Jan. 19, 2016
January 2016 Lighthouse Award presentation: Andreas H., Grade 4 student, Penbrooke Meadows School; Joy Bowen-Eyre, Chair of the Board of Trustees; Lauren Giordano; Liam A., Grade 9 student, Ian Bazalgette School
The Board of Trustee’s Lighthouse Award for the month of January was presented to Team Giordano. The Team Giordano Project is a charitable initiative which aims to encourage and promote improved physical fitness and academics, healthy lifestyles, leadership development, community involvement and support positive behaviors that lead to academic achievement and success in life.
The Team Giordano Project was founded by Calgary Flames Captain Mark Giordano and his wife Lauren. The Project began in September 2014 with three CBE schools and has expanded to a fourth school this year, impacting more than 1200 students. This project has donated significant funds as well as coordinated in-kind donations to the four participating schools. The project is also supported by the Calgary Flames Foundation and numerous additional agencies, which facilitate an array of experiences and opportunities to enhance student learning which align with the four CBE partnership pillars:
- The Team Giordano Project supports and encourages physical literacy by providing equipment to students such as stationary bikes, climbing walls, a weight room, an outdoor sport court and sports equipment. These “tools for learning” enhance curriculum delivery as well as provide a focus on movement to improve emotional and mental wellness, in addition to physical well-being.
- “Enhanced classroom learning opportunities” have been supported through installation and furnishing of Learning Commons, as well as quiet spaces such as an “Owl’s Nest”, a “Zen Den” which include sensory and calming accessories that nurture the physical and emotional needs of students so that they are prepared and ready to learn.
- Support for school residencies in dance and the performing arts as well as field trips to museums, the Science Centre and the opportunity to take swimming lessons have enhanced “learning beyond the classroom” for students in the participating schools.
- Mark and Lauren Giordano recognize the importance of “nurturing the whole child” in learning and they have provided support for other school based initiatives such as outdoor libraries, maker spaces, maker kits, curriculum enrichment materials, food & nutrition, as well as mental health and wellness supports.
In addition to supporting these initiatives financially, the Giordano’s have become a part of the larger school communities, working with students at each of the four schools on the importance of goal setting, hard work, focus, friendship and perseverance in both life and learning. Their work and time with students brings to life the CBE value of putting students first and providing them with a foundation necessary to thrive.
“If I could speak for all the students at Penbrooke Meadows, we would give Mark and Lauren the biggest Thank you ever. They have really changed our school and inspired all of us to follow our dreams.”
Andreas H., Grade 4, Penbrooke Meadows School
“We as a school could not do it alone, so thank you Mark and Lauren Giordano for reaching out to our school. I cannot thank you enough for all that you’ve done for Ian Baz, and I am happy to have been part of something so incredible.”
Liam A., Grade 9, Ian Bazalgette School
