DSBN Academy


The DSBN Academy, less formally known as The Academy is a public high school and middle school in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. It is located on Louth Street and is part of the District School Board of Niagara. The DSBN Academy accepts students from anywhere in the Niagara Region. The school's program is designed to provide additional academic support for students from low-income backgrounds to better prepare them for post-secondary education.

History

The site on which the DSBN Academy is built was originally part of a 100-acre land grant that was conveyed to John Gould by Letters Patent from the Crown in 1806. He sold off parcels of this land during the succeeding years, and by the time of Confederation, it had been fragmented into the hands of fifty-four different owners. Among the names of early settlers of this area are found, as recorded by the Registrar of Deeds, those of: Merritt, Woodruff, Rykert, Macdonald, Mettleberger, Bullivant, Adams and Brown.
In 1963, the Board of Education for the City of St. Catharines took steps towards building a local school in the area originally designated as West Park. Approximately fifteen acres would be purchased in an area bound by Louth Street, Rykert Street and Powerview Avenue. By arrangement with the City of St. Catharines, through the Parks and Recreation Commission, it was agreed that this area should be developed as a school-recreation-park complex. The Board of Education purchased approximately seven acres, from a private owner. The city made available to the Board about seven acres of the unopened Homeland Plan subdivision, and jointly the Board and the city acquired another acre from the rear of the lots on Louth Street, For the building project the firm of Macbeth, Williams, Woodruff and Hadaway was chosen as architects and the general contract was awarded to Newman Brothers Company Limited. Construction began on October 14, 1967. The total cost of the school was $3,250,943.00 of which $1,985,943.00 was received as federal-provincial grants.
At the school is a track and field centre operated by the Niagara Olympic Club.

Recent

The DSBN Academy was founded in 2010 and opened its doors in September 2011, offering classes in grades six and seven. The original building it occupied was the former Empire High School in Welland, Ontario but, in 2013, relocated to the previous West Park Secondary School in St. Catharines where it has occupied ever since. That year the school had approximately 200 students.
In 2015 the Academy received a $30,000 grant to purchase new instruments for the school's music program.
In 2017 the first class of 45 Grade 12 students graduated from the school.
The Academy annually receives a grant from RBC of $25,000 to go towards scholarships, technology, and academics.
In 2019, the DSBN Academy raised over $1400 for the humanitarian organization Water for South Sudan. The organization's founder and protagonist of the semi-biographical novel A Long Walk to Water, Salva Dut, visited the school personally to congratulate the students.
Several teachers from the DSBN Academy protested Ontarian Minister of Education Stephen Lecce for his budget cuts to public education in 2019.
As of 2020, the DSBN Academy has accumulated over $75,000 in bursaries for its graduates through the Denim, Diamonds & Diplomas fundraising event. The event is held annually and organized by DSBN Academy alumn Zach Harrietha. The Academy Jazz Band traditionally performs at the event each year.
COVID-19 pandemic
The DSBN Academy, like all public schools in Ontario, was drastically affected by the COVID-19 pandemic during the 2019-2020 school year. In March 2020, the school was asked to close by the Ontario Ministry of Health. As a result, the graduation ceremony for the class of 2020 had to be postponed until the next academic year. The valedictorian for the class of 2020 was alumn Devon Fiander.

School life

The Academy's motto "Achievement through Opportunity" which exemplifies the schools dedication to academic success and post-secondary education. The more common slogan "We believe and we will achieve" come from the Academy's creed. The creed is spoken each morning of the school day after the national anthem. All student wear navy blue uniform shirts with navy pants or optional skirt for secondary students and khaki pants for middle school.
The DSBN Academy takes students in from anywhere in the Niagara Peninsula promising a future for students from whatever socio-economic class the opportunity to reach post-secondary education. As such, the Academy receives a diverse enrolment of students from every background.
The DSBN Academy provides for its student an array of extracurricular programs and activities including: Seasonal sports, Reach for the Top Trivia Team, science club, art club, fitness, Student Innovators, homework club, fishing club, ball hockey, school band, Gay-Straight Alliance,, Dungeons & Dragons, choir, and book club.
At the Academy, extracurriculars are known as "Encores" and create a sense of school spirit, and personal exploration.
Academy Alumni have gone on to pursue post-secondary degrees at top Canadian universities, including University of Guelph, University of Toronto, McGill University, Queen's University, University of Alberta, University of Ottawa, University of Western Ontario, McMaster University, and the University of Waterloo.

Reach for the Top

The DSBN Academy has competed in the Canadian national trivia competition Reach for the Top since 2016. Founded by Julia Dickson-Eckert, the Academy Trivia Team has annually competed at regional tournaments but, as of 2020, has yet to place in provincial competitions. From 2016-2020, the first captain of the DSBN Academy Trivia Team was alumn Andrew Hawlitzky.

Principals


  • PrincipalsYear
    Tom Reynolds2011-2014
    Andrea Grieve2014-2019
    Derek Harley2019-present

    • See Also