St. Michaels University School


St. Michaels University School is an independent day and boarding school in the municipality of Saanich, the largest and most populous municipality in the Capital Regional District and on Vancouver Island. Previous headmasters include Robert Snowden, David Penaluna and Mark Turner.
WWW smus.bc.ca

Location

SMUS is located in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island.
The Senior and Middle School campus is located on Richmond Road in Saanich. The Junior School campus is situated on Victoria Avenue in Oak Bay.

History

In 1906, University School was founded by Capt. R. V. Harvey, the Rev. W. W. Bolton and J. C. Barnacle. Four years later, in 1910, K. C. Symons founded St. Michael's School. St. Michael's School was unusual for its relatively large number of local day students for the period.
Facing financial difficulties and the death of its headmaster in 1970, University School merged with St. Michael's in 1971 to become St. Michaels University School. In 1973, the school began to enrol grade 1 and 2 students for the first time. In 1978, girls were accepted as day and boarding students in grades 10–12 for the first time, and the school began the process of becoming fully coeducational in 1985. A major expansion of the campus also began in 1985. In 1993, SMUS's boarding houses were renamed after the school's six founders: Bolton, Harvey, Winslow, Timmis, Symons, and Barnacle.

Boarding houses

There are currently six houses: The houses are named after the headmasters and founders of the school.
  • Barnacle
  • Bolton
  • Harvey
  • Timmis
  • Symons
  • Winslow
The Senior School houses are only for boarding students who become a member of one of the houses when starting at SMUS and it becomes their place of residence and community throughout their time at the school.

School performance

The average number of APs taken by SMUS students ranks first in the country across all schools as of 2012. The record for most APs taken and completed by a single student is 15. In terms of average mean grades, SMUS students achieved an average of 3.68, which was higher than the global average of 2.92. Of the 650 exams across 25 different AP subjects taken by 245 SMUS students, 81% of them received grades of three or higher on the five point scale, which was also higher than the worldwide rate of 59% achieving grades of three or higher.

Motto

The motto of University School was "Mens sana in corpore sano," which means, "A healthy mind in a healthy body." St. Michael's School had the motto "Nihil Magnum Nisi Bonum," or, "Nothing is great unless it is good."
The current motto of St. Michaels University School is "Vivat!", or "Long live the school!" This ties into the school's song, "Vivat - Universitas!", written by Capt. R. V. Harvey originally for University School. The school uses "Vivat!" when cheering on a team.

Campus

Richmond Road Campus:
  • School House: Administration, Library, Mathematics
  • Brown Hall: Multi-purpose space
  • Sun Centre: Dining Hall, Student Commons, The Howard Cafe
  • Chapel
  • Crothall Centre for Humanities and the Arts: Classrooms, Lecture Theatre, Drama Room, Art Room,
  • William Monkman Athletic Complex: Gymnasium, Squash Courts, Fitness Center
  • John and Anne Schaffter Hall for Music
  • Science Building: Science Classrooms and Computer Labs
  • Infirmary
  • Residence Buildings: Harvey/Symons, Barnacle/Winslow, Bolton/Timmis
  • Wenman Pavilion: Senior Lounge
  • Reynolds House: Head of School's Residence
  • Middle School

Accreditation and memberships

St. Michaels University School is accredited or a member of the following organizations:

Notable alumni

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