St. Mary's High School (Kitchener)

St. Mary's High School is a Catholic secondary school in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. It serves most of Kitchener's Catholic students, with others attending Resurrection Catholic Secondary School. Members of its sports teams are known as the Eagles.

St. Mary's High School
Address
1500 Block Line Road

Kitchener
,
Ontario
,
N2C 2S2

Canada
Coordinates43.420036°N 80.467431°W / 43.420036; -80.467431
Information
School typeHigh School
MottoVirtus et Scientia
(Truth and Knowledge)
Religious affiliation(s)Roman Catholic
Founded1907
School boardWaterloo Catholic District School Board
Area trusteeMarcus Cardoso
PrincipalDietrich
Grades9−12, 5th year or 7th year[1]
EnrollmentApprox. 2100 [2]
LanguageEnglish (Main Language) / French, Spanish & Italian (Modern Language)[3]
Colour(s)Blue, White and Silver
MascotJerome the Eagle
Team nameEagles
Websitestmary.wcdsb.ca

History

The school was originally located in the city's downtown where it was founded as the Girls' School to complement the adjacent boys-only St. Jerome's High School. As the latter school had older infrastructure, it was closed and St. Mary's was made co-ed in 1990. In 2002, the school moved from the downtown to the southern suburbs, where there would be far less commuting time for most students.

The former school buildings have been given differing fates: one auxiliary building was demolished; the main St. Jerome's facility has been renovated to house Wilfrid Laurier University's Faculty of Social Work; and the main St. Mary's building now houses both the Catholic School Board offices and the Kitchener Downtown Community Centre.

In the autumn of 2004, a new branch of the Kitchener Public Library opened within the new school building.

The school's fall 2005 enrollment was 2,200 students. This population was still far higher than the anticipated capacity; 25 portable classrooms are currently installed on the grounds, and no student parking is available due to the need for faculty parking, however the newly constructed arena, the Activa Center, allows students use of its parking lot during school hours.

As of October 2008, the schools population was 2,123.,[4] making it one of the largest in Ontario.

The new school building features a Triple Gym, an auditorium/theatre known as Alumni Hall, as well as a large cafeteria. The school also houses tennis courts and 2 soccer/football fields.

Several notable events have occurred at the new school since its opening in 2002. These events include: a bomb scare in 2004, again in September 2010 and again in April 2016, a fire in the central stairwell in 2005, and a chemical scare in 2006. Also, in 2008, an E. coli scare emerged in the school's cafetorium, affecting several students.

In June 2011, the school received its first silver Certification in the WCDSB from Ontario Eco-School.[5] with addition in June 2013 they arrive another silver Certification with Eco-School.[6]

Athletics

In late spring 2007, the girls slo-pitch team became WCSSA champions. They ended their season with 22 wins and 0 losses – a perfect season. They also competed in two tournaments in addition to the regular season, one in Toronto hosted by Bishop Allen and one in Kitchener at the Peter Hallman ballpark. They won both tournaments. Since then, they have gone 81-1-0 as of 2010.

In 2008/2009, the Activa Arena Complex, built by the city of Kitchener, was constructed beside the campus. The arena is now home to St. Mary's' hockey teams, and it also houses the Lennox Lewis Boxing School.

Fall Sports:

  • Basketball (Junior Girls, Senior Girls)
  • Cross Country
  • Field Hockey
  • Football (Junior Boys, Senior Boys)
  • Soccer (Junior Boys)
  • Tennis (Senior)
  • Volleyball (Junior Boys, Senior Boys)

Winter Sports:

  • Basketball (Midget Boys, Junior Boys, Senior Boys)
  • Curling (Novice, Intermediate, Senior)
  • Hockey (Junior Boys, Senior Boys, Girls Varsity)
  • Swimming
  • Volleyball (Midget Girls, Junior Girls, Senior Girls)
  • Wrestling

Spring Sports:

  • Badminton (Junior, Senior)
  • Golf (Junior Boys, Senior Boys, Girls)
  • Mud Puppy Chase (Special Education Students only)
  • Rugby (Bantam Boys, Junior Boys, Senior Boys, Girls)
  • Soccer (Senior Boys, Girls)
  • Softball
  • Special Olympics (Special Education Students[1] only)
  • Tennis (Junior)
  • Track and Field

St. Mary's is a member of the eight team District 8 Athletic Association

Performance arts

The campus' theatre, Alumni Hall, has been host to several theatrical productions. It is one of the only high schools in Waterloo Region that produces two productions every year - one in the fall and one in the spring. The school's most successful production since its relocation was The Pirates of Penzance, the only show in SMH history to sell out all four nights (May 2–5, 2007) Other productions to date include Tommy, the Who's infamous rock opera(Date to Date, 2011), The Three Musketeers by Peter Raby (Date to Date, 2012), and The Crucible by Arthur Miller (May 8–10, 2013).

Clubs

Being such a large, diverse school, there are many non-athletic opportunities for students to get involved in the school community. They include: Art Club, Bible Study Group, Board Games Club, Concert Band, Dance Team, DECA,[7] Eagle Buddies,[1] Environmental Club,[8] Hypercussion, Investment Club, Key Club (Local Area), Link Crew, March For Life (Trip to Ottawa, ON), Mission Collection, Newspaper,[9] Nutrition for Learning, Outdoor Adventure Club, Relay For Life, Science Olympics, Skills Canada,[8] Social Action Team, Tech Crew, The Nest and Yearbook (Separate with non-club), as well as many others.[10]

School activities are conceived and organized by the Student Activities Council, commonly known as SAC. This year, SAC is headed by two co-presidents, Dylan Schnurr and Dante Duval. The council consists of positions like the Arts Reps, Assembly Reps, Athletic Reps, Social Justice Reps, Special Events Reps, Spirit Reps, Healthy Schools Reps, Special Education Reps, Inclusivity Reps, Multicultural Reps, Tech Reps, Communications Reps, Grade Nine Reps and the Faith Rep.

Notable alumni
One of the former school buildings being demolished.
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See also

References
  1. Some students who speed until 7th year because they have Special education REQUIRE. For those program: Community Living and A.C.T.I.V.E
  2. WCDSB Enrolment Report March, 2014 on Microsoft Excel
  3. Modern Language from Academic Program: Communication Course
  4. WCDSB Enrolment Report October, 2008 on Microsoft Excel
  5. WCDSB Report - Seven School Receive Gold, Silver & Bronze Certification in June 16, 2011.
  6. WCDSB Report - Twelve School Receive Gold, Silver & Bronze Certification in June 12, 2013.
  7. Official DECA in St. Mary's H.S with Class Net
  8. This club would not be any longer than last years ago.
  9. Official Online News in St. Mary's High School.
  10. Official Clubs at St. Mary's High School.

Approximation for the 2009/2010 school year

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