eureka! Institute, one of only a few school-based research institutes in Canada. 

As everyone got to know each other, it became clear: we may be from opposite sides of the world, but we are not that different after all. 

While spring takes hold, and the cherry blossoms in High Park and at U of T’s Robarts Library – symbols of connection between Canada and Japan – begin to emerge,  we hope to carry forward our curiosity and open-mindedness about the world we live in. There is so much to learn from the perspectives of others when we take the time to listen, understand and work together in the service of a better future. 

Change is a Team Sport: International Women’s Day

I’ve always been a proponent of girls’ participation in team sports, despite my own daughter’s fraught relationship with T-ball at age four. (She worried about hurting the ball’s feelings if she hit it too hard!) There is ample research to show the benefits of participation in sports, which range from a more positive body image to the development of teamwork and leadership skills, and we know that the loss of sports during the pandemic had a devastating impact. Researchers found that nine in ten Canadian girls aged six to sixteen stopped or reduced their participation in sports during the pandemic, and post-Covid participation levels reveal that approximately 25 per cent of girls have not returned to play. Why is this important? The negative impact on girls’ mental health, physical health and positive friendships is significant, and jurisdictions across Canada are looking at ways to increase participation.   

Perhaps it is fitting as we prepare to celebrate International Women’s Day on Saturday, March 8, that UTS Athletics played host to the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) Girls’ A Volleyball Championships. The McIntyre Gymnasium was alive with teamwork, collaboration and feats of athleticism as our UTS Senior Girls’ Varsity Volleyball team competed against the top teams in the A division in Ontario. Despite a heartbreaking loss to the York School in the semifinals, the team rallied for bronze against École secondaire catholique L’Horizon. It truly was an incredible showing of teamwork and competitive spirit. 

Watching our players compete, I was struck by their resilience in spite of a loss, and their grace in victory. I saw leadership, communication, and how all the teams stuck together and played in harmony with each other, anticipating each other’s moves and lifting each other up, even when the stakes were down. The teams were gracious in winning, gracious in losing, and above all, the camaraderie and strength displayed by these young women was truly inspiring. 

The opening ceremonies began with a heartwarming speech from one of our alums that reminds us of the powerful impact women’s sports can have on our lives. Five years ago, Hannah Joo ’20 was in the same place as this week’s competitors, vying to take home the OFSAA banner for our school. She became a key player on the first UTS team to bring home the gold in OFSAA Girls’ Volleyball, right before the Covid-19 pandemic struck and team sports fell by the wayside. She told the competitors that it was on the court where she “learned the most about leadership ‒ how to bring people together, lift others up when they’re down, and be a teammate that everyone can rely on.”

These skills have taken Hannah far, on to success as a setter on the Western University volleyball team, and now into her future life after undergrad.

As we celebrate International Women’s Day, I want to take a moment to honour all of the powerhouse players making a difference in women’s sports. Aside from volleyball, I am a loyal Professional Women’s Hockey League fan, often cheering on the Toronto Sceptres at their games. The players are a force to be reckoned with, proving that change is a team sport. Society has come far on equality, women’s rights and empowerment, but significant barriers remain. This year, the International Women’s Day campaign is focused on accelerating action for gender equality. According to data from the World Economic Forum, based on the current rate of progress, it will take until 2158 to reach gender parity. 

The campaign urges individuals to call out stereotypes, challenge discrimination, question bias, celebrate women's success and much more.

Just like a sports team, we can come together for the cause and work to advance change that could make a difference for women here in Canada and worldwide. This International Women’s Day, I wish everyone in our community a wonderful celebration of the great strides women are making in the world and greater progress to come!

Warming our Hearts with the Arts

Outside there were freezing temperatures and mounting snow, but inside our school this month our spirits were warmed by stunning musical and theatrical performances of our students. The power of the arts allows us to connect at the most elemental, visceral level and gives students the opportunity to collaborate, engage and astound.

In mid-February we were treated to the annual Drama Showcase in the Jackman Theatre. Junior drama students captured our imaginations with their performance of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (adapted from the story by Roald Dahl), a play that emphasizes the value of honesty, humility and kindness. Senior students took on the challenge of Canadian playwright Daniel MacIvor’s satirical This Is A Play, where the boundaries between performance and real life blur as the cast reveals their own thoughts and motivations while performing a terrible play.

Moments like these reflect hours of behind-the-scenes work and intensive collaboration that develops vital skills in our students. In This Is A Play three students performed each of the main characters together to allow the audience to experience their character’s inner thoughts more vividly. The ultimate creative challenge for the ensemble was how each group of three learned to move and think as a unified character, completely in tune with each other. Last night, they took their performance to the National Theatre School Drama Festival.  

Last week, Nocturne, an annual UTS tradition that began in 2002, celebrated the extraordinary depth and range of our school’s musical talent with a high-calibre evening of performance in the Withrow Auditorium.  

At the beginning and end of the performance the entire stage came alive, filled with the student musicians of the UTS Chamber Orchestra and accompanied by virtuoso performances of S6 soloists. In between, the audience was treated to many evocative classical pieces, including one on the double bass, as well as some rousing Gilbert and Sullivan from the Pirates of Penzance ‒ “I am a Pirate King.”

Collectively, our students brought the house down. For our S6 musicians, the evening was an incredible culmination of their musical journey at our school. Despite the challenges they faced with the pandemic, their dedication and discipline prevailed.

These two mesmerizing performances highlight the vital importance of the arts as part of the UTS experience. Not only do our Drama, Music and Visual Arts programs expand students’ minds in new and surprising ways, they connect us with a collective sense of joy and humanity that warms our spirits even in the depths of winter. 

Lift Every Voice and Sing

There was a time, not that long ago, where students in Toronto were typically taught nothing about Black Canadian history. UTS parent Jennifer Holness P ‘21, '25 remembers. Today the award-winning film television director, producer and screenwriter shared her perspectives as the keynote speaker at the UTS Black Futures Month Assembly.

She told students how “shocked” she felt when, as an adult, she began to uncover aspects of Canadian Black history she had never heard of before for her work. They became the basis of the revered History Channel series BLK: An Origin Story, which she and her husband, Sudz Sutherland P ’21, ’25, developed through their production company Hungry Eyes Media.

“When you don't have information, you don't know what came before,” she told students.

That is why assemblies like this are so important. Organized by students on the UTS Black Equity Committee, the assembly took our school community on a powerful journey towards a greater understanding of the Black experience, here at UTS and in Canada.

Seven Black students spoke about what Black Futures Month means for them, expressing the hope that in time we won’t need Black Futures Month because everyone will be equal. In the eloquent words of one student, “Black Futures Month should be about looking directly at a future where Black people don't need to be lifted to be seen, because we are already eye to eye with everybody in every room.” 

Later on, in the assembly, students heard from the event’s MC, who recalled arriving at the school as an F1 with another Black student: “It was the first time in the school's history that there were two Black students in the same grade in the almost 110 years since the school was founded.”

Neither student was used to being such a small minority and at times, experienced what one calls “a cultural disconnect” with questions and comments about their food, hair or other stereotypes. “Not everyone knows everything about our hair, our food or our experience, because we all have different hair, different food and different experiences. Experiences like these have their challenges, but at the end of the day, they're part of the richness of cultural exchange, and they contribute to what makes coming to UTS so valuable.” 

Two S5 students led the panel questions to Jennifer Holness, including this question: “How can media portrayal of Black people influence public attitudes, policies and even how Black people feel about themselves?”

Jennifer’s answer: the media is super powerful, and that is the reason she makes film and television. “I understood growing up that what I saw in the media was so powerfully ingrained in what I thought was possible.”

She told students she believes it is our obligation as human beings to stand up for each other and be there for our fellow man. “Life is much richer when you are able to open yourself up to someone else with a different point of view and a different experience. As a filmmaker, that's how I approach every project ‒ being open to someone's story that's not mine.”  

The assembly culminated with a student’s moving performance of Lift Every Voice and Sing, often referred to as the Black National Anthem, which filled the Withrow Auditorium with the sound of possibility and purpose.

Black Futures Month is providing wonderful opportunities for UTS students to taste delicious foods, explore Black cultures and most of all, gain a deeper understanding of each other to carry us forward not just through this month, but throughout the year and beyond.

Friends for Life

This Tuesday, on the other side of the country, a friendly, vibrant group of 11 UTS alumni gathered for a night of bonding and reminiscing at the Calgary UTS Alumni Branch Event, proof positive that the UTS connection extends far beyond our students’ days at UTS into their future, no matter where life takes them.

Even temperatures dropping into the double digits didn’t deter alumni from coming out to the event, at the Calgary Petroleum Club, arranged through the connections of our alum Greg Turnbull K.C. ’73.

I had the pleasure of attending, along with Martha Drake, Executive Director, Advancement, and meeting alumni ranging from the classes of 1953 to 1988. Decades may have passed since their graduation, but they are still keen to be involved with UTS. We shared updates on the new UTS Strategic Plan, the recent endeavours of our students such as the Lunar New Year celebration and the Winter Classic Volleyball Tournament, as well as the latest bursary statistics.

Some of the alumni were old friends, and some became new ones with the common ground of genuine fondness for UTS. Our school  is a phenomenal lifelong hub, where alumni who have never met before can often feel an instant connection and commonality.

In our conversations, alumni often mentioned how, many years later, they still have enduring friendships from their UTS days. The academic rigours and the love of learning they share at our school forge deep bonds that endure long after graduation. Our alumni travel far and wide and achieve great things, but UTS stays with them as the connections made at our school transcend time and place to last a lifetime. 

Trailblazers of Tomorrow

More than 60 students from UTS and across the Greater Toronto Area converged at UTS last weekend for Blues Hacks 2025: Trailblazers of Tomorrow, the second annual UTS Hackathon event, bringing their energy, enthusiasm and innovative ideas.

The excitement was palpable at the opening ceremonies Friday night, with alumni speakers, entrepreneur Shane Miskin ’87, the founder of CampBrain, which provides management and registration software to camps and conference centres and Kanwar Sahdra ’15 who is a software engineer at Coinbase. Shane’s advice – if students find something they really love, students have the greatest opportunity for success in life by pursuing it.

After the ceremonies, the hacking began in earnest with students from UTS, Etobicoke Collegiate and the Bishop Strachan School collaborating in their teams to develop ideas and solutions based on the theme, Trailblazers of Tomorrow. The pressure was on – participants had until Sunday at 11:30 a.m. to bring their ideas to life, before they would pitch their projects to alumni judges. On Saturday, the students built their projects, taking part in four online workshops led by UTS students – an intro to Python coding, math beyond AI, game development, and pitching, which allowed participants to develop skills to manifest their innovations.

On Sunday, the students returned to UTS ready to pitch their ideas, and in some cases, fully developed projects. Events like these succeed on the strength of our community and we were grateful to our five volunteer alumni judges, which included Shane and Kanwar, as well as Elvis Wong ’11, who is a director of equitable prosperity at RBC; Gordon Chiu ’00 who is a senior director of software engineering and site director at Intel; and Sava Glavan ’22 who studies business and computer science at Waterloo.

Pitch after pitch, the students impressed the judges with innovative thinking, technical prowess and drive for social impact. Students didn’t just develop interesting projects – they sought to build a better world. From a platform enabling foodbanks to collaborate and minimize waste to an AI-powered tool that facilitates real-time conversations with historical icons like Marie Curie, Frida Kahlo and Louis Riel to a game that helps students learn to train their neural networks, participants showed what it is possible to accomplish when they work together under time constraints in a collaborative environment.  

Experiences like these open the door to creativity, allowing students to explore beyond curricular boundaries, embracing the freedom of discovery. They serve as eye-opening moments – suddenly they can grasp real-life applications for the sometimes abstract knowledge and expertise they’ve developed in their classes. Best of all, the entire event was organized by UTS students, who learn what becomes possible when you bring young people together for a common goal.

Beyond the Bell: Forging Community in a Fast-Paced World

When I met with the Canadian Accredited Independent Schools (CAIS) accreditation team at the end of their December visit, I had to smile when they pointed out that UTS truly puts the “I” in independent. The phrase they used was “fiercely independent” – and I couldn’t agree more. In my first year at UTS, I quickly came to appreciate just how unique we are. We do things differently – and for good reason. Our academic program demands a structure unlike that of other independent schools.

While independence is one of our greatest strengths, the CAIS team raised an important question: In addition to our renowned academic program, how do we fully prepare our students for an increasingly complex and fast-changing post-secondary world? Our rigorous academic timetable sets us apart, but do we need to attend more to wellness, leadership development and other essential skills? 

Many schools hold weekly assemblies, and have regular advisor time or grade meetings as part of the schedule. With an enriched curriculum and a demanding course load, time is our most precious resource and those traditional touchpoints found in other schools are not built into our daily schedule. We endeavour to foster school spirit, nurture leadership skills and create meaningful opportunities for shared learning but acknowledge that we are challenged by the scarcity of time our one monthly school assembly provides.

I’ve been reflecting on this conundrum and asking: How do we create more space for learning beyond academics? Leadership development, shared values and student wellness are the foundation of an education that prepares students for university, career and life. These experiences shape students who fulfill our mission to ignite the brightest minds to make a difference in the world. So, how do we ensure they happen?

The challenge – and opportunity – is to find solutions that work for UTS. How do we weave more meaningful experiences into the unique rhythm of our school in ways that feel authentic and lasting? Rather than adopting another school’s model, we want to build community and foster deep learning in a way that reflects our values and responds to the evolving needs of our students. And because we are UTS, innovation isn’t something we do alone – it means including student voice  every step of the way.

I’m excited to take on the ever-present challenge of time together – exploring, experimenting and reimagining new ways to connect and learn. By centering student insights and perspectives, I know we can create even more meaningful opportunities for growth, reflection and celebration. My hope is that every moment of learning, remembrance and joy truly resonates with our entire school community. 

From Wedding Bells to School Bells: Finding Unity in Community

Our daughter Olivia's wedding day on Saturday transformed our diverse families into a unified celebration. From the ring bearer's last-minute bow tie rebellion to the flower girl's dainty dance down the aisle, the day wove together moments of humour and grace. The gathering highlighted the beautiful tapestry of family relationships – estranged aunts who somehow forgot their decade-old dispute, the eccentric uncle whose booming laugh filled every room and the diplomatic challenges of seating former couples and old friends. But all of these intricacies melted away as we united to celebrate one of life’s most important milestones together. 

This family celebration mirrored our school community in some uncannily similar ways. Like wedding guests, we arrive with distinct backgrounds, values and life experiences. We navigate relationships shaped by varied needs and perspectives, sometimes working towards very different goals. Just like families at weddings, we set aside our differences in service of something greater – our shared commitment to nurturing the ideas and emerging values of the next generation.

Our school community's strength lies in its vibrant diversity and the interconnectedness that comes from negotiating relationships with people who are outside our inner circle. Each gathering – from school events to parent-teacher meetings to sporting events – reinforces these bonds and provides opportunity for growth and exchange of ideas. Despite our different viewpoints, our school families stand on common ground, just like our families did at Olivia’s wedding.  

The weekend's celebration, with its beautiful tapestry of personalities and perspectives, reminded me of what makes our school community equally special. Thank you for being part of this diverse but united family we call UTS, where our differences strengthen rather than divide us, and our shared purpose unites us all.

Building Digital Boundaries: Insights from the UTS Online Safety Session

In today's digital landscape, students face unprecedented challenges navigating social media, digital footprints, smartphones and online security. While schools provide essential guidelines and boundaries during the day, partnership with parents is crucial for ensuring children's safety in their digital lives.

Recognizing this need, UTS and the UTS Parents' Association recently hosted IT expert Paul Davis for an enlightening session on cyberbullying and online safety strategies. Drawing from his 33 years of experience, Paul delivered a message that was both sobering and hopeful, offering insights into creating age-appropriate digital boundaries that evolve as children mature.

Paul illustrated the risks of unrestricted social media access with a powerful analogy: allowing children unfettered access to social media platforms, even when legally permitted, is comparable to handing them keys to a Maserati and letting them drive at full speed on the highway. Both scenarios present overwhelming power and potential danger without proper guidance and supervision.

Central to Paul's presentation was the critical importance of parental awareness and involvement in children's digital activities. This vigilance serves dual purposes: protecting students from digital distractions that impede academic progress and safeguarding them from the inherent risks of social media engagement.

Perhaps most crucially, Paul emphasized that "the Internet never forgets" – a fundamental lesson parents must instill in their children. Every online post contributes to a permanent digital footprint, creating a data trail with far-reaching implications. This digital trail can be exploited in various ways, from targeted marketing at its most benign to more sinister uses by predators creating false profiles or attempting to lure young people online.

To combat these challenges, Paul recommends implementing specific boundaries, such as prohibiting cell phone use in bedrooms and establishing designated technology-free periods to maintain life balance. These limitations have practical benefits: our teachers have observed that homework sessions often double in length when students are distracted by social media and mobile notifications, turning 20-minute assignments into 40-minute tasks.

In alignment with these principles, UTS maintains its commitment to being a device-free school – a policy that has garnered positive feedback from students themselves. This restriction creates valuable space for meaningful in-person connections that enrich the school experience. We deeply appreciate your continued support in reinforcing this policy and helping your children make informed, safe choices in their digital lives.

Welcome to 2025: A Year of New Possibilities

I hope you and your families had a wonderful break, filled with celebration, rest and rejuvenation, and are ready to take on 2025! The first week of the new year is always an inspiring time at school. Students are so excited to see each other again, and the possibilities feel boundless. 

Before classes began, our dedicated staff engaged in thorough preparations for the year ahead, including professional development activities. A highlight was an entire day devoted to exploring artificial intelligence (AI).

We were thrilled to welcome Susan McCahan (pictured in the above photo) from the University of Toronto, who is pioneering ways to use AI in education in her roles as associate vice-president and vice-provost, digital strategies, and vice-provost, innovations in undergraduate education. Her presentation deepened our understanding of how these technologies can be harnessed to enhance educational experiences. Additionally, we had the privilege of hearing from one of our students, S5 Emma, who shared her award-winning speech on the significant environmental impact of AI. Emma's perspective added a vital dimension to our discussions about the ethical implications of technology in education.

During the afternoon, our staff explored AI emerging practices and productivity strategies, ethical implications, took part in a hackathon and more, embracing new ideas and technologies with curiosity and open minds.

As we step into 2025, it feels as though we are racing into the future. Advancements in AI present exciting opportunities and complex considerations for us as educators, and reinforce our commitment to prepare our students to become ethical and responsible citizens. Wishing you and your families an incredible year of learning and new possibilities! 

A Joyful Holiday Season

There’s a sense of joy and merriment growing in the halls as we near the close of the school year.

House Winter Wonderland Spirit week is in full flow with activities like gingerbread house making and the holiday breakfast – today is pajama day and many students are enjoying the fun opportunity to wear their pajamas to school!

This time of year invites us to reflect on how far we’ve come together. We’ve challenged one another to explore new ideas, think in different ways, and expand our creativity. The results of this growth are vividly on display in the halls of UTS, where the Winter Art Ex is showcasing the dynamic and colorful works of our talented Visual Arts students.

On Tuesday, we heard dedication and hard work coalesce together into the magical UTS Winter Concert. From sleigh bells to timpani, from alto to soprano, from cool to classical, every moment of Tuesday’s holiday celebration was enchanting. Having some of our alumni return to play with our students was a special bonus and a testament to their love for music at UTS!

The joy is continuing to build throughout the week, as members of the Class of 2024 returned to UTS for the first time since graduation, for the Graduate Awards on Wednesday and their first Homecoming today, which will give them a chance to catch up with some of their younger UTS peers. It is such a joy to see the Class of 2024 again, making their way in the postsecondary world while keeping a special place in their hearts for UTS.

As we prepare to break tomorrow for the holidays, I applaud you and your families for all that our students have learned and accomplished, and for their dedication and enthusiasm. 

Wishing you and your families a wonderful, inspiring and restful winter break and a joyful holiday season, as we look forward to the new year, where we will continue to learn and accomplish great things together.

Art credit: An collage made of prints done by Alia Toor’s M4 Visual Arts class, where students developed imagery from their drawings of sliced fruit and vegetables.