I learned how to balance life while attending Stanstead College. Having to balance academics with sports and club commitments enstilled my ability to prioritize my responsibilities later in life. Serving as a prefect in my graduation year taught me many leadership skills which I still use today. Opportunities abound for students to get involved and to develop skills and talents beyond what is found in a typical school. Since the school is primarily boarding, living together provides a realistic sense of what life will be like at university. Students learn to support one another and to settle disagreements while still having to live together in a close-knit community. The school has recently developed a number of international opportunities where students are engaged in service learning while travelling to international destinations.
Overall, students are very happy at Stanstead. The academics (especially in grade 11 and 12) can be very stressful but the fact that students are being active on the sports field, spending time with friends, and enjoying classes, really helps reduce that stress. In addition, teachers and classmates are very responsive to a student who needs help. This allows all students to reach and exceed their goals, academic or not. In my case, I was not a boarding student however, I chose to sleep over every night. Being surrounded by my teachers and classmates helped me learn at a faster rate and made even the largest challenges seem much more achievable. In particular, while preparing for exams, I was very thankful to be able to stay for the evening study period so I could study alongside my classmates.
I very much enjoyed my time at Stanstead. After I became a prefect and began spending more time on campus outside of my standing commitments, I found myself wishing that I had begin spending additional free time there much earlier--hindsight! The more you engage with the community the easier it will be to find your place in it, and the more you will enjoy your time there. Like many other things, you will get out of Stanstead what you contribute and attitude counts for a lot.
