Pickering College - Voyageur Yearbook (Newmarket, Ontario Canada)

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ix HARRY M. BEER

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ARTHUR G. DORLAND, M.A., PH.D., LL.D. Five

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A Personal Word To The Students A good school is a community of responsible persons pursuing a common ideal. It is, therefore, a corporate personality in which individual ideals vitalize and inform the common purpose. The essential unity of school life will not be pre- served unless individuals yield their allegiance to a common ideal which transcends and comprehends all personal ideals. -E. B. CASTLE. I have always liked the above definition of a good school. It is from the writings of E. B. Castle, formerly Headmaster of a Quaker School in England. You and I would agree with him for our experiences of the past year show that we were successful when we worked together towards ua common ideal and that we met failure when we were not responsible personsw. In the main, the past year, as described in the following pages, was a good one because of the high degree of cooperation reached by the students. The longer I live here the more deeply I am convinced that it is only through such a spirit of cooperation and understanding that we can pursue our common ideal. And just what is this common ideal? Surely it is to offer our students the opportunity of achieving their full growth in all areas of their lives, physical, intel- lectual and spiritual. Indeed, here at Pickering we would argue that only proper spiritual development assures the right direction for social and academic growth. A student who respects his neighbour and does his best in his own job is pursuing our common ideal. If we are thus agreed on our purpose, the key word in Castle's definition of a good school is undoubtedly the word responsible . What impressed me most about the year just ended was the sincere effort on the part of both masters and students to share a common responsibility. The daily running of the school was not in the hands of a Master on Duty, but rather under the supervision of a team of staff and students headed by the Master on Duty. Another heartening development in the past year in the same context of sharing responsibility between staff and students was the work of The Caput. This body was made up of the Headmaster or his representative, two members of the elected School Committee, one Corridor Repre- sentative and two members of the staff. Here was another example of a group of staff and students working together as guardians of school morale and as advisors to the Headmaster. It is my belief that new areas of shared responsibility may be found in the year ahead. The Student Associates and The Caput will be continued, but I hope to see our School Committee of next year suggest further ways of bringing staff and students together for the improvement of our common life. Such a common ideal will emphatically require responsible persons. Pickering College has always claimed that youth is responsible if trusted and the past year has certainly borne out such faith. My thanks to all of you who helped Pickering College grow a little further in the direction of the beloved community? Harry M. Beer Seven