H. B. Beal Secondary School

The H.B. Beal Secondary School is a high school in London, Ontario. It is named after Herbert Benson Beal, the founder and first principal of the school. H.B. Beal is the second largest school in Thames Valley District School Board with approximately 3,500 students currently enrolled. The school property sits on almost two whole city blocks in downtown London. The actual building sits on one, while the other block is used for parking and the Athletics field including a football field and a track.

General school description and history

In 1911, Beal recognized the need for a program of technical education that would reflect the emerging needs of society. The London Industrial School opened its doors in 1912 and began offering both day and night programs. Demand was growing rapidly and in 1918, students began moving to a new school building near Dundas and William Streets. After many additions and increased program demands, it was decided to completely renovate Beal so that it could continue to be a leader in the field of education.

After much re-building, the official opening of "The New Beal" took place in June 1999. Beal now offers approximately 225 courses and 18 Cooperative Education courses.

Originally, the entire school was to be demolished which caused some mild controversy, but because the Queen Elizabeth II visited the school once in the 1950s, it was decided that it was a historical landmark, and the centre wing, which was part of the original school was saved.

Bealart

Bealart has ten separate fully equipped studio facilities which are augmented by a computer lab, art library, and courses in art history and drawing. Developed by practising artists, the program provides professional instruction with a hands-on approach.

The foundation programs are offered as half day or full day courses. Programs are available as one-year foundations program and two-year specialized program. The programs provide students the opportunity to immerse themselves in an intensive, studio based experience.

Studios

• Painting (Acrylic, Oil, Encaustic, Watercolour, Gouache)
• Printmaking (Intaglio) (Etching, Drypoint, Lino, Serigraphy, papermaking and book binding)
• Printmaking (Lithography) (Reduction, Photocopy Transfer, CMYK colour separation)
• Sculpture (3-D) (Linear, Form, Assemblage, Casting, Planar, functional and non functional forms)
• Ceramics (slab work, pinch pots, coil forms, wheel work, tile, functional and non functional forms)
• Photography (35mm, medium format, digital, studio and darkroom)
• Film (video production, final cut pro, film criticism)
• Animation (Classical Animation techniques and character design)
• Textiles (Weaving, felting, knitting, silk painting, embellishing, silk screening)
• Commercial Design (advertising, illustration, digital design, Photoshop, Illustrator)

Although not official studios, these two disciplines are mandatory with all BealArt programs. One day a week is spent divided between the two of them. They are:

• Drawing (Observational, analytical, expressive and figure drawing)
• Art History (Art criticism, overview of prehistoric art to present)

Noteworthy items

Broadcast Beal is a daily television news show that highlights topics of interest to the school community and the upcoming events. It was changed in 2005-2006 to Channel 2 news and in 2006-2007 to B Channel News and to The Raider Report in 2007-2008 then changed to BTV in 2008-2009. In 2016, the program was rebranded once again to BNN, an abbreviation of Beal News Network.

Bealart Year End show is an opportunity for students to showcase their talents.

Soundscope is the annual musical program that highlights students through both group and individual performances of bands, guitar groups, and choir.

The dance program also showcases their talents in a public performance at the end of each semester. Beal offers Dance from Grades 9-12 with each class studying Jazz, Ballet and Modern dance. Guest artists are often brought into the school to allow dancers to participate in enrichment pieces such as Hip-Hop and Contemporary dance.

Musical Theatre is a 3 credit program that involves vocal music, dance and dramatic arts. Students are accepted into the program after a successful audition. The program used to run in a 3-year cycle, running for two years in a row, and taking the third year off. Now the school puts on a show every year, following the pattern minor, major, minor, major in their show choices. The program has produced the following shows:

• Footloose (2002)
• Les Misérables (2003)
• Children of Eden (2005)
• Beauty and the Beast (2006)
• All Shook Up (musical) (2008)
• Into the Woods (2009)
• Fame – The Musical (2010)
• The Phantom of the Opera (2011)
• Hairspray (2012)
• Once on this Island (musical) (2013)
• The Music Man (2014)
• West Side Story (2015)
• Mary Poppins (musical) (2016)

In 2009 Beal was granted a specialized program in performing arts by the Thames Valley District School Board called the Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM). Students who are accepted into the program are required to take specific courses so when they graduate they receive a special seal on their diploma saying they majored in Performing Arts in high school. The school now holds an annual gala to thank their many sponsors for their generosity.

The H. B. Beal student council is also highly involved in the school and the community with such events as the S.C.R.O.O.G.E Campaign, which is a canned food drive that benefits the Salvation Army. In 2008, the staff and students collected over 8000 cans for those in need.

On the evening of January 12, 2012 a celebration gala was held to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the school. London's mayor Joe Fontana as well as MP Susan Truppe and MPP Deb Matthews were in attendance, speaking to an audience of about 1,000. A performance by students from the school's Musical Theatre followed suit. This is in addition to the official 100th anniversary which will be held from May 31 to June 3.

Notable alumni

• Philip Aziz, master artist
• Jack Chambers, artist and filmmaker
• Frank Colman, Major League Baseball outfielder
• Greg Curnoe, artist
• Murray Favro, artist
• Paul Haggis, television screenwriter, director and producer
• Tommy Hunter, musician and entertainer
• Olivia Scriven, actress
• Kendra Timmins, actress
• Brad Turner, film and television director

See also

• List of high schools in Ontario

References

External links

• H. B. Beal Secondary School
• BealArt program