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Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/394777
i n d E p E n d E n t s c h o o l s P r o m o t e d C o n t e n t fund, offering financial assistance to many students. Aberdeen Hall enjoys a special partnership with University of British Columbia Okanagan ( UBCO), whose campus is a direct neighbour. About 25 school parents are UBCO professors, and they have helped promote the sharing of facilities and intellectual capital in the faculties of education, engineering and sciences. Aberdeen offers Advanced Placement courses, and its first graduating class in 2014 received 100 per cent university acceptance. "We have extremely dedicated, passionate teachers," says Grieve. "They are our greatest asset." Along with strong academics, Aberdeen Hall offers an excellent music program, a growing athletic program and a character education program. It offers the Character Counts program for Kindergarten to Grade 6, and has developed its own Cornerstones program for senior students. Both focus on skills like generosity, organization and friendship. "We want to prepare our students for success in university and in life," says Grieve. "We teach them that all members of our community have a responsibility to watch out for those that may not be as fortunate as they are." In addition to delivering a rigorous academic program, and strong athletics and arts programs, Crofton House School looks at other ways to fulfill its mission of educating girls for life. "This year our overarching theme is self-esteem, and working with our Parents' Auxiliary we are focusing on what we can do to promote our girls' self-esteem in concrete ways," says head of school Dr. Patricia Dawson. In September, the school hosted JoAnn Deak, the well-known author of How Girls Thrive, for a parents' meeting and then a workshop with staff. Deak's work focuses on the three components of a positive self-esteem: competence, confidence and connectedness. "We've always focused on the unique challenges for girls, but this year we've chosen this framework to help us apply these ideas each and every day." Financial Assistance Many schools offer financial assistance, such as Vancouver's York House School, a leading independent day school for girls. York House completed its senior building in 2013, winning an Urban Design Award from the City of Vancouver. Now, the school is turning its fundraising focus to scholarships. "Our goal is to increase our number of scholarships so that we have a truly diverse student body in every sense of the word," says Kathy Kealey, assistant head of school. "There are some fabulous girls in this city that we would love to have at the school." York House is located in Shaughnessy and has space for about 660 girls from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12. "We will never grow larger than that," says Kealey. "But the girls have opportunities they would find at a school twice the size." She lists Advanced Placement courses, and high-calibre music, arts and sports programs. Another unique program was