Halifax Grammar School

Halifax Grammar School

Inito ad discendum, Exito ad serviendum
Enter to learn, Exit to serve
Address
945 Tower Road
Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3H 2Y2
Canada
Information
Type Private Co-educational
Established 1958
Headmaster Steven Laffoley
Grades JP–12
Enrollment 500
Team name Gryphons
Yearbook The Grammarian
Website www.hgs.ns.ca

The Halifax Grammar School (HGS) is an independent, coeducational day school in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is located in south-end Halifax, near Saint Mary's University. Approximately 500 students attend the school. At the high school level students take the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program. The school's current headmaster is Steven Laffoley. All prospective students undergo entrance testing before being admitted. The school offers merit-based scholarships, in academics, community service, and athletics.

Schools

The school is divided into the Prep School (grades Junior-Primary through 4), the Middle School (grades 5 through 9), and the Senior School (grades 10 to 12). Each school has its own head of school and teaching staff.

The Halifax Grammar School - Tower Road Campus

The Halifax Grammar School occupies two campuses, one located on Atlantic Street, and the other on Tower Road. A building at 420 Tower Road was the original location of the school before they purchased the building on Atlantic Street, which they soon decided to expand. For two years, the School rented the "Bethany" building on the corner of Tower Road and Inglis Street from Saint Mary's University (it is now used as an ESL building by the university), before purchasing the closed Tower Road School building from the City of Halifax. The Tower Road Campus (TRC) houses the Middle School, the school's administrative offices, the Silver Art Studio, the Performing Arts Studio and the Meinertzhagen Theatre, a multi-purpose converted gymnasium which is used for everything from school assemblies to dances to musical performances. The Atlantic Street campus houses the Prep School (downstairs) and the Senior School (upstairs), as well as a large gymnasium and acre-plus field. The school also uses the "Homburg Centre for Health and Wellness" gym facilities at Saint Mary's University for some of its gym classes.

Academics

Since being founded, Halifax Grammar has consistently maintained a high level of academic achievement. The school has offered the International Baccalaureate program, which provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry into higher education, in its Senior school since 1993. Students may choose the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program or they may choose to complete one or more of the International Baccalaureate diploma courses. The Junior Primary grade uses an emergent curriculum with its students.

Admission

The school is a tuition based academic institution. Fees range from $11,440 to $21,500 per year, subject to likely yearly increase.[1] There are also additional costs involved with attendance. There is a $3,500 admission fee to enroll a new student. Uniforms are also mandatory and costs up to $440.

Arts

The school's arts program is run by three teachers, including Renee Forestall[2] who teaches visual arts in the Prep and Middle Schools. At the high school level, students have the option of taking IB Standard Level or High Level Art. Students have had their art exhibited throughout both school campuses. Students have the potential to perform in one or more of the school's seven bands learning repertoire from jazz, popular, and classical music. This has been complemented by the construction, for considerable expense, of a new performing arts studio, exclusively funded through donations and fundraising efforts. The studio was completed in 2012. Prep School students must sing in the school choir, which performs several times each year in the community. Middle School students mount an annual dramatic production, often Shakespeare, while Senior School students produce an annual musical.

Recent musicals

The school has run a Senior musical for several years. Tickets are available to students, parents and the community. Actors, lighting technicians, and stage staff are all students. The school hires independent directors, band members and sound staff. The musicals that have been produced are:

Athletics

Boys and girls teams at Middle and Senior School levels compete in the primary athletic league of secondary schools in the province, the NSSAF. The school competes in a variety of sports including: soccer, basketball, hockey, golf, track and field, cross country, skiing, badminton, and touch football. Halifax Grammar achieves consistently high level results in many of the sports in competes in. In particular, Halifax Grammar's Senior Varsity Girls Basketball team ranks highly in Division 1 among the best high school teams in the province. Past achievements include:

Alumni of the school have gone on to compete in the CIS, NCAA and MLS (e.g. Noel Jones,[3] Justine Colley[4] and Matt Britner[5]).

Notable alumni

References

  1. ↑ "HGS Financial Information".
  2. ↑ http://www.secordgallery.com/gallery/main.php/Renee-Forrestall/
  3. ↑ "Syracuse walk-on Jones hopes to storm the court again". The Chronicle Herald.
  4. ↑ "CIS names SMU's Justine Colley its Top Player". The Chronicle Herald.
  5. ↑ http://www.mlssoccer.com/players/matthew-britner
  6. ↑ "Russell Smith: Biography". www.russellsmith.ca. Retrieved 2008-07-14.
  7. ↑ "Jay Ferguson - Sloan". www.exclaim.ca. Retrieved 2008-07-14.
  8. ↑ "Thought Rock Fish Scale". www.pitchfork.com. Retrieved 2016-10-05.

Coordinates: 44°37′57.2″N 63°34′39.6″W / 44.632556°N 63.577667°W / 44.632556; -63.577667

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