Project Future 2.0

Our strategic plan to 2030 and beyond

In a world dealing with geopolitical headwinds, the changing landscape of education and careers, the transformative development of artificial intelligence, social media, mental health challenges, and climate vulnerability, today’s teenager must develop resilience, innovation, and agility to thrive both personally and professionally. They must embrace complexity and be equipped to explore the unknown – and so, too, must our staff.

Project Future 2.0 anticipates a world into which our students will graduate. Our Shawnigan Journey, supported by the three strategic pillars of Academic Excellence, Student Life Unparalleled, and Co-Curricular Distinction, will resonate, differentiate, and inspire.

We hope you will join us on the exciting journey ahead.

The Black & Gold Circle

Shawnigan Lake School’s purpose, mission, and values build on our School’s history, traditions, and Canadian heritage and values, and serve to inform how we interact with each other and with our world.
They remain unchanged as we step, with confidence, toward Project Future 2.0.

Motto
 “Palmam Qui Meruit Ferat”
‘Let whoever earns the palm (the reward), bear it’

Project Future 2.0: The Shawnigan Journey is comprehensive, clear, and innovative, and places Shawnigan at the heart of an exciting educational adventure. It really positions students, staff, and our Board to serve a growing and thriving school.
- Dr. Alexei du Bois, Shawnigan's Heimbecker Inspiration Chair, 2025

The Shawnigan Journey


The Shawnigan Journey provides a distinctive and compelling educational philosophy, direction, and common language – and is a program unique to Shawnigan and our key differentiator.

It is a deliberate, comprehensive, and inspiring approach to education – based on academic research, best practices in pedagogy, and adolescent development – that prepares students for a complex and changing world and unprecedented challenges ahead. A Shawnigan graduate will be equipped with the skills and competencies to explore the unknown.

At each stage of the Shawnigan Journey, five core elements are activated in a holistic way. These elements run across our three student-facing strategic pillars (Academic Excellence, Student Life Unparalleled, and Co-Curricular Distinction) and are interdisciplinary in design.

The elements

List of 5 items.

  • Community and Belonging

    The Shawnigan Journey seeks to foster and reward a culture of collaboration, care, and inclusivity. Belonging is at the heart of the boarding campus experience – students feeling valued and seen for their own uniqueness – and is an accelerant for students to fulfill their potential. 

  • Character Development

    The Shawnigan Journey seeks to empower students with a sense of ownership of their learning by developing emotional intelligence, self-advocacy, agency, service, teamwork, and leadership in each student. 

  • Indigenous Ways of Knowing

    The Shawnigan Journey seeks to fully integrate Indigenous Ways of Knowing as part of our delivery of the Shawnigan Indigenous Reconciliation Action Plan. We actively participate in Indigenous education as part of the distinct and uniquely designed Shawnigan Journey, providing services, leadership, and opportunities that improve student learning and strengthen our connections with Indigenous communities.

  • Environmental Sustainability

    The Shawnigan Journey seeks to leverage natural beauty and inspiring spaces. We build sustainability programming and environmental awareness into the student experience in parallel with the School’s commitment to campus stewardship and sustainability. 

  • Partnerships

    The Shawnigan Journey seeks to introduce students to ambitious and inspirational partnerships within and beyond Shawnigan and to harness the power of connection and collaboration. We create purpose-built and meaningful partnerships locally, nationally, and internationally based on shared values and goals, forming new pathways for our students to explore.

The Shawnigan Journey Pillars

Inspire Academic
Excellence

List of 1 items.

Imagine Student Life Unparalleled

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Innovate for Co-Curricular Distinction

List of 1 items.

Learn more about the Shawnigan Journey

I believe that each of the elements of the strategic plan are consistent with the historical values of the School community and build upon the progress we have made to date. I want to come back and attend the school that the strategic plan aspires to create!
-David Schieldrop '82 (Groves’), former Chair of the Board

The Foundation

List of 2 items.

  • Steward Campus & Community

    At Shawnigan, our distinct sense of community – rooted in shared purpose and human interaction – sets the foundation for all we do. Our Pacific Coast campus is more than a setting; it is a dynamic environment where students and staff live, learn, and grow together. To strengthen this ecosystem, we will prioritize the people, places, and systems that sustain it. By investing in our human resources, stewarding our campus for future generations, and harnessing technology to support both teaching and operations, we will build a more connected, resilient, and future-ready community.
    Read More

  • Invest for Financial Resilience

    To secure Shawnigan’s long-term ability to deliver on its mission, we must steward our financial resources with foresight, discipline, and creativity. By advancing our financial planning, enrolment, and fundraising strategies, we will build greater resilience and adaptability to thrive in a dynamic global landscape.
    Read More
 
I see how Shawnigan's Project Future 2.0 is more than an aspirational plan; it seeks to make a profound commitment to nurturing youth at an incredibly important time in their lives – a time when they will need to navigate an increasingly complex and polarizing world.
- Bev Beckingham, Board member and educational psychologist

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  • Final Word

    Shawnigan launched a shorter term strategic plan, Project Future 1.0, in 2021, and met the challenges of a global pandemic with resilience, imagination, and courage.

    The School emerged stronger than before.
    Read More

List of 4 items.

  • Contributors

    • Shawnigan Board of Governors and Directors of the Foundation
    • The Directors of the Shawnigan USA (SUSA) Board
    • Shawnigan’s Senior Leadership Team, Academic Strategy Team,
      Academic Council, House Directors, and Co-Curricular Council
    • Shawnigan Education, Administrative, and Operational Staff
    • Prefects’ Council
    • Students
    • Shawnigan Parents’ Association
    • Parents
    • Alumni 

  • Supporters

    Members of the Shawnigan community have come together through surveys, presentations, workshops, webinars, working groups, and the CAIS Accreditation Review Process to provide input that has helped tremendously to inform the strategic plan, Project Future 2.0: The Shawnigan Journey.
     
    Shawnigan has benefited greatly from the contributions and commitments of these individuals and groups, and will benefit further from our continued work together as we move into implementation.

  • Next Stages

    Project Future 2.0: The Shawnigan Journey provides thoughtful guidance for action. It is a framework for decision-making, allocation of effort and resources, and evaluation of progress.

  • Comments and Feedback

    If you have feedback either now or in the future, please write to: projectfuture2.0@shawnigan.ca
1975 Renfrew Road
Shawnigan Lake, BC V8H 2G7
+1-250-743-5516
Shawnigan Lake School is an independent co-educational boarding school for ages 13 –18 on Canada’s beautiful Pacific Coast. Our diverse, interdisciplinary and innovative programming helps shape the next generation of global leaders.