Torch - Spring 2018

Principal’s Message

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At Havergal, we help students cultivate true resilience by using self-knowledge to make choices.

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Adjusting the Sails Helen-Kay Davy

H ow do you navigate life? Are you so comfortable with risk that you keep on going right through a storm? Some know they need time to think and plan, and they would rather find safe harbour and set off again later, when the winds have died down. In this issue of Torch , you will hear from our students about how they adjusted their personal journeys in the face of something new or a difficult challenge. You will see from their stories how, in these moments, the girls truly learned about themselves. At Havergal, we help students cultivate true resilience by using self- knowledge to make choices. Meanwhile, all of us here learn to be part of a culture that supports others in charting their own course, their own way. We explore these ideas in Prayers and in conversations, indeed in any place where we come together and hear different viewpoints, and reflect on their meaning to ourselves and others. Right now, educators around the world are grappling with the issue of smartphones in schools. Like any debate, there are pros and cons.

Instead of decreeing rules about mobile phone use outside of our classrooms, we are taking a thoughtful and inclusive process to finding a solution. We have created a working group involving faculty and students that will gather input from staff and parents. With this feedback, we will develop an action plan that is right for Havergal. As part of our strategic plan, and to help better understand mental and physical wellness, Havergal is piloting the Ontario Physical and Health Educators Association’s Healthy Schools Certification, which is a comprehensive benchmarking program that evaluates a school’s approach to wellness. This initiative also includes student involvement as part of the process. We all feel freer to make tough choices when we are supported, no matter what our decision. At Havergal, we embrace life’s complex and sometimes difficult and messy moments as we help nurture each other in these moments and navigate onward.

TABLE OF CONTENTS | SPRING 2018 • TORCH 3