| Vancouver College | |
| "Semper Fidelis" Forever Faithful |
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| Address | |
| 5400 Cartier Street Vancouver, British Columbia, V6M 3A5, Canada |
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| Information | |
| School board | CISVA (Catholic Independent Schools of the Vancouver Archdiocese) |
| Religious affiliation | Roman Catholic |
| Superintendent | Doug Lauson |
| Principal | John McFarland |
| Vice principals | Mary Joy Derouin (10-12) Robert Kozikowski (7-9) Barbara Seppelt (K-6) |
| School type | Independent |
| Grades | K-12 |
| Language | English |
| Area | Shaugnessy, Vancouver |
| Mascot | Finnegan |
| Team name | Fighting Irish |
| Colours | Purple and Gold |
| Founded | 1922 |
| Enrolment | 1069 (2011) |
| Homepage | Vancouver College |
Vancouver College (referred to informally as VC) is an all-boys university-preparatory Catholic school (K-12) located in the Shaughnessy neighbourhood of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. VC's elementary and secondary programs have a combined population of over 1,000 students. Despite its Catholic denomination, it is open to all religions. The school participates in sporting events under the moniker of the "Fighting Irish".
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Vancouver College was founded in 1922 by the Christian Brothers, a world-wide community of religious brothers of the Catholic church founded by Edmund Rice. The school was a fully run boarding school until 1979, when the boarding houses were closed and renovated to its present conditions. Its archived history, displayed through galleries throughout the school, highlights its deep tradition in academia, athletics and the arts.
The school's focus is on the physical, emotional, artistic, athletic, academic and spiritual development of its students. The schools rigorous academic atmosphere, complemented by its strong athletics, strives to provide a strong base from which its students will succeed, highlighted in the school's motto "Leave Here as a Better Man".
In the 2008 edition of the Fraser Institute's annual School report cards, Vancouver College was ranked 1st in British Columbia out of approximately 300 schools. It also shares this title with York House School, Crofton House School, Little Flower Academy, St. George's School and Southridge School as the province's finest secondary institutions.[1]
Vancouver College's grade twelve students write provincial examinations in core academic subjects and continually score above the provincial average by as much as 10%. Vancouver College students perform well in North American science, mathematics, and essay competitions, consistently placing in the top quartile. Graduates have gone on to study at reputable universities and colleges in North America, Asia, and Europe.
Vancouver College offers many accelerated courses, as well as university courses taught on campus in English 100, History 100, Classical Studies 102, Math 204, Physics 101, Biology 121, Chemistry 121, and French 122.
Athletics is a key part of the tradition and culture of Vancouver College. The school competes in many sports, including
Students are expected and encouraged to participate in these programs. The football and basketball programs traditionally rank among the top teams in British Columbia, while VC's rowing has performed well at nationals, often ranking first or second.[2] VC's teams are known as the "Fighting Irish", a slogan used as a reflection of school pride.
For the Irish, the 2007-2008 season was full of astounding achievements. The VC and LFA badminton team, as well as the track and field team, came first in the province. Moreover, the rugby team, despite being the first team since 1928, won the lower mainland New Zealand Shield.
In 2010, head Coach Todd Bernett lead the Fighting Irish Varsity football team to their first BC provincial title since 1994.
Vancouver College has many student clubs, many of which include:
Student clubs are, much of the time, solely organized and established based on student interest and support, therefore providing opportunities for student leadership.
On November 2, 2007, Vancouver College officially opened the Holler Family Science Centre and the new South Gym. The facilities were blessed by The Most Rev. Raymond Roussin, SM, The former Archbishop of Vancouver. This new addition to Vancouver College's academic community consists of four brand-new science classrooms, a state-of-the-art "super" laboratory, a greenhouse as well as several offices and classrooms serving the schools curricular and extra-curricular interests.
On January 30, 2008 construction had finished on the schools High Performance Fitness Centre. The centre consists of two floors, the first being a cardiovascular training area, and the other being serving as a weight-training facility. The Fitness Centre is attached directly to the new South Gym as well as the Alumni Gym, servicing as an athletic complex for the benefit of its students and staff.
Following this, the Kucher Performing Arts Centre opened in December 2008, helping to expand the school's grounded traditions in the performing arts.
On September 26, 2009, Vancouver College celebrated the Blessing and Rededication of the O’Hagan Field, featuring an all weather synthetic field. Other enhancements to O'Hagan include a world class track and a new playground for Elementary students.
For Winter dress, Vancouver College students wear grey dress pants, long-sleeved white dress shirt, and the school tie. Students must always wear black Oxford-style shoes except in the summer where they may be substituted with sandals worn with socks. In cases of inclement weather, students may choose to wear one of four school sweaters: The traditional winter sweater, the traditional Varsity Letterman sweater, the tradition Edmundian sweater, or the Student Council sweater. Students may also opt to wear the school Monogrammed Bomber jacket, or the traditional Varsity Lettermans jacket.
For Summer dress, Vancouver College students wear the VC Fighting Irish Polo Shirt, along with the Fighting Irish beige coloured shorts. Students may wear different polo shirts as a status of which club or sport they may belong. For example, a student may choose to wear the Vancouver College "Golf", "rowing", "band", "environment club", "rugby", "football" or "badminton" polo, along with others, to distinguish their involvement within the school community during summer dress code.
Along with this, students in Grade 12 are given custom sweaters, unique to their year, to identify themselves as graduating seniors. Through the school's uniform system, students are highly individualized through a variety of options that help distinguish them within the school's community.
The traditional Winter uniform is mandatory for formal ceremonies and presentations.