Parent Ambassadors

Over the past 12 years our kids attended public, private, Catholic and the Montessori education systems. We have noticed a drastic difference between the quality of education that our kids receive at Leahurst compared to any other school. Staff are consistently engaged, resourceful and have an energy with their enthusiasm that makes education fun and lasting. Like many families, our kids are very busy with extracurricular activities. Leahurst supports this and goes above and beyond to accommodate students through special school programming and after school help. They look at the whole picture, so that your child can thrive. Our kids choose to be at Leahurst College. We appreciate the culture and kindness of Leahurst faculty. It is fostered and at the forefront of all that is done. It is a truly exceptional school and as parents, we could not be happier. We feel so lucky to have found a positive community that nurtures the foundations of our children's education.

We chose Leahurst College for its nurturing, yet academically challenging environment. The faculty encourages students to approach every day with an open mind, developing their own independent thoughts, ideas, and leadership skills with confidence through a vast variety of lessons, clubs, sports, and activities. The environment is warm & welcoming and the halls are filled with laughter. It’s a delight to watch our daughter’s self-esteem grow and her mind light up every day!

Hello, I look forward to sharing with you why I feel Leahurst College is such an incredible school. I first heard about Leahurst just before it opened. When I met and spoke with the founder, Elizabeth Turcke, I quickly realized that her school would embody all that I hoped for in a school for my son. Every decision is well thought out and aimed at offering Leahurst students a positive, enriching learning experience.

What I appreciate most about Leahurst is that the teachers are consistently stellar role models who encourage students to be curious about their subjects, supportive of their peers, and involved in their immediate and surrounding communities.

I was asked once if Leahurst was really worth it because of what I have had to give up for my son to go to Leahurst - if the curriculum was really that different. My response was a wholehearted, “Yes, it’s more than worth it”. The curriculum may not be drastically different, but I respect and admire how the teachers deliver the curriculum. Students are encouraged to engage with the teachers and each other, work on enriching exercises, and seek help if needed. All of this combined results in a positive, comprehensive learning experience for the students.

I work at St. Lawrence College, Kingston, as a Communications Professor in Applied Science and am the Program Coordinator of the Instrumentation and Control Systems Engineering Technology program. I have a Grade 11, teenage son in his fourth year at Leahurst. I would be happy to share our Leahurst experience with you.

I own a Pilates studio in Kingston and currently have two children at Leahurst. Since moving to Kingston in 2010, I have had experience with the public school system as well as five years with Leahurst.

I have been a parent of Leahurst since 2017. I am a very proud supporter of the school, Mrs. Elizabeth Turcke and the teaching staff. They know each student well. They work very hard for each student and genuinely want each student to succeed. Mrs. Turcke and her teachers build young individuals who become wonderful stewards of their city, community, school and class. They handled the COVID pandemic with creativity (outdoor classrooms!), attention, caution and a continued academic curriculum. I am confident that the tuition paid will be one of the most important investment decisions we have made. The teachers teach with energy, experience in their subject matter, and go above and beyond to ensure their students can succeed. The location of the school is also beautiful, and the indoor setting has historic charm. I will happily speak with you about my experience with Leahurst to date.

I have lived in Kingston for almost 25 years, and currently work for the Ministry of Health. I am happy to chat with you about our experience at Leahurst College.

My daughter has wanted to go to Leahurst since first hearing about it from friends, and seeing how well the school managed the transition to online learning last year was the final push we needed to reach out. Meeting with the staff, and learning about the core values and focus of the school made us realize that it was a wonderful fit for our family. The emphasis on community, kindness, and hard work can be seen in all aspects of the school, and the support the students receive from the teachers is outstanding. My daughter has attended three other schools over the years (both private and public), and has never felt such a sense of belonging and support.

Stay at home Dad, Personal Trainer, Lifestyle Coach, Woodworker.

Happy to answer any query.

Originally from Scotland, I moved with my family to Canada in 2011. Not knowing much about the local school system, I met with Elizabeth Turcke when Leahurst was in its infancy. I was so impressed by her drive, vision and compassion, I decided immediately that I would like my children to be a part of this community when the time came. I have not been disappointed.

I have three daughters at Leahurst – Grade 5, Grade 9 and Grade 12. Over the years, my girls have attended private and public schools in Kingston. I feel I have a unique perspective to share as I have experience with both systems.

Leahurst is truly a special place. Leahurst helps students achieve their best academically and nurtures well-rounded students who are prepared for future challenges.

Leahurst balances their strong academic program with experiences outside the classroom, whether on a tall ship, a camp experience, city adventures, outdoor tripping, or encounters with experts in their field - opportunities not available anywhere else.

When faced with the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, Leahurst seamlessly moved to the on-line environment. Then, in the fall of 2020, when students returned to school, Leahurst adapted once again, creating outdoor classrooms complete with outdoor WIFI and massive whiteboards for teaching!

As I go through the high school years with my oldest daughter, I am impressed with the personalized attention Leahurst devotes to each student. They encourage students to take a wide range of courses (many from their wide selection of electives) and ensure they have the courses they need to achieve their own goals. I am always impressed by the group of graduates each year from Leahurst. Each graduate is always pursuing something quite different. One class stands out as it had students pursuing computer science to nursing to general arts, to a specialized animation program! What makes me smile when I see those graduates is knowing that Leahurst helped them find their passion and nurtured them along a path to achieve their goals.

I work at Kingston Health Sciences Centre, Queen’s University, and have two daughters attending Leahurst College.

I grew up in Ireland, trained in Scotland, and am now happy to call Kingston home. I benefitted from an excellent public education and was at first apprehensive to pursue private education for my children. Leahurst College has since proved to be an excellent choice for our family. The school’s motto of ‘dream big, work hard, be nice’ is lived and learned every day in the classroom, setting students up for broad success far beyond.

Kingstonian who spent 20 years living abroad (New York, San Francisco, Asia and Latin America), primarily as an investment banker. Currently a finance professor, the Finance Advisor-in-Residence in the career centre at the Smith School of Business at Queen’s, and a portrait photographer.

We have a lot of experience with a number of schools and different school systems (i.e. IB and AP) as we have 3 boys and have lived in a lot of places.  We can honestly say that Leahurst is absolutely world class! The environment that Leahurst’s leadership creates extends far beyond academic excellence to all aspects of development.  They actually have a class called “Be Nice” which is something I’ve never seen before (and our son loves!).

We have been so incredibly impressed with the Leahurst community and experience and would be happy to answer questions you may have!

We moved to Kingston in 2016. I am an assistant professor at Queen’s School of Medicine and a member of the divisions of Plastic Surgery and Oncology. My husband is a dietician and owns a private business. We have two sons, George (Grade 7) and Pavlos (Grade 4). We enjoy travelling, skiing and any sport on the water.  George attends Leahurst and I am happy to chat with you about our Leahurst experience.

George was previously attending the public school in our neighbourhood. We felt that he needed to be challenged more. We had heard excellent reviews for Leahurst College and attended one of the Curriculum and Information events. We immediately felt that the environment at Leahurst would be ideal for George. Two years later, we are watching him grow into a responsible, hard-working individual with dreams and aspirations. When I ask him what he loves about Leahurst, he says, the respectful environment, the amazing education and his friends and teachers.

I grew up in Frontenac County and after living away for 15 years, I am proud to call Kingston home. I work in investment services and have two children attending Leahurst.

With the announced closing of KCVI, I was happy to hear Kingston was getting a private school. As I learned more about Leahurst and our daughter visited during ‘Bring a Friend Day’ it became very apparent she would attend Leahurst starting in Grade 7. She had the option to attend the Challenge Program or Vanier. She chose Leahurst. Her brother joined the following year in Grade 6.

Leahurst teaches students how to learn. It is not just memorization to pass tests; they teach students to understand what they are learning. To think. To question. To take what they have learned and apply that knowledge. They challenge the students in an engaging and thoughtful way. I found the public system taught to the average student, not to every student. Leahurst’s smaller class sizes and fully-engaged faculty make sure every student is progressing. Regardless of what my children end up doing for their careers, they will be better prepared because of their time at Leahurst. There is no better investment than into our children and into education.

I grew up in Kingston and was lucky enough to have both Elizabeth and Bob Turcke teach me in high school.  Without a doubt, they influenced what I went on to pursue in post-secondary education and I positively loved them as educators.  After being away from Kingston for 15 years, my husband and I moved back in the summer of 2022 with our youngest entering Grade 5 and our eldest entering Grade 8 that September.  It was a big change for our girls - moving away from the province where they grew up and all their friends there.  I was nervous, but knowing the Turcke's, I knew I could trust them and their school to help us navigate and support them through that change.  

Leahurst has continually exceeded my expectations and it is very hard to summarize just exactly how. The education is fantastic but it is way more than that. The school really sees its students. It notices where there is potential and is genuinely thrilled and dedicated to bring that out whether it be academically, artistically, athletically, or even socially.  The teachers are the best you could hope for and my children have truly blossomed under their mentorship. I literally cry at every ceremony the school puts on as I'm completely awestruck with pride and inspiration!!

We are so happy with our decision to become part of the Leahurst family and are happy to answer any questions you might have! 

We met Elizabeth Turcke in 2016 to explore Leahurst. The moment my son and I met her, we had a strong intuition that this was the place we were searching for. The rest is history.  

The biggest factor for us choosing Leahurst was it is an independent institution and has no affiliation with any religious organization. 

Our experience since 2017 - Leahurst has a very clear commitment for psychological development of each child along with building their academic strengths. The college is like a small community with a refined balance of discipline and freedom. All staff and faculty consider each student a snowflake, hence providing a safe space to make mistakes and grow.