Our New Centre for Innovation and Learning

20 April 2025Dara M, Alexandra ‘25

As we near the opening of our school’s new Centre for Innovation and Learning – only 11 months to go – the anticipation among students rises as we await the beautiful three-story-high, window-filled building. Sitting right on the shore of the Saanich Inlet, the envelope will be 88% glass, allowing everybody to enjoy the spectacular views throughout their learning.

The new academic building will provide future students a supportive and flexible learning environment. At 77,000 square feet, it not only comes with large superlabs connected with a number of learning spaces, but also a north and south wing connected with an outdoor patio area. Mr McPherson, Director of Advancement, explains, “We undertook the creation of the Centre of Innovation and Learning to enhance the student experience and to offer more opportunities for academic discovery. I think this initiative reflects our ongoing commitment to being a leading edge place of learning.”

Imagine the mornings walking down the path to class … waves splashing on the rowing docks, the view of Mount Baker, greenery surrounding us on both sides, what could possibly beat this? Mr Sullivan, Deputy Head of School – Student Life, commented, “I am super-excited about this new building as it offers us additional space for new classes to be introduced. We created this design so all Brentwood students and faculty can access the waterfront view that our school is built on.”

The Centre for Innovation & Learning will ensure the closeness of our students and staff while offering a relaxed and spacious learning environment. It will not only act as the main academic building, but also a space for us to spend time in throughout the day. Carys C, Allard ‘25 voiced, “I am so excited to start my Grade 12 year in a brand new facility, and I am very thankful that I go to a school that can give me this opportunity to learn in such a well built environment.” With a newfound ease in moving to classes, consolidating academics within one building presents more opportunities for students to thrive in their studies.

With the design built around the waterfront view, the glass building allows everybody to get a wonderful view. Isabella P, Alex ‘25, exclaims, “I am really excited for the window-filled classrooms that embrace Brentwood’s oceanfront view.”

A fun fact from Mr Murray, Brenwood’s on-site Project Supervisor, is that the building will be almost completely surrounded with glass, but is 26% more energy efficient than the code minimum! This is because Brentwood has access to an ocean heat pump system, allowing us to use the ocean water, usually around 6C, to heat and cool our major buildings including Crooks Hall, The Bunch Centre, The Arts Building, and now the Centre for Innovation & Learning. Mr Murray also shared a new system adaptation with me – with 73 heat pumps in the building, this will give us the flexibility to have separate air filtering in each of the classrooms and learning areas, which greatly supports the health and well-being of us all.

There are countless benefits to being connected to the outdoors – at Brentwood, we are so incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity to walk on this campus every day and bask in nature all around us.

To finish off in Mr McPherson’s words: “This building will be the lighthouse for academic excellence in the school.”

Dara M, Alexandra ‘25

Where Students Choose To Be