In an often-overcrowded industry such as International Education, it is very difficult or nearly impossible for schools to compete with the conglomerates that often surround large metropolitan areas through Ontario and even Canada!

But one little school, in one little village has made it “BIG” on the international platform, and that school is Merrick Preparatory School!  Merrick Preparatory School (MPS as it is referred to) has won the Prestigious PIEoneer award 2021:  Secondary learning international impact award!

But how could a school of only a max capacity of 60 international students, and 20-day students ever be even in the running for such an award?  The secret lays within its foundation: world class teachers, the supporting staff and the entire community in the village that care about each one of our students. 
Merrick Prep focuses on 3 core values that bring the best out of its staff and students: Courage- Compassion- Community.

Many students and families tend to overlook small schools and are immediately drawn to the glitz and glam of large schools, big facilities, and shiny promises. This may all seem wonderful, but students tend to miss out on the key building blocks that will eventually carry them forward in their university lives, and careers and set them up for success.

Students, who attend MPS, are taken under the care of our entire team, every member of our team knows each student by name; from cleaning staff, kitchen staff, academic staff, and even as far as the hired taxi company that often shuttles students around. 
Students attend our school from all over the world for grade 9-12. Typically, we have 17-20 nationalities per year which is a huge surprise for students, especially students who have attended boarding schools in the past. There is no dominant market at the school and therefor student feel part of our community quickly.

We treat each student as part of a big international family. It has especially been true this year having students return to campus after nearly a year and some of them remain learning remotely.

As expected, some students were unable to obtain the required Covid19 vaccines in their own country, so they were placed in quarantine in their rooms for 14 days upon arrival. It’s hard to believe how any young adult could withstand being stuck in a room for that long, but the MPS staff and students were quick to make these students feel just as part of our community as the ones who didn’t need to quarantine. 
One warm afternoon, all students and teachers enjoyed ice cream together and our quarantined students were waving and enjoying ice cream from their windows, while the peers were able to waive and chit chat from outside. 

MPS staff also performed over 10 mental health checks throughout the day for each of the students. We wanted them to feel connected with everyone via video calls, or through socially distance door checks.  Admission staff, and even the headmaster Mr. Farrell geared up every day in personal protective equipment (PPE) to deliver their meals, check how their day was going, and just to ensure that MPS was delivering everything they could for these students.

Some people say that Covid19 has made people further apart, but after witnessing how this small school came together and pushed through all the challenges, its almost like this unfortunate situation has given MPS even more strength and this can be seen by the countless testimonials we have received over the last year, and also, our win of the PIEoneer award for Secondary learning international impact award. It shows that we have kept our promise to have a huge impact on our students – because we care!

We are very proud of our accomplishments during these last two years, but none of this could be possible if it wasn’t for the truly amazing families around the world, that value education to the highest level and choose a small school in a small town.

MPS ADMISSIONS Team