Cistercian College, Roscrea

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Cistercian College, Roscrea is one of Ireland's most prestigious yet welcomming private schools. It is a Catholic 7-day Boarding school for boys founded in 1905.

Located within the grounds of Mount St. Joseph Abbey in Roscrea, County Tipperary, Ireland, the school is managed by monks of the Trappist branch of the Cistercians. Cistercian College Roscrea enjoys many blessings, one of its finest blessings has to be its scenic, peaceful location.

It is situated in the grounds of Mount Saint Joseph Abbey, 2½ miles west of Roscrea town. Surrounded by open wooded countryside and thirty acres of grounds and sports fields it also adjoins the Abbey farm of 360 hectares.

The school was founded by the Cistercian monks in 1905 as a monastic boarding school for boys. Its enrolment of 315 boys has remained constant and it has educated boys from all over Ireland. CCR is one of two monastic schools in Ireland and in 1990 a Board of Governors was appointed by the Abbot to govern the administration of the college on behalf of the Abbey.

The influence of the Abbey is an integral part of the college and daily life is directly influenced by the presence of the Cistercian monks. The influence of the adjoining monastery is characterised by a sense of stability, order and discipline, openness, hospitality and the ability to strive for balance between the various activities of daily life.

The college aspires to be a Christian community of learning, a worshipping community with an awareness of the presence of God in daily life and in the preparation of a boy for adult life. It strives to bring alive the motto of the Abbey; "Insideat coelis animo sed corpore terris" ("While conscious of earthly needs, We seek the things of heaven").

The College's overall objective is to produce young men of vision and principles, of leadership and of courage. This objective is partly achieved through many systems such as;
Elected House Captains
Elected Class Representatives
Appointed Prefects

Student Participation is Encouraged in;
Clubs
Organisations
Committees
Public Speaking
Team Sports
Team Projects

With a teaching and residential staff of over 50, each boy at Roscrea receives a balanced curriculum of Religion, Academics, Cultural Endeavour and Sport
Cistercian College Roscrea is highly regarded for the range and excellence of its sporting achievements. All boys have the opportunity to receive coaching and subsequently compete in a large number of sports. Apart from recognising the role of sport in providing opportunities for physical exercise, the College's aim is to introduce all boys to a wide variety of games, help them learn to work and play as part of a team and of course, to encourage them to discover recreational interests which they can take into adult life. Team games are well served by our facilies that include; extensive playing fields (Rugby, Hurling, Gaelic Football,Soccer)
an all-weather pitch.
Heated Indoor Swimming Pool,
Golf Course,
Squash Courts,
Basketball Courts,
Tennis Courts,
Gymnasium,
The College's newly built Sports Complex provides excellent indoor facilities for a wide range of sporting activities. It is our policy that as many as possible should have the opportunity to represent the school in a fixture list which includes second and third teams at the various age levels. The College also organises in house leagues & tournaments that allow the lads to compete and enjoy themselves when sports seasons come to a close.

The college celebrated its centenary year last year, giving rise to many events, visits and talks from famous past students and their friends, the speakers included; Her Exclency Mary Mac Allese President of Ireland, Dick Spring(former Tainiste & Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs), Brian Cowan (Irish Minister for Finance), Mary Hanafin (Irish Minister for Education and Science) Charlie Mc Crevy (European Commisionar for Internal Markets) and others. There were also many other events throughout the year in commeration of 100 years of excellence in the fields of academia, study, sport and prayer.