Leadership
UTS’s annual outdoor education events are the core of its
Leadership Program. The program is vital to UTS’s commitment to
producing tomorrow’s leaders.
Camp Couchiching, near Orillia, occurs in
mid-September. Grade 12 students organize the weekend which
introduces new grade 7 students to UTS' familial atmosphere and
cherished traditions. The young students are introduced to the
House System and early in the school year begin to gain the
spirit of the school and their House.
Camp Wanakita, in Haliburton, is host to the
winter leadership programs. They are four days long and take
place in February and March. The programs combine outdoor
activities, such as cross-country skiing and hiking, with
workshops and activities to develop students’ leadership skills.
The grades 7 and 8 programs are lead by specially trained
grade 11 students. The grade 7 program focuses on
community building, where students learn what it means
to be a part of a community and what their role is within it.
The grade 8 program is based on team building,
where students engage in activities in which they have an
opportunity to be both leaders and team members. The activities
require the cooperation, respect and encouragement of all team
members.
The grade 11 program trains students to be group
leaders at the grades 7 and 8 Wanakita programs. The
training sessions address a variety of leadership skills
including communication and safety, as well as activity guidance
and group facilitation, and provide an opportunity for the
leader teams to bond.
Camp Ahmek, in Algonquin Park, runs for
three days and is a new destination for UTS. This grade
9 leadership retreat focuses on individual leadership skills.
Students begin to identify and harness their own leadership
strengths as well as work together in group situations. Again,
the program combines outdoor activities, such as canoeing and
climbing, with leadership workshops.
