The York School 2024/25 Year in Review: The York Community Gives Back

Donations to York’s Annual Fund enhance the school experience. This past year, families had the choice of directing their donations to their children’s division, needs-based bursaries or the Head’s Initiative Fund.
Bursary Support for Talented Students
Financial assistance bursaries help open York’s doors to excellent students from across the GTA. They provide trajectory-changing opportunities for hard-working students while also enriching the entire school community.

A fun, safe and inclusive new game at the Junior School
After playing gaga ball at camp, the Grade 4s and 5s became obsessed with the game. Now, thanks to the Annual Fund, the Junior School has its very own octagonal pit and foam balls that students of all ages can use. Gaga ball is great for gross motor development and encourages collaboration. It’s a bonus that the pit is easy to disassemble so it can be used in the gym during the winter.

Branded chair covers for our student athletes
In September 2025, York introduced a new name and mascot for our athletic teams: The York Storm and Bolt (a peregrine falcon.) We retired our former mascot, the Gladiator, and purchased 30 chair covers featuring our new logo for the high-quality chairs that student-athletes use during home games.

Fostering design skills and collaboration 
Students in the Grade 8 ‘Technology and the Skilled Trade’ classes used materials purchased through the Annual Fund -artificial grass, cardboard, mini pool cues and balls - to build elaborate table top games that looked like a cross between mini putt golf and billiards. The project was so much fun that the students might not have realized they were using their planning, collaboration, and creative and critical thinking skills to solve design problems. The artificial grass, pool cues and balls will be reused in the class each year.

Encouraging girls to stay in sports
In January, our Athletics department hosted a day-long conference called ‘We Can Play’ for female students
in Grades 6 to 12. The goal of this event was to encourage and inspire girls to continue participating in sports through Middle and Senior School. Guest speakers Sarah Wells (an Olympic hurdler and Pan Am silver medalist) and Rachel Cockrell (a professional volleyball player) shared their athletic experiences with more than 40 girls and discussed the role athletics can play in building self-confidence and becoming more resilient.

Recording session with a professional musician
During the Challenge Week trip to New Orleans, Grade 10 Music students spent a day learning from and recording with Herlin Riley, an in-demand drummer and band leader. The students left the recording studio with the best possible souvenir, a professional recording of themselves playing with a musician The New York Times calls “a shining exemplar of New Orleans rhythm.”

Watching a classmate star in ‘Annie’ at the Stratford Festival
Grade 6 students had a great experience seeing their classmate, Harper Rae Asch ‘31, play the redheaded orphan Annie in the Stratford Festival’s production of the famous musical. The Annual Fund covered the cost of the theatre tickets, and the teachers arranged for the class to chat with Harper on stage after the show.

A jazz showcase at a live music hotspot
This is the second year that the Annual Fund made it possible for our Middle and Senior jazz ensembles to perform live at the Lula Lounge with a professional musician. After rehearsing with trombonist and
composer Christian Overton, the students took the stage at Lula Lounge for an unforgettable concert.
 
An aptitude-informed, data-driven tool for career exploration
An innovative educational platform called YouScience Brightpath is giving Senior School students new insights into their best-fitting careers and the educational pathways that lead to them. By playing a series of online, science-backed brain games, students learn about their natural aptitudes and receive a detailed report of careers and fields.
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