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Albert College’s 5 ‘A’s are Academics, Arts, Athletics, Adventure and Active Citizenship — and these fill the days at Canada’s oldest co-educational boarding and day school with big moments. From the time they wake up until it’s time to sleep, the 5 ‘A’s are integral to their experience to ensure they develop into well-rounded global citizens.
A typical day at Albert College, in Belleville, Ontario, starts with an assembly at 8.30 a.m., followed by classes until 3.30 p.m. Many of Albert College’s teachers have specialist qualifications or master’s degrees, and they guide students to exceed the standards set by the Ontario curriculum. With all students participating in the 5 ‘A’s, they gain a broad range of experiences that prepare them for university and beyond. One hundred percent of graduating students receive offers from a post-secondary school of their choice, in Canada and abroad, with many also receiving scholarships.
The arts bring out a student’s creative side. In school-wide events and drama productions, musical performance opportunities and art exhibits, they share their talents and build their confidence in all areas of the arts. “The school has plenty of arts opportunities for students, and all of our arts teachers are incredibly supportive,” says Grade 12 student Valerie Chan. “In two years, I’ve had the opportunity to act in both school productions and I served as stage manager this year as well. I’ve also been a choir member, and we performed at Toronto’s Roy Thomson Hall in a large music festival with many other schools.”
School-wide events and drama productions, musical performance opportunities and art exhibits enable students to become creative, confident individuals. Source: Albert College
To become active citizens, students here not only fulfill the required 40 hours of community service to graduate but contribute to local, national and international causes. When Chan is not on the stage, she chairs the ACT (Activism, Community Service and Team Building) Committee, a group within the school that focuses on activism and awareness. “I am really proud of the work we’ve done surrounding multiple issues like Black History Month and International Pink Shirt Day,” she says.
Her sentiments about Albert College’s opportunities for active citizenship are shared by many. Alejandro Garcia Font, a Grade 12 student from Spain, describes it as one of the most rewarding aspects of the school. “My main activity has been visiting the senior citizens at a nearby retirement home,” he says. “Through this experience, I’ve improved my communication skills through one-on-one conversations with the residents, and it helped me gain confidence with public speaking.”
There’s another ‘A’ that Font loves: athletics. Here, students can play on a team, refine their skills and develop a healthy, active lifestyle. Font has played both basketball and rugby this year. There are many opportunities to compete against local and even national teams. Whatever their goals are, their coaches guide them every step of the way. “The school offers a great variety of athletics and these opportunities help you socialise with other students from different grades, which makes for a very close-knit community.”
It was the small family feeling that convinced Font to join Albert College in the first place. “In Grade 10, I decided to study abroad to improve my English skills, because I planned to study at a university in a foreign country,” he says. “I researched several schools and decided on Albert College because its welcoming community appealed to me.”
Font adapted well by making friends in his first week, especially during the start-of-the-year orientation camp in Algonquin Park. The orientation camp is one of the many examples under the school’s adventure programme. Through adventure experiences, students get to learn outside the classroom, challenge themselves in activities like archery and canoeing, develop leadership and teamwork skills and create strong friendships.
Like Font, Chan found that the orientation camp allowed her to meet others before the academic year started. “I was definitely homesick and jetlagged my first week at Albert, and I was a little out of my comfort zone,” she says. “Being a small school, everyone kind of knew each other already but looking back it was an easy way to meet everyone.”
Chan’s reasons for joining the school differ from Font’s but she’s just as glad of her decision to move from Hong Kong to Canada. In search of a more well-rounded environment with a focus on more than just academics, she joined Albert College. After a year, Chan was elected as prefect. Since then, she’s worked hard to be a role model for other students, by hosting inclusive events such as a Chinese New Year party for boarders and day students. “We also recognise that there are diverse interests within the house, and we try to take into account different perspectives and ideas from students when planning activities,” says Chan.
Albert College runs several adventure trips offered throughout the year to various locations based on student interest. Source: Albert College
In this “home away from home,” students like Chan and Font have all they need to pursue the 5 ‘A’s. Albert College’s safe and nurturing environment makes it easy to live away from home for the first time — easing their transition to college, university and beyond. International students board full-time while their local peers can choose multi-day boarding (one to five days) to fully participate in a school with many nationalities and backgrounds represented.
“The ideal Albert student is someone with an open mind, willing to try new things and take risks in a safe way,” says Rachel Foster, Assistant Head – Senior School. “It’s a student who will make connections with all sorts of different people, and really be part of a community that takes care of one another.”
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