Reflections of Havergal: 1994-2019

SCHOOL LIFE

TABLE OF CONTENTS

COMMUNI T Y ENGAGEMENT

As Mr. Mau explained in the Fall 2006 Torch article, the choice of project reflected “Havergal College’s history [which] is that of a pull between the forces of tradition and innovation. The challenge for the school is to continue to enable its students to navigate a complex world and to become leaders of the future.” In that same article, The Institute’s first Director, Ann Peel, communicated very clearly the exciting possibilities its creation presented: Havergal has the opportunity to be on the cutting edge of a new approach to promoting the welfare of the human race, which is the very purpose behind our commitment to making a difference. This approach operates from people’s strengths, a recognition of our shared humanity and the knowledge that effective change comes when we actively support individuals to be agents in their own lives. Our vision is that Havergal students will be bold and intelligent leaders for such change. This is the essence of the capabilities approach to human development which will guide the work of The Institute. It was not long before the newly created Institute had made a very forceful commitment to the future. As Dr. Ditchburn explained in her message in the Spring 2007 issue of Torch : The Institute at Havergal College is our major commitment to preparing global citizens. [In 2007], and into the future, its work will be shaped by the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals, supported by every country in the world. These goals address the world’s most pressing problems. By aligning our work with these goals, we will develop awareness, strategy and action plans to propel our mission into action and engage our community in endeavours that are both behind and beyond the ivy.

“One point of distinctiveness for us is The Institute—our approach to equipping young women to be effective, compassionate leaders in the 21st century, a century characterized by change, complexity, ambiguity, lack of prediction, a century in which risk taking and strategic ability are critical.

—SUE DITCHBURN, FINAL ADDRESS TO STAFF, JUNE 2008

“The UN’s Millennium Development Goals” BTI , November 2007

Given the mission of The Institute, with its focus on global capability and self-efficacy, and given the school’s efforts to bring clarity and coherence to students’ experience, it is not surprising that in 2010 the community partnerships, both local and global, and the exchange and excursions program were folded into The Institute. “We seek a seamless experience from classroom to community and back again,” wrote Ann Peel in the Fall 2010 Torch , “always focused on the growing capabilities of our students, faculty and staff.” Today, the work of the Institute is carried on with a vibrant enthusiasm informed by Havergal’s core values of integrity, inquiry, courage and compassion. That spirit infuses the activities of the Junior School’s Student Institute Team and the Upper School’s Forum for Change, which is, Ann Peel observed in the Fall 2011 edition of Torch , the “nerve centre” of Havergal’s

Millennium Development Goals www.UN.org

An article by Rebecca Best that appeared in BTI in November 2007, made a compelling case for student support of the Millennium Development Goals:

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