Upper School November 20, 2025
Upper School November 20, 2025
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Friday, Nov. 21
👕 UCC spirit wear dress day
Year 11 and 12 Steward's Dance
Theme: Spades and Hearts
Student Centre, 8–10:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 25
Casey Fellow Speaker Series: Dr. Brendan K. Hartman
Weston Hall, Prep School
6:30–8 p.m.
Wednesday, Nov. 26
🕓 Student late start
Learning Garden Visioning Session
Room 127, 4–5:30 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 28
👕 UCC spirit wear dress day
Upper School Leadership Team
Monday’s Principal’s Assembly focused on Boarding Life at UCC, which featured an incredible student-made film, as well as several tremendous speakers who highlighted a program that captures head, heart and humanity. Students and faculty reflected on the many supports embedded in their community, the special relationships that develop between boarders and staff, the cultural history of Wedd’s and Seaton’s, the experiences of new boarding students, and lessons from female leadership. During Flex Time, students visited the Student Centre for the Volunteer Expo, where they met with representatives from twelve Community Service Partners to hear information about their organizations and meaningful volunteer opportunities.
A sure sign of the cooling weather, the field bubble is being installed on the Oval this week as we prepare for the first snowfalls. Upper School students will have the opportunity to use the space for house sports during scheduled Flex Time days. In addition, designated lunch periods will offer organized games led by the year-level reps, giving students another great way to stay active and connected.
On Tuesday, Nov. 18, we hosted the second UCC Graduation Pathways Information evening for Year 10 families (hybrid).
For those who may wish to review the information that was shared, please click here to access the slides and click here for a recording of the event.
Upcoming virtual opportunities to learn more are as follows:
Monday, Dec. 1: Information session on applications for the Courses Pathway and Systems Transformation Pathway and Q&A, 6–7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Jan. 13: DP Course selection evening, 7–8:30 p.m.
If you think back to your own school days, assessment may have meant one thing: a test, a mark, and perhaps the occasional congratulatory sticker. In the Middle Years Programme, however, assessment is far more dynamic. Please click here to learn more about UCC MYP assessment and MYP IB resources.
The Sustainability and Regeneration Strategy Coordinators are pleased to invite all interested community members to a collaborative Visioning Session for a proposed Upper School Learning Garden. Please consider joining us for an engaging after-school gathering in Room 127, where Arlene Hazzan Green from BUFCO will help facilitate a “blue-sky” brainstorming session to explore hopes, ideas, and possibilities for this exciting new space. This session aims to bring together key UCC stakeholders to help shape an inclusive, sustainable, and community-focused direction for the future Learning Garden.
Date: Wednesday, Nov. 26
Time: 4–5:30 p.m.
Location: Upper School Room 127
Refreshments will be served.
If you would like to attend, please email Monika Kastelic or Katherine Maloney. We hope to see many of you there!
Monika Kastelic and Katherine Maloney
Sustainability and Regeneration Strategy Coordinators
On Dec. 4, 5 and 6, UCC and BSS Co-Curricular Theatre will present A Christmas Carol in the David Chu Theatre. Our play tells the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a miser whose shrewdness has left him cold and brittle and alone. On one Christmas Eve, he is visited by the ghost of his former partner, Jacob Marley, who tells him he must change his ways. The production adheres to Charles Dickens' novella’s five staves, but has been adapted to tell the story with a new configuration of narrators who interact with the audience, the characters, and the challenging themes. There's much to learn from this well-known tale, and we open our doors to all ages.
“I will live in the past, the present, and the future. The spirits of all three shall strive within me.”
Ebenezer Scrooge
A Christmas Carol is an original project developed and directed by Anna Blagona and Julian Bauld and involves over a dozen actors from BSS and UCC whose determination to preserve the familiar story is lifted by their spirit and effort to make it new. We're fortunate to have the set constructed by Terry Denstedt and visual effects designed by David Crawford, the College's Film Co-ordinator.
Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at the door or by contacting Julian Bauld. All performances begin at 7 p.m., and the show will run just over an hour.
We hope to see you there! Enjoy the show.
Spring play
Mr. Allen will be directing the play A Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Auditions are in January and open to actors in Year 9 to 12, but he is currently looking for students who may be interested in working behind the scenes and in technical capacities. Please contact Mr. Allen by Nov. 21 if interested.
We have arranged another virtual meeting with our Peruvian program partners on Tuesday, Dec. 9 at 7 p.m. If you missed our session in October, this is your opportunity to learn everything you need to know!
Aima Molinari of Casa Kuska will be with us to present the program itinerary and host a Q-and-A about our collaborative program. Please join the UCC program leaders, John Sweetman and Mike Bradford, for this informative session.
We have five student spots still available for this transformative experiential learning program this coming March Break.
Full itinerary details can be found here, and to register your child, please click here.
Continuing a long tradition at the College, the Class of 2026 Scholarship Fund has been established to recognize the students' time at the school and their achievements.
Thank you to David Ossip, Devra Baryshnik and Vineet and Trish Malhotra who helped launch this initiative. As shared in their letter, the Class of 2026 Scholarship Fund is an opportunity to commemorate your son’s journey while also opening the door to life-changing educational experiences for future students.
To make your contribution and receive a 2025 charitable tax receipt, please visit ucc.on.ca/class-of-2026.
Thank you for your support.
We're excited to announce a new opportunity for summer leadership development that current Year 10 and 11 students might be interested in.
A powerful, two-week, co-ed, live-in program designed for future leaders across Canada. The Summer Institute runs from July 5 to 18, 2026 out of Upper Canada College’s new Lang Leadership Lab. It's focused on helping students develop the core mindsets and skills needed to make a meaningful difference.
The program promises that students will:
Boost self-awareness: Get to know themselves and understand how they lead best.
Build team skills: Participate in challenge-based learning and connection activities across three unique campus experiences: Downtown Toronto (UCC), Norval Outdoor School and University of Guelph.
Experience university life: Live on a university campus and work directly with professors from the Gordon S. Lang School of Business and Economics and the Rotman School of Management at U of T.
Get formal case study competition experience and leadership certificates.
See leadership in action: Go on group excursions to pro sports and arts events, and meet with the leaders who make these happen.
Have the chance to win a share of $10,000 in total scholarship awards (winners of Rotman Case Competition Program).
Choose to earn the Grade 12 PLF4M (Ontario) Leadership Credit.
Receive continued mentorship and connection with online group meetings throughout the academic year.
Develop great friendships with passionate and committed students.
Get personalized development with a 6:1 Ontario Certified Teacher ratio and a cohort maximum of 48 students from across Canada.
Application information
Applications open Monday, Dec. 15
Cost: $4,500 (+300 for PLF4M option)
Financial assistance: Full and partial financial assistance is available for qualifying students.
To find out more, please visit www.langleadershiplab.ca.
Festive Marketplace is just around the corner on Friday, Dec. 12.
There are many ways you can support Festive, including volunteering. Find out more on our Festive website!
Donate auction items
We’re looking for electronics, tickets, trips and experiences, gift certificates and more.
We’re also looking for smaller items we can turn into gift bundles. If you have any NEW toys, home décor and housewares, sports items, fashion and accessories or gift cards you’d like to donate, please drop them at the Upper School Reception, clearly labeled “For Festive Auction.”
You can also donate items here. Thank you for donating to Festive!
Festive Marketplace is just 3 weeks away, and one of many highlights is our Festive Bake Sale. We’re looking for cookies, cupcakes, squares, brownies, loaves or anything else you’d like to contribute, including gluten-free baked goods. All items should be nut-free.
For those who don’t have time to bake, reach out to your local bakery. We’re grateful for homemade and store-bought baked goods.
Please complete this form to let the Bake Sale Committee know what you’re planning to bring.
For further information about the bake sale, including volunteering and drop off information, please see here.
Is your son missing clothing, bags, water bottles or shoes? All lost and found items will be on display in the corridor outside the Lower Dining Hall from Monday, Nov. 24 to Friday, Dec. 5. Parents and students are encouraged to drop by during school hours and take a look to see if anything is yours. Any remaining items not collected by Friday, December 5 at 3 p.m. will be donated to TUBS and charity.
If you have any questions, please email the TUBS team.