en.wikipedia.org Open in urlscan Pro
208.80.154.224  Public Scan

Form analysis
1 forms found in the DOM

/w/index.php

<form action="/w/index.php" id="searchform" class="cdx-search-input cdx-search-input--has-end-button">
  <div id="simpleSearch" class="cdx-search-input__input-wrapper" data-search-loc="header-moved">
    <div class="cdx-text-input cdx-text-input--has-start-icon">
      <input class="cdx-text-input__input" type="search" name="search" placeholder="Search Wikipedia" aria-label="Search Wikipedia" autocapitalize="sentences" title="Search Wikipedia [alt-shift-f]" accesskey="f" id="searchInput" autocomplete="off">
      <span class="cdx-text-input__icon cdx-text-input__start-icon"></span>
    </div>
    <input type="hidden" name="title" value="Special:Search">
  </div>
  <button class="cdx-button cdx-search-input__end-button">Search</button>
</form>

Text Content

Jump to content
Main menu
Main menu
move to sidebar hide
Navigation
 * Main page
 * Contents
 * Current events
 * Random article
 * About Wikipedia
 * Contact us
 * Donate

Contribute
 * Help
 * Learn to edit
 * Community portal
 * Recent changes
 * Upload file

Languages
Language links are at the top of the page.
Search

Search
 * Create account
 * Log in

Personal tools
 * Create account
 * Log in

Pages for logged out editors learn more
 * Contributions
 * Talk

Photograph your local culture, help Wikipedia and win!



CONTENTS

move to sidebar hide
 * (Top)
 * 1History
 * 2Controversies
 * 3Charity and fundraising
 * 4Notable people
 * 5Mentions in popular culture
 * 6Footnotes
 * 7External links

Toggle the table of contents



SELWYN HOUSE SCHOOL

Add languages
Add links
 * Article
 * Talk

English

 * Read
 * Edit
 * View history

Tools
Tools
move to sidebar hide
Actions
 * Read
 * Edit
 * View history

General
 * What links here
 * Related changes
 * Upload file
 * Special pages
 * Permanent link
 * Page information
 * Cite this page
 * Get shortened URL
 * Download QR code
 * Wikidata item
 * Add interlanguage links
 * Expand all

Print/export
 * Download as PDF
 * Printable version

In other projects
 * Wikimedia Commons


From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For the collegiate institution at the University of Cambridge, see Selwyn
College, Cambridge.



Day school in Westmount, Quebec, Canada

Selwyn House SchoolAddress

Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap
95 chemin Côte St-Antoine

Westmount
,
Quebec
,
H3Y 2H8

Canada
Coordinates45°29′10″N 73°35′50″W / 45.4862°N 73.5973°W / 45.4862;
-73.5973InformationSchool typeIndependent day schoolMottoVeritas (Latin for
'Truth')Founded1908HeadmasterMichael
DowneyGradesK–12[1]GenderBoysEnrollment580 (2023-24)LanguageEnglishColour(s)Black
and Gold   MascotGryphonTeam nameSelwyn House GryphonsRivalsLower Canada College
Loyola High SchoolTuition$23,450 – $29,990[2]Websitewww.selwyn.ca

Selwyn House School (SHS) is an English-language independent K-12 boys' school
located in Westmount, Quebec. The school was founded in 1908 by Englishman
Captain Algernon Lucas and was named in honour of Selwyn College at the
University of Cambridge, which Lucas attended. The school body currently numbers
580 students with an average class size of 15 to 20 students.[3]

Students are divided into four houses, which serve intramural athletics purposes
within the primary school. The houses, named after the first four headmasters of
the school, are Lucas (yellow), Macaulay (red), Wanstall (green) and Speirs
(blue). The Selwyn House Gryphons have fielded strong athletic teams in recent
decades[4] and their traditional rivals in sports are Lower Canada College and
Loyola High School. The school remains one of only three all-male educational
institutions left in Quebec.[5] They host co-ed events with sister schools Miss
Edgar's and Miss Cramp's School and The Study.[6][7][8][9]

Despite charging among the highest tuition fees for a private day school in
Quebec,[10] Selwyn House also previously took grants from the provincial
government which is available to all private schools for Grades 7 to 11. All
students in the secondary school section were therefore required to have a
certificate of eligibility allowing them to attend government-funded English
schools in Quebec. Prior to 2021, students without the certificate could only
attend the non-subsidized primary section from Kindergarten to Grade 6, and must
have received the required certificate by the end of Grade 6 in order to
continue attending the school. Since 2021, Selwyn House no longer receives any
government subsidies and students no longer need the certificate for any
grade.[11][12] By foregoing subsidies, the school was able to broaden its
potential student pool and admit students from French elementary schools who
were previously barred from attending Selwyn House's secondary school due to
Bill 101.[13][14]

In 2022, the school announced that it would begin a Pre-University year (Grade
12), which started in September 2023.[15]


HISTORY[EDIT]

In 1908, the English-speaking elite of Montreal were in need of a suitable
preparatory school, and British Captain Algernon Lucas was seeking a teaching
career in Canada. A graduate of Selwyn College, Cambridge University, he was
given the job of educating seven boys. Within two years, the school had to move
from Lucas' Crescent Street apartment to a larger house on Mackay Street. In
1912, Lucas turned to the business world and Colin Macaulay, who had been a
classmate of Lucas at Selwyn College, replaced him as headmaster.

Selwyn House quickly grew in size and relocated two more times. Its aim was to
provide a solid grounding in basic subjects, and to equip boys for the boarding
schools from which they would proceed to university. The school was modeled
after English preparatory schools,[16] and the staff was largely recruited from
the United Kingdom. Under the leadership of Dr. Robert Speirs, headmaster from
1945 to 1971 and after whom the Speirs Medal is named, the reputation of the
school grew significantly. In the 1940s, the students who attended the school
were overwhelmingly Protestant with the notable exception of sons of the
Bronfman family, who were Jewish.[17][18]

View of Selwyn House in 2022

The school moved to its present location in 1961, having bought the property
from Westmount High School.[19][20]

In 1985, William Mitchell became the headmaster. The school's needs and demands
for added facilities reached a point where one building was no longer
sufficient. When St. Andrew's United Church across the street closed, Selwyn
House purchased and renovated it, and it is now known as the Macaulay Building.
In 1999, the school underwent substantial renovations in its three main
buildings on campus. In 2002, the school built the Speirs Building which housed
a new double-sized gym, a spacious high-tech library, numerous classrooms,
offices and an agora for student assemblies and various other functions. This
was followed by a massive renovation of the original Lucas Building, including
converting its gymnasium into a large, modern dining hall and fully equipped
auditorium, dubbed Coristine Hall.

Jonathan Kay, who attended the school in the 1980s, describes the student body
as being predominantly white and anglophone when he was a student there with
only three students of Asian descent in his grade. He also mentions the constant
racial bullying of his French Canadian classmate and notes that it was more
difficult back then to be a francophone than a Jewish or visible minority
student.[21][22] French has gradually been introduced to the school curriculum,
and since 1999, elementary school students now spend 80 percent of the time
learning in French from Kindergarten to Grade 2, and 50 percent from Grade 3 to
6.[23] According to Kay, the school no longer resembles the one he attended and
is now fully bilingual and racially diverse.[22]

In January 2009, Hal Hannaford took over as the school's new headmaster after
having previously served as the longtime headmaster of Royal St. George's
College in Toronto.[24] In Winter 2010, Selwyn House completed renovations of
the aging Macaulay Building.

In June 2020, Hannaford retired and was replaced by Mike Downey, who previously
served as a teacher, a coach and most recently, the head of senior school at
Selwyn House.[25]

In 2021, the school became fully independent by no longer taking provincial
grants, expanding the application process to more students, including those from
French elementary schools. Applicants for admissions and current students do not
need a Certificate of English Eligibility, required by the Quebec government for
students to attend English schools that receive provincial grants. In 2022, the
school announced that it would begin a Pre-University year (Grade 12), which
started in September 2023.[26]


CONTROVERSIES[EDIT]

In September 2005, an alumnus of the school launched a lawsuit against Selwyn
House claiming that he had been molested by a former teacher. Allegations
regarding misconduct had been made in 1971, 1983, and again in 1991 when the
school administration confronted the teacher. Soon after, the teacher killed his
elderly father and then committed suicide.[27] As a result, no further action on
the issue was taken by the school administration.[28]

Allegations that two other former teachers, including John Aimers, had also
abused students were filed as part of a class action lawsuit on February 3,
2006.[29] The school agreed to a $5 million compensation fund in January 2009.
The fund was approved by the Quebec Superior Court as a settlement for former
students, their partners, and their parents.[30] The allegations claimed that
various teachers, none of whom were still present at the school, committed
sexual abuse of over 30 minors during the 1970s to early 1980s.[30]


CHARITY AND FUNDRAISING[EDIT]

Selwyn House participates yearly in the Terry Fox Run, Shave to Save[31] and
Movember.[32]

The Veritas Fund is a charitable organization established by the school to
provide bursaries. The value of the fund has grown from $3.1 million in 2004 to
$17.5 million in 2019 and contributions come from alumni donations and others
connected to the school. Income generated from long-term investments owned by
the fund is then used to pay for scholarships and financial assistance for
students who qualify.[33][34]

The school also donates a portion of their fundraising proceeds to charity. A
gala hosted in 2008 to celebrate Selwyn House's centennial anniversary raised
$1.5 million with 10 percent of the money going to local charities.[35] A
similar event in 2013 raised $1.4 million with a portion going to charity as
well.[36]


NOTABLE PEOPLE[EDIT]

Main article: List of Selwyn House School people

Selwyn House has traditionally been the school of choice for Montreal's
Anglophone elite.[37][38][39] Sons of the Molson family have attended the school
during every decade of Selwyn House's existence.[40] Many members of the
Bronfman family have also attended the school.[41] Ten former students of Selwyn
House have been awarded Rhodes Scholarships.[42]


MENTIONS IN POPULAR CULTURE[EDIT]

 * The movie Prom Wars is based on Selwyn House. In the movie, Selby House
   battle Lancaster College (allegories for Selwyn House and Lower Canada
   College, respectively, historically "arch-rival" schools) over the right to
   take ACS (ECS) girls, the nearby girls school, to their respective
   proms.[43][44]
 * The school has been mentioned in Mordecai Richler's novel, Barney's
   Version.[45]
 * The school is part of the basis for Richler's Jacob Two-Two adventure
   series.[45] Richler's son Jacob was a student at Selwyn House.


FOOTNOTES[EDIT]

 1.  ^ "Selwyn House School Pre-University". www.selwyn.ca. Archived from the
     original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 18 June 2023.
 2.  ^ "Tuition And Bursaries". www.selwyn.ca. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
 3.  ^ "Selwyn House School".
 4.  ^ "High School Directory". Archived from the original on 3 November 2002.
 5.  ^ "La lente disparition des écoles unisexes". La Presse+. 26 September
     2016.
 6.  ^ "Friday Night Ski Club – Grades 7–11 (SHS/ECS/The Study)". 14 February
     2020.
 7.  ^ "SHS-ECS Grade 8 Math Olympics". Selwyn House School. 25 February 2016.
 8.  ^ "The Study Grade 1 girls visiting Selwyn House". Selwyn House School. 22
     October 2019.
 9.  ^ "Grades 4A and 6 visit to The Study to view MS play". Selwyn House
     School. 23 January 2019.
 10. ^ "Quebec private schools willing to accept more challenged students".
     www.montrealgazette.com. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
 11. ^ "English Language Eligibility". www.selwyn.ca. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
 12. ^ "Private Schools". Retrieved 1 June 2020.
 13. ^ "English private schools in Quebec might refuse government subsidy to
     bypass strict language law on admissions". National Post. 30 April 2015.
 14. ^ "English private schools in Quebec skirt language laws and shun
     government funding to boost enrolment". The Globe and Mail. 27 April 2023.
 15. ^ "Our Story". Selwyn House School. 8 June 2023.
 16. ^ "Selwyn House, Then and Now". National Post. 13 May 2008. Retrieved 17
     April 2020.
 17. ^ "The invisible thread that unites all Jews". The Canadian Jewish News. 26
     April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
 18. ^ "Demanding Justice". Maclean’s. 9 June 1997. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
 19. ^ "History of Westmount High School" (PDF).
 20. ^ "Selwyn House School Celebrating 100 Years". Selwyn House School. 15
     August 2007 – via Internet Archive.
 21. ^ "Jonathan Kay: Canada is becoming a nation of 'Tiger Mothers'". National
     Post. 10 February 2010. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
 22. ^ Jump up to: a b "Guilty Memories from an Anglo Montreal Childhood". The
     Walrus. 15 December 2016. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
 23. ^ "An Anglo cliché goes poof". Maclean's. 14 January 2009. Retrieved 16
     April 2020.
 24. ^ "Royal St. George's losing headmaster". The Globe and Mail. 24 January
     2008. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
 25. ^ "Torch is passed at Selwyn House". Selwyn House School. 21 November 2019.
 26. ^ "Our Story". Selwyn House School. 8 June 2023.
 27. ^ "Selwyn House ignored sex-abuse claim for 20 years: documents". Cbc.ca. 7
     August 2008. Retrieved 25 January 2010.
 28. ^ Ha, Tu Thanh (22 August 2008). "'I don't want to live with the memory of
     this all my life'". The Globe and Mail.
 29. ^ "Quebec boys' school hit with legal bombshell". CTV Television Network.
     2006. Archived from the original on 11 March 2007. Retrieved 28 January
     2008.
 30. ^ Jump up to: a b "Selwyn House agrees to $5M fund for alleged sex-abuse
     victims". CBC News. 13 January 2009. Retrieved 25 January 2010.
 31. ^ "Selwyn House Shave to Save". Virgin Radio. Retrieved 9 January 2015.
 32. ^ "Selwyn House Movember Team". Movember Canada. Retrieved 9 January 2015.
 33. ^ "The Veritas Fund". CanadaHelps – Donate to any charity in Canada.
 34. ^ "Charity Data". www.charitydata.ca.
 35. ^ "Selwyn House Centennial gala raises $1.45M for endowment, charity".
     Selwyn House School. 23 March 2008.
 36. ^ "OK, CLASS, it's back-to-school gala time for Selwyn House, with the
     annual Gryphon fundraiser". Montreal Gazette. 26 October 2013. Archived
     from the original on 2 February 2021. Retrieved 18 June 2023 – via
     PressReader.
 37. ^ "A Private-School Affair". Vanity Fair. 6 June 2008.
 38. ^ Houpt, Simon (3 January 2017). "In new memoir, Charles Bronfman talks
     Canada's heritage – and his own". The Globe and Mail.
 39. ^ "Abuse alleged in '70s at elite Montreal school". The Globe and Mail. 30
     September 2005. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
 40. ^ "Selwyn House Founding Families: the Molsons". Selwyn House School. 19
     November 2007.
 41. ^ Peritz, Ingrid (20 February 2008). "School offers money to former
     students claiming abuse". The Globe and Mail.
 42. ^ "Sniderman 2001 wins Rhodes Scholarship". Selwyn House School. 27
     November 2007.
 43. ^ "Selwyn House School ~ Selwyn House coming to a theatre near you".
     Selwyn.ca. 12 November 2006. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
 44. ^ "Layout 1" (PDF). Retrieved 7 November 2012.
 45. ^ Jump up to: a b "Selwyn House School – Westmount Private Day School".
     www.ourkids.net.


EXTERNAL LINKS[EDIT]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Selwyn House School.
 * Official website



show
 * v
 * t
 * e

Secondary schools on the Island of Montreal

French-language public schools
CSS de Montréal
 * Académie Dunton
 * Académie de Roberval
 * Chomedey-De Maisonneuve
 * École de la Lancée
 * École de la Source
 * Édouard-Montpetit
 * École Espace-Jeunesse
 * Eulalie-Durocher
 * École Eurêka
 * Évangeline
 * École FACE
 * École Georges-Vanier
 * Honoré-Mercier
 * École internationale de Montréal
 * Irénée-Lussier
 * Jeanne-Mance
 * Joseph-Charbonneau
 * Joseph-François-Perrault
 * La Dauversière
 * le Tremplin
 * le Vitrail
 * la Voie
 * Louis-Joseph-Papineau
 * Louis-Riel
 * Louise-Trichet
 * Lucien-Pagé
 * Marguerite-De Lajemmerais
 * Marie-Anne
 * École Père-Marquette (fr)
 * Rosalie-Jetté
 * Saint-Henri
 * Saint-Louis
 * Saint-Luc
 * Sophie-Barat

CSS Marguerite-Bourgeoys
 * Cavelier-De LaSalle
 * Collège Saint-Louis
 * Dalbé-Viau
 * des Sources
 * Dorval-Jean-XXIII
 * Félix-Leclerc
 * Monseigneur-Richard
 * Mont-Royal
 * Paul-Gérin-Lajoie-d'Outremont
 * Pierre-Laporte
 * Saint-Georges
 * Saint-Laurent

CSS de la Pointe-de-l'Île
 * Anjou
 * Antoine-de-Saint-Exupéry
 * Calixa-Lavallée
 * Daniel-Johnson
 * Guy-Vanier
 * Henri-Bourassa
 * Jean-Grou
 * La Passerelle
 * La Relance
 * Le Tournesol
 * Pointe-aux-Trembles



English-language public schools
English Montreal SB
 * F.A.C.E. School
 * James Lyng
 * John F. Kennedy
 * John Grant
 * John Paul I Junior High
 * LaurenHill Academy
 * Laurier Macdonald
 * Pearson
 * Marymount Academy
 * MIND
 * Paul VI
 * Rosemount
 * Royal Vale
 * Royal West
 * St. Raphael Centre
 * Vincent Massey
 * Westmount High

Lester B. Pearson SB
 * Beaconsfield
 * Beurling Academy
 * Horizon
 * Lakeside Academy
 * LaSalle Community Comprehensive
 * Macdonald
 * Pierrefonds Community
 * Riverdale
 * John Rennie
 * Lindsay Place
 * St. Thomas
 * Westwood



Independent schools
Non-religious
 * Alexander von Humboldt
 * Marie de France
 * Jean-Eudes
 * Reine-Marie
 * Regina Assumpta
 * Stanislas
 * Sourp Hagop Armenian School
 * Kuper Academy
 * Lower Canada College
 * Miss Edgar's and Miss Cramp's
 * Selwyn House
 * St. George's
 * Trafalgar
 * Vanguard
 * West Island College

Religious
 * Bialik
 * Brebeuf
 * Notre-Dame
 * École Maïmonide
 * Emmanuel Christian School
 * Greaves Adventist Academy
 * Loyola High School
 * Hebrew Academy
 * Herzliah High School


This list is incomplete.



Authority control databases
 * VIAF

Retrieved from
"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Selwyn_House_School&oldid=1204745355"
Categories:
 * English-language schools in Quebec
 * Elementary schools in Montreal
 * High schools in Montreal
 * Private schools in Quebec
 * Schools in Westmount, Quebec
 * Boys' schools in Canada

Hidden categories:
 * Use dmy dates from June 2023
 * Articles with short description
 * Short description is different from Wikidata
 * Infobox mapframe without OSM relation ID on Wikidata
 * Articles containing Latin-language text
 * Commons category link is on Wikidata
 * Official website not in Wikidata
 * Articles with VIAF identifiers
 * Pages using the Kartographer extension

 * This page was last edited on 7 February 2024, at 22:13 (UTC).
 * Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
   4.0; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms
   of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the
   Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

 * Privacy policy
 * About Wikipedia
 * Disclaimers
 * Contact Wikipedia
 * Code of Conduct
 * Developers
 * Statistics
 * Cookie statement
 * Mobile view
 * Edit preview settings

 * 
 * 

 * Toggle limited content width