St. Thomas More Collegiate, commonly abbreviated as STMC, or just STM, 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 "Knights", with team colors of red, white and black.
St. Thomas More Collegiate opened its doors in September 1960, with a total of 110 students enrolled in grades 7, 8 and 9. Over the years, enrollment and staff increased. Major construction was carried out on school facilities in 1966, 1978, 1981, 1984, and 1985.
Initially an all-boys school, St. Thomas More Collegiate transitioned to co-education in 1998. Around this time, criminal proceedings began against certain members of the Christian Brothers, some of whom were teaching at STMC.[1] The proceedings were based on allegations of sexual and physical abuse against students at the Mount Cashel Orphanage in Newfoundland. The subsequent lawsuits by Mount Cashel victims threatened to close the school and nearby Vancouver College in 2002 in order to pay financial compensation.[2] After the local community raised $19 million in 2003, the school was spared liquidation.[1] Consequently, the school now operates under a charitable organization known as the STMC Foundation.[3]
In the summer of 2009, the school began phase one of its revitalization plan, which was to construct a new wing of the school. Completed in May 2010, the new wing, named the StanJean Fine Arts Centre, included six new classrooms, including two specialty classrooms for the school's music program. In addition, the school added a courtyard and renovated the existing kitchen, administration offices, and existing classrooms.
After raising over $6.2 million, a new state-of-the-art double gymnasium was completed to replace the old gymnasium in 2013.
Principals
Date
Name
1960–1966
Brother W. G. McIntrye
1966–1969
Brother W. C. Martin
1969–1970
Brother D. Frenett
1970–1972
Brother R. L. Mackenzie
1972–1978
Brother C. H. Slattery
1978–1984
Brother Q. R. Carrothers
1984–1989
Brother K. E. Short
1989–1997
Brother H. J. O’Neill
1997–2000
Brother P. J. O’Loughlin
2000–2011
Mr. D. Hall
2011–2017
Mr. M. DesLauriers
2017–2022
Mr. S. Garland
2022–present
Mr. J. Adams
Presidents
Date
Name
2002–2006
Brother J. Gale
2006–2009
Brother D. Sanpietro
2015–2019
Mrs. N. Finnie
2019–2022
Ms. D. Doyle
2022–present
Mr. S. Garland
Status
St. Thomas More Collegiate is classified as a Group 1 school under British Columbia's Independent School Act. It receives 50% of its funding from the Ministry of Education. The school receives no funding for capital costs.[4] The school operates as a non-diocesan school within the Catholic Independent Schools of the Vancouver Archdiocese (CISVA), meaning the school has more independence regarding its policies, curriculum, and tuition fees.[5]
Performance
The St. Thomas More Collegiate curriculum is symbolized by the Knight's Compass, a Celtic cross with a core field of education at each of the four ends and the Catholic faith at the center of the cross.[citation needed]
Academics
St. Thomas More Collegiate is ranked by the Fraser Institute. In 2017, it was ranked 17th out of 253 schools in British Columbia.[6] The school has consistently been ranked by the Fraser Institute in the top 10% of schools in British Columbia. In the 2017–18 school year, the graduation rate was over 99% and 85% of enrolled students continued on to post-secondary education.[7]
Athletics
The sports teams in the STMC athletic program are known as the "Knights."
STMC is considered to have one of the finest athletics programs in the region. Many elite athletes in football, basketball, wrestling, track & field, swimming and lacrosse have attended STMC. Some 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.
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. The school has a long-lasting rivalry between nearby Catholic schools Vancouver College and Notre Dame Regional Secondary School.
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.
Clubs & groups
With more than 20 clubs, STMC offers a wide variety of clubs and extracurricular activities. STMC is mainly known for their football and basketball clubs, winning several rewards for both.[9]
Student government
Every year, students from each grade level are elected to a student council for the following school year by their peers. The student government organizes school events, such as dances, pep rallies, and fundraisers.[citation needed]
