Dear Brookes Westshore Families and Friends,

Last Friday our whole school gathered to celebrate the graduation of our grade 12 students. The spring sunshine beamed down on our beautiful campus and the smiles of our happy graduates. It was a joy and delight to see the students from grade 4 to 11 gather to cheer on their friends and fellow students as they walked across the courtyard in their graduation hats and gowns. It was particularly poignant as we were able, for the first time in two years, to share the whole day with many families and friends in person.

You can see from the photos here just what an amazing day it was. We know that many of you enjoyed the livestream of the ceremony as well – you can rewatch it with the link below if you missed it (or you want to see a particular moment again!) We have also included the transcript of Cecilia’s Valedictorian speech – it moved one of the photographers to tears!

This morning I enjoyed meeting families of grade 9 and 10 students for a coffee in the dining hall. It is so good to be able to invite families back into the school again. Thanks to Linda for her overview of the Diploma course (you can see her slideshow here). We are always happy to answer any questions families may have about the IB or about our school.

 I hope you enjoy a good weekend,

With kind regards

Jerry Salvador

Head of School

Congratulations to the Class of 2022 – I was able to watch the streaming of the ceremony and was very disappointed I could not be there in person.  You have been a wonderful class and you all have a brilliant future ahead.  My very best wishes.

MYP2 Service Project – Backpacks for Homeless Youth

Over the past 6 weeks, the MYP2 students have been working on their service project which involved holding a walk-a-thon for the collection of funds to purchase supplies to give to homeless youth.

Amazingly, they have raised $1500 and I want to congratulate the students as well as the parents who have very generously supported this service project.  We couldn’t do it without  you!

We are in the final weeks of the 2021-22 academic year and teachers have begun planning activities to celebrate a wonderful school year.  

End of the school year: June 24th. Students will be dismissed at noon.

2022 Yearbooks are on their way!

We are taking pre-orders from today - put your name down at the Front Desk! 

Limited quantities available, get yours while you can!

Dorm Students can pay on their incidentals and Day Students can pay via cash at Front Desk. 

Cost per yearbook is 45$ 

Formal Dance - June 17th

The grade 8, 9, 10 + 11’s are planning a Formal Dance on June 17th from 7 pm to 11pm! Tickets on sale now for $5.

They have already fundraised $1100.00 for the dance! Half will be donated to the Ukraine Cultural Society and the rest will go toward their decorations, food and music.

Cecilia's Valedictorian Speech from Graduation 2022

Good afternoon, guests, students, faculty staff, teachers, administrators, and the graduating class of 2022. Thank you for being here.

 Is it just me, or did our high school years pass away faster than expected? It all seems too sudden. I wonder if it is because of the pandemic, or are we simply growing up?

Perhaps, looking back at our high school lives, not every part of it was so great. We were stressed, we complained, we sometimes procrastinated, we made mistakes, we pulled all-nighters, we fell asleep in class, we were overwhelmed with emotions, and maybe for the most part, we were confused. We began to know this world a little more, and maybe we were disappointed at what we saw. We began to know ourselves a little more, but it wasn't easy. We made important life decisions, anticipating that they would be the best ones. But we wonder if such choices even exist. We encountered many new challenges, be it academic, social, or personal. And as young adults, we began to take on some responsibilities for ourselves and even our families. In the rushed process of defining our own identities, we carried on with our daily lives and got things done. To survive the era of hormone bombardment and still accomplish what we did, we should give ourselves a round of applause.

We all had expectations of ourselves when we first entered high school. We imagine ourselves to be smarter and cooler than when we were in middle school. But did you become the person you wanted to be? I still have a long way to go. And now, in high school, we imagine ourselves after graduation and have these expectations all over again. Whether we will go to university, work, or take a break, we imagine our future selves to be smarter, cooler, and happier. But will we ever become better people? Will the world get better? We have yet to fully comprehend all the complex flavours in this period of our life. And yet today, it is supposed to end. It is time for us to move on to the next struggle, the next puzzle, and the next fight. The world doesn’t wait for us. So, whether you are ready or not, today is the day they say that we move on.

But should we? Things won't magically get better just because we entered a new stage of our life. This world isn't the best of all possible worlds, and neither are we the best versions of ourselves. But we are the only possible versions. As good or as flawed as we are, we bring our aspirations, regrets, serenity, anger, questions, and love with us through every moment of our lives. Today is a special day indeed. But yesterday was also special, and so is tomorrow. You may have heard Mr. MacKnight say this already, but every day is thanksgiving. Therefore, let every day be graduation.

And like every other day, we, the class of 2022, are thankful.

But should we? Things won't magically get better just because we entered a new stage of our life. This world isn't the best of all possible worlds, and neither are we the best versions of ourselves. But we are the only possible versions. As good or as flawed as we are, we bring our aspirations, regrets, serenity, anger, questions, and love with us through every moment of our lives. Today is a special day indeed. But yesterday was also special, and so is tomorrow. You may have heard Mr. MacKnight say this already, but every day is thanksgiving. Therefore, let every day be graduation.

And like every other day, we, the class of 2022, are thankful.

Thank you to all the faculty staff. Without your help, the school would not have been functional.

We say thank you to the school administrators. Thank you for taking our interests into account and providing us with a good study environment.

We want to thank our teachers. Thank you for being both our mentors and our friends. You taught us knowledge and, more importantly, the ability and mentality to become lifelong learners.

Thank you to our parents, guardians, and family. Thank you for supporting us and witnessing this era of our lives. We may not understand why we are born in this world. It wasn't our choice in the first place. But because of you, we begin to understand why, bit by bit, day by day.

Let us thank our friends and our classmates. Thank you guys for being awesome in your way. Thank you for making the choices you made, which brought us here together in this particular place and time. And did you know, that today, May 20^th of 2022, in Chinese, sounds the same as “I love you?” 我爱你, and thank you for being here.

At last, we thank ourselves. We thank our bodies, the 37.2 trillion cells, an entire universe that works relentlessly to sustain our survival. We thank our fears for making us diligent and conscious people. We thank our abilities to give and receive love, for it became the fuel to our lives. We thank our hopes and impulses; we wake up anew every day because of it. We thank our youth for making us confused and complex, although it too, will become the past. We, the class of 2022, are thankful for these things and many more.

Thank you, and happy graduation!

Dorm Activities this weekend

Friday 8:30pm - Dodgeball game in the gym

Saturday 12:00pm - BBQ in the courtyard and UEFA Championship soccer league final on the big screen in the dining hall

Saturday 6:00pm - Thai Cooking Night

Sunday 12:15pm - TNT Paintball

Key dates for the school year starting in September 2022 can be found here: Key Dates 2022/2023 - Brookes Westshore