The Harper Legacy @ LCC

Posted on May 19, 2010 by admin

Independent schools are nurtured and supported by many different groups: current students, parents, alumni, faculty, staff, board members, volunteers and members of the local community. However, one of the most important constituent groups is legacy families whose contribution over several generations is one of the strongest ties that bind us together. Perhaps the most notable legacy family at LCC is the Harper family who were recognized at our school assembly yesterday for decades of support and involvement at LCC.

The patriarch of the Harper family was Ralph Harper. He, graduated from LCC in 1947 and eventually sent all five of his sons to the school. Mr. Harper was a Board member and eventually rose to become Chairman of the Board, overseeing a major capital campaign that built our Junior School. Harper House was named after him with the re-launch of the House system in 2002.

Yesterday, at our school assembly we celebrated the contributions of Ralph’s eldest son, Gary Harper from the class of 1973. Gary picked up where his father left off, and within a decade of graduating from LCC, he was active as an alumnus volunteer. Since the early 1980s, Gary Harper has been a selfless volunteer for our school – a true leader. He worked as a fundraiser on two major capital campaigns, chairing the recent initiative that built the new arena/athletic complex in 2008.

Gary was a member of the Board of Governors for a decade, from 1994-2004 and like his father, Chairman of the Board during his final term. Gary also sent his four children to LCC, with the youngest graduating in 2007. In recognition of his extraordinary contribution, Gary’s photo is being placed beside his father’s in our historic dining hall, so that all will know that Harper House is named after these two dedicated community builders. Also in attendance at the assembly were Gary’s mother, his wife, three of his four brothers and his four children.

Gary Harper and the extended Harper family live and breath LCC’s ethos of Non Nobis Solum – Not for Ourselves Alone. We are fortunate to have in our midst legacy families such as the Harpers for they bring us strength, dedication and continuity.—Chris Shannon, Headmaster

Supporting Your Child During Exams

Posted on May 18, 2010 by admin

Here are a few very pragmatic suggestions, which will provide support to students preparing for exams. The goal related to these suggestions is to minimize stress and to maximize health.

The atmosphere in a home contributes to the stress level of all family members, so it is possible that a family could try to change the atmosphere in the home during exam time. Obviously most parents provide support by asking how it’s going, etc., and pushing the child to study harder. However, if it falls into the category of “nagging” then it is probably not very beneficial. Assume that exam time is different; therefore the atmosphere of the home might be a bit different, too.

There are three very pragmatic things, which I suggest to students: the appropriate amount of sleep, regular exercise and good food. You could ensure that there is a really large supply of “good” food in the house and not much of a supply of “bad” snack-like food. Snacking on nutritious food (especially teenagers) while studying can help. It improves concentration, makes the studying less boring, and feeds the brain with good nutrients.

Exercise: Perhaps family members can help ensure that the student gets exercise during heavy study days (e.g., go for a run together, do a fitness class, etc.). Similar to the food suggestion, this helps restore the brain and helps ensure better sleep.

Sleep: Well, some people just have a harder time than others to sleep, but staying up late to study is a bad plan. Many students have trouble with this suggestion but one can deal with this by studying well in advance so that last minute studying is not about covering material for the first time the night before an exam.

Finally, while it is good to encourage our children to work hard to do their best, too much of this “encouragement” can inhibit top performance because of the pressure.

I am sure that you realize all of this, but sometimes my suggestions serve as gentle reminders. –John Gordon, School Counsellor

Into the Light of Day

Posted on May 13, 2010 by admin

Last Saturday morning a bright light pierced through dark rain clouds that hovered over Royal Avenue. It was the light of creativity and innovation beaming from one of LCC’s “lighthouse programs”—applied digital media. We held our first Digital Media Expo, an event for the general public and our own extended community.

In recent years, LCC has developed a strong integrated approach to information technology. This begins in our primary years and continues with a well-supported laptop program in the Middle and Senior Schools. The focus is not on equipment and hardware, but how these tools can be applied to unlock the creative energy of our students.

I was very impressed by the work of our students on Saturday morning, which included: video production, green screen applications, integration of special effects, and useful musical software for sound production and refinement of instrumental skills. Our students were proud, energetic and completely engaged.

It may have been a dark and dreary day outside. However, there was a powerful and positive buzz inside the Webster Learning Centre on Royal Avenue. It is exciting to know that this energy begins with LCC teachers in our classrooms and is inspiring students to reach new heights using wonderful facilities and modern tools—the advantages of 21st century learning. — Chris Shannon, Headmaster

Conférence sur le bilinguisme

Posted on May 10, 2010 by admin

Voici des commentaires d’élèves qui ont participé à la conférence sur le bilinguisme dans les écoles du QAIS, le 29 avril, 2010.

J’ai aimé la conférence sur le bilinguisme car c’était intéressant d’entendre les histoires des anciens étudiants. Ils ont dit que c’est très important de continuer le français après l’école secondaire car les langues aident tout le monde à communiquer et à s’exprimer avec plusieurs personnes du monde entier. Je suis d’accord avec ce message et je vais continuer de parler le français pour le restant de ma vie! —Alexandra Bélanger, 10e programme accéléré

Je crois que la conférence était d’une importance capitale pour ma perception de la coexistence des langues française et anglaise au Québec. Je sais maintenant qu’il est primordial de savoir et de maîtriser les deux langues et de ne pas passer trop de temps sans pratiquer l’une des deux. Aussi, j’ai découvert qu’être bilingue n’est pas si exceptionnel qu’on pourrait le croire. —Benjamin Dawson, 10e programme accéléré

Je suis très heureuse d’avoir eu la chance d’aller à la conférence sur le bilinguisme. Je pense que cette expérience m’a vraiment aidée à réaliser que maîtriser plusieurs langues est très important dans la vie. —Gabrielle Gendron, 10e programme accéléré

Bilingualism to Multilingualism

Posted on May 5, 2010 by admin

Last week, the downtown QAIS schools (Quebec Association of Independent Schools) held a special conference entitled “Le Fait Français,” a celebration the high quality of French taught in our independent school system. It was an impressive collection of speakers: experienced teachers, alumni, community members and the former Premier of Quebec, Pierre-Marc Johnston.

All presenters spoke about the critical importance of French fluency in Quebec. It is an essential for day-to-day life and success in professional careers. We were reminded that outside Quebec there are some 65 countries around the world who are members of “La Francophonie,” so French competence also has its use well beyond the borders of our own province.

What resonated most with me were the comments from an LCC graduate. Amrick Bansal ’98 is a young lawyer who practices in Montreal. He recounted how he was in Advanced French at LCC and felt pretty confident about his language skills when he graduated. After college and university education in English in Montreal, he felt that his French skills had declined somewhat. He decided to remedy this by attending law school in French at l’Université de Montréal. The nuances of language made this a challenging, yet satisfying, experience. Mr. Bansal solidified his French skills by spending a full year of legal studies at a university in France. Proud with his achievement at refining his French fluency, Mr. Bansal then spent a year at university in Holland, completing a graduate certificate in international law. However, upon arrival he noted that that most of his classmates from Europe and around the world arrived with the capacity to confidently speak four or five languages.

The important message here is that bilingualism is essential for all of us in Montreal. However, in an interconnected world with the domination of global forces, the knowledge of multiple languages is what most young people should strive for to gain a competitive edge. Bilingualism is a necessity, but multilingualism is what we all should aim for. I hope you have already begun to broaden your linguistic fluency.—Chris Shannon, Headmaster