St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School (London, Ontario)
| St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School | |
|---|---|
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| Address | |
|
1360 Oxford Street West London, Ontario, N6H 1W2, Canada | |
| Information | |
| School number | 4495 |
| School board | London District Catholic School Board |
| Religious affiliation | Catholic |
| Superintendent | John Mombourquette |
| Area trustee | Linda Steele |
| Principal | Linda Thomas |
| Vice principal | John Marenelli, James Sefeldas |
| School type | Roman Catholic |
| Grades | 9 to 12 |
| Language | English and French |
| Area | West London (Oakridge) |
| Mascot | Dragon |
| Team name | Flames |
| Colours | Red and Black |
| Founded | 1990 (current location 1994) |
| Enrollment | 901 (September 2014) |
| Homepage | http://www.ldcsb.on.ca/schools/sta/Pages/default.aspx[1] |
St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School (STA) is a Catholic secondary school in London, Ontario, located in the neighbourhood of Oakridge in the west end of the city. It currently serves students in the London District Catholic School Board in the London Areas of Byron, Oakridge, Westmount, Lambeth, as well as some areas outside of the city limits such as Delaware, Komoka and even as far as Mount Brydges.
History
STA was established at the site of the former St. Joseph Catholic school on Charles Street in 1990. Construction began on the school's permanent site in 1993, and the current building opened in 1994, and was highly technologically advanced for its time with internet access throughout the school, as well as cable television and VCRs in virtually every classroom. The building's size was inadequate to handle the influx of students to the school, and once the student parking lot became filled with 21 portable classrooms (rumoured to be the second highest in Ontario) in 1998 a satellite campus in downtown London was established at the former St. Peter's School on Clarence Street. From 1998 to 2001 grade nine students spent one semester at St. Peter's and the other half at the main STA campus. The campus was closed in 2001, a year after Mother Teresa Catholic School opened and relieved pressure from STA. At its peak in 2000, STA's population was about 1,800 students.
STA was built with a "cafetorium", a space which could be used as either a cafeteria or auditorium with portable seating stored under the stage. This cafetorium has been the site of many assemblies, school shows, and other various school events and performances.
The forum at STA was also used as a temporary location for Sunday services for St. George's Parish during church reconstruction in 1998–99.
Academics
STA has traditionally been successful academically since its opening, and is currently rated 89th of the province's 719 high schools. According to a London Free Press report, 21% of graduating students entered college, 63% entered university, and 16% entered the workforce.[2]
In the 2007–2008 school year, the grade 10 students wrote the provincial literacy test and the school had a 98% passing rate.
Arts
The Arts Department has an extensive variety of programs ranging from Vocal Jazz to Technical Theatre. The Stage features catwalks above, where students can work on focusing lights and rigging flies.
Sports
STA generally performs well in most of its athletic endeavours. Notable championships include OFSAA AAAA Girls Hockey champions (three times: 200?, 2006, 2007),[3] OFSAA AAAA Boys Hockey champions (1999), and Western Bowl football champions (in 2006).[4] They have won numerous local, regional, and provincial championships in various other sports, including badminton, basketball, cross-country, curling, golf, soccer, swimming, tennis, track & field, volleyball, and wrestling. Aquinas athletes have won the London area SPECTRA award at least once (Katie Orr 2005).
Noted alumni
- Joe Bartoch – Olympic swimmer
- Sam Gagner – NHL player
- Chris "Taz" George – CFPL-FM radio personality
- Chris Haslam – professional skateboarder
- Lanni Marchant – Canadian marathon record holder[5]
- Amanda Mazzotta – Hockey Canada U18/U22 goaltender
- Bryan Lee O'Malley – cartoonist famous for Scott Pilgrim series
- Adam Stern – major league baseball player
- Liam Stewart – Partner in major Canadian software company
References
- ↑ "Home | STA | St. Thomas Aquinas CSS | Home of the Flames". Ldcsb.on.ca. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
- ↑
- ↑ "OFSAA Past Champions".
- ↑ "OFSAA Football Bowl Champions Crowned". Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations. September 12, 2006. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
- ↑ http://globalnews.ca/news/913380/lanni-marchant-sets-new-canadian-record-at-toronto-marathon/