News & updates

List of 5 news stories.

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  5 Year Dinner

  6/12/2026
  A select cohort of graduating students who have spent the last five years at Shawnigan were treated to a special dinner with the Head of School, their Advisors, House Directors, and the Senior Leadership Team on Tuesday evening.

   

  The 24 students started their Shawnigan Journey in Grade 8 and have followed it through to Grade 12, developing unique relationships both with each other and the School as a whole. Every year, that group is celebrated near the end of the year at the 5 Year Dinner.

   
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  Under the Sorting Hat

  6/12/2026
  After spending their Grade 8 year in Samuel House – Shawnigan’s newest boarding house and Canada’s first co-ed Grade 8 boarding house – Shawnigan students go through a unique ceremony to learn where they will live for the rest of their respective Shawnigan Journeys.

   

  That would be the Sorting Hat Ceremony, which was inspired by a similar tradition in the Harry Potter universe. Under the auspices of Head of School Mr. Larry Lamont and Executive Director of Admissions Mrs. Gaynor Samuel, students take turns donning the floppy, conical headwear, where they are informed which “big” House they will join for the next four years.

   

  Boarding houses are a fundamental aspect of the Shawnigan experience, and special homes away from home for our students. The peers they live with and the House staff become family for them during their time at the School. For each student, their House automatically becomes “the best House on campus.”

   
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  Bruce-Lockhart Fellowship Update

  6/10/2026
  The School thought outside the box when it came to this year’s Bruce-Lockhart Fellowship, and ended up with some thought-provoking boxes.

   

  The Bruce-Lockhart Fellowship for Academic Excellence was launched in 2021 to bring in an outstanding local, national or international educator to Shawnigan for one year, with the idea of shedding light on aspects of academics that the School may not have previously explored. This year, the School looked inward and offered the position to someone who was already on staff: archivist and curator Mrs. Sarah Teunis-Russ.

   

  Mrs. Teunis-Russ started as archivist and curator in early 2025, and added the Bruce-Lockhart Fellowship to her duties just after Christmas, concentrating on that position one day every week. She worked predominantly with the social studies department, which seemed like a natural fit with her history-related work as archivist and curator.

   

  “I did research on my own, and took a couple of courses because I’m not a teacher,” she explained. “And I attended social studies department meetings.”

   
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  HMUN Tournament of Champions

  6/10/2026
  One of Alan A.’s favourite things about Model United Nations conferences is connecting with new people who are as passionate about MUN as he is. Late last month, Alan had the opportunity to meet a whole new group at the first-ever Harvard MUN Canada Tournament of Champions in Toronto.

   

  “The best part about Model UN is meeting new people who are into similar stuff,” Alan explained. “There’s no barrier; people just come up to you and talk. It’s super social.”

   

  Alan joined top delegates from across the country for the four-day conference at the Toronto Westin Harbour Castle. It was more competitive than most MUN conferences, he said, but still an outstanding experience.

   
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  Fine Arts Roundup

  6/5/2026
  Another fantastic year of arts and activities programming came to an end this week with the last day of 360 on Monday, followed by 360 Day on Wednesday – 360 Colours were handed out in the Gathering, and in the afternoon, different groups, from robotics to photography to fly tying, had the opportunity to display what they have been working on all year, followed by a barbecue in the Quad and a Cabaret.

   

  Other 360 and curricular fine art groups have had separate opportunities to showcase their efforts from the past year, including the Rock Band 360 attending Battle of the Bands in Duncan, a festival for both 360 and curricular film programs, the Night of Dance, and an evening of musical theatre numbers.

   
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