Campaign PROGRESS
$1,193,173.97 Raised in 2025–26 towards $3M goal for iCAST
$39M Raised for the Make Way Campaign towards $43M goal
2,000+ Community Members Donated
11 $1M+ gifts
Branksome Hall: Leading the way in girls' education
Join us to set a new standard for excellence in girls’ education. The most ambitious campaign in Canadian girls’ school history continues to unfold. We're not stopping until the opening of the Karen L. Jurjevich Innovation Centre and Studio Theatre (iCAST) in 2026.
WHY iCAST?
Because we need to close the gender gap to create opportunities! Combining STEM and the Arts for new solutions is the language of success in tomorrow’s entrepreneurial-driven workplaces.
In this 34,458 square-foot facility, students will prepare for the future in unprecedented ways:
- As technology becomes even more pervasive in everyday life, it’s critical for our girls to be immersed in an environment where it can become second-nature.
- iCAST will offer opportunities for cross-grade and cross-disciplinary collaboration supported by real-life mentors and experts in their fields, mirroring the new structure of universities and top-tier workplaces.
- We have outgrown our available space and need to scale up so that tomorrow’s entrepreneurs, artists and innovators can get a running start.
How icast will prepare your Daughter for the Future
a look inside icast
Theatre
With movable seats and a 2,550-square-foot tension grid, students can produce professional-quality theatrical lighting designs.
Pitch Space
Guest experts, entrepreneurs-in-training working with our Noodle business accelerator and members of our championship-winning Debate Team can hone pitches and presentations.
Woodshop
In our fabrication spaces, students can create and manufacture prototypes or theatre sets and props.
Robotics
Students will build, code and prepare robots for competition, honing their STEM acumen for tomorrow’s top programs and careers.
STEAM Studio
Students will explore real-world applications of artificial intelligence and augmented reality, then integrate them with Arts programming.
Noodle Garage
The new home of our Noodle business accelerator will allow us to expand the program, welcome external experts and offer a permanent sales outlet.
An Interactive tour
Inspiring community and sparking interdisciplinary learning, Branksome Hall's Karen L. Jurjevich Innovation Centre and Studio Theatre embodies our commitment to arts and innovation, uniting scholars, experts and our community under one roof.
Hear from our Experts
Technology touches everything, so we need to prepare the next generation to work in that environment… iCAST is the breeding ground for just that.
Eva Lau (Naomi’20; Peony’22) Founding Partner, Two Small Fish Ventures
iCAST will be critical to the future of your daughter and to the future of Canada. Fluency in STEM skills will be a prerequisite for virtually every quality career. We must encourage young women at the earliest stage of their education.
John Ruffalo (Rome, Grade 10) Founder & Managing Partner, Maverix Private Equity
We grew up in a different world and iCAST ties it all together to prepare girls to excel in a tech-oriented world and go after it in an ambitious and unapologetic way.
Shelby AUSTIN Cooper'99 (Simone, Grade 6) CEO, Arteria AI
your Opportunity
Be part of a vision that’s already more than 1,800 strong. Parents, alums and friends have come together to raise more than $5.2 million (and counting). This is the most ambitious campaign in Canadian girls’ school history. Together, we’re shaping a bold, transformative future.
Every gift matters. Whether it’s big or small, your support directly and profoundly impacts the lives and learning of every Branksome student.
Donate Now
WAYS TO GIVE
Stepping Stones
Make an impact and leave a legacy with this one-in-a-decade opportunity. Name a Stepping Stone on this beautiful lobby-level donor wall in iCAST.
Buy A StoneNaming Opportunities
Depending on the size of your gift, you can name a space in iCAST, including hands-on learning environments, gateways and common spaces.
LEARN MOREPledge Over Time
Donors have the discretion to structure their pledge to best suit their financial circumstances, making a transformational gift more financially feasible.
Learn More
Make WAy campaign Cabinet
Meet the individuals helping us challenge the status quo by bringing this first-of-its-kind space to life.
Donald Guloien Board Vice Chair / Honorary Chair, make Way Cabinet
Tyler & Claire MacNamara Campaign Chairs
Eva Lau
Clara Angotti MATHUR
Michael & Julie Bratty
Mona Malone Board Chair
Cristie Love Thomas & Jeff Thomas
Monique MORAN'94
Jamie Scarlett & Vanessa YEUNG
Heather Simmons
Tristan & Tara Armstrong
innovation Council
Our Innovation Council members are at the top of their field in innovation, tech and entrepreneurial spaces. We thank them for their strategic leadership, connections with real-world mentors and experts and contributions to our programmatic vision.
Clara Angotti MATHUR Co-founder & President, Board Member, Next Pathway Inc.
Shelby AUSTIN Cooper'99 CEO, Arteria AI
Chad Bayne Partner, Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
Andrea Bielecki Former CEO and President, INVIVO Communications Inc.
David Boriss Managing Partner, NxtRnd; Partner, Fort Capital
Chanda Carr Chief Client Officer, Osler
Joe Cashion Managing Partner, Prism Global Management
Mark Cohon Chair, Toronto Global; Chair and Partner, Georgian Bay Spirit co.
Michael Ianni-Palarchio Chief Strategy Officer, Project X
Martin Kon President & COO, Cohere
Shannon LEWIS'96 President, Canadian Media Directors' Council
Deena PANTALONE'95 Managing Partner, Vertical Builders Inc.
John Ruffolo Founder & Managing Partner, Maverix Private Equity
Jason Steel President, Steel Family Holdings
Other ways to Make an Impact
Financial Assistance
Amplify our commitment to open our doors to diverse and promising students, regardless of their financial situation, enriching the learning environment for all with a range of perspectives and talents.
Opportunity Fund
Enrich our learning environment and set our students apart. This fund enables nimble response to opportunities identified by faculty and staff for the benefit of our students, including curricular and co-curricular enhancements.
Faqs
Answers to your most frequently asked questions about iCAST.
We’re not done raising funds yet! Our goal this year is to raise more than $5 million. The top priority of the Make Way Campaign is the new Karen L. Jurjevich Innovation and Studio Theatre (iCAST), scheduled to open in 2026.
The Make Way Campaign will also support Financial Assistance and programming at the school. All gifts made until June 30, 2026 will be counted as part of the Make Way Campaign.
The Campaign began in July 2019 and was publicly launched on September 22, 2023.
As of June 205, we have raised close to $38.3 million towards Make Way.
To date, more that 1,800 alums, parents, grandparents past and present, and employees have come together to support the future of girls’ education.
For those who have not yet had a chance to support iCAST, we hope that you will consider joining together with our 1,800 donors. We need you. Please know that every gift matters and every gift has an impact. We are a bold and united community and we are going to continue to raise the bar!
Tuition does not cover the cost of capital expenses. For iCAST, just as for the Athletics and Wellness Centre, we rely on our community’s philanthropic support to make these types of transformational projects a reality. Simply put, without donations, we would not enjoy the cutting-edge facilities that transform our students’ daily experience, impact curricular and co-curricular programming, and benefit the wider community.
Every gift positively impacts the student experience, and when combined, these contributions play a significant role in advancing the Make Way Campaign for Branksome.
Yes, by making your gift to iCAST, Financial Assistance or another area of need at Branksome, you will be supporting Make Way.
Yes! There is tremendous flexibility in establishing a gift over time (or what we call a pledge). Donors have the option to pledge their gift over a span of two to five years. You may also customize the timing and installments amounts according to your specific needs.
Yes. Tax receipts will be issued for all eligible donations. When you make a gift online, you will receive your tax receipt automatically by email right after your donation is made. Branksome makes it easy for donors to contribute in convenient and tax-efficient manners, including options like flow-through shares, donations of stocks and securities and through their workplace giving programs.
Yes! We have a number of naming opportunities available at various giving levels. Naming opportunities are a meaningful way to leave a legacy at Branksome Hall for your family and daughter.
One way to leave your legacy is on a unique donor recognition wall, a central architectural feature in the new Karen L. Jurjevich Innovation Centre and Studio Theatre (iCAST). The Stepping Stones Donor Wall is a rare opportunity to make your mark while maximizing your support of girls’ education. Reserve your Stepping Stone here.
Depending on the level of your gift, we have a number of meaningful ways to recognize your generosity, including naming opportunities, signage, plaques, invitations to special events and visibility in Branksome communications.
The project is a partnership between New York-based ENNEAD and Toronto-based MJMA (architect of the AWC). ENNEAD has experience redefining learning spaces, from Kindergarten to graduate school, establishing spaces that inspire student development, promote collaboration and strengthen connections within the classroom and to the broader community.
We anticipate the building will be completed in 2026. Join us to prepare our students for the workplaces of tomorrow so they can lead the way, their way. Please MAKE WAY now.
Learn how You Can Help Make WAY
Join us to prepare our students for the workplaces of tomorrow so they can lead the way, their way.