St. Thomas More Collegiate
| St. Thomas More Collegiate (STMC) | |
|---|---|
 "Teaching young people to grow supported by a welcoming Catholic community" | |
| Address | |
|
7450 12th Ave. Burnaby, British Columbia, V3N 2K1 Canada | |
| Information | |
| School type | Independent |
| Religious affiliation(s) | Roman Catholic |
| Founded | 1960 |
| School board | STMC Ltd. Board of Directors |
| President | Mrs. Neysa Finnie |
| Principal | Mr. Michel DesLauriers |
| Grades | 8-12 |
| Enrollment | ~660 |
| Language | English |
| Area | Edmonds |
| Colour(s) | Red, White and Black |
| Team name | Knights |
| Website |
www |
St. Thomas More Collegiate or STMC is an independent private school located in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada.
The school is co-educational, offering academic, fine arts, and business programs, as well as athletic, performing arts, and other extracurricular programs, for students from grades 8 to 12.
The school participates in sporting events under the name of the "Knights", with the team colours of Red, White and Black.
History
In 1957, negotiations between Most Rev. Martin Michael Johnson, Archbishop of Vancouver, and Rev. Brother A.A. Loftus, Provincial Superior of the Congregation of Christian Brothers in North America, to help build a Catholic high school in the city of Burnaby / New Westminster.
Saint Thomas More Collegiate opened its doors in September 1960, with 110 students enrolled in grades 7, 8 and 9. Over the years enrollment and staff grew as did the facilities. Major construction was carried out in 1966, 1978, 1981, 1984, and with the introduction of co-education in 1999.
Independent school status
St. Thomas More Collegiate is classified as a Group 1 school under British Columbia's Independent School Act. It receives 50% funding from the Ministry of Education. The school receives no funding for capital costs.[1] It is under charge of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vancouver.
2009-2013 Revitalization
The school started phase 1 of its revitalization plan in the summer of 2009 and it was completed in May 2010. The new Fine Arts Wing contains four new classrooms, two specialty classrooms for Band and Choir, a student courtyard, and renovations to the school kitchen, administration areas and existing classrooms. After raising over $6.2 million, the school will go ahead with phase 2 of their plan in which it plans to build a new state-of-the-art double gymnasium.[2] Construction of the gymnasium has been slated to begin in April 2012, with a completion date of spring/summer 2013.
Academic performance
St. Thomas More Collegiate is ranked by the Fraser Institute. In 2012, it was ranked 15th out of 316 schools in the Vancouver area.[3]
The St. Thomas More Collegiate curriculum is based on the “Knights’ Compass”, formerly known as the "Irish's Compass", consists of a cross with a different field of education at each of the four ends, with Faith in the center. The outer fields are: Academics, Athletics, Arts, and Science/Technology.
Athletic performance
The sports teams in the STMC athletic program are known as the "Knights." They were formerly known as the "Fighting Irish" (because the roots of the school stem down to the Christian Brothers of Edmund Rice who were originally from Ireland).
STMC is considered to be one of the finest secondary schools in the country, in terms of athletics. They especially have a reputation for producing elite athletes in football, basketball, wrestling, track & field, swimming and occasionally, lacrosse. A large percentage of STMC athletes have moved on to post-secondary institutions under athletic scholarships and participated at the collegiate, minor and professional levels. Many of the alumni coaches and trainers are former professional athletes themselves.
- (post 1975) Frank Gnup AAA Provincial Championships: Won 3 of 6 appearances[4] The STMC Football team and the STMC Basketball teams are really well coached. STMC has good rivals Vancouver College and Notre Dame in these sports
Both the Varsity Boys and Girls basketball teams participate in the BC Catholic Basketball Championship, one of the largest tournaments in the province of BC.
| School Teams |
|---|
| Soccer |
| Volleyball |
| Track & Field |
| Basketball |
| Cross country running |
| Wrestling |
| Ultimate Frisbee |
| Lacrosse |
| Tennis |
| Golf |
| Rowing |
| Curling |
| Swimming |
Artistic performance
Despite having earned a reputation as a "jock-oriented" school, it is also recognized for its academic program and its fine and performing arts programs which include instrumental and choral music, vocal jazz, drama, visual arts, and media arts. This program is one of the finest in Canada.
Clubs & committees
The student council for the 2015-2016 school year is "Good Knight". Student council organizes many school events such as dances, pep rallies, fundraisers etc.
Notable alumni
- Tyson Craiggs - Former professional football player for the CFL's British Columbia Lions
- Jon Cornish - professional football player for the CFL's Calgary Stampeders
- Calvin McCarty - professional football player for the CFL's Edmonton Eskimos
- Adam Krajewski—Former professional football player for the Canadian Football League's Winnipeg Blue Bombers
- Kyle Turris - professional hockey player for the NHL's Ottawa Senators.[5]
- Kris Chucko - professional hockey player for the NHL's Calgary Flames
- Brett Kelly - Has been in several movies, most notably: Bad Santa.
- A.J. Buckley - Actor best known for playing the part of Adam Ross on the hit crime drama CSI: NY.
- Curtis Hodgson - professional lacrosse player for the New Westminster Salmonbellies and the Washington Stealth of the NLL.
- Richard Stewart- former British Columbia MLA and currently the Mayor of Coquitlam, British Columbia.
Notes
In the 1990s, criminal proceedings began against members of the Christian Brothers, several of whom were teaching at STMC. The proceedings were based on allegations of sexual and physical abuse against boys at the Mount Cashel Orphanage in Newfoundland.[6] The subsequent lawsuits by victims of the Christian Brothers organization, threatened to close the school in 2004..