Upper Canada College
Encyclopedia
Upper Canada College located in midtown Toronto
, Ontario
, Canada
, is an independent
elementary
and secondary school
for boys between Senior Kindergarten
and Grade Twelve
, operating under the International Baccalaureate program. The secondary school segment is divided into ten houses
; eight are for day students and the remaining two exclusively for boarders
. The college also owns and operates a campus in Norval, Ontario
, for outdoor education.
Founded in 1829 by Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada Sir John Colborne
, UCC is the oldest independent school
in the province of Ontario
, the third oldest in the country, and is described as one of Canada's most prestigious preparatory schools
, having many of Canada's most powerful and wealthy as graduates. Modelled on the British
public school
s, throughout the first part of its history the college both influenced and was influenced by government and maintained a reputation as a Tory bastion
from its founding. However, UCC is today fully independent and the student and faculty populations are diverse in terms of cultural and economic backgrounds. A link to Canada's royal family is maintained through Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
, who is the college's Official Visitor
and a member of the Board of Governors.
Founded in 1829 by Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada Major-General Sir John Colborne
(later the Lord Seaton) in the hopes that it would serve as a "feeder school" to the newly established King's College (later the University of Toronto
), UCC was modelled on the great independent schools of Britain, most notably Eton College
. The school began teaching in the original Royal Grammar School
; however, within a year it was established on its own campus, known as Russell Square, at the corner of King and Simcoe Streets, to which Colborne brought Cambridge and Oxford educated men from the United Kingdom, attracting them with high salaries. Still, despite ever increasing enrolment, popularity with leading families of the day (both from the local Family Compact
and from abroad), and praise from many, including Charles Dickens
, UCC was faced with closure on a number of occasions, threatened either by opponents to elitism, withdrawal of funding by the provincial government that administered it, or by having no building in which to operate.
The school survived its denigrators, being merged with King's College for a period after 1831 and moved 60 years later to its present location in Deer Park
, which was then a rural
area. Even though the government of Ontario stopped funding UCC in 1900, thus making it a completely independent school
, the college thrived at its new location, both physically and culturally, as the buildings were expanded and bright instructors attracted.
Central to this development was Principal William Grant, who appointed a group of teachers described as "eccentric, crotchety, quaint, though widely travelled and highly intelligent," and who saw the student enrolment and teacher salaries double, bursaries grow, and a pension plan established. The school expanded to take in lower year students with the construction of a separate primary school building, the Prep, in 1902, allowing for boys to be enrolled from Grade Three
through to graduation.
UCC maintained a cadet corps from around 1837, becoming the only student corps called to duty in Canadian military history when it assisted in staving off the Fenian Raids in 1866. Through the two World Wars, a number of UCC graduates gave their lives and provided leadership; historian Jack Granatstein
, in his book The Generals, demonstrated that UCC graduates accounted for more than 30% of Canadian generals during the Second World War
and 26 Old Boys achieved brigadier
rank or higher.
, all of the necessary $3,200,000 was raised from Old Boys and friends of the college; Ted Rogers
's contribution paid for the clock tower. Construction of the present main building began in early 1959 and it was opened by Governor General
Vincent Massey
near the end of 1960. The crisis forced the school government to rethink their stance on foresight and planning, leading to a years-long program of new construction, salary improvements, and funding sources. Further, in teamwork with Principal Sowby, whom he had helped select, Massey had further influence on the college, bringing about somewhat of a renaissance
for the school: A number of distinguished visitors were brought in and leading minds were hired as masters. At this time, the curriculum began to shift from a classical education
into a liberal arts
one; language options besides Latin
were first offered after 1950.
1965 to 1975 was a decade of constant change at UCC; global and local cultural influences such as the Vietnam War
, Yorkville, Woodstock, changing fashion trends, rock bands, and Watergate, collided head-on with the conservative, traditional culture and environment at UCC. Individual freedoms trumped institutional discipline and moral authority had lost its clout. Patrick T. Johnson, principal from 1965 to 1974, managed the cultural transition during these years, successfully integrating societal trends, traditional values, and individual self expression. One of the casualties, though, was the cadet corps; it was disbanded in September 1975, in favour of a smaller volunteer corps. Under principals educated at Oxford (Johnson) and Cambridge (Sadlier), the college refused to adopt the new provincial educational standards issued in 1967, which it considered lower than the old standards. UCC also moved forward with new educational and athletic facilities across the campus, while opening the campus to the wider community at the same time. By the 1990s, summer camp
s were set up on the campus for any child who wished to enroll.
The college embarked on another building campaign, again with the aid of Prince Philip, beginning in 1989 and ending in 1994, with the construction of new athletic facilities at the Upper School and the replacement of the 1901 Peacock Building at the Prep. Two years later, UCC adopted the International Baccalaureate (IB), which augmented the Ontario Secondary School Diploma
. Following this, Grade Two
was added in 1998 and Grade One
the next year. Since 2003, UCC has offered places from Senior Kindergarten
to Grade Twelve
.
or of possessing child pornography
; three were convicted of some of the charges against them. Then, in 2003, 18 students sued UCC, claiming sexual abuse
by Doug Brown, who taught at the Prep from 1975 to 1993 and was eventually found guilty in 2004 of indecent assault
and sentenced to jail. However, one of the 18 plaintiffs, facing his own child abuse charges, continued with a $19 million case specifically against the college. In response, UCC formed a review team to assess school policies and create new ones, which reported in May 2003 that emphasis should be placed on identifying and preventing misconduct before it occurs.
UCC followed the trends in environmentalism
when the Board of Governors unanimously voted in 2002 to establish the Green School initiative, wherein environmental education would become "one of the four hallmarks of a UCC education." Plans to carry this out saw not only upgrades of the school's physical plant
to meet environmentally sustainable
standards, but also an integration of these new initiatives into the curriculum.
(43 acre
) campus in Deer Park
, near the major intersection of Avenue Road and St. Clair Avenue
, in the residential neighbourhood of Forest Hill
. There are 15 buildings on the site: The main structure (the Upper School), constructed between 1959 and 1960, central on the campus, and with a dominant clock tower
, houses the secondary school component of the college, in a quadrangle form. Laidlaw Hall, the principal assembly hall, featuring a full theatre stage and a pipe organ
, is attached to the west end of the Upper School and, at the other end, is the Memorial Wing, the school's main infirmary
. Closing the north end of the main quadrangle
is one building, built in 1932, that contains the two boarding houses, as well as two private residences for the associated boarding masters, adjacent to which is the school chapel, donated by Governor General
Vincent Massey
. Satellite to this complex are townhouse
-style residences for masters and their families; the residence of the college's principal, Grant House, built in 1917; and a small, two-storey cricket pavilion
, inaugurated by Governor General Raymond Hnatyshyn
. The Preparatory School, part of which was designed by Eden Smith
, is at the south-west corner of the campus, near which is a home for the Prep headmaster and a small gatehouse.
The athletic facilities include an indoor pool and three gym
nasiums, as well as, around the campus, the William P. Wilder sports complex (containing an NHL and an Olympic sized rink, one of only four in Ontario.), a sports activity bubble, tennis courts, a sports court, a running track, and nine regulation sized sports fields. The two major fields of the Upper School are called Commons and Lords, after, respectively, the British House of Commons
and House of Lords
, and one of the main central fields is known as The Oval. In the summer of 2006, the latter, along with the encompassing running track, was renovated, with the grass replaced by a partially synthetic astroturf
/grass hybrid and the track paved with a rubber turf. Several meters below the field, geothermal
pipes were laid to provide alternative energy
heating for both the Upper School and the adjacent sports complex. A number of these facilities are the result of a decade long, $90 million capital building campaign launched in the 1990s. Still planned are an Olympic-standard, 50-metre swimming pool; a new racquet centre for squash, badminton, and tennis; a rowing centre; the expansion of both the Prep and Upper School academic buildings; and an expansion of the archives.
The Ontario Heritage Trust
, a non-profit agency of the Ontario Ministry of Culture
, erected three plaques
outlining UCC's presence and history in Toronto. One is on the north-east corner of 20 Duncan Street (the only existing building from the college's original campus), the second at the south-east corner of 212 King Street West, and one at the main entrance of the current campus at 200 Lonsdale Road.
, on 420 acres (170 ha) of property on the Credit River
. Norval's main purpose is to teach college students about the natural environment
, sustainability
, and ecosystems through outdoor learning programs, some in conjunction with Outward Bound
Canada; throughout the school year, entire classes, houses, or portions of certain grades will have a several day stay at Norval. However, other Ontario schools use the property and its facilities during the weeks when UCC students are not in residence. Norval also hosts an open house each season, with the spring Maple Madness focusing on the site's traditional maple syrup
manufacturing.
The land was purchased in 1913, at a time when the city of Toronto was quickly growing around the college's Deer Park campus and the trustees were considering moving the school to a new location. Plans for buildings were drawn up by an architectural firm, however, due to the outbreak of the First World War
and the depression
, the plans to move were abandoned in the 1930s. The college retained possession of the property, though, and it was developed into an outdoor education centre for UCC students and community. Beginning in 1913, an annual picnic was held at Norval, the first being catered by the King Edward Hotel. As the land had originally been cleared for agricultural use, much of the site was open field until, through the 1940s, over 700,000 seedling
s were planted by staff and students, followed by the creation of an arboretum
in 1964. The first bunk house was built in the 1930s and augmented in 1967 by another, larger residence and dining building, known as Stephen House. Blake Millar's design for Stephen House, which won a Massey Medal
for excellence in architecture, contains, in addition to the residential spaces for students and staff, a classroom and laboratory. There is also a bungalow-style residence for the property caretaker and in 2003 several log cabins were built for writing retreats.
Into the 2000s, the school came under criticism for keeping the entirety of the increasingly taxed Norval property while so little of it was actually used; this argument is gained increased credence in light of the consistent yearly tuition hikes and mounting legal costs. Despite repeated assertions that the college had no intention of selling the property, citing not only rapidly increasing land value, but also an intention to hold it in order to prevent industrial development on land that contains a variety of wildlife, including spotted deer and hares, UCC sold a small portion of the acreage in 2007 to help cover legal costs.
). As of 2010, tuition fees range from $26,870 to $28,870 CAD
(not including books and uniform) for day-boy students and $47,945 to $49,945 for boarding. An additional $500 technology fee is levied on all students in the Upper School, which covers the costs of a 13-inch, 2.53 GHz, MacBook Pro
laptop
computer, the associated software, and technological support. The institution has strict admissions standards, accepting approximately 25% of all applicants; to those, UCC offers over $1.4 million in needs-based financial aid to students in Grade Seven
and above. The school plans to increase financial assistance over the next decade and to help a more diverse range of students attend UCC.
Besides its own archives containing records that outline the history of Upper Canada, the province of Ontario, and the city of Toronto dating back to the mid-19th century, the college also has a notable collection of artwork, antiques, and war medals. This includes the Order of Canada
insignia presented to Robertson Davies
, Foster Hewitt
, Charles Band, and Arnold Smith
, plus Canada's first Victoria Cross
, awarded in 1854 to Old Boy Alexander Roberts Dunn
, and a Victoria Cross awarded to Hampden Zane Churchill Cockburn
; the valour medals were given to the Canadian War Museum
on permanent loan on 17 May 2006. In the college's chapel, itself decorated with works by Canadian artists, is an altar made of marble from parts of St. Paul's Cathedral
, in London
, England
, that were damaged in the Blitz
and donated by Dean of St. Paul's Walter Robert Matthews
. On this is an altar cloth
made from a piece of that which was used for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II
. Further, the school holds works by Thoreau MacDonald
and a collection of original paintings from the Group of Seven
(though several were auctioned by the college in an effort to pay for the lawsuits it faced in 2004); an original Stephen Leacock
essay, titled Why Boys Leave Home A Talk on Camping, donated in 2005 and published for the first time in The Globe and Mail
; and the original manuscript of Robertson Davies
' work The Mask of Aesop, which he wrote in 1952 specifically for the Prep's 50th anniversary. Also in UCC's possession is a chair owned by Sir John A. Macdonald
and another that once belonged to George Airey Kirkpatrick
.
and administered by a 17 member Board of Governors
as a public trust, with the current chair of the board being Michael MacMillan
, Executive Chairman of Alliance Atlantis
. The board, whose members are appointed and elected from amongst alumni, parents of students past and present, and the wider UCC community, selects the college's principal to manage the school's annual operation and head an executive committee composed of vice-principals, department heads, and administration staff. There are 143 faculty members in total, 64 of which teach at the Upper School. Within the Upper School faculty there are 52 men and 23 women, 29 of which have advanced university degrees. 17 faculty members reside on the campus. The student-to-teacher ratio is 18:1 in the lower grades and 19:1 in the upper grades.
; Senior Kindergarten to Grade Seven
students, approximately 400 boys, attend the Preparatory School (the Prep), after which a boy may move on to the Upper School, which consists of Grades Eight to Twelve. The Upper School years are known as follows:
While Prep students are divided into forms
, UCC, like several other schools in the Commonwealth of Nations
, divides its Upper School students into houses. The house system
was first adopted in 1923, consisting of only four houses until the late 1930s, after which the number increased the present ten. Eight of these Bremner's, Howard's, Jackson's, Martland's, McHugh's, Mowbray's, Orr's, and Scadding's are for day students and the remaining two Seaton's and Wedd's are for boarders. Though the administration planned to phase out boarding in favour of increased socio-economic diversity, widespread protest from the college's Old Boys led to the abandonment of such plans and the administration re-committed to revitalizing the boarding program. The houses compete in an annual intramural competition for the Prefects' Cup and the boarders also take part in weekend events and trips with boarders from neighbouring girls' schools.
The school's student government, created in 1892 and known as the Board of Stewards, represents the students at events, such as Association Day and Hockey Night, and relays their wishes, during times of change or concern, to the upper administration. The group comprises 17 elected members of the Leaving Class: one steward for each house (the heads of houses) plus seven the Head Steward and six stewards with portfolio chosen by the majority of the whole student body. In addition to the stewards, students can enter the prefects
program, requiring them to show leadership through their senior years in order to be awarded the title of Prefect upon graduation, the highest recognition UCC offers "for citizenship and leadership."
Though Upper Canada College has accepted ethnic minorities
since the first black
student enrolled in 1831, their representation within the student body was initially disproportionate to the same within the city's population. Michael Ignatieff
considered the school's ethnic makeup during his time there, between 1959 and 1965, reflective of the culture of Toronto in general; according to him, "basically Tory, Anglican and fantastically patrician." Peter C. Newman
, who attended UCC a decade before Ignatieff, and himself Jewish, said anti-semitism was "virtually non-existent." According to school historian Richard Howard, UCC transformed its culture during the 1970s, as it began to offer assistance to the less affluent and made attempts to attract boys from visible minorities, becoming what he called "a small United Nations" that echoed Toronto's emerging ethnic variety (today, students from over 20 different countries and regions attend UCC), though, as recently as 1990, there were references in College Times editorials to anti-semitism
and sexism. These aspects of College life came to light in 1994, through James T. Fitzgerald's book Old Boys, which published some alumni's recollections of the school. The college took the criticisms seriously, hiring one of its critics to help open UCC to the broader community.
through to Grade Twelve
. Graduates receive both the Ontario Secondary School Diploma
and the International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma; UCC adopted the IB program in 1996 and the entire curriculum is today guided by the non-governmental organization
. French, language, mathematics
, science
, outdoor education
, physical education
, the arts, and more are covered during a boy's years in the Prep School and, once boys move to the Upper School in Year One (Grade Eight
), they begin university preparation through a liberal arts
program. The courseload includes mathematics, history, geography
, science, English, civics, and the dramatic, visual, and musical arts, as well as computer science
. Aiding both student and teachers is the Wernham West Centre for Learning, the most comprehensive and endowed secondary school learning facility in Canada. Created in 2002 as a department pertaining to the refinement of academic skills and assisting the students with learning disabilities, its primary focus is to facilitate improved learning skills and abilities, as well as accommodate for students with particular learning disabilities.
program and all students must complete 150 hours of other extracurricular commitments, with an equal division between arts, athletics, and community service (what the IB calls CAS: creativity, action, service), prior to graduation.
to Shakespeare
, with at least one large scale and one small scale production each year. Smaller, student written and run plays are also produced. The theatre program, which includes all aspects of production, is run in conjunction with Bishop Strachan School
, a nearby girls' private school. Various bands and music groups that practice extra-curricularly are also supported by the college, including a wind ensemble, concert band
, stage band, string ensemble
, jazz ensemble, and singers. These groups compete in festivals at different levels and also organize fundraising concerts. UCC has, and still does, develop sports rivalries with other boys' schools in Ontario.
Sports teams run by UCC include baseball
, basketball
, cricket
, football
, golf
, hockey
, rowing
, rugby
, lacrosse
, soccer
, squash
, Swimming
, track and field
, tennis
, and volleyball
. Some teams are purely intramural
, but 45 interscholastic teams compete in the CISAA and OFSAA and regularly place high in the standings at national and international competitions, such as the Head of the Charles Regatta
.
is Canada's oldest student run conference, begun in 1983 and organized in conjunction with Branksome Hall
since the late 1980s. Held annually, it is attended by over 750 international students from 20 schools. Past speakers have included Ralph Nader
, Stephen Lewis
, Michael Ignatieff
, Susan Faludi
, Gwynne Dyer
, and Thomas Homer-Dixon
, all of whom have spoken on a variety of topics including human rights, gender issues, justice, globalization, and health ethics. Also in conjunction with other schools, UCC runs the Ontario Model Parliament
(OMP), a simulation of a provincial parliament that has taken place each year since 1986, when it was founded by UCC teacher Paul Bennett, and is composed of two events: an Elections Day at UCC, followed by a three-day simulation that takes place in the legislative chamber at the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
. UCC students make up the entirety of the Executive Committee that organizes and runs the model parliament, however 200 students from high schools around the province participate. Past Elections Day speakers have included Art Eggleton
, John Tory
, John Aimers
, Bob Rae
, and Rex Murphy
.
The UCC Green School is an environmental organization composed of student, teachers, and faculty, through which UCC has planted and maintained an educational organic garden, reduced landfill
waste and water consumption, and implemented a program of purchasing renewable resources for renovations. The Green School has won awards from the City of Toronto
and the National Audubon Society
.
, but the UCC Press today prints the majority of school-related publications newspaper, alumni magazines, financial reports, etc. save for the College Times. UCC provides several publications, most of which are written, directed, and printed by students.
The College Times is UCC's yearbook
and is the oldest school publication in Canada, having been issued without fail since it was founded by John Ross Robertson
, then a student at UCC, in September 1857. The first editions were written by Robertson and fellow pupils and printed on presses at The Globe
, the predecessor newspaper of the present The Globe and Mail
. Past editors include Robertson Davies
, Michael Ignatieff
, and Stephen Leacock
. Issued more regularly, Old Times is the school's alumni magazine, which reports on the lives of Old Boys, and highlights recent and upcoming events.
Serials for the student body include The Blazer, the college humour newspaper; Quiddity, the school's annual arts and literature publication, which showcases students' creative work; The Blue Page, a one-page weekly publication of letters to the editor expressing opinions on any relevant issue; and Convergence, the school's award winning student newspaper. In addition, BluesTV was a student led, school television network that started in 2007 and aired multimedia, slideshows of pictures from various school events, as well as promotional material created for the college. BluesTV became a subsidiary of the Media Association in 2009, fostering the operation of a live-announcement submission and display system.
. In relation to this, the college runs the Horizons program, in which local underprivileged children are tutored in music, digital media, and academics twice a week by current UCC students. Further, each year, usually for two to four weeks during Spring Break, UCC also organises trips for 15 to 20 of its Upper School students to various developing countries where they take part in community building services such as constructing schools, wells
and homes, or aiding in conservation work. Students have ventured to places like Venezuela
, El Salvador
, Kenya
, and China
.
Association Day is analogous to UCC's homecoming
. Held since 1979, A-Day, as it is informally known, constitutes the school's largest annual event, taking place over the last weekend of September and culminating on the Saturday with a large festival, including competitive matches for all fall sports teams and the Association Dinner for Old Boys celebrating their five year incremental class reunion
s. Later in the academic year is the Founder's Dinner, a formal event that has been held for more than a century. It typically takes place on the Thursday night before the third weekend in January, which is made a special long weekend for students as a commemoration of Sir John Colborne's birthday. Another regular event is the UCC Gala, a black tie dinner and silent auction organized every three or four years in May.
Two secondary school student dances take place in the calendar year: The Battalion Ball originated out of the At Home, a UCC community-wide event similar to a modern homecoming and first held in 1887. The revival of the UCC Rifle Corps in 1891 resulted in students attending the At Home in their cadet uniforms and, by 1897, a dance was added to the festivities in the evening, known as the Rifle Corps Dance. By 1931, the dance became the Battalion Ball, after the Rifle Corps was renamed the UCC Cadet Battalion, and in 1971 the colloquial nickname The Batt was devised. The event was held off-campus for the first time in 1975, at the King Edward Hotel
, and after 1976, when the Cadet Corps was disbanded, school uniforms replaced military attire, rock
bands played, and The Batt became more of a spring prom
. Today, The Batt is reserved for students in grades 11 and 12, held at venues such as the Royal York Hotel
or Arcadian Court
, with attire being tuxedo for boys and evening gown
or cocktail dress
for girls, and music is provided by DJs
. The Stewards' Dance is UCC's fall semi-formal and is typically fashioned around costume party
themes such as "Great Couples in History". The dance takes place in late October and is administrated by the Board of Stewards for all students in grades 11 and above.
Various sporting events occur annually: Hockey Night has been held by the college since 1933 as an evening where the First Hockey team would play a feature game against one of UCC's rival schools in competition for the Foster Hewitt
Victory Trophy. The game was held at Maple Leaf Gardens
, thanks to the generosity of the arena's builder, Conn Smythe
, and its (as well as the then Toronto Maple Leafs
) owner, Harold Ballard
, both themselves Old Boys. After the closing of The Gardens in 2000, the event was moved to the Air Canada Centre
and then the Ricoh Coliseum
. Over the decades other games were added to the roster, including a game involving the school's Junior Varsity team, the final game of the house hockey tournament, and a game between Havergal College
and Bishop Strachan School
. By the early 1990s, pleasure skating and Prep School games had been added to the evening's schedule. Further, the Terry Fox Run
is one of Upper Canada College's most successful events; the school is an official site for the run, acting as the start and end point, as well as part of the course, which ventures throughout Toronto's Belt-Line. UCC's Terry Fox Run is also the largest site and has raised the most money in the world since 2000. The Prep Games Day is an annual held event at the junior school.
(CAIS), the Secondary School Admission Test
(SAT) Board, the Association of Boarding Schools (TABS) and an associate member of the National Association of Independent Schools
(NAIS), the International Boys' School Coalition (IBSC), the Toronto Boys' School Coalition (TBSC), and the college principal is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
(HMC) in the UK. Along with St. Andrew's College, Ridley College
, and Trinity College School
, UCC also remains one of the Little Big Four
, an athletic association of Ontario independent boys' schools established in the 19th century.
Though Bishop Strachan School
(BSS) is located only two blocks from UCC, it is not UCC's sister school. UCC students do, however, work on joint projects with students of other nearby girls' schools, including BSS, St. Clement's School
, Havergal College
, and Branksome Hall
. Lower Canada College
, a co-educational private school in Montreal
, Quebec
, is not affiliated with UCC.
The school has produced six lieutenant governors, three premiers
, seven chief justices, and four Mayors of Toronto. At least 15 graduates have been appointed to the Queen's Privy Council for Canada
, 24 have been named Rhodes Scholars, 10 are Olympic medallists
, and at least 13 have been accepted as fellows of the Royal Society of Canada
. No less than 40 have been inducted into the Order of Canada
since the honour's inception in 1967.
, Halifax, Kingston
, London
, Montreal
, Ottawa
, and Vancouver
in Canada; Boston
, Los Angeles
, New York
, and San Francisco in the United States
; London
in the United Kingdom
; Hong Kong
in China
; and Budapest
in Hungary
.
A 29 person board of directors, referred to as the Association Council, meets three times a year to discuss matters facing the college and plan association events; 21 of those on the council are elected by members of the association at its annual meeting, while the remaining eight are ex-officio. Four of the 17 members of the college's board of governors come from the association board, including the President of the Association, and serve on the larger body for a three-year period.
Faculty have included:
titled Ad Ventos ante A.D. MDCXXVIII ("To the Winds Before 1727"). The words, attached to the arms
of Lord Nelson
in 1797, were first used in relation to UCC in 1833, as part of an emblem stamped on the inside of books given as prizes, showing the phrase written on a ribbon tying together two laurel leaves around the school's name. Around 1850, a crown replaced the school's name; John Ross Robertson
stated this was at the insistence of Henry Scadding
, who argued in favour of its use because the school had both been founded by a lieutenant governor
and was at first a Royal Grammar School
. The crown first used was that of King George IV
.
In 1889, Scadding produced the design for the insignia which can still be seen over the doors to Laidlaw Hall at the college's Upper School. L.C. Kerslake described this crest in 1956:
This complex design, known as Scadding's Device, which was just the Seal of Upper Canada, authorised in 1820, with the college's motto and palm branches applied, was never widely used. Instead, the simple crown between laurel leaves tied with a ribbon bearing the school motto became the standard crest, though its appearance changed throughout the decades in reflection of current tastes.
It was not until the mid 1970s, as the college approached its sesquicentennial, that consideration was given to having the crest authorised by the College of Arms
, then the heraldic authority for Canada, and the Armoral Bearings Committee was established to oversee the project. A petition was thereafter submitted to the Earl Marshal
in 1981. The Board of Governors insisted that the school's traditional crest be incorporated into the forthcoming achievement; however, as the crest includes a royal crown, it was necessary to obtain the Canadian monarch's personal permission to use it officially. This was done via the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
, then John Black Aird
(himself a UCC Old Boy), and Queen Elizabeth II consented to the request, making UCC the only institution of its kind in the Commonwealth of Nations to have the royal crown in its arms.
The letters patent
granting UCC its armorial achievements, including a heraldic standard, were issued on 4 January 1985, the 155th anniversary of the college's first day of classes. The traditional crest became the school's badge
, though without the motto, as text and figures are normally not included in such emblems, but the King of Arms made an exception to the rules by allowing the retention of the date 1829 in the design. The symbol also became the crest
of the school's new arms, though here with the number 1829 omitted, as, per heraldic rules, the royal crown must sit directly on the helmet. The escutcheon of the arms shows two deer's heads in the chief one being the crest of the arms of the Lord Seaton
and the other taken from the arms of Bishop John Strachan
, the first Chairman of the Board of Governors while, below a line of division
embattled as in Seaton's achievement, is the aforementioned Scadding's Device surmounted by another royal crown. The shield is supported by, on the left, a master in academic gown and, at right, a student in cricket
uniform, both styled on such figures in the mid-19th century. These devices were in 2005 registered with the Canadian Heraldic Authority
.
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, 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....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, is an independent
Independent school
An independent school is a school that is independent in its finances and governance; it is not dependent upon national or local government for financing its operations, nor reliant on taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of tuition charges, gifts, and in some cases the...
elementary
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
and secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
for boys between Senior Kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
and Grade Twelve
Twelfth grade
Twelfth grade or Senior year, or Grade Twelve, are the North American names for the final year of secondary school. In most countries students then graduate at age 17 or 18. In some countries, there is a thirteenth grade, while other countries do not have a 12th grade/year at all...
, operating under the International Baccalaureate program. The secondary school segment is divided into ten houses
House system
The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...
; eight are for day students and the remaining two exclusively for boarders
Boarding school
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers and/or administrators. The word 'boarding' is used in the sense of "bed and board," i.e., lodging and meals...
. The college also owns and operates a campus in Norval, Ontario
Norval, Ontario
Norval is an unincorporated community in the town of Halton Hills, Ontario, Canada. Situated on the Credit River, it is located approximately 55 km west of Toronto and is part of the Regional Municipality of Halton....
, for outdoor education.
Founded in 1829 by Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada Sir John Colborne
John Colborne, 1st Baron Seaton
Field Marshal John Colborne, 1st Baron Seaton, GCB, GCMG, GCH, PC was a British field marshal and colonial governor.-Early service:...
, UCC is the oldest independent school
Independent school
An independent school is a school that is independent in its finances and governance; it is not dependent upon national or local government for financing its operations, nor reliant on taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of tuition charges, gifts, and in some cases the...
in the province of 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....
, the third oldest in the country, and is described as one of Canada's most prestigious preparatory schools
University-preparatory school
A university-preparatory school or college-preparatory school is a secondary school, usually private, designed to prepare students for a college or university education...
, having many of Canada's most powerful and wealthy as graduates. Modelled on the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
public school
Public School (UK)
A public school, in common British usage, is a school that is neither administered nor financed by the state or from taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of endowments, tuition fees and charitable contributions, usually existing as a non profit-making charitable trust...
s, throughout the first part of its history the college both influenced and was influenced by government and maintained a reputation as a Tory bastion
Bastion
A bastion, or a bulwark, is a structure projecting outward from the main enclosure of a fortification, situated in both corners of a straight wall , facilitating active defence against assaulting troops...
from its founding. However, UCC is today fully independent and the student and faculty populations are diverse in terms of cultural and economic backgrounds. A link to Canada's royal family is maintained through Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is the husband of Elizabeth II. He is the United Kingdom's longest-serving consort and the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch....
, who is the college's Official Visitor
Visitor
A Visitor, in United Kingdom law and history, is an overseer of an autonomous ecclesiastical or eleemosynary institution , who can intervene in the internal affairs of that institution...
and a member of the Board of Governors.
Beginnings and growth
John Colborne, 1st Baron Seaton
Field Marshal John Colborne, 1st Baron Seaton, GCB, GCMG, GCH, PC was a British field marshal and colonial governor.-Early service:...
(later the Lord Seaton) in the hopes that it would serve as a "feeder school" to the newly established King's College (later the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
), UCC was modelled on the great independent schools of Britain, most notably Eton College
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
. The school began teaching in the original Royal Grammar School
Jarvis Collegiate Institute
Jarvis Collegiate Institute is a high school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.Jarvis is located on Jarvis Street. Founded in 1807 it is the second oldest high school in Ontario after the Kingston Collegiate and Vocational Institute, and the oldest high school in Toronto.-History:Jarvis Collegiate was...
; however, within a year it was established on its own campus, known as Russell Square, at the corner of King and Simcoe Streets, to which Colborne brought Cambridge and Oxford educated men from the United Kingdom, attracting them with high salaries. Still, despite ever increasing enrolment, popularity with leading families of the day (both from the local Family Compact
Family Compact
Fully developed after the War of 1812, the Compact lasted until Upper and Lower Canada were united in 1841. In Lower Canada, its equivalent was the Château Clique. The influence of the Family Compact on the government administration at different levels lasted to the 1880s...
and from abroad), and praise from many, including Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
, UCC was faced with closure on a number of occasions, threatened either by opponents to elitism, withdrawal of funding by the provincial government that administered it, or by having no building in which to operate.
Deer Park, Toronto
Deer Park is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, centred on the intersection of Yonge Street and St. Clair Avenue; its boundaries are the Vale of Avoca section of Rosedale ravine in the east, Farnham Avenue and Jackes Avenue in the south, Avenue Road and Oriole Parkway in the west, the...
, which was then a rural
Rural
Rural areas or the country or countryside are areas that are not urbanized, though when large areas are described, country towns and smaller cities will be included. They have a low population density, and typically much of the land is devoted to agriculture...
area. Even though the government of Ontario stopped funding UCC in 1900, thus making it a completely independent school
Independent school
An independent school is a school that is independent in its finances and governance; it is not dependent upon national or local government for financing its operations, nor reliant on taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of tuition charges, gifts, and in some cases the...
, the college thrived at its new location, both physically and culturally, as the buildings were expanded and bright instructors attracted.
Central to this development was Principal William Grant, who appointed a group of teachers described as "eccentric, crotchety, quaint, though widely travelled and highly intelligent," and who saw the student enrolment and teacher salaries double, bursaries grow, and a pension plan established. The school expanded to take in lower year students with the construction of a separate primary school building, the Prep, in 1902, allowing for boys to be enrolled from Grade Three
Third grade
In the United States, third grade is a year of primary education. It is the third school year after kindergarten. Students are usually 8 – 9 years old, depending on when their birthday occurs....
through to graduation.
UCC maintained a cadet corps from around 1837, becoming the only student corps called to duty in Canadian military history when it assisted in staving off the Fenian Raids in 1866. Through the two World Wars, a number of UCC graduates gave their lives and provided leadership; historian Jack Granatstein
Jack Granatstein
Jack Lawrence Granatstein, OC, FRSC is a Canadian historian who specializes in political and military history.-Education:Born in Toronto, Ontario, Granatstein received a graduation diploma from Le College militaire royal de Saint-Jean in 1959, his BA from the Royal Military College of Canada in...
, in his book The Generals, demonstrated that UCC graduates accounted for more than 30% of Canadian generals during the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and 26 Old Boys achieved brigadier
Brigadier
Brigadier is a senior military rank, the meaning of which is somewhat different in different military services. The brigadier rank is generally superior to the rank of colonel, and subordinate to major general....
rank or higher.
After the Second World War
UCC faced a major crisis when, in 1958, it was discovered that the main building was in serious disrepair, due to poor construction during previous renovations, and was in danger of collapse. At the time, despite its benefactors, UCC had no endowment. A massive fundraising campaign was started within the year and, with the assistance of Prince PhilipPrince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is the husband of Elizabeth II. He is the United Kingdom's longest-serving consort and the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch....
, all of the necessary $3,200,000 was raised from Old Boys and friends of the college; Ted Rogers
Edward S. Rogers, Sr.
Edward Samuel "Ted" Rogers is regarded as the founder of Rogers Communications although it was established in 1967, almost three decades after his death.-Life and career:...
's contribution paid for the clock tower. Construction of the present main building began in early 1959 and it was opened by Governor General
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
Vincent Massey
Vincent Massey
Charles Vincent Massey was a Canadian lawyer and diplomat who served as Governor General of Canada, the 18th since Canadian Confederation....
near the end of 1960. The crisis forced the school government to rethink their stance on foresight and planning, leading to a years-long program of new construction, salary improvements, and funding sources. Further, in teamwork with Principal Sowby, whom he had helped select, Massey had further influence on the college, bringing about somewhat of a renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
for the school: A number of distinguished visitors were brought in and leading minds were hired as masters. At this time, the curriculum began to shift from a classical education
Classical education movement
The Classical education movement advocates a form of education based in the traditions of Western culture, with a particular focus on education as understood and taught in the Middle Ages. The curricula and pedagogy of classical education was first developed during the Middle Ages by Martianus...
into a liberal arts
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
one; language options besides Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
were first offered after 1950.
1965 to 1975 was a decade of constant change at UCC; global and local cultural influences such as the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, Yorkville, Woodstock, changing fashion trends, rock bands, and Watergate, collided head-on with the conservative, traditional culture and environment at UCC. Individual freedoms trumped institutional discipline and moral authority had lost its clout. Patrick T. Johnson, principal from 1965 to 1974, managed the cultural transition during these years, successfully integrating societal trends, traditional values, and individual self expression. One of the casualties, though, was the cadet corps; it was disbanded in September 1975, in favour of a smaller volunteer corps. Under principals educated at Oxford (Johnson) and Cambridge (Sadlier), the college refused to adopt the new provincial educational standards issued in 1967, which it considered lower than the old standards. UCC also moved forward with new educational and athletic facilities across the campus, while opening the campus to the wider community at the same time. By the 1990s, summer camp
Summer camp
Summer camp is a supervised program for children or teenagers conducted during the summer months in some countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer camp are known as campers....
s were set up on the campus for any child who wished to enroll.
The college embarked on another building campaign, again with the aid of Prince Philip, beginning in 1989 and ending in 1994, with the construction of new athletic facilities at the Upper School and the replacement of the 1901 Peacock Building at the Prep. Two years later, UCC adopted the International Baccalaureate (IB), which augmented the Ontario Secondary School Diploma
Ontario Secondary School Diploma
The Ontario Secondary School Diploma is a diploma granted to high school graduates in the province of Ontario.-Diploma requirements:The Ontario Academic Credit system applies to students from Grades 9 through 12...
. Following this, Grade Two
Second grade
In the United States, second grade is a year of primary education. Second grade is the second school year after kindergarten. Students are traditionally 7–8 years old, depending on when their birthday occurs....
was added in 1998 and Grade One
First grade
First grade is a year of primary education in schools in the United States and English-speaking provinces of Canada. It is the first school year after kindergarten...
the next year. Since 2003, UCC has offered places from Senior Kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
to Grade Twelve
Twelfth grade
Twelfth grade or Senior year, or Grade Twelve, are the North American names for the final year of secondary school. In most countries students then graduate at age 17 or 18. In some countries, there is a thirteenth grade, while other countries do not have a 12th grade/year at all...
.
Into the 21st century
Across the turn of the third millennium, the school fell under darker clouds when, in the years following 1998, five UCC staff were accused of sexual abuseSexual abuse
Sexual abuse, also referred to as molestation, is the forcing of undesired sexual behavior by one person upon another. When that force is immediate, of short duration, or infrequent, it is called sexual assault. The offender is referred to as a sexual abuser or molester...
or of possessing child pornography
Child pornography
Child pornography refers to images or films and, in some cases, writings depicting sexually explicit activities involving a child...
; three were convicted of some of the charges against them. Then, in 2003, 18 students sued UCC, claiming sexual abuse
Sexual abuse
Sexual abuse, also referred to as molestation, is the forcing of undesired sexual behavior by one person upon another. When that force is immediate, of short duration, or infrequent, it is called sexual assault. The offender is referred to as a sexual abuser or molester...
by Doug Brown, who taught at the Prep from 1975 to 1993 and was eventually found guilty in 2004 of indecent assault
Indecent assault
Indecent assault is an offence of aggravated assault in many jurisdictions. It is characterised as a sex crime.Indecent assault was an offence in England and Wales under sections 14 and 15 the Sexual Offences Act 1956...
and sentenced to jail. However, one of the 18 plaintiffs, facing his own child abuse charges, continued with a $19 million case specifically against the college. In response, UCC formed a review team to assess school policies and create new ones, which reported in May 2003 that emphasis should be placed on identifying and preventing misconduct before it occurs.
UCC followed the trends in environmentalism
Environmentalism
Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...
when the Board of Governors unanimously voted in 2002 to establish the Green School initiative, wherein environmental education would become "one of the four hallmarks of a UCC education." Plans to carry this out saw not only upgrades of the school's physical plant
Physical plant
Physical plant or mechanical plant refers to the necessary infrastructure used in support and maintenance of a given facility. The operation of these facilities, or the department of an organization which does so, is called "plant operations" or facility management...
to meet environmentally sustainable
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
standards, but also an integration of these new initiatives into the curriculum.
Campus and facilities
Toronto campus
Upper Canada College occupies an open, 17 hectareHectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
(43 acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
) campus in Deer Park
Deer Park, Toronto
Deer Park is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, centred on the intersection of Yonge Street and St. Clair Avenue; its boundaries are the Vale of Avoca section of Rosedale ravine in the east, Farnham Avenue and Jackes Avenue in the south, Avenue Road and Oriole Parkway in the west, the...
, near the major intersection of Avenue Road and St. Clair Avenue
St. Clair Avenue
St. Clair Avenue is a major east-west street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was laid out in the late 18th century by the British as a concession road , north of Bloor Street and north of Queen Street....
, in the residential neighbourhood of Forest Hill
Forest Hill, Toronto
Forest Hill is an affluent neighbourhood in central Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Along with Lawrence Park, Rosedale, and The Bridle Path, it is one of Toronto’s wealthiest neighbourhoods.-History:...
. There are 15 buildings on the site: The main structure (the Upper School), constructed between 1959 and 1960, central on the campus, and with a dominant clock tower
Clock tower
A clock tower is a tower specifically built with one or more clock faces. Clock towers can be either freestanding or part of a church or municipal building such as a town hall. Some clock towers are not true clock towers having had their clock faces added to an already existing building...
, houses the secondary school component of the college, in a quadrangle form. Laidlaw Hall, the principal assembly hall, featuring a full theatre stage and a pipe organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
, is attached to the west end of the Upper School and, at the other end, is the Memorial Wing, the school's main infirmary
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
. Closing the north end of the main quadrangle
Quadrangle (architecture)
In architecture, a quadrangle is a space or courtyard, usually rectangular in plan, the sides of which are entirely or mainly occupied by parts of a large building. The word is probably most closely associated with college or university campus architecture, but quadrangles may be found in other...
is one building, built in 1932, that contains the two boarding houses, as well as two private residences for the associated boarding masters, adjacent to which is the school chapel, donated by Governor General
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
Vincent Massey
Vincent Massey
Charles Vincent Massey was a Canadian lawyer and diplomat who served as Governor General of Canada, the 18th since Canadian Confederation....
. Satellite to this complex are townhouse
Townhouse
A townhouse is the term historically used in the United Kingdom, Ireland and in many other countries to describe a residence of a peer or member of the aristocracy in the capital or major city. Most such figures owned one or more country houses in which they lived for much of the year...
-style residences for masters and their families; the residence of the college's principal, Grant House, built in 1917; and a small, two-storey cricket pavilion
Cricket pavilion
A cricket pavilion is a pavilion at a cricket ground. It is the main building within which the players usually change in dressing rooms and which is the main location for watching the cricket match for members and others...
, inaugurated by Governor General Raymond Hnatyshyn
Ray Hnatyshyn
Ramon John Hnatyshyn , commonly known as Ray Hnatyshyn, was a Canadian politician and statesman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 24th since Canadian Confederation....
. The Preparatory School, part of which was designed by Eden Smith
Eden Smith
Eden Smith was born in Birmingham, England but achieved fame as a Toronto, Ontario architect belonging to the Arts and Crafts movement...
, is at the south-west corner of the campus, near which is a home for the Prep headmaster and a small gatehouse.
The athletic facilities include an indoor pool and three gym
Gym
The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, that mean a locality for both physical and intellectual education of young men...
nasiums, as well as, around the campus, the William P. Wilder sports complex (containing an NHL and an Olympic sized rink, one of only four in Ontario.), a sports activity bubble, tennis courts, a sports court, a running track, and nine regulation sized sports fields. The two major fields of the Upper School are called Commons and Lords, after, respectively, the British House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
and House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
, and one of the main central fields is known as The Oval. In the summer of 2006, the latter, along with the encompassing running track, was renovated, with the grass replaced by a partially synthetic astroturf
AstroTurf
AstroTurf is a brand of artificial turf. Although the term is a registered trademark, it is sometimes used as a generic description of any kind of artificial turf. The original AstroTurf product was a short pile synthetic turf while the current products incorporate modern features such as...
/grass hybrid and the track paved with a rubber turf. Several meters below the field, geothermal
Geothermal heating
Geothermal heating is the direct use of geothermal energy for heating applications. Humans have taken advantage of geothermal heat this way since the Paleolithic era. Approximately seventy countries made direct use of a total of 270 PJ of geothermal heating in 2004...
pipes were laid to provide alternative energy
Alternative energy
Alternative energy is an umbrella term that refers to any source of usable energy intended to replace fuel sources without the undesired consequences of the replaced fuels....
heating for both the Upper School and the adjacent sports complex. A number of these facilities are the result of a decade long, $90 million capital building campaign launched in the 1990s. Still planned are an Olympic-standard, 50-metre swimming pool; a new racquet centre for squash, badminton, and tennis; a rowing centre; the expansion of both the Prep and Upper School academic buildings; and an expansion of the archives.
The Ontario Heritage Trust
Ontario Heritage Trust
The Ontario Heritage Trust is a non-profit agency of the Ontario Ministry of Tourism and Culture, responsible for protecting, preserving and promoting the built, natural and cultural heritage of Canada's most populous province. It was initially known as the Archaeological and Historic Sites Board...
, a non-profit agency of the Ontario Ministry of Culture
Ministry of Culture (Ontario)
The Ministry of Culture in the Canadian province of Ontario was responsible for the development of policies and programs and the operation of programs related to arts, cultural industries, heritage sectors and libraries, in Ontario...
, erected three plaques
Commemorative plaque
A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other vertical surface, and bearing text in memory of an important figure or event...
outlining UCC's presence and history in Toronto. One is on the north-east corner of 20 Duncan Street (the only existing building from the college's original campus), the second at the south-east corner of 212 King Street West, and one at the main entrance of the current campus at 200 Lonsdale Road.
Norval campus
Upper Canada College owns and maintains an outdoor educational facility near the town of Norval, OntarioNorval, Ontario
Norval is an unincorporated community in the town of Halton Hills, Ontario, Canada. Situated on the Credit River, it is located approximately 55 km west of Toronto and is part of the Regional Municipality of Halton....
, on 420 acres (170 ha) of property on the Credit River
Credit River
The Credit River is a river in southern Ontario which flows from headwaters above the Niagara Escarpment to empty into Lake Ontario at Port Credit, Mississauga. It drains an area of approximately 1,000 km²...
. Norval's main purpose is to teach college students about the natural environment
Natural environment
The natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. It is an environment that encompasses the interaction of all living species....
, sustainability
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
, and ecosystems through outdoor learning programs, some in conjunction with Outward Bound
Outward Bound
Outward Bound is an international, non-profit, independent, outdoor educationorganization with approximately 40 schools around the world and 200,000 participants per year...
Canada; throughout the school year, entire classes, houses, or portions of certain grades will have a several day stay at Norval. However, other Ontario schools use the property and its facilities during the weeks when UCC students are not in residence. Norval also hosts an open house each season, with the spring Maple Madness focusing on the site's traditional maple syrup
Maple syrup
Maple syrup is a syrup usually made from the xylem sap of sugar maple, red maple, or black maple trees, although it can also be made from other maple species such as the bigleaf maple. In cold climates, these trees store starch in their trunks and roots before the winter; the starch is then...
manufacturing.
The land was purchased in 1913, at a time when the city of Toronto was quickly growing around the college's Deer Park campus and the trustees were considering moving the school to a new location. Plans for buildings were drawn up by an architectural firm, however, due to the outbreak of the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and the depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, the plans to move were abandoned in the 1930s. The college retained possession of the property, though, and it was developed into an outdoor education centre for UCC students and community. Beginning in 1913, an annual picnic was held at Norval, the first being catered by the King Edward Hotel. As the land had originally been cleared for agricultural use, much of the site was open field until, through the 1940s, over 700,000 seedling
Seedling
thumb|Monocot and dicot seedlingsA seedling is a young plant sporophyte developing out of a plant embryo from a seed. Seedling development starts with germination of the seed. A typical young seedling consists of three main parts: the radicle , the hypocotyl , and the cotyledons...
s were planted by staff and students, followed by the creation of an arboretum
Arboretum
An arboretum in a narrow sense is a collection of trees only. Related collections include a fruticetum , and a viticetum, a collection of vines. More commonly, today, an arboretum is a botanical garden containing living collections of woody plants intended at least partly for scientific study...
in 1964. The first bunk house was built in the 1930s and augmented in 1967 by another, larger residence and dining building, known as Stephen House. Blake Millar's design for Stephen House, which won a Massey Medal
Governor General's Award
The Governor General's Awards are a collection of awards presented by the Governor General of Canada, marking distinction in a number of academic, artistic and social fields. The first was conceived in 1937 by Lord Tweedsmuir, a prolific author of fiction and non-fiction who created the Governor...
for excellence in architecture, contains, in addition to the residential spaces for students and staff, a classroom and laboratory. There is also a bungalow-style residence for the property caretaker and in 2003 several log cabins were built for writing retreats.
Into the 2000s, the school came under criticism for keeping the entirety of the increasingly taxed Norval property while so little of it was actually used; this argument is gained increased credence in light of the consistent yearly tuition hikes and mounting legal costs. Despite repeated assertions that the college had no intention of selling the property, citing not only rapidly increasing land value, but also an intention to hold it in order to prevent industrial development on land that contains a variety of wildlife, including spotted deer and hares, UCC sold a small portion of the acreage in 2007 to help cover legal costs.
Tuition, scholarships, and assets
Upper Canada College is Canada's wealthiest independent school, having an endowment of more than $40 million (CADCanadian dollar
The Canadian dollar is the currency of Canada. As of 2007, the Canadian dollar is the 7th most traded currency in the world. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...
). As of 2010, tuition fees range from $26,870 to $28,870 CAD
Canadian dollar
The Canadian dollar is the currency of Canada. As of 2007, the Canadian dollar is the 7th most traded currency in the world. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...
(not including books and uniform) for day-boy students and $47,945 to $49,945 for boarding. An additional $500 technology fee is levied on all students in the Upper School, which covers the costs of a 13-inch, 2.53 GHz, MacBook Pro
MacBook Pro
The MacBook Pro is a line of Macintosh portable computers introduced in January 2006 by Apple. It replaced the PowerBook G4 and was the second model, after the iMac, to be announced in the Apple–Intel transition...
laptop
Laptop
A laptop, also called a notebook, is a personal computer for mobile use. A laptop integrates most of the typical components of a desktop computer, including a display, a keyboard, a pointing device and speakers into a single unit...
computer, the associated software, and technological support. The institution has strict admissions standards, accepting approximately 25% of all applicants; to those, UCC offers over $1.4 million in needs-based financial aid to students in Grade Seven
Seventh grade
Seventh grade is a year of education in the United States and many other nations. The seventh grade is the seventh school year after kindergarten. Students are usually 12–13 years old. Traditionally, seventh grade was the next-to-last year of elementary school...
and above. The school plans to increase financial assistance over the next decade and to help a more diverse range of students attend UCC.
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
insignia presented to Robertson Davies
Robertson Davies
William Robertson Davies, CC, OOnt, FRSC, FRSL was a Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor. He was one of Canada's best-known and most popular authors, and one of its most distinguished "men of letters", a term Davies is variously said to have gladly accepted for himself...
, Foster Hewitt
Foster Hewitt
Foster William Hewitt, OC was a Canadian radio broadcaster most famous for his play-by-play calls for Hockey Night in Canada. He was the son of W. A. Hewitt, and the father of Bill Hewitt.-Early life and career:...
, Charles Band, and Arnold Smith
Arnold Smith
Arnold Cantwell Smith, OC, CH was a Canadian diplomat. He was the first Commonwealth Secretary-General, serving from 1965–1975.A talented student, he won a Rhodes Scholarship to Christ Church, Oxford....
, plus Canada's first Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
, awarded in 1854 to Old Boy Alexander Roberts Dunn
Alexander Roberts Dunn
Alexander Roberts Dunn VC was the first Canadian awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces....
, and a Victoria Cross awarded to Hampden Zane Churchill Cockburn
Hampden Zane Churchill Cockburn
Major Hampden Zane Churchill Cockburn was a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces....
; the valour medals were given to the Canadian War Museum
Canadian War Museum
The Canadian War Museum is Canada’s national museum of military history. Located in Ottawa, Ontario, the museum covers all facets of Canada’s military past, from the first recorded instances of death by armed violence in Canadian history several thousand years ago to the country’s most recent...
on permanent loan on 17 May 2006. In the college's chapel, itself decorated with works by Canadian artists, is an altar made of marble from parts of St. Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
, in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, that were damaged in the Blitz
The Blitz
The Blitz was the sustained strategic bombing of Britain by Nazi Germany between 7 September 1940 and 10 May 1941, during the Second World War. The city of London was bombed by the Luftwaffe for 76 consecutive nights and many towns and cities across the country followed...
and donated by Dean of St. Paul's Walter Robert Matthews
Walter Robert Matthews
The Very Reverend Walter Robert Matthews, KCVO, CH, DD was an Anglican Dean from 1918 until 1967. Born in 1881 he was educated at Wilson's School and King's College London. He was ordained in 1907 and began his career with curacies at St Mary Abbots, Kensington, and St Peter, Regent Square. After...
. On this is an altar cloth
Altar cloth
An ' is used by various religious groups to cover an altar. Christianity, ancient Judaism, and Buddhism are among the world religions that use altar cloths....
made from a piece of that which was used for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II
Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II
The Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II was the ceremony in which the newly ascended monarch, Elizabeth II, was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Ceylon, and Pakistan, as well as taking on the role of Head of the Commonwealth...
. Further, the school holds works by Thoreau MacDonald
Thoreau MacDonald
Thoreau MacDonald was a Canadian illustrator, designer and painter.MacDonald was the son of Group of Seven member J. E. H. MacDonald. He was mainly self-taught, but he did work with his father...
and a collection of original paintings from the Group of Seven
Group of Seven (artists)
The Group of Seven, sometimes known as the Algonquin school, were a group of Canadian landscape painters from 1920-1933, originally consisting of Franklin Carmichael , Lawren Harris , A. Y. Jackson , Franz Johnston , Arthur Lismer , J. E. H. MacDonald , and Frederick Varley...
(though several were auctioned by the college in an effort to pay for the lawsuits it faced in 2004); an original Stephen Leacock
Stephen Leacock
Stephen Butler Leacock, FRSC was an English-born Canadian teacher, political scientist, writer, and humorist...
essay, titled Why Boys Leave Home A Talk on Camping, donated in 2005 and published for the first time in The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail is a nationally distributed Canadian newspaper, based in Toronto and printed in six cities across the country. With a weekly readership of approximately 1 million, it is Canada's largest-circulation national newspaper and second-largest daily newspaper after the Toronto Star...
; and the original manuscript of Robertson Davies
Robertson Davies
William Robertson Davies, CC, OOnt, FRSC, FRSL was a Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor. He was one of Canada's best-known and most popular authors, and one of its most distinguished "men of letters", a term Davies is variously said to have gladly accepted for himself...
' work The Mask of Aesop, which he wrote in 1952 specifically for the Prep's 50th anniversary. Also in UCC's possession is a chair owned by Sir John A. Macdonald
John A. Macdonald
Sir John Alexander Macdonald, GCB, KCMG, PC, PC , QC was the first Prime Minister of Canada. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, his political career spanned almost half a century...
and another that once belonged to George Airey Kirkpatrick
George Airey Kirkpatrick
Sir George Airey Kirkpatrick, was a politician from Ontario, Canada.Born in 1841 in Kingston, Ontario, the son of Thomas Kirkpatrick, George Kirkpatrick was educated at Trinity College, Dublin.-Career:...
.
Government, faculty, and staff
Upper Canada College is incorporated under an act of the Legislative Assembly of OntarioLegislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada...
and administered by a 17 member Board of Governors
Board of governors
Board of governors is a term sometimes applied to the board of directors of a public entity or non-profit organization.Many public institutions, such as public universities, are government-owned corporations. The British Broadcasting Corporation was managed by a board of governors, though this role...
as a public trust, with the current chair of the board being Michael MacMillan
Michael MacMillan
Michael I.M. MacMillan is the Co-founder and Chairman of , a charitable organization that studies citizen engagement with the Canadian democracy. Through its projects, it hopes to strengthen the health of Canada's democracy and encourage others to do the same....
, Executive Chairman of Alliance Atlantis
Alliance Atlantis
Alliance Atlantis Communications Inc. was a Toronto-based media company that operated primarily as a specialty service operator in Canada. Alliance Atlantis also had offices in Halifax, Los Angeles, London, Dublin, Madrid, Barcelona, Shannon and Sydney.Alliance Atlantis was acquired by Canwest...
. The board, whose members are appointed and elected from amongst alumni, parents of students past and present, and the wider UCC community, selects the college's principal to manage the school's annual operation and head an executive committee composed of vice-principals, department heads, and administration staff. There are 143 faculty members in total, 64 of which teach at the Upper School. Within the Upper School faculty there are 52 men and 23 women, 29 of which have advanced university degrees. 17 faculty members reside on the campus. The student-to-teacher ratio is 18:1 in the lower grades and 19:1 in the upper grades.
Student body
UCC is a non-denominational school with approximately 1,000 day students and 110 boardersBoarding school
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers and/or administrators. The word 'boarding' is used in the sense of "bed and board," i.e., lodging and meals...
; Senior Kindergarten to Grade Seven
Seventh grade
Seventh grade is a year of education in the United States and many other nations. The seventh grade is the seventh school year after kindergarten. Students are usually 12–13 years old. Traditionally, seventh grade was the next-to-last year of elementary school...
students, approximately 400 boys, attend the Preparatory School (the Prep), after which a boy may move on to the Upper School, which consists of Grades Eight to Twelve. The Upper School years are known as follows:
- Grade EightEighth gradeEighth grade is a year of education in the United States, Canada, Australia and other nations. Students are usually 13 - 14 years old. The eighth grade is typically the final grade before high school, and the ninth grade of public and private education, following kindergarten and subsequent grades...
: Year One - Grade NineNinth gradeNinth grade is the ninth post-kindergarten year of school education in some school systems. The students are 13 to 15 years of age, depending on when their birthday occurs. Depending on the school district, ninth grade is usually the first year of high school....
: Year Two - Grade TenTenth gradeIn majority of the world,Tenth grade is the tenth year of school post-kindergarten. The variants of "10th grade" in various nations is described below.-Australia:...
: Foundation Year - Grade ElevenEleventh gradeEleventh Grade is the eleventh, and for some countries final, grade of secondary schools. Students are typically 16 or 17 years of age, depending on the country and the students' birthdays.-Brazil:...
: IB1 - Grade TwelveTwelfth gradeTwelfth grade or Senior year, or Grade Twelve, are the North American names for the final year of secondary school. In most countries students then graduate at age 17 or 18. In some countries, there is a thirteenth grade, while other countries do not have a 12th grade/year at all...
: IB2/Leaving Class
While Prep students are divided into forms
Form (education)
A form is a class or grouping of students in a school. The term is used predominantly in the United Kingdom, although some schools, mostly private, in other countries also use the title...
, UCC, like several other schools in the Commonwealth of Nations
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
, divides its Upper School students into houses. The house system
House system
The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...
was first adopted in 1923, consisting of only four houses until the late 1930s, after which the number increased the present ten. Eight of these Bremner's, Howard's, Jackson's, Martland's, McHugh's, Mowbray's, Orr's, and Scadding's are for day students and the remaining two Seaton's and Wedd's are for boarders. Though the administration planned to phase out boarding in favour of increased socio-economic diversity, widespread protest from the college's Old Boys led to the abandonment of such plans and the administration re-committed to revitalizing the boarding program. The houses compete in an annual intramural competition for the Prefects' Cup and the boarders also take part in weekend events and trips with boarders from neighbouring girls' schools.
The school's student government, created in 1892 and known as the Board of Stewards, represents the students at events, such as Association Day and Hockey Night, and relays their wishes, during times of change or concern, to the upper administration. The group comprises 17 elected members of the Leaving Class: one steward for each house (the heads of houses) plus seven the Head Steward and six stewards with portfolio chosen by the majority of the whole student body. In addition to the stewards, students can enter the prefects
Upper Canada College houses
Upper Canada College, an all male preparatory school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, like several other Commonwealth schools, divides its students into ten houses, each led by a Senior House Adviser and a student-elected Head of House. Heads of Houses are among the sixteen "stewards" who form the...
program, requiring them to show leadership through their senior years in order to be awarded the title of Prefect upon graduation, the highest recognition UCC offers "for citizenship and leadership."
Though Upper Canada College has accepted ethnic minorities
Minority group
A minority is a sociological group within a demographic. The demographic could be based on many factors from ethnicity, gender, wealth, power, etc. The term extends to numerous situations, and civilizations within history, despite the misnomer of minorities associated with a numerical statistic...
since the first black
Black Canadian
'Black Canadians is a designation used for people of Black African descent, who are citizens or permanent residents of Canada. The term specifically refers to Canadians with Sub-Saharan African ancestry. The majority of Black Canadians are of Caribbean origin...
student enrolled in 1831, their representation within the student body was initially disproportionate to the same within the city's population. Michael Ignatieff
Michael Ignatieff
Michael Grant Ignatieff is a Canadian author, academic and former politician. He was the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and Leader of the Official Opposition from 2008 until 2011...
considered the school's ethnic makeup during his time there, between 1959 and 1965, reflective of the culture of Toronto in general; according to him, "basically Tory, Anglican and fantastically patrician." Peter C. Newman
Peter C. Newman
Peter Charles Newman, CC, CD is a Canadian journalist and writer.Born in Vienna, Austria, Newman emigrated from Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia to Canada in 1940 as a Jewish refugee. His father, Oscar, was a self-made wealthy factory owner. Newman was educated at Upper Canada College, where he was...
, who attended UCC a decade before Ignatieff, and himself Jewish, said anti-semitism was "virtually non-existent." According to school historian Richard Howard, UCC transformed its culture during the 1970s, as it began to offer assistance to the less affluent and made attempts to attract boys from visible minorities, becoming what he called "a small United Nations" that echoed Toronto's emerging ethnic variety (today, students from over 20 different countries and regions attend UCC), though, as recently as 1990, there were references in College Times editorials to anti-semitism
Anti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
and sexism. These aspects of College life came to light in 1994, through James T. Fitzgerald's book Old Boys, which published some alumni's recollections of the school. The college took the criticisms seriously, hiring one of its critics to help open UCC to the broader community.
Curriculum
Upper Canada College educates boys from Senior KindergartenKindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
through to Grade Twelve
Twelfth grade
Twelfth grade or Senior year, or Grade Twelve, are the North American names for the final year of secondary school. In most countries students then graduate at age 17 or 18. In some countries, there is a thirteenth grade, while other countries do not have a 12th grade/year at all...
. Graduates receive both the Ontario Secondary School Diploma
Ontario Secondary School Diploma
The Ontario Secondary School Diploma is a diploma granted to high school graduates in the province of Ontario.-Diploma requirements:The Ontario Academic Credit system applies to students from Grades 9 through 12...
and the International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma; UCC adopted the IB program in 1996 and the entire curriculum is today guided by the non-governmental organization
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
. French, language, mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, outdoor education
Outdoor education
Outdoor education usually refers to organized learning that takes place in the outdoors. Outdoor education programs sometimes involve residential or journey-based experiences in which students participate in a variety of adventurous challenges in the form of outdoor activities such as hiking,...
, physical education
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
, the arts, and more are covered during a boy's years in the Prep School and, once boys move to the Upper School in Year One (Grade Eight
Eighth grade
Eighth grade is a year of education in the United States, Canada, Australia and other nations. Students are usually 13 - 14 years old. The eighth grade is typically the final grade before high school, and the ninth grade of public and private education, following kindergarten and subsequent grades...
), they begin university preparation through a liberal arts
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
program. The courseload includes mathematics, history, geography
Geography
Geography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...
, science, English, civics, and the dramatic, visual, and musical arts, as well as computer science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
. Aiding both student and teachers is the Wernham West Centre for Learning, the most comprehensive and endowed secondary school learning facility in Canada. Created in 2002 as a department pertaining to the refinement of academic skills and assisting the students with learning disabilities, its primary focus is to facilitate improved learning skills and abilities, as well as accommodate for students with particular learning disabilities.
Extracurricular activities
Participation in extracurricular activities is encouraged at Upper Canada College; all Grade Nine students are automatically enrolled in The Duke of Edinburgh's AwardThe Duke of Edinburgh's Award
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award , is a programme of activities that can be undertaken by anyone aged 14 to 24, regardless of personal ability....
program and all students must complete 150 hours of other extracurricular commitments, with an equal division between arts, athletics, and community service (what the IB calls CAS: creativity, action, service), prior to graduation.
Arts and athletics
Upper Canada College runs a variety of extracurricular theatre programs, ranging in scope and scale, from musicalsMusical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
to Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
, with at least one large scale and one small scale production each year. Smaller, student written and run plays are also produced. The theatre program, which includes all aspects of production, is run in conjunction with Bishop Strachan School
Bishop Strachan School
The Bishop Strachan School is Canada’s oldest day and boarding school for girls. The School has approximately 820 day students and 80 boarding students ranging from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12 . The school seeks to nurture the academic, social, emotional, spiritual, creative and physical...
, a nearby girls' private school. Various bands and music groups that practice extra-curricularly are also supported by the college, including a wind ensemble, concert band
Concert band
A concert band, also called wind band, symphonic band, symphonic winds, wind orchestra, wind symphony, wind ensemble, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of several members of the woodwind instrument family, brass instrument family, and percussion instrument family.A...
, stage band, string ensemble
String quartet
A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
, jazz ensemble, and singers. These groups compete in festivals at different levels and also organize fundraising concerts. UCC has, and still does, develop sports rivalries with other boys' schools in Ontario.
Sports teams run by UCC include baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
, football
Canadian football
Canadian football is a form of gridiron football played exclusively in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's scoring area...
, golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
, rowing
Sport rowing
Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...
, rugby
Rugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
, lacrosse
Lacrosse
Lacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...
, soccer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
, squash
Squash (sport)
Squash is a high-speed racquet sport played by two players in a four-walled court with a small, hollow rubber ball...
, Swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
, track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
, tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, and volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
. Some teams are purely intramural
Intramural sports
Intramural sports or intramurals are recreational sports organized within a set geographic area. The term derives from the Latin words intra muros meaning "within walls", and was used to indicate sports matches and contests that took place among teams from "within the walls" of an ancient city...
, but 45 interscholastic teams compete in the CISAA and OFSAA and regularly place high in the standings at national and international competitions, such as the Head of the Charles Regatta
Head of the Charles Regatta
The Head of the Charles Regatta, also known as HOCR or HOTC, is a rowing race held on the penultimate complete weekend of October each year on the Charles River, which separates Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts. The race is named the "Head" of the Charles because it is a head race...
.
Programs
The World Affairs ConferenceThe World Affairs Conference
The World Affairs Conference, also known as WAC, is Canada's oldest annual student-run current affairs conference. It was first held in March 1983 and initiated by UCC student David James Wilson, working in collaboration with faculty advisor, Paul W. Bennett. Conference Chairs for WAC 2012 are Omar...
is Canada's oldest student run conference, begun in 1983 and organized in conjunction with Branksome Hall
Branksome Hall
Branksome Hall is an independent girls' school for day and boarding students from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12. Founded in 1903, the school is located on a 13-acre campus in in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Campus buildings include several heritage structures and some modern buildings, all linked by...
since the late 1980s. Held annually, it is attended by over 750 international students from 20 schools. Past speakers have included Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader is an American political activist, as well as an author, lecturer, and attorney. Areas of particular concern to Nader include consumer protection, humanitarianism, environmentalism, and democratic government....
, Stephen Lewis
Stephen Lewis
Stephen Henry Lewis, is a Canadian politician, broadcaster and diplomat. He was the leader of the social democratic Ontario New Democratic Party for most of the 1970s. During many of the those years as leader, his father David Lewis was simultaneously the leader of the Federal New Democratic Party...
, Michael Ignatieff
Michael Ignatieff
Michael Grant Ignatieff is a Canadian author, academic and former politician. He was the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and Leader of the Official Opposition from 2008 until 2011...
, Susan Faludi
Susan Faludi
Susan C. Faludi is an American feminist, journalist and author. She won a Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Journalism in 1991, for a report on the leveraged buyout of Safeway Stores, Inc., a report that the Pulitzer Prize committee thought showed the "human costs of high finance".-Biographical...
, Gwynne Dyer
Gwynne Dyer
Gwynne Dyer, OC is a London-based independent Canadian journalist, syndicated columnist and military historian.Dyer was born in St. John's, Newfoundland and joined the Royal Canadian Naval Reserve at the age of sixteen...
, and Thomas Homer-Dixon
Thomas Homer-Dixon
Thomas Homer-Dixon holds the Centre for International Governance Innovation Chair of Global Systems at the Balsillie School of International Affairs in Waterloo, Ontario, and is a Professor in the Centre for Environment and Business in the Faculty of Environment, University of Waterloo...
, all of whom have spoken on a variety of topics including human rights, gender issues, justice, globalization, and health ethics. Also in conjunction with other schools, UCC runs the Ontario Model Parliament
Ontario Model Parliament
The Ontario Model Parliament is a model parliament for high school students in Ontario, Canada. The OMP was founded in 1986, much through the efforts of Dr. Paul Bennett, a former history master at Upper Canada College in Toronto. The OMP is not affiliated with any political party.Approximately...
(OMP), a simulation of a provincial parliament that has taken place each year since 1986, when it was founded by UCC teacher Paul Bennett, and is composed of two events: an Elections Day at UCC, followed by a three-day simulation that takes place in the legislative chamber at the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada...
. UCC students make up the entirety of the Executive Committee that organizes and runs the model parliament, however 200 students from high schools around the province participate. Past Elections Day speakers have included Art Eggleton
Art Eggleton
Arthur "Art" C. Eggleton, PC is a former Canadian Cabinet minister and Mayor of Toronto, and is currently a Senator representing Ontario.-City council:...
, John Tory
John Tory
John Howard Tory is a Canadian businessman, political activist, former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, former Member of Provincial Parliament and broadcaster...
, John Aimers
John Aimers
John Lathrop Aimers is founder and former long-time Dominion Chairman of the Monarchist League of Canada. He is an educator by profession and taught at a succession of private schools until 2006...
, Bob Rae
Bob Rae
Robert Keith "Bob" Rae, PC, OC, OOnt, QC, MP is a Canadian politician. He is the Member of Parliament for Toronto Centre and interim leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....
, and Rex Murphy
Rex Murphy
Rex Murphy is a Canadian commentator and author, primarily on Canadian political and social matters.Murphy was born in Carbonear, Newfoundland, 105 kilometres west of St. John's and is the second of five children of Harry and Marie Murphy...
.
Landfill
A landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
waste and water consumption, and implemented a program of purchasing renewable resources for renovations. The Green School has won awards from the City of Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
and the National Audubon Society
National Audubon Society
The National Audubon Society is an American non-profit environmental organization dedicated to conservation. Incorporated in 1905, Audubon is one of the oldest of such organizations in the world and uses science, education and grassroots advocacy to advance its conservation mission...
.
Media
The College maintains and administers its own publishing company, the UCC Press, which produces all school publications. It also once printed professional texts, novels, and histories, such as those by Robert LowellRobert Lowell
Robert Traill Spence Lowell IV was an American poet, considered the founder of the confessional poetry movement. He was appointed the sixth Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress where he served from 1947 until 1948...
, but the UCC Press today prints the majority of school-related publications newspaper, alumni magazines, financial reports, etc. save for the College Times. UCC provides several publications, most of which are written, directed, and printed by students.
Yearbook
A yearbook, also known as an annual, is a book to record, highlight, and commemorate the past year of a school or a book published annually. Virtually all American, Australian and Canadian high schools, most colleges and many elementary and middle schools publish yearbooks...
and is the oldest school publication in Canada, having been issued without fail since it was founded by John Ross Robertson
John Ross Robertson
John Ross Robertson was a Canadian newspaper publisher, politician, and philanthropist in Toronto, Ontario....
, then a student at UCC, in September 1857. The first editions were written by Robertson and fellow pupils and printed on presses at The Globe
The Globe (Toronto newspaper)
The Globe was a newspaper in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, founded in 1844 by George Brown as a Reform voice. It merged with The Mail and Empire in 1936 to form The Globe and Mail.-History:...
, the predecessor newspaper of the present The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail is a nationally distributed Canadian newspaper, based in Toronto and printed in six cities across the country. With a weekly readership of approximately 1 million, it is Canada's largest-circulation national newspaper and second-largest daily newspaper after the Toronto Star...
. Past editors include Robertson Davies
Robertson Davies
William Robertson Davies, CC, OOnt, FRSC, FRSL was a Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor. He was one of Canada's best-known and most popular authors, and one of its most distinguished "men of letters", a term Davies is variously said to have gladly accepted for himself...
, Michael Ignatieff
Michael Ignatieff
Michael Grant Ignatieff is a Canadian author, academic and former politician. He was the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and Leader of the Official Opposition from 2008 until 2011...
, and Stephen Leacock
Stephen Leacock
Stephen Butler Leacock, FRSC was an English-born Canadian teacher, political scientist, writer, and humorist...
. Issued more regularly, Old Times is the school's alumni magazine, which reports on the lives of Old Boys, and highlights recent and upcoming events.
Serials for the student body include The Blazer, the college humour newspaper; Quiddity, the school's annual arts and literature publication, which showcases students' creative work; The Blue Page, a one-page weekly publication of letters to the editor expressing opinions on any relevant issue; and Convergence, the school's award winning student newspaper. In addition, BluesTV was a student led, school television network that started in 2007 and aired multimedia, slideshows of pictures from various school events, as well as promotional material created for the college. BluesTV became a subsidiary of the Media Association in 2009, fostering the operation of a live-announcement submission and display system.
Community service
Upper Canada College encourages students to engage in voluntary community serviceCommunity service
Community service is donated service or activity that is performed by someone or a group of people for the benefit of the public or its institutions....
. In relation to this, the college runs the Horizons program, in which local underprivileged children are tutored in music, digital media, and academics twice a week by current UCC students. Further, each year, usually for two to four weeks during Spring Break, UCC also organises trips for 15 to 20 of its Upper School students to various developing countries where they take part in community building services such as constructing schools, wells
Water well
A water well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, boring or drilling to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The well water is drawn by an electric submersible pump, a trash pump, a vertical turbine pump, a handpump or a mechanical pump...
and homes, or aiding in conservation work. Students have ventured to places like Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
, El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
, Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
, and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
.
Events
Every year the school plans and runs several on or off-site events, some of which are open only to students in certain years, while others to the entire student population, alumni, and their respective friends and family. These events are intended to serve a variety of purposes promoting school spirit, for enjoyment, fund raising or philanthropic causes and many are organized by the Upper Canada College Association, with the help of parent and student volunteers.Association Day is analogous to UCC's homecoming
Homecoming
Homecoming is the tradition of welcoming back alumni of a school. It most commonly refers to a tradition in many universities, colleges and high schools in North America...
. Held since 1979, A-Day, as it is informally known, constitutes the school's largest annual event, taking place over the last weekend of September and culminating on the Saturday with a large festival, including competitive matches for all fall sports teams and the Association Dinner for Old Boys celebrating their five year incremental class reunion
Class reunion
A class reunion is a meeting of former classmates, typically organized at or near their former school by one of the class on or around an anniversary of their graduation. Former teachers may be invited as well...
s. Later in the academic year is the Founder's Dinner, a formal event that has been held for more than a century. It typically takes place on the Thursday night before the third weekend in January, which is made a special long weekend for students as a commemoration of Sir John Colborne's birthday. Another regular event is the UCC Gala, a black tie dinner and silent auction organized every three or four years in May.
Two secondary school student dances take place in the calendar year: The Battalion Ball originated out of the At Home, a UCC community-wide event similar to a modern homecoming and first held in 1887. The revival of the UCC Rifle Corps in 1891 resulted in students attending the At Home in their cadet uniforms and, by 1897, a dance was added to the festivities in the evening, known as the Rifle Corps Dance. By 1931, the dance became the Battalion Ball, after the Rifle Corps was renamed the UCC Cadet Battalion, and in 1971 the colloquial nickname The Batt was devised. The event was held off-campus for the first time in 1975, at the King Edward Hotel
King Edward Hotel (Toronto)
The King Edward Hotel in Toronto, Canada is part of the Le Méridien chain of hotels. Officially known as the Le Méridien King Edward Hotel, it is also colloquially called the King Eddy.-Location:...
, and after 1976, when the Cadet Corps was disbanded, school uniforms replaced military attire, rock
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
bands played, and The Batt became more of a spring prom
Prom
In the United States and Canada, a prom, short for promenade, is a formal dance, or gathering of high school students. It is typically held near the end of the senior year. It figures greatly in popular culture and is a major event among high school students...
. Today, The Batt is reserved for students in grades 11 and 12, held at venues such as the Royal York Hotel
Fairmont Royal York
The Fairmont Royal York Hotel, formerly the Royal York Hotel and still often so called, is a large and historic hotel in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, at 100 Front Street West. Opened on June 11, 1929, the Royal York was designed by Ross and Macdonald and built by the Canadian Pacific Railway...
or Arcadian Court
Arcadian Court
The Arcadian Court is an Art Deco restaurant and banquet hall on the eighth floor of the flagship downtown Toronto location of the Canadian department store The Bay, whose wrought iron railings, arched windows and huge chandeliers made it one of Toronto's most exclusive dining spots for many years...
, with attire being tuxedo for boys and evening gown
Evening gown
An evening gown is a long flowing women's dress usually worn to a formal affair. It ranges from tea and ballerina to full-length. Evening gowns are often made of a luxury fabric such as chiffon, velvet, satin, or silk...
or cocktail dress
Cocktail dress
A cocktail dress or cocktail gown is a woman's dress worn at cocktail parties, and semi-formal, or "black tie" occasions.The length of cocktail dresses varies depending on fashion and local custom. The length ranges from just above the knee to touching the ankle...
for girls, and music is provided by DJs
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
. The Stewards' Dance is UCC's fall semi-formal and is typically fashioned around costume party
Costume party
A fancy dress party or a costume party , mainly in contemporary Western culture, is a type of party where guests dress up in a costume.-Fancy dress parties in Britain:...
themes such as "Great Couples in History". The dance takes place in late October and is administrated by the Board of Stewards for all students in grades 11 and above.
Various sporting events occur annually: Hockey Night has been held by the college since 1933 as an evening where the First Hockey team would play a feature game against one of UCC's rival schools in competition for the Foster Hewitt
Foster Hewitt
Foster William Hewitt, OC was a Canadian radio broadcaster most famous for his play-by-play calls for Hockey Night in Canada. He was the son of W. A. Hewitt, and the father of Bill Hewitt.-Early life and career:...
Victory Trophy. The game was held at Maple Leaf Gardens
Maple Leaf Gardens
Maple Leaf Gardens is an indoor arena that was converted into a Loblawssupermarket and Ryerson University athletic centre in Toronto, on the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street in Toronto's Garden District.One of the temples of hockey, it was home to the Toronto Maple Leafs of the...
, thanks to the generosity of the arena's builder, Conn Smythe
Conn Smythe
Constantine Falkland Cary Smythe MC was a Canadian businessman, soldier and sportsman in ice hockey and horse racing. He is best known as the principal owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League from 1927 to 1961 and as the builder of Maple Leaf Gardens...
, and its (as well as the then Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
) owner, Harold Ballard
Harold Ballard
Harold E. Ballard was an owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League as well as their home arena, Maple Leaf Gardens. A member of the Leafs organization from 1940 and a senior executive from 1957, he became part-owner of the team in 1961 and was majority owner from February...
, both themselves Old Boys. After the closing of The Gardens in 2000, the event was moved to the Air Canada Centre
Air Canada Centre
The Air Canada Centre is a multi-purpose indoor sporting arena located on Bay Street in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada.The arena is popularly known as the ACC or the Hangar ....
and then the Ricoh Coliseum
Ricoh Coliseum
Ricoh Coliseum is an ice hockey and agricultural arena at Exhibition Place in Toronto. It serves as the home arena of the Toronto Marlies, the American Hockey League farm team of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and the Toronto Triumph of the Lingerie Football League. It was formerly known as the CNE...
. Over the decades other games were added to the roster, including a game involving the school's Junior Varsity team, the final game of the house hockey tournament, and a game between Havergal College
Havergal College
Havergal College is an independent boarding and day school for girls from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.Named for English hymn composer, author and humanitarian Frances Ridley Havergal, the school was founded in 1894 by a group of men led by The Honourable H...
and Bishop Strachan School
Bishop Strachan School
The Bishop Strachan School is Canada’s oldest day and boarding school for girls. The School has approximately 820 day students and 80 boarding students ranging from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12 . The school seeks to nurture the academic, social, emotional, spiritual, creative and physical...
. By the early 1990s, pleasure skating and Prep School games had been added to the evening's schedule. Further, the Terry Fox Run
Terry Fox Run
The Terry Fox Run is an annual non-competitive charity event held in numerous regions around the world in commemoration of Canadian cancer activist Terry Fox, and his Marathon of Hope, and to raise money for cancer research....
is one of Upper Canada College's most successful events; the school is an official site for the run, acting as the start and end point, as well as part of the course, which ventures throughout Toronto's Belt-Line. UCC's Terry Fox Run is also the largest site and has raised the most money in the world since 2000. The Prep Games Day is an annual held event at the junior school.
Affiliations
Upper Canada College is a member of the Conference of Independent Schools of Ontario (CIS), the Canadian Association of Independent SchoolsCanadian Association of Independent Schools
Canadian Association of Independent Schools is an association for independent schools that operate within Canada or offer a curriculum leading to a Canadian diploma in a location outside of the country. Member schools are non-profit institutions with volunteer Boards of Governors who are...
(CAIS), the Secondary School Admission Test
Secondary School Admission Test
The Secondary School Admission Test, or SSAT, is an admissions test administered by the Secondary School Admission Test Board to students in grades 5-11 to help determine placement into independent or private junior high and high schools....
(SAT) Board, the Association of Boarding Schools (TABS) and an associate member of the National Association of Independent Schools
National Association of Independent Schools
The National Association of Independent Schools is a U.S.-based membership organization for private, nonprofit, K-12 schools. Founded in 1963, NAIS represents independent schools and associations in the United States, including day, boarding, and day/boarding schools; elementary and secondary...
(NAIS), the International Boys' School Coalition (IBSC), the Toronto Boys' School Coalition (TBSC), and the college principal is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference is an association of the headmasters or headmistressess of 243 leading day and boarding independent schools in the United Kingdom, Crown Dependencies and the Republic of Ireland...
(HMC) in the UK. Along with St. Andrew's College, Ridley College
Ridley College
Ridley College is a co-educational boarding and day university-preparatory school located in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, 20 miles from Niagara Falls...
, and Trinity College School
Trinity College School
Trinity College School is a coeducational, independent boarding/day school located in Port Hope, Ontario, Canada. TCS was founded on May 1, 1865, more than 2 years prior to Canadian Confederation. It includes a Senior School for grades 9 to 12 and a Junior School for grades 5 to 8.Among its...
, UCC also remains one of the Little Big Four
Conference of Independent Schools of Ontario Athletic Association
The Conference of Independent Schools of Ontario Athletic Association, or CISAA, is a sports conference for various member private schools located primarily in the southern part of the province of Ontario, and its teams regularly compete against public high schools in the Ontario Federation of...
, an athletic association of Ontario independent boys' schools established in the 19th century.
Though Bishop Strachan School
Bishop Strachan School
The Bishop Strachan School is Canada’s oldest day and boarding school for girls. The School has approximately 820 day students and 80 boarding students ranging from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12 . The school seeks to nurture the academic, social, emotional, spiritual, creative and physical...
(BSS) is located only two blocks from UCC, it is not UCC's sister school. UCC students do, however, work on joint projects with students of other nearby girls' schools, including BSS, St. Clement's School
St. Clement's School
St. Clement's School is an Anglican independent school for girls in Toronto, Canada. The school was founded in 1901 by Reverend Canon Powell, and was originally co-ed...
, Havergal College
Havergal College
Havergal College is an independent boarding and day school for girls from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.Named for English hymn composer, author and humanitarian Frances Ridley Havergal, the school was founded in 1894 by a group of men led by The Honourable H...
, and Branksome Hall
Branksome Hall
Branksome Hall is an independent girls' school for day and boarding students from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12. Founded in 1903, the school is located on a 13-acre campus in in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Campus buildings include several heritage structures and some modern buildings, all linked by...
. Lower Canada College
Lower Canada College
Lower Canada College of Montreal is an elementary and secondary level private school.The college was founded by the Church of St John the Evangelist in 1861 as St. John's School and changed its name to Lower Canada College in 1909, replacing an older school by that name that was founded in...
, a co-educational private school in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, is not affiliated with UCC.
Alumni
The college states that almost every UCC graduate, known as an Old Boy, goes on to post-secondary schooling, though some will take a sabbatical; Peterson's reported in 2010 that of 150 graduating students, 143 went on to college or university. The graduate community consists of over 6,000 Old Boys around the world and, though the career paths of the college's alumni are varied, UCC has a reputation for educating many of Canada's powerful, elite, and wealthy.The school has produced six lieutenant governors, three premiers
Premier (Canada)
In Canada, a premier is the head of government of a province or territory. There are currently ten provincial premiers and three territorial premiers in Canada....
, seven chief justices, and four Mayors of Toronto. At least 15 graduates have been appointed to the Queen's Privy Council for Canada
Queen's Privy Council for Canada
The Queen's Privy Council for Canada ), sometimes called Her Majesty's Privy Council for Canada or simply the Privy Council, is the full group of personal consultants to the monarch of Canada on state and constitutional affairs, though responsible government requires the sovereign or her viceroy,...
, 24 have been named Rhodes Scholars, 10 are Olympic medallists
Olympic medalist
An Olympic medal is awarded to successful competitors at one of the Olympic Games. There are three classes of medal: gold, silver and bronze. The winner is awarded the gold medal, the runner-up the silver medal, and the third place competitor is awarded the bronze medal...
, and at least 13 have been accepted as fellows of the Royal Society of Canada
Royal Society of Canada
The Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
. No less than 40 have been inducted into the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
since the honour's inception in 1967.
UCC Association
The Upper Canada College Old Boys' Association is a non-profit organization established in 1891, on the day of the closure of the college's Russell Square campus. The name was changed in 1969 to the Upper Canada College Association, when the association expanded its mandate to include parents, faculty, staff and friends of the college in matters relating to UCC, such as governance and advancement. Specific programs are also run by the association, including those that permit recent graduates to volunteer as mentors to students, and Old Boy reunions are set up around the world by the association's fifteen branches outside of Toronto: CalgaryCalgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
, Halifax, Kingston
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in Eastern Ontario where the St. Lawrence River flows out of Lake Ontario. Originally a First Nations settlement called "Katarowki," , growing European exploration in the 17th Century made it an important trading post...
, London
London, Ontario
London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of 352,395, and the metropolitan area has a population of 457,720, according to the 2006 Canadian census; the metro population in 2009 was estimated at 489,274. The city...
, Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, and Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
in Canada; Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and San Francisco in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
; London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
; Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
; and Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
in Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
.
A 29 person board of directors, referred to as the Association Council, meets three times a year to discuss matters facing the college and plan association events; 21 of those on the council are elected by members of the association at its annual meeting, while the remaining eight are ex-officio. Four of the 17 members of the college's board of governors come from the association board, including the President of the Association, and serve on the larger body for a three-year period.
Noted faculty
- Robertson DaviesRobertson DaviesWilliam Robertson Davies, CC, OOnt, FRSC, FRSL was a Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor. He was one of Canada's best-known and most popular authors, and one of its most distinguished "men of letters", a term Davies is variously said to have gladly accepted for himself...
Noted author - Dr. Premek Hamr Internationally acclaimed authority on crayfish
- David GilmourDavid Gilmour (writer)David Gilmour is a Canadian novelist and television journalist.He became managing editor of the Toronto International Film Festival in 1980, a post he held for four years. In 1986, he joined CBC Television as a film critic for The Journal, eventually becoming host of the program's Friday night...
Author and broadcast journalist - Rev. Dr. Charles GordonRalph ConnorRev. Dr. Charles William Gordon, or Ralph Connor, was a Canadian novelist, using the Connor pen name while maintaining his status as a Church leader, first in the Presbyterian and later the United churches in Canada. Gordon was also at one time a master at Upper Canada College...
Noted author - Stephen LeacockStephen LeacockStephen Butler Leacock, FRSC was an English-born Canadian teacher, political scientist, writer, and humorist...
- J.P.M.B. "Jock" de Marbois Appointee to the Légion d'honneurLégion d'honneurThe Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
and commodore of Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
and Royal Canadian NavyRoyal Canadian NavyThe history of the Royal Canadian Navy goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King George V. The Royal Canadian Navy is one of the three environmental commands of the Canadian Forces... - Sir George Robert ParkinGeorge Robert ParkinSir George Robert Parkin KCMG was a Canadian educator, imperialist, and author.Born at Parkindale near Salisbury, New Brunswick, he was a graduate from the University of New Brunswick. From 1867 to 1871, he taught at the Bathurst Grammar School...
Leader of the Imperial Federation LeagueImperial FederationImperial Federation was a late-19th early-20th century proposal to create a federated union in place of the existing British Empire.-Motivators:...
and First Secretary of the Rhodes ScholarshipRhodes ScholarshipThe Rhodes Scholarship, named after Cecil Rhodes, is an international postgraduate award for study at the University of Oxford. It was the first large-scale programme of international scholarships, and is widely considered the "world's most prestigious scholarship" by many public sources such as... - Sir Edward Robert PeacockEdward Robert PeacockSir Edward Robert Peacock, GCVO was a Canadian merchant banker, born in St. Elmo, Glengarry County, Ontario. He is perhaps best known as a director of the Bank of England, or for his role as Receiver General to the Duchy of Cornwall.-Early life:...
Receiver General to the Duchy of CornwallDuchy of CornwallThe Duchy of Cornwall is one of two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Lancaster. The eldest son of the reigning British monarch inherits the duchy and title of Duke of Cornwall at the time of his birth, or of his parent's succession to the throne. If the monarch has no son, the...
and the Director of the Bank of EnglandBank of EnglandThe Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694, it is the second oldest central bank in the world... - Henry ScaddingHenry ScaddingHenry Scadding was a Canadian author and clergyman.Scadding was born in Dunkeswell, Devon, England, and migrated to Canada with his parents, John Scadding and Melicent Triggs, in 1821. He was educated at Upper Canada College and at St. John's College at Cambridge University, Cambridge, England,...
Canadian intellectual - Arnold WalterArnold WalterArnold Maria Walter, OC was a Canadian musicologist, educator, composer and writer. He founded the Canadian Opera Company, and was Director of Music at University of Toronto.-Early years:...
Austrian musician, founder of the Canadian Opera CompanyCanadian Opera CompanyThe Canadian Opera Company is an opera company in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the largest opera company in Canada and the third largest producer of opera in North America. The COC performs in its own opera house, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts.-History:For 40 years until...
, and Director of Music at UofTUniversity of TorontoThe University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada... - Bruce Littlejohn Widely published and internationally recognized photographer, writer, and conservationist
Arms, motto, and crest
Upper Canada College's motto is palmam qui meruit ferat, meaning "let he who merited the palm bear it," and was derived from the poem by John JortinJohn Jortin
-Life:Jortin was the son of Renatus Jordain, a French Huguenot refugee and government official, and Martha Rogers, daughter of Daniel Rogers. He was educated at Jesus College, Cambridge, where he became a Fellow in 1721. He was Rede lecturer at Cambridge in 1724, and Boyle lecturer in 1749...
titled Ad Ventos ante A.D. MDCXXVIII ("To the Winds Before 1727"). The words, attached to the arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
of Lord Nelson
Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson
Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronté, KB was a flag officer famous for his service in the Royal Navy, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars. He was noted for his inspirational leadership and superb grasp of strategy and unconventional tactics, which resulted in a number of...
in 1797, were first used in relation to UCC in 1833, as part of an emblem stamped on the inside of books given as prizes, showing the phrase written on a ribbon tying together two laurel leaves around the school's name. Around 1850, a crown replaced the school's name; John Ross Robertson
John Ross Robertson
John Ross Robertson was a Canadian newspaper publisher, politician, and philanthropist in Toronto, Ontario....
stated this was at the insistence of Henry Scadding
Henry Scadding
Henry Scadding was a Canadian author and clergyman.Scadding was born in Dunkeswell, Devon, England, and migrated to Canada with his parents, John Scadding and Melicent Triggs, in 1821. He was educated at Upper Canada College and at St. John's College at Cambridge University, Cambridge, England,...
, who argued in favour of its use because the school had both been founded by a lieutenant governor
Lieutenant Governor (Canada)
In Canada, a lieutenant governor is the viceregal representative in a provincial jurisdiction of the Canadian monarch and head of state, Queen Elizabeth II, who resides predominantly in her oldest realm, the United Kingdom...
and was at first a Royal Grammar School
Royal Grammar School
Royal Grammar School may refer to:* Clitheroe Royal Grammar School* Colchester Royal Grammar School* Lancaster Royal Grammar School* Royal Grammar School, Guildford* Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe* Royal Grammar School, Newcastle...
. The crown first used was that of King George IV
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
.
In 1889, Scadding produced the design for the insignia which can still be seen over the doors to Laidlaw Hall at the college's Upper School. L.C. Kerslake described this crest in 1956:
This complex design, known as Scadding's Device, which was just the Seal of Upper Canada, authorised in 1820, with the college's motto and palm branches applied, was never widely used. Instead, the simple crown between laurel leaves tied with a ribbon bearing the school motto became the standard crest, though its appearance changed throughout the decades in reflection of current tastes.
| 1855 |
1882 |
1888 |
1900-1910 |
1916-1931 |
2002-pres. |
It was not until the mid 1970s, as the college approached its sesquicentennial, that consideration was given to having the crest authorised by the College of Arms
College of Arms
The College of Arms, or Heralds’ College, is an office regulating heraldry and granting new armorial bearings for England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
, then the heraldic authority for Canada, and the Armoral Bearings Committee was established to oversee the project. A petition was thereafter submitted to the Earl Marshal
Earl Marshal
Earl Marshal is a hereditary royal officeholder and chivalric title under the sovereign of the United Kingdom used in England...
in 1981. The Board of Governors insisted that the school's traditional crest be incorporated into the forthcoming achievement; however, as the crest includes a royal crown, it was necessary to obtain the Canadian monarch's personal permission to use it officially. This was done via the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
The Lieutenant Governor of Ontario is the viceregal representative in Ontario of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, who operates distinctly within the province but is also shared equally with the ten other jurisdictions of Canada and resides predominantly in her oldest realm, the United...
, then John Black Aird
John Black Aird
John Black Aird, was the 23rd Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Canada, from 1980 to 1985.Born in Toronto, Ontario, the grandson of Canadian financier Sir John Aird, John Black Aird was educated at Upper Canada College, Trinity College and Osgoode Hall Law School. He was a Brother at the Toronto...
(himself a UCC Old Boy), and Queen Elizabeth II consented to the request, making UCC the only institution of its kind in the Commonwealth of Nations to have the royal crown in its arms.
The letters patent
Letters patent
Letters patent are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch or president, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, title, or status to a person or corporation...
granting UCC its armorial achievements, including a heraldic standard, were issued on 4 January 1985, the 155th anniversary of the college's first day of classes. The traditional crest became the school's badge
Badge
A badge is a device or fashion accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath , a sign of legitimate employment or student status, or as a simple...
, though without the motto, as text and figures are normally not included in such emblems, but the King of Arms made an exception to the rules by allowing the retention of the date 1829 in the design. The symbol also became the crest
Crest (heraldry)
A crest is a component of an heraldic display, so called because it stands on top of a helmet, as the crest of a jay stands on the bird's head....
of the school's new arms, though here with the number 1829 omitted, as, per heraldic rules, the royal crown must sit directly on the helmet. The escutcheon of the arms shows two deer's heads in the chief one being the crest of the arms of the Lord Seaton
John Colborne, 1st Baron Seaton
Field Marshal John Colborne, 1st Baron Seaton, GCB, GCMG, GCH, PC was a British field marshal and colonial governor.-Early service:...
and the other taken from the arms of Bishop John Strachan
John Strachan
John Strachan was an influential figure in Upper Canada and the first Anglican Bishop of Toronto.-Early life:Strachan was the youngest of six children born to a quarry worker in Aberdeen, Scotland. He graduated from King's College, Aberdeen in 1797...
, the first Chairman of the Board of Governors while, below a line of division
Line (heraldry)
The lines of partition used to divide and vary fields and charges in heraldry are by default straight, but may have many different shapes. Care must sometimes be taken to distinguish these types of lines from the extremely unusual and non-traditional use of lines as charges, and to distinguish...
embattled as in Seaton's achievement, is the aforementioned Scadding's Device surmounted by another royal crown. The shield is supported by, on the left, a master in academic gown and, at right, a student in cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
uniform, both styled on such figures in the mid-19th century. These devices were in 2005 registered with the Canadian Heraldic Authority
Canadian Heraldic Authority
The Canadian Heraldic Authority is part of the Canadian honours system under the Queen of Canada, whose authority is exercised by the Governor General. The Authority is responsible for the creation and granting of new coats of arms , flags and badges for Canadian citizens, permanent residents and...
.