Earl Haig Secondary School

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Earl Haig Secondary School
Address
100 Princess Ave
Toronto, Ontario, M2N 3R7, Canada
Information
School number 906450
School board Toronto District School Board
Superintendent Sue Pfeffer
Area trustee Mari Rutka
Principal Beverley Ohashi
Vice principal Allison MacLachlan
Tamara Grealis-Ellam
Boyd Bugden
Administrator Linda MacMullin
Chief custodian Russ O'Connor
School type Public High school
Grades 9-12
Language English
Area Toronto
Motto Carpe Diem
Seize the day
Mascot Carp
Colours Blue and White
Founded 1929
Enrollment 2,200
Homepage http://earlhaig.ca

Earl Haig Secondary School serves a diverse population of about 2,200 students in Willowdale, Toronto, Ontario, Canada and is recognized for its academic focus, enthusiasm for learning, lively school spirit, and commitment to the arts. The school's large size and staff ensures a very wide variety of curricular and extracurricular opportunities for the students. All students have opportunities to develop leadership skills through outstanding athletic, academic, and arts co-curricular activities.

The school motto is "Carpe Diem", which is Latin for "Seize the day".

Earl Haig S.S.
Earl Haig S.S.

Contents

[edit] Schools (Grade 9 - Grade 12)

Earl Haig Secondary School is the largest high school in Toronto and one of the largest public high schools in Canada. As a result, it is home to a diverse range of student-run clubs and groups. The school is also well known for the Claude Watson Arts Program, a selective program for artistically talented students. It is divided into the following five areas of art: Dance, Drama, Music, Screen Arts (film production, writing, and acting) and Visual Arts.


Earl Haig S.S. - Main staircase (new theme)
Earl Haig S.S. - Main staircase (new theme)

[edit] Collegiate and Claude Watson Arts Program

Outside Cringan Hall.
Outside Cringan Hall.

Earl Haig Secondary School has two related but distinct programs. The Collegiate Program offers high-quality academic programming for students living in the Earl Haig Community. Students choose from a variety of academic, arts and technical courses. All able students are encouraged to take advantages of the enrichment program and to participate in various co-curricular activities and leadership opportunities.

The Claude Watson Arts Program offers a gifted art education for students with a demonstrated talent in Dance, Drama, Music, Screen Arts and Visual Arts. The newest art program in Claude Watson is Screen Arts and has been very successful and producing many productions for students. The students divide their day between regular academic classes and the Arts. Arts program students access a full range of artistic and creative opportunities from skilled arts specialists while receiving academic instruction at the highest level. Collegiate students enjoy equal access to the specialized Arts facilities and programs. The combination produces a unique range of education opportunities for all students.

[edit] Extracurricular activities

Earl Haig earned the Maclean's Magazine, August 2004, Canada's Best Schools designation for best school in Canada for its clubs, teams and extracurricular activities. As of 2008, there are currently 81 clubs/councils.[1]

[edit] Academic achievements

Cringan Hall Area.
Cringan Hall Area.
West side of the school beside the electronic display board
West side of the school beside the electronic display board

The majority of Earl Haig's students are admitted into top-tier universities in Canada such as University of Guelph, University of Toronto, University of Waterloo, Queen's University, McGill University, and University of British Columbia, as well as other post-secondary schools located in Toronto. A few exceptional students every year are admitted into elite universities outside Canada, such as Harvard University, London School of Economics, Princeton University, Yale University and MIT.

[edit] Provincial Assessment

In 2004-2005,

  • 16% of Earl Haig students scored level 4 (equivalent to 80% or above) in EQAO Math Assessment (only 6% of all students in Ontario achieved this standard).
  • 83% of Earl Haig students scored level 3 or above (equivalent to 70-79%) in EQAO Math Assessment (only 68% of Ontario students achieved it)
  • 90% of Earl Haig students passed the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test, which is one of the requirements for achieving the high school diploma, compared at 76% of students from the Toronto District School Board.

[edit] School Gallery

Photos of the school.


One of the 3rd floor's main corridor

3rd floor

2nd floor corridor (Hall of Graduates)

3rd floor main staircase

Looking up at the 2nd & 3rd floor Athletic Circles

3rd floor bridge looking down towards the main entrance

3rd floor looking down at the Athletic Circle

Cafeteria

The Wavy Hall or "Fishbowl"

3rd floor looking towards the main entrance

2nd floor windows looking out towards the parking lot and front entrance

Wavy Hall (2nd Floor)
A panorama view of the soccer field
A panorama view of the soccer field
A panorama view of the school cafeteria
A panorama view of the school cafeteria
A 360° view of the main hall
A 360° view of the main hall


[edit] International Olympiads

Between 1990-1999, seven Earl Haig students represented Canada to participate in the International Olympiads in Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry, the fourth highest in Ontario.

[edit] Enrollment Control

The main hallway.
The main hallway.

Because of its high academic standards, broad range of extracurricular activities, and already large student population, special restrictions have been placed to control enrollment.

  • Students in grades 9 to 12 who move into newly constructed residential units within this area, occupied after December 13, 2000, will be designated to schools other than Earl Haig. Students in grade 9 will be designated to Woodbine JHS and students in grades 10 to 12 will be designated to Georges Vanier Secondary School.
  • Students who move into existing residential units within this area and wish to apply for admission to grade 9 can register at Earl Haig on the condition that they do so before February 28. Students who apply for admission to grade 9 after February 28 will be designated to Woodbine JHS. These students will be placed on a waiting list for admission to the school if space becomes available.
  • Students who move into existing residential units within this area and wish to apply for admission to grades 10 to 12 will be designated to Georges Vanier SS. The February 28 registration deadline does not apply to students in grades 10 to 12 — regardless of the date that they move into the area, all students in grades 10 to 12 will be designated to Georges Vanier SS. These students will be placed on a waiting list for admission to Earl Haig SS if space becomes available.

[edit] History

The school's namepiece from the previous building.
The school's namepiece from the previous building.

The school is named after Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig, who was the commander of the British Expeditionary force during the majority of the First World War. The school was established in 1928.

The original school building's construction started in November 1929. The building officially opened in 1930 as Earl Haig Collegiate Institute. Construction of the building continued through the 1940s, 50s and 60s.

In 1961, the school changed its name from Earl Haig Collegiate Institute to Earl Haig Secondary School.

In 1996, the original building was demolished in sections to make way for a newly constructed building. This new building was designed around the original auditorium, Cringan Hall. Carruthers Shaw and Partners Limited, the same company that designed Queen's University and Upper Canada College, designed the new building and Bondfield Construction were contracted to build the school. The new building was officially opened in September 1997. This building is 310,000 sq ft and cost CAD$30,800,000.

The school administration of Earl Haig installed security cameras in early 2007. In its 79 year history, this was the first time they were installed. Because of the long history of the academic culture at Earl Haig, a small minority of students considered Earl Haig standards too high. The purpose of installing these cameras were to stop the few from stealing tests and exams from departments. There are 26 cameras throughout the school, only in hallways in entrances.

http://www.bondfield.com/schools/earlhaig.html http://www.csparch.com/

[edit] School song

The outside of the school with Cringan Hall to the right.
The outside of the school with Cringan Hall to the right.
Earl Haig! Alma Mater!
We raise your banners far and wide
Earl Haig! Every son and daughter
Sings your praise and hails your
Name with pride
Carpe Diem! We're going to seize the day today
Carpe Diem! We're aiming high! High! High!
Earl Haig! School of happy memories
Blue and White we'll proudly fly
Carpe! Carpe! Carpe! Diem! Diem! Diem!

[edit] Demographics

Earl Haig's student population is extremely diverse, and has a good mix of many cultures. Like other Toronto schools, it is a minority-majority school.

[edit] Notable alumni

The school's circular stairway on the left coupled with the school's crest in the middle.
The school's circular stairway on the left coupled with the school's crest in the middle.

[edit] External links

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