Southwood Secondary School

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Southwood Secondary School
Nihil Sine Labore Nothing Without Work
Address
30 Southwood Drive Cambridge, Ontario, N1S 4K3, Canada
Public transit access	55 - St. Andrews 62 - Woodside
Information
School board	Waterloo Region District School Board
Superintendent	Linda Fabi
Area trustee	Andrea Mitchell Colin Harrington Cindy Watson
Principal	Mrs. Cathy Campbell
Vice principal	Mr. T. Tonner Miss. C. Wynn
School type	High School
Grades	9-12
Language	English
Area	West Galt and Ayr
Mascot	Sabre
Team name	Southwood Sabres
Colours	Red, Green and White
Founded	1962
Enrollment	~1000 (September 2006)
Feeder schools	Cedar Creek P.S. St. Andrew's P.S. Tait Street P.S.
Student Activity Director	Ms. Karen Johannes
Student Activity Co-Presidents	Drew Weatherhead Sarah Cheshire Preceded by: Jake Rose, Erich Mackinnon

Southwood Secondary School is a high school in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada, for students in West Galt and North Dumfries.

1 History
2 Programs
3 Notable Alumni
4 References
5 External links

[edit] History

Founded in 1962, the school is now in its 45th year. The building was originally meant to be a temporary factory/storage facility, but with limited funds the school board bought it and turned into an education facility.^{[citation needed]} Although it has one of the lower student enrollments in the region, that does not seem to affect performance. It has proven itself over the years with its numerous Ontario scholars and high success rates from the literacy test: 6% above the board average and 8% above the provincial average.^[1] Students are mostly of a caucasian background, partly due to the German heritage of Waterloo Region.^[2] Southwood's unique role as a high school is explained here in a report from the Region of Waterloo to the school board:^[3]

Southwood Secondary School’s culture is unique due to its student population being made up of students residing in an urban environment and a significant number of students from a rural environment. It is the only secondary school located in the west side of Galt- Cambridge to serve that community as well as the adjacent Township of North Dumfries.

It became the subject of controversy in 2003 when it was perceived that this was an undersized school and should be closed, as funding was needed to build the Huron Heights Secondary School elsewhere in the Region. After lengthy protests, differing proposals, and the November 2003 municipal election, the trustees voted to reverse the decision of the previous board and keep Southwood open.^[4]

[edit] Programs

Southwood is renowned for the calibre of its music and mathematics programs, well-respected by universities and residents of the area. Prior to the 2005/2006 schoolyear, Southwood also hosted the area's French Immersion program, which has since moved to GCI. Beginning in the 2006-2007 school year, Southwood will host the region's PAL program.

Southwood's Athletics is also respected, having won several championships at the WCSSAA and CWOSSA levels in the last few years, notably in Volleyball,^[5] Basketball,^[6] and Cross Country.^[7] These teams have also participated at OFSAA. In 2007, the Sr. Boys Basketball Team won the AAA OFSAA championship.^[8]^[9]

In 2007, a group of students from Southwood were among a group of over 3500 students from across Canada who travelled to Vimy Ridge to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the battle and restoration of the memorial.^[10]

[edit] Notable Alumni

Yvonne Tousek - Gymnastics (1996 Olympic Games)^[11]^[12]^[13]
Jody Hull - retired NHL player^[13]
Bryan Little - NHL Player (Atlanta Thrashers)
Paul Werstine - Writer and major authority on Shakespeare^[14]
J.R. Fitzpatrick Jr. - NASCAR Busch Series driver,^[15] CASCAR champion
Doug Consiglio - former Canadian Olympian and World Record holder^[16]^[17]^[18]
Matt Graham- Modern Minimalist Sculptor.