UCC continues to broaden student Horizons

Horizons offers UCC students mentorship opportunities year-round by assisting students from underserved areas in Toronto with their academics and co-curriculars during the school year, and offering enrichment for promising junior high school students through the summer program. Jyoti Sehgal heads Horizons and works tirelessly to create partnerships with a variety of schools from the Toronto District School Board.

Fall 2023 was a busy season with multiple programs that, together, involved UCC’s approximately 100 Horizons student volunteers. This included an after-school design and coding program for Grades 7 and 8 students from Emily Carr Public School that immersed them in laser cutting and 3-D printing. The endeavour was overseen by design teacher Lynda Yearwood, with significant support from Erica Charbonneau, design lab facilitator, and Paul Miskew, head of design.

In December, the Advancement team under Brendan Dellandrea ’01 hosted a holiday lunch for 50 Grade 4 students from Thorncliffe Public School at the arena lounge. Students enjoyed watching a hockey game, participating in activities, and choosing a winter hat souvenir. A pizza lunch (with cookie decorating) celebrated completion of a five-week coding program. UCC students also ran another program for students from Thorncliffe, a longtime Horizons partner: Saturday soccer in the Bubble, teaching soccer skills and holding scrimmages.

A fall programming highlight was a six-week Innovation Olympics, designed and led by Year 11 student Chisom Ochuba for Grades 7 and 8 students from St. Paul Catholic School. UCC tutors traded their Wednesday morning sleep-in time to work on creative challenges with younger students instead. 

“I believe it’s important to have initiative and a creative mindset, so why not teach those skills to other students so they can use them in their own communities,” says Ochuba.

Each summer, Horizons offers an academic program for high-achieving Grades 7, 8 and 9 students from partner schools. Upon completion, students graduate to a high school program that meets a few times each term to support continued engagement. This winter, a small group of those students, their UCC counterparts and the College’s Lang Scholars joined students from Six Nations Reserve for a day-long sports experience that included a panel of athletes and experts discussing leadership; lunch at Real Sports restaurant; a visit to the Hockey Hall of Fame; and a Raptors game, including the pre-game warmup. The day’s events were organized by Leanne Gardner, manager of community relations, and Andrew McDougall, Upper School assistant head.

Says Sehgal, “These event opportunities are particularly special. This was the first time most of the Horizons students had been to a game, and the guest panel talks about leadership left all of the students with takeaways. I’m certain they each found messages applicable to their lives.”

As the coding and design program and the Innovation Olympics continue into the winter term, Sehgal is busy looking ahead to other possibilities, including a learn-to-swim and a music appreciation program.

“Our programming this winter will be full on,” she says. “We’re always looking for ways to improve and expand our offerings, depending on both tutor interests and our partner schools’ requests.

“Both the mentors and the young participants benefit from these partnerships, gaining compassion and making connections while learning new skills.”