Holy Name of Mary College School
Encyclopedia
Holy Name of Mary College School is Ontario's only Independent Catholic School for Girls Grades 5 to 12, located in Mississauga
, Ontario
. It should not be confused with Holy Name of Mary Secondary School
, a regional all-girls high school located in Brampton, Ontario, formerly located in Mississauga.
From a picturesque 25 acre setting Holy Name of Mary College School offers a liberal arts education and follows a non-semester system. With the exception of certain Open courses, such as Music and Physical Education, all courses are offered exclusively at the Academic level and educate girls to university-entrance standards.
Holy Name of Mary College School is the sister school of St. Michael's College School
, a private, Catholic all-boys school in Toronto.
HNMCS President, Margaret DeCourcy, who was in attendance at the competition said, "We are absolutely thrilled with these outstanding results. We are very proud of our students and this success is a testament to their enthusiasm, passion and commitment to their singing. This recognition goes not only to the choir members; it is an accolade for the school as a whole." The choir is under the expert direction of pianist Natalie McDunnough and professional opera singer, Charlene Santoni, both of whom are teachers at the school.
The Senior Choir placed first at the 2011 Peel Music Festival. They were judged by one of Canada’s foremost choir adjudicators and conductor of the Ontario Youth Choir, Dr. Hilary Apfelstadt. She told the senior choir they “sing like angels.”
The Junior Choir, who participated in the Peel Music Festival for the first time in 2011, also achieved a first place standing. "The Junior choir members were very excited about their experience and proud of their accomplishment."
As a result of their achievement of first place standing, the Senior Choir represented the Peel Festival at the Ontario Music Festival Association’s provincial level choir competition. The Senior Choir performed at St. Michael’s Spring Concert in the St. Michael's College School Centre for the Arts on May 12, 2011 and at the Stars of the Festival concert at the Rose Theatre in Brampton on May 28, 2011.
as a private school for young women. The school established a reputation for academic excellence and commitment to social action and service. In 1972, the school entered an agreement with the local school board that students in grades 9 and 10 would be publicly funded. In 1987, Holy Name of Mary became a fully funded Catholic secondary school.
The Felician Sisters and St. Michael's College School co-founded the independent Holy Name of Mary College School. In September 2008, Holy Name of Mary reopened as Holy Name of Mary College School, an independent, Catholic all-girls school. Holy Name of Mary Secondary students relocated to Brampton.
2008 enrollment figures were lower than expected and in 2009 it was announced the school was to close , however the school community rallied and the school remained open. Father Joe Redican, CSB, and President of St. Michael's College School stated, "there has been incredibly strong community support expressed for the vision of an independent Catholic girls’ school, and specifically for the incredible work the current school is doing in educating the wonderful young women who currently attend." Since that time enrollment has more than quadrupled. The school website states, "Holy Name of Mary College School is enjoying significant growth."
On Sunday November 1, 2009 His Grace, Archbishop Thomas Collins presided at the Blessing and Celebration of Holy Name of College School and students. The Holy Name of Mary College School choir and students from St. Michael's College School provided the music at the mass. Guests included Felician Sisters, Trustees, teachers, alumni, and clergy. The ceremony included a Papal Blessing for the school.
Holy Name of Mary College School continues to focus on academic excellence, building on the traditions established by the Felician Sisters.
Nora Bertram-Romero, from the Mayor of Windsor’s office, stated, "We wish to extend our sincere thanks and appreciation for encouraging Jessica to attend the event held in Windsor, and to share the Holy Name of Mary College School story with our community. The audience was impressed with the connection between both the all girl school and all girl orphanage. We were all proud of her representation of the school, and of the successful fundraising initiative."
Ride to Conquer Cancer: Approximately 4800 cyclists stopped at Holy Name of Mary College School to take a break from the 200-kilometre charity trek. Student and parent volunteers, overseen by event crews, managed the station. "We are very pleased and honoured to volunteer our facilities, encouragement and support to this year's Ride to Conquer Cancer," said Holy Name president Margaret DeCourcy. "Supporting this great cause will allow our students the opportunity to inspire and motivate others and also to help make a difference in the fight to conquer cancer."
St. Felix Centre: Students collected close to a ton (literally) of food for the St. Felix Centre's Thanksgiving Food Drive. "St. Felix Centre would like to once again, extend a HUGE THANK YOU to the students and staff of Holy Name of Mary College School (HNMCS), for their ongoing support, hard work and dedication to helping St. Felix Centre to help others. The students of HNMCS donate to St. Felix Centre in so many ways year round, and have once again amazed us with their Thanksgiving Food Drive!"
The school's principal,Margaret DeCourcy, remarked, “The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award has become an important pillar in the education of young women at HNMCS as it is designed to encourage the qualities of self-reliance, initiative, self-improvement and personal responsibility. Students who achieve this Award become active, healthy and involved in their community, which is essential for their future and the future of our communities.”
Jill Hermant, Executive Director of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award said, “We are appreciative of all the support HNMCS is providing the Award on this occasion, over and above the stellar programme they run themselves.”
Mississauga, Ontario
Mississauga is a city in Southern Ontario located in the Regional Municipality of Peel, and in the western part of the Greater Toronto Area. With an estimated population of 734,000, it is Canada's sixth-most populous municipality, and has almost doubled in population in each of the last two decades...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
. It should not be confused with Holy Name of Mary Secondary School
Holy Name of Mary Secondary School
Holy Name of Mary Catholic Secondary School is an all-girls regional high school in Brampton, Ontario, Canada founded by the Felician Sisters...
, a regional all-girls high school located in Brampton, Ontario, formerly located in Mississauga.
From a picturesque 25 acre setting Holy Name of Mary College School offers a liberal arts education and follows a non-semester system. With the exception of certain Open courses, such as Music and Physical Education, all courses are offered exclusively at the Academic level and educate girls to university-entrance standards.
Holy Name of Mary College School is the sister school of St. Michael's College School
St. Michael's College School
St. Michael's College School is a private, all-boys Roman Catholic day school in Toronto, Canada. Currently administered by the Basilian Fathers, it is the largest school of its kind in Canada, with an enrollment of approximately 1,080 students from grades 7 to 12. St...
, a private, Catholic all-boys school in Toronto.
Award Winning Choir
The school's choir placed first at the 2010 Peel Music Festival in the Secondary School Choir category. This was a major accomplishment for the girls given the choir was formed in December 2009. They were new to the competition and were up against some well established and very experienced competitors. Awarding the first place standing to Holy Name of Mary College School of Mississauga, adjudicator Jean Ashworth Bartle, founder of the internationally acclaimed Toronto Children’s Chorus, praised the students, describing their performance as "a very beautiful, moving performance with a lovely body of tone, with very good intonation."HNMCS President, Margaret DeCourcy, who was in attendance at the competition said, "We are absolutely thrilled with these outstanding results. We are very proud of our students and this success is a testament to their enthusiasm, passion and commitment to their singing. This recognition goes not only to the choir members; it is an accolade for the school as a whole." The choir is under the expert direction of pianist Natalie McDunnough and professional opera singer, Charlene Santoni, both of whom are teachers at the school.
The Senior Choir placed first at the 2011 Peel Music Festival. They were judged by one of Canada’s foremost choir adjudicators and conductor of the Ontario Youth Choir, Dr. Hilary Apfelstadt. She told the senior choir they “sing like angels.”
The Junior Choir, who participated in the Peel Music Festival for the first time in 2011, also achieved a first place standing. "The Junior choir members were very excited about their experience and proud of their accomplishment."
As a result of their achievement of first place standing, the Senior Choir represented the Peel Festival at the Ontario Music Festival Association’s provincial level choir competition. The Senior Choir performed at St. Michael’s Spring Concert in the St. Michael's College School Centre for the Arts on May 12, 2011 and at the Stars of the Festival concert at the Rose Theatre in Brampton on May 28, 2011.
History
Both Holy Name of Mary College School and Holy Name of Mary Secondary School trace their origin to the original Holy Name of Mary School founded on 7 September 1964 by the Felician SistersFelician Sisters
The Sisters of St. Felix of Cantalice, or Felician Sisters, are one branch of the Third Order of St. Francis. The active-contemplative order was founded in Warsaw, Poland, in 1855, by Sophia Truszkowska, and named for a shrine of St. Felix, a 16th century Franciscan saint especially devoted to...
as a private school for young women. The school established a reputation for academic excellence and commitment to social action and service. In 1972, the school entered an agreement with the local school board that students in grades 9 and 10 would be publicly funded. In 1987, Holy Name of Mary became a fully funded Catholic secondary school.
The Felician Sisters and St. Michael's College School co-founded the independent Holy Name of Mary College School. In September 2008, Holy Name of Mary reopened as Holy Name of Mary College School, an independent, Catholic all-girls school. Holy Name of Mary Secondary students relocated to Brampton.
2008 enrollment figures were lower than expected and in 2009 it was announced the school was to close , however the school community rallied and the school remained open. Father Joe Redican, CSB, and President of St. Michael's College School stated, "there has been incredibly strong community support expressed for the vision of an independent Catholic girls’ school, and specifically for the incredible work the current school is doing in educating the wonderful young women who currently attend." Since that time enrollment has more than quadrupled. The school website states, "Holy Name of Mary College School is enjoying significant growth."
On Sunday November 1, 2009 His Grace, Archbishop Thomas Collins presided at the Blessing and Celebration of Holy Name of College School and students. The Holy Name of Mary College School choir and students from St. Michael's College School provided the music at the mass. Guests included Felician Sisters, Trustees, teachers, alumni, and clergy. The ceremony included a Papal Blessing for the school.
Holy Name of Mary College School continues to focus on academic excellence, building on the traditions established by the Felician Sisters.
Mission
The mission of Holy Name of Mary College School is to educate young women to their full potential within the teachings and traditions of the Catholic faith. Central to the school's educational philosophy is their focus on providing young women with opportunities to achieve academic excellence, supported by a full co-curricular programme in the arts, athletics, and outdoor education. The school provides students with enriched learning experiences, positive female role models, and a wide variety of leadership opportunities. Students learn in a community that values connectedness and belonging.Felician Sisters
The Felician Sisters are co-founders of Holy Hame of Mary College School. Their love, warmth, prayers, encouragement and spiritual guidance have been invaluable in the development of our school. The school is incredibly thankful for their support and guidance, and forever grateful.Chapel Programme
The school community meets twice weekly in the chapel for faith formation and presentations by faculty, students, and guest speakers on topics significant to the growth of each HNM student. Monthly Masses are also held at this time.Co-Curricular Programme
Co-curricular and club options vary throughout the year and offer students a wide range of choices to suit their interests. These include the art club, art studio drop-in, athletic council, basketball, book club, chess club, community outreach, cross-country, dance club, debating club, Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, environmental club, FIRST Lego Robotics, Italian club, junior and senior choir, leadership, model United Nations, peer tutoring, public speaking, school newspaper (The Star), soccer, Spanish club, junior and senior student council, swimming, tennis, ultimate frisbee, and yearbook.Community Involvement
Helping Hands for Haiti: HNMCS students raised funds to help Frank Chauvin's charitable organization, Holy Name of Mary Food Fund. In March 2009, while the cities of Windsor and Calgary rallied around Frank to help with his rebuilding efforts, Jessica Pelletier, then a grade 10 student from HNMCS, travelled to Windsor to present Mr. Chauvin with a cheque for $2,150.Nora Bertram-Romero, from the Mayor of Windsor’s office, stated, "We wish to extend our sincere thanks and appreciation for encouraging Jessica to attend the event held in Windsor, and to share the Holy Name of Mary College School story with our community. The audience was impressed with the connection between both the all girl school and all girl orphanage. We were all proud of her representation of the school, and of the successful fundraising initiative."
Ride to Conquer Cancer: Approximately 4800 cyclists stopped at Holy Name of Mary College School to take a break from the 200-kilometre charity trek. Student and parent volunteers, overseen by event crews, managed the station. "We are very pleased and honoured to volunteer our facilities, encouragement and support to this year's Ride to Conquer Cancer," said Holy Name president Margaret DeCourcy. "Supporting this great cause will allow our students the opportunity to inspire and motivate others and also to help make a difference in the fight to conquer cancer."
St. Felix Centre: Students collected close to a ton (literally) of food for the St. Felix Centre's Thanksgiving Food Drive. "St. Felix Centre would like to once again, extend a HUGE THANK YOU to the students and staff of Holy Name of Mary College School (HNMCS), for their ongoing support, hard work and dedication to helping St. Felix Centre to help others. The students of HNMCS donate to St. Felix Centre in so many ways year round, and have once again amazed us with their Thanksgiving Food Drive!"
Duke of Edinburgh Award
On Saturday, November 27, 2010, 78 participants from across the GTA and Ontario were presented with their Silver Duke of Edinburgh’s Award by Marc Kielberger, co-founder of Free the Children, at a ceremony held at HNMCS.The school's principal,Margaret DeCourcy, remarked, “The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award has become an important pillar in the education of young women at HNMCS as it is designed to encourage the qualities of self-reliance, initiative, self-improvement and personal responsibility. Students who achieve this Award become active, healthy and involved in their community, which is essential for their future and the future of our communities.”
Jill Hermant, Executive Director of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award said, “We are appreciative of all the support HNMCS is providing the Award on this occasion, over and above the stellar programme they run themselves.”