St. Mary Catholic Secondary School (Pickering, Ontario)

St. Mary Catholic Secondary School is a Catholic secondary school located in Pickering, Ontario, Canada established in 1987.[2] Operated by the Durham Catholic District School Board (DCDSB), it is the only Catholic high school located in Pickering.

St. Mary Catholic Secondary School
Address
Map
1918 Whites Road

, ,
Canada
Coordinates43°50′05″N 79°07′24″W / 43.83475°N 79.12337°W / 43.83475; -79.12337
Information
School typeHigh school
PrincipalSusan Duane
ChaplainTomy Valookaran
Grades9-12
Enrolment1,500[1] (2019/2020)
MascotLeo The Lion/Monarchs
Websitestmary.dcdsb.ca


Controversies edit

Non-Uniform Day Enforcement edit

On March 22, 2012, approximately 200 to 300 students were sent home due to wearing either shorts, khakis, capris and/or ankle socks, sparking outrage amongst students and parents. The administration at St. Mary claims the rule was in the student agenda, reminded the students about the rule the day before, and dismissed allegations of student suspensions.[3][4][5]

2019-2020 Yearbook edit

On October 10, 2020, St. Mary Catholic Secondary School had sent out its 2019-2020 yearbook to the graduates of that school year. It was then brought to light that a black man's quote was changed from him commemorating his grandma and thanking her for her support of his years of high school, to a racist message. This made the school issue a return on all yearbooks and announcing an investigation on the people who had changed his quote.[6][7]

Days later, on October 16, 2020, nine more students came out saying that their quotes have been changed too. One criticized a female student's body image, another targeted a male student's grade. The nine people were a mix of male and female students from various cultural backgrounds.[8]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "St Mary Catholic Secondary School (826278)". Ministry of Education. Retrieved 18 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Mission Statement". St. Mary CSS Website. Archived from the original on 16 March 2015. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  3. ^ Casey, Liam (23 March 2012). "Scores of Pickering students sent home for wearing shorts". Toronto Star. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
  4. ^ Calis, Kristen (22 March 2012). "Pickering students sent home for wearing shorts". Durham Region News. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
  5. ^ "High school students in Pickering sent home for dress code violation 😢". CityNews. 22 March 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
  6. ^ Lavery, Irelyne (12 October 2020). "Pickering high school recalls yearbook after student's tribute to grandmother replaced with a racist message". The Toronto Star. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
  7. ^ "Statement from the Durham Catholic District School Board in response to racist content in St. Mary CSS yearbook". St Mary CSS. 13 October 2020. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
  8. ^ Tsekouras, Phil (16 October 2020). "Nine more students of Pickering high school embroiled in racist yearbook controversy say their quotes were tampered with". CP24. Retrieved 20 October 2020.

External links edit