CULTIVATING COMMUNITY Partners in Learning
KARA MCDONALD DEPUTY HEAD, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & PARTNERSHIPS
Through meaningful conversations with students, staff, families, and alumnae this year, one message has come through clearly: Crofton House is defined by a deep sense of community.
There is strong alignment around a shared purpose: to provide a girl-centred, holistic education that empowers students to pursue meaningful paths and positively influence the world.
There is a clear commitment to cultivating meaningful relationships and lasting connections across generations, bridging differences, distances, and lived experiences— to learn, celebrate, innovate, and support students and one another.
This comes to life through events like the Welcome Back Event, the Winter Bazaar, and the new Multicultural Celebration all led by the CHS Parents’ Auxiliary. The Alumnae Association and the School are partnering to lift beloved traditions and create new opportunities— career nights, mentoring events, social gatherings— to connect students and 4,500 alumnae around the world in person and through our digital platform, CroftonConnect.
Community is essential to the CHS experience— and to our future.
Our strategic plan, Thriving in Possibility, reaffirms our long-standing commitment to community building and highlights the importance of cultivating community in agile and responsible ways in relation to a changing world.
THE POWER OF PARTNERSHIP
At Crofton House, we believe that developing strong, reciprocal partnerships is essential to meaningful learning.
Partnership is a two-way relationship between the School and an external organization— such as a non-profit, business, or university. These collaborations create opportunities for students to gain real-world experience through internships, mentorships, community service, and project-based learning. Partnerships help students connect with people from diverse backgrounds and perspectives, develop and apply their learning, and imagine ways they may engage with the wider world.
Below are some examples of CHS partnerships that point to the principles of learning, reciprocity, sustainability, diversity, and agency that we are seeking to deepen together.
Work Experience: In 2024 – 2025, 50 Grade 11 and 12 students participated in internships through our Work Experience Program. One student worked alongside researchers at the University of British Columbia’ s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Another interned at an accounting firm. These experiences are guided by our Manager, Work Integrated Learning and with the generous mentorship of parents, alumnae, and community partners.
Project-Based Learning with Provincial Leaders: Grade 5 students explored the impact of forest fires through a cross-disciplinary project. They researched the causes and consequences of fires and spoke with wildfire experts and BC government leaders, including the Minister of Forests and the Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness. Students concluded the project by writing advocacy letters to government officials, including the Prime Minister.
Long-Term Partnership with the Downtown Eastside Women’ s Centre: Through our Ivy Compass program, CHS is developing a partnership with the Downtown Eastside Women’ s Centre( DEWC). Grade 12 students have learned first-hand from the Centre’ s staff and clients, contributing to mission-aligned service projects. CHS has supported the Centre as one of the Winter Bazaar beneficiaries, and students, staff, parents, and alumnae have contributed through initiatives like holiday care packs, technology and clothing drives, and cultural events with Chinese seniors in the Downtown Eastside.
A Strategic Priority: In 2024 – 2025, we launched a Partnership Advisory Group and piloted a collaborative process to select the Winter Bazaar partners for the next three years. This group will continue to guide our evolving work, following the principles of learning, reciprocity, sustainability, bridging differences, and agency.
WE WELCOME YOUR INVOLVEMENT
We invite you to share partnership ideas with us at partnerships @ croftonhouse. ca. This is an energizing prospect for us. How students experience the community at CHS has great potential to influence how they will shape other communities— whether families, organizations, neighbourhoods, cities, countries, and the wider world.
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