Interview with The Country Day School Alum, Ali Iwai

I really felt like I was a part of this community from the second I put on my CDS uniform. I joined CDS back in Grade 7, and I didn't really have any friends at the time or know anybody that went there. But right away, I just felt so welcomed by my classmates and my teachers. And from Grade 7 until I graduated in Grade 12, I was always a part of a sports team or a club like the student council. Just having that sense of belonging and being a part of something is so special. You build amazing relationships with your classmates and your teachers and you walk down the hallways and you always see a smiling face.

What's so special about CDS is you can try new things and join a different team, join a different club, and everybody is so welcoming. I learned through different classes that I loved drama and I joined the drama class. In Grade 7, I knew I liked hockey, but I didn't know what else I would be into. In Grade 9, I was approached by one of my teachers and she told me I should join the rugby team. I thought I should stick to my softball. I enjoyed that in middle school. But I just took that leap and ended up loving it. I played my entire high school, my four years there, and it was one of my favourite experiences.

The teachers at Country Day School are so supportive. Everybody at the school wants you to succeed and they want you to excel in what you do. They really care about if you're having a good time, if you're making friends, if you're doing well in your classes, and if you're enjoying your sports team. CDS definitely cares about you as a person. You're not just a student there, you are an individual. Whether you're nervous for a test or an upcoming presentation, they want to help you. If you have a test that you're nervous about, they'll show up early in the morning and help you go over that last question.

The teachers and staff are really open to trying new things, trying new events. They just really encourage the students to be their best they can be. And that's CDS, summed up.

When I think about CDS, and I talk to friends about CDS, I always say the biggest thing I learned there was balance. I know that the school logo is education with balance, but it is so true. And it's something that I took with me after CDS, into my undergrad, and into my work life: how important balance is to have in your life. Yes, academics are very important, but so are the relationships you build. So is having an outlet to play a sport. And that's where CDS definitely values balance. They don't want their students to go home after the class day ends. They want you to join that club, join that sport.

Something that surprised me was just how the school awards our students and really makes them feel appreciated. Every term, there's academic awards, sports awards, and they really want to appreciate their students' hard work. That's something that I wasn't used to when I first joined CDS.

I gained a lot of confidence at Country Day, where I could step out of my comfort zone but in an environment where I felt safe to do so. CDS gave me confidence to grow and do things I wouldn't usually do before. And it gave me confidence outside of CDS to try new things. With CDS, I learned how to make relationships with people and how to be confident in what you're doing. That really helped me after graduation.

I still remember my graduation day and being at the school thinking, ‘Wow, I'm so lucky to have had that opportunity.’ Over time, my perspective of Country Day has only grown fonder. When I was at CDS, I knew how lucky I was to be a part of something so special. And even after I graduated from Queens and I had that experience, I still think back about how lucky I was and fortunate to have been able to have gone to CDS and to have been given these opportunities. And I thank my parents for dragging me there—I didn't want to go at first because I didn't want to leave my old friends from my old school.

I definitely want my future kids to have that same opportunity to go there and experience the magic of CDS, where when you walk down the hallways, you know everybody, everybody knows you, and you have that sense of community.

I think CDS really does a great job at preparing students for life after graduation. They're very encouraging of students going to universities, and students go on those university tours to see where you're best fit. And if you decide that university or college isn't what's right for you, they really help you prepare for that gap year, and really encourage you to do what's best for you as an individual, and not what's best for the whole class. They really just want to focus on you.

Everybody there wants to be there. I never would have thought I wanted to be picked up at six o'clock at night after school. Before, I thought that when classes are done, you're out the door, you go home. But at CDS, everybody wants to be there. You sign up for a club, you sign up for a sport, and you're staying after school.