Ryan Lee ’12 | The Freedom to Explore (Alumni in Food Businesses)

One day, he was filming underwater with Great White sharks in Mexico for Discovery Channel’s Shark Week. Throw in a pandemic full stop and Cinematographer Ryan Lee soon reinvented himself as one of Toronto’s trendiest chocolate makers and founder of Chachalate in the exclusive category of bean-to-bar chocolate making. Always a chocolate lover, Ryan first began making his ethically sourced Chachalate (pronounced Cha-cha-lit) chocolate in his condo kitchen, but before long he was renting commercial space in a catering kitchen. Bean-to- bar production means that he does it all—roasting, grinding and tempering (a heating-cooling-heating process). There are only three others doing it in the city. The switch from video production to chocolate entrepreneur came from a combination of necessity, curiosity and, of course, passion. “Food was always a big part of our family,” he says. “At home, we hardly ever ate at restaurants and vacations were built around finding great…

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40 Years a Teacher | Lessons Learned from Mike Arsenault

LCS faculty member Mike Arsenault P ’00 ’03 ’04 retired in June 2022 after forty years. Mike joined the school as a teacher in September of 1982 following correspondences with Headmaster Terry Guest earlier that spring. Committed to lifelong learning, Mike conducted research, published articles, and often drafted memos to school leadership regarding topics such as the Socialization of Young Adults and proposing a teacher purchase plan for computers. He taught Biology, Earth Science and Environmental Science, has led the Science and Technology department, and has been the Head of Brown House and Grove House. He mentored countless teachers new to the profession and fostered a love of science in many Grove students. Mike, a champion of windsurfing, not only developed this program at LCS, but also kept our students safe as the Director of Waterfront. Trying to include all that Mike has given to LCS in 40 years is…

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Lakefield College School Launches A New Leadership Course Dedicated to Community and Connection

One of Lakefield College School’s defining characteristics is its long-held commitment to developing leadership and character in students. We offer a unique Leadership, Character, and Values program that reaches students across grade levels and focuses on four key pillars of development. Key Pillars of Development Grade 9: Self-Confidence Grade 10: Stewardship Grade 11: Citizenship Grade 12: Leadership By the time students reach Grade 12 at LCS, they have built a strong foundation to put their leadership skills into practice and are given meaningful opportunities to lead the way for their younger peers. For example, our senior students gain the opportunity to participate in our Grade 12 Senior-in-Charge (SIC) program and (traditionally) enroll in our School Life Class. This year, we are broadening opportunities for our Grade 12 students by offering a new leadership course: Community and Connect Class.  The Community and Connect Class (CCC) complements our School Life Class and…

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