Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School (Waterloo, Ontario)

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Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School
Sir John A. Macdonald SS in Waterloo panorama.jpg
Address
Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap
650 Laurelwood Drive

Waterloo
,
Ontario
,
N2V 2V1

Canada
Coordinates43°28′16″N 80°35′40″W / 43.4711°N 80.5945°W / 43.4711; -80.5945Coordinates: 43°28′16″N 80°35′40″W / 43.4711°N 80.5945°W / 43.4711; -80.5945
Information
School typePublic
MottoAudere est credere
(Dare to believe [sic])
Founded2004
School boardWaterloo Region District School Board
PrincipalVida Collis
Grades9-12
Enrollment1 446 (November 2017)
LanguageEnglish
Colour(s)Light Blue, Dark Blue and White    
MascotJohnny Mac
Team nameThe Highlanders
Websitejam.wrdsb.ca

Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School is a high school operated by the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It opened in September 2004 and provides both academic and vocational programs to approximately 1500 students as of the 2020-21 school year.[1] Each year around 450 new grade 9 students join this high school from Centennial, Edna Staebler, Laurelwood, and Vista Hills [2]

History[]

The school is located on Laurelwood Drive in the rapidly growing northwest end of the city of Waterloo. It is named after Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada's first prime minister, and is affectionately referred to as SJAM ("ess-jam"). The school name has been a topic of controversy for some, starting in 2018.[3] As of 2020, some community members wanted the school name to be changed because of historical events that have occurred relating to the genocide of the First Nations peoples in the residential schools.[4] The school motto is "audere est credere," (inaccurately) translated as "dare to believe," which is the name of the school song. SJAM is the largest secondary school in the City of Waterloo.

The Arts[]

The school is very well known for its jazz program which was the largest in the region 2011-12. Its music groups almost always receive gold at K-W Kiwanis. In the 2018 year, the Senior Band received a platinum award at Kiwanis, and the Junior Band & Brass Quartet both received gold. The Senior Band would go on to also win Gold at Music Fest Canada 2018.

The drama department also fares well at the annual SEARS festivals. In the 2012-13 school year, they advanced to regionals. In 2014, they hosted the festival for Waterloo schools, and in 2018 they hosted NTSDF.

The school offers a wide variety of art programs as well, ranging from visual arts to photography. A talent show takes place every year in an auditorium to display and recognize students with unique talents and abilities.

Sports[]

SJAM offers numerous clubs, teams, and activities with over 10 choices per season.[5] SJAM's athletic teams are called the Highlanders. Both the Junior and Senior football teams were champions in 07-08 as well as juniors winning in 2009 and seniors in 2011 and 2012. SJAM also has a reputation for excellence in rugby, with the Bantam, Junior and Senior teams winning WCSSAA over 10 times combined. It is the only sport at the school to have a grade 9 team (bantam). Track and field has been very successful at OFSAA with student Anna Larsson taking gold and silver in pole vault, as well as John Fish taking bronze in the 400m. The track team continues to be successful at provincial competition. 2018 Junior girls cross country team has had much success at OFSAA, having qualified two years in a row. Girls' field hockey has been to OFSAA 4 straight years. With 3 silver medals from 2010-2012 and a gold in 2013.2019 JR Girl volleyball team won WCSSAA.

Academics[]

SJAM offers pre-advanced placement courses for grade 9 and 10 students, and advanced placement courses for grade 11 and 12 students. SJAM is the Waterloo site of the WRDSB's Fast Forward program. About 17 per cent (245) of SJAM students are in Fast Forward Program. Since 2008, SJAM has been the number one ranking school in Waterloo Region in the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT), which is administered to all Grade 10 students in the Province of Ontario. As of 2019, the Fraser Institute ranked SJAM as one of the best schools in Ontario with an average performance score of 8.1 out of 10.[6] SJAM ranks better than 90 per cent of schools in the Waterloo Region and 85 per cent of schools in all of Ontario.[7]

Leadership[]

SJAM hosted the 33rd Canadian Student Leadership Conference (CSLC) in the fall of 2017. Events included participating in the local Oktoberfest celebrations and listening to keynote speakers. It was co-chaired by Sandy Millar, a vice-principal at the school. SJAM also sends a delegation to OSLC, the Ontario Student Leadership Conference each year. [8]

Community involvement[]

SJAM has been involved in some community work. Some events and charities supported by the school include:

  • Relay for Life, in which the school raised $97 000.00in 2014[9]
  • Free 2010 and 2012, for Free the Children
  • The Terry Fox Run
  • The Food Bank of Waterloo Region

Other accomplishments include the raising of $12,008.83 for the 2010 Haiti earthquake relief through the Red Cross.[citation needed]

  • The school is also currently a "We School in Action" with Free the Children, and has pledged to raise $20,000 by the end of the school year.
  • As of 2013, the school observes Orange Shirt Day every year on September 30th, to provide support to the Indigenous people.[10]
  • A Beyond the Hurt team was established to prevent and reduce bullying for SJAM students.[11]
  • A Safe and Inclusive School Committee was established in 2018 to prevent and raise awareness on bullying.[12]

Construction and setbacks[]

Construction of the $27 million, 206,000-square-foot (19,100 m2) school was plagued by construction delays. It opened two months before construction was complete, with students initially limited to partial days of classes. The name was selected in 2003 by school board trustees. When they asked for suggestions, the most frequently submitted name was Oscar Peterson, but because he was still alive, Peterson wasn't eligible to have a school named after him (The Record, April 24, 2003).

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Sir John A Macdonald Secondary School - Waterloo, ON". www.areavibes.com. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
  2. ^ "Future SJAM Students (Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School)". jam.wrdsb.ca. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
  3. ^ International, Radio Canada (2018-06-18). "Canada's founding father takes another hit". RCI | English. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
  4. ^ Pender, Terry (2020-06-29). "Should Waterloo's Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School school be renamed?". Toronto.com. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
  5. ^ "Clubs, Teams & Activities at SJAM (Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School)". jam.wrdsb.ca. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
  6. ^ "Sir John A. MacDonald Secondary has best ranking in Waterloo Region: Fraser Institute". KitchenerToday.com. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
  7. ^ "Sir John A Macdonald Secondary School - Waterloo, ON". www.areavibes.com. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
  8. ^ http://cslc2017.studentleadership.ca/
  9. ^ "Relay for Life at Sir John A. Macdonald - Canadian Cancer Society". Cancer.ca. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  10. ^ "WRDSB observes Orange Shirt Day on September 30 (Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School)". jam.wrdsb.ca. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
  11. ^ "Are You Being Bullied? (Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School)". jam.wrdsb.ca. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
  12. ^ "Are You Being Bullied? (Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School)". jam.wrdsb.ca. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
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