Flourishing Business Community Speakers Series: Stories from the Field #30
Meet the Grade 8-10 Students Working with the Canvas: Students of Casey Sherriffs and Ondine Hogeboom
| Date: Tuesday, April 28, 2026 |
| Time: 15h00 UTC – 08h00 PST, 11h00 EST, 16h00 BST, 17h00 CET, 00h00 + 1 day JST. To convert UTC to your timezone, click here |
| Duration: 1 hour |
| Registration: Required via Eventbrite at bit.ly/SFF30-Register |
For our thirtieth flourishing business community speaker series: stories from the field, the community is delighted to welcome grade 8-10 students from Miss Edgar’s and Miss Cramp’s School in Montréal, Québec who will be sharing their experiences with the Flourishing Business Canvas – taught by Casey Sherriffs and Ondine Hogeboom from Flourishing Startups.
Miss Edgar’s and Miss Cramp’s School (ECS) came to life in 1909, by two trailblazing women who envisioned opening a school for girls. They believed that an exceptional education could unlock a world of possibilities. ECS continues to remain true to its roots; from kindergarten to Grade 11. ECS nurtures the potential of every girl, igniting her confidence and sense of agency. ECS takes a 360-degree approach to learning that has made them a leader in educational innovation. With STEAM, a bilingual programme, philanthropy, a wealth of co-curriculars and our signature Entrepreneurial Platform there are significant opportunities to support the next generation of women leaders.
For the past 3 years, all ECS students from grades 8-10 (aged 13-16) work in groups on a year-long entrepreneurship project, each focused on addressing a specific aspect of a UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) of their choice.
The Flourishing Business Canvas (FBC) was introduced to help students explore and understand key elements of their entrepreneurial ideas. Every year they engage with the FBC during the activation stage of their projects to support their understanding of the business models for their projects.
Casey and Ondine presented their pedagogical approach using the Flourishing Business Canvas with their students and their experience so far at our speaker series event in November 2024 (See this post for background and bios of Casey and Ondine; Full paid members of the Flourishing Business Community can also watch that event and download the slides here)
During this special edition of the Speakers series we will be hearing from the students themselves about how they have engaged with the Flourishing Business Canvas.
Meet the Students
Bianca – Grade 10
I love how our entrepreneurial program teaches young girls to be leaders. Over the years I have learnt about the importance of sustainability, innovation, and genuineness. In addition, I also truly appreciate all of the amazing opportunities, experiences, and people I have gained through this special program.
Diana – Grade 10
I love the entrepreneurship program because it allows me to think creatively, solve real-world problems, and work collaboratively with others. I especially enjoy how the program encourages innovation and confidence. What I like most about the Flourishing Business Canvas is how it clearly organizes ideas while keeping purpose, values, and impact at the centre of a business.
Alix – Grade 9
The entrepreneurship program at ECS has helped develop skills that I wouldn’t have gained anywhere else, such as problem-solving, leadership, and collaboration. Thanks to the program, I am confident in sharing my ideas and excited for new opportunities to come. The Flourishing Business Canva not only helps organize all of my thoughts, but most importantly, helps visualize the long term impact of a project. It is visually appealing and is a great help in responsible decision-making.
Rosemay – Grade 9
At school, I have the wonderful opportunity of having an entrepreneurship program there. I love it, because it promotes teamwork and imagination! Something useful for that program is the Flourishing Business Canvas ,which I greatly appreciate since it pushes us to think outside of the box and to see all of the ways we can help our community.
Siena – Grade 8
I love how the EP program allows us ( students) to actually make a change, whether inventing or remodeling; we learn important skills. The Flourishing Business Canvas is very helpful because it splits up the work into different categories: Process, Value, and People. This can identify what field needs to be worked on the most and plays a crucial role when deciding what to do next.
During their talk, the students will share:
- Examples of their entrepreneurship projects
- How they have used the Flourishing Business Canvas, what has worked and what has been challenging
- What the Flourishing Business Canvas has enabled them to learn about entrepreneurship and about themselves
- What advice would they give to educators when working with and introducing the canvas to students their ages.
At the end of their talk, Casey and Ondine will moderate questions from members of the community for the students.
After the event, a video of the talk plus slides will be shared in the “Speaker Series” space of the Flourishing Business Community. Please join other flourishing business leaders and become a full member to access.