Newsletter 20/11

Dear all,

Amidst a second Lockdown, MCS is a hive of energy and activity. As much of the city pauses, MCS continues on, with Saturday sports (despite the rain last weekend!), Remembrance Day activities, and music and drama rehearsals.

As the nights grow longer, the MCS grounds team have been hard at work decorating the school with lights, to add some much-needed brightness to November. This week we share with you a photograph of the White Bridges, illuminated for Diwali.

Inclusion: How Mentoring Makes a Difference

We were pleased to see so many of you at yesterday’s virtual event on mentoring!

OW Jim Hawker (1992) chaired a panel of five inspirational entrepreneurs who discussed issues around social mobility and inclusion – and how mentoring can help bridge the gap. Our dynamic panel gave attendees much to think about as they espoused the benefits of mentoring for both mentors and mentees. 

A recording of this engaging session – which starts with an amusing anecdote from panellist Chris Kenna! – can be found here.  It is well worth a watch.

Pictured is panellist Patrick Philpott, Founder of youth employment specialists VisionPath, who clearly enjoyed taking part in the session!

We hope to facilitate some mentoring relationships as a follow up to this session.  If you would like to get involved and haven’t already expressed interest, please do let us know.  We’ll be in touch soon with those who volunteer.

North America Virtual Event

Last Thursday, the Waynflete Office hosted an “In conversation with the Master” event to keep our OWs and Friends across the Atlantic in touch with the school.

It was delightful to see members of the MCS community join from afar, with attendees dialling in from New York, Florida, Ohio, Utah – and many more.

Particular thanks to OW Alex Smith (1970), who is based in the States and co-hosted this event with us.

A sixth form choir performed “Libera me Domine” from Fauré’s Requiem in a student-lead service, where pupils read out the names of the fallen from the World Wars.

Pictured is the new paving stone, located on Cowley Place, commemorating OW Captain John Fox Russell VC who attended MCS from 1904-1907.  This stone lies not far from the commemorative stone for OW Captain Noel Chavasse VC.

Click here to read the most recent edition of The Lily, which celebrates the magazine’s 150th anniversary!

The editor’s letter comes particularly recommended, with contributions from OWs about their varied experiences editing and producing the Lily across the decades.

Work has started on the 2021 edition of The Bridge!  We warmly welcome your submissions in the following areas by the end of November.

News and Notes

Though the pandemic has curtailed activity this year, we know there are still lots of stories to share. Fill in the survey here, or email us.

Nissen Huts

We’re looking for (high-quality) scans or originals of photographs of the MCS Nissen huts used as school classrooms and/or school camps, for an article about post-war MCS.

Please send any photos to MCS Archivist Lindsay McCormack.

Whatever your experience of school uniform – see relevant memo above from Former Master Bill Cook in 1978! – we would like to receive your recollections:

• What did you wear?
• How did you feel wearing school uniform?
• How strictly was the dress code enforced?
• Any memorable fashion trends or sartorial stand-outs?

Please share your memories (and photos!) with MCS Oral Historian Kathryne Crossley.

• What you enjoyed about it
• What you gained from studying the subject at sixth-form level
• How it has been useful to you in your degree course and/or career
• Why it’s an excellent choice of A Level

If so, the MCS English Department would love to hear from you. Please email Andrew Shouler on ashouler@mcsoxford.org with a quotation or clip which could be used to help encourage fifth formers to think about studying the subject after GCSE.

We would be especially grateful to hear from anyone who has gone on to a degree or career in medicine, the sciences, finance, or other areas not traditionally associated with English.

With many thanks in advance for any contributions.

This Summer the MCS community, including OWs and Friends, pulled together in support of current MCS families whose financial positions have been profoundly affected by the pandemic, putting students’ schooling at risk.

In total, £262,091.66 has been raised, from 285 donors.

Read more here. We look forward to sharing more detail with you in the 2020 Donor Report, to be released before Christmas.

OW Alex Grantham (2015) is part of Oxford City FC, which next weekend will be facing League One Shrewsbury in the second round of the FA Cup.

Pictured is the jubilant scene as Oxford City beat Northampton Town earlier this month, fetauring goalkeeper Alex in pink shorts!