Halifax Grammar School
Encyclopedia
The Halifax Grammar School (HGS) is a private, coeducational day school in Halifax
, Nova Scotia
, Canada
. It is located in south-end Halifax, near Saint Mary's University. It has a student population of approximately 500, and at the high school level follows the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program. The school's current headmaster is Blayne Addley.
The Halifax Grammar School occupies two campuses, one located on Atlantic Street, and the other on Tower Road. A building at 420 Tower Road was the original location of the school before they purchased the building on Atlantic Street, which they soon decided to expand. For two years, the School rented the "Bethany" building on the corner of Tower Road and Inglis Street from Saint Mary's University (it is now used as an ESL
building by the university), before purchasing the closed Tower Road School building from the City of Halifax. The Tower Road Campus (TRC) houses the Middle School, the school's administrative offices, the Silver Art Studio, and the Meinertzhagen Theatre, a multi-purpose converted gymnasium which is used for everything from school assemblies to dances to musical performances. The Atlantic Street campus houses the Prep School (downstairs) and the Senior School (upstairs), as well as a large gymnasium. The school also uses the "Tower" gym facilities at Saint Mary's University for some of its gym classes.
All prospective Senior School students from other schools are required to undergo entrance testing before being admitted. This system is used to identify candidates for the school's merit-based scholarships, in fields from pure academics to community service to athletics, and numerous combinations thereof.
Athletics=
Despite being a small school, Halifax Grammar's Senior Varsity Girls Basketball team ranks highly in Division 1 among the best high school teams in the province. Past achievements include:
2009-2010 Season: NSSAF Division 1 Provincial Champions; 2008-2009 Season: NSSAF Division 1 Provincial Bronze Medalists; 2007-2008 Season: NSSAF Division 1 Provincial Bronze Medalists; 2006-2007 Season: NSSAF Division 1 Provincial Champions.
Musically, the school began an expansion in 2003 with the implementation of a band program for students in the Middle School. The school also puts on an annual musical production, which is currently directed by Ms. Tina Capalbo.
City of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It is located in south-end Halifax, near Saint Mary's University. It has a student population of approximately 500, and at the high school level follows the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program. The school's current headmaster is Blayne Addley.
Schools
The school is divided into the Prep School (grades Junior-Primary through 4), the Middle School (grades 5 through 9), and the Senior School (grades 10 to 12). Each school has its own head of school and teachers.ESL
ESL is a common abbreviation for English as a Second Language, see English language learning and teaching.ESL may also refer to:-Companies:...
building by the university), before purchasing the closed Tower Road School building from the City of Halifax. The Tower Road Campus (TRC) houses the Middle School, the school's administrative offices, the Silver Art Studio, and the Meinertzhagen Theatre, a multi-purpose converted gymnasium which is used for everything from school assemblies to dances to musical performances. The Atlantic Street campus houses the Prep School (downstairs) and the Senior School (upstairs), as well as a large gymnasium. The school also uses the "Tower" gym facilities at Saint Mary's University for some of its gym classes.
Academics
Since being founded, HGS has consistently maintained a high level of academic achievement. The Senior School recently converted to mandatory International Baccalaureate studies for all students during the 2002-2003 school year. Course choices become progressively more flexible, allowing students to specialize, while certain compulsory courses (at various levels) provide a basis of knowledge that is essential to all students.All prospective Senior School students from other schools are required to undergo entrance testing before being admitted. This system is used to identify candidates for the school's merit-based scholarships, in fields from pure academics to community service to athletics, and numerous combinations thereof.
Athletics=
Despite being a small school, Halifax Grammar's Senior Varsity Girls Basketball team ranks highly in Division 1 among the best high school teams in the province. Past achievements include:
2009-2010 Season: NSSAF Division 1 Provincial Champions; 2008-2009 Season: NSSAF Division 1 Provincial Bronze Medalists; 2007-2008 Season: NSSAF Division 1 Provincial Bronze Medalists; 2006-2007 Season: NSSAF Division 1 Provincial Champions.
Arts
The school has an arts program, most notably at the high school level, allowing students the option of taking IB Standard Level Art. Students regularly have their art exhibited throughout both school campuses.Musically, the school began an expansion in 2003 with the implementation of a band program for students in the Middle School. The school also puts on an annual musical production, which is currently directed by Ms. Tina Capalbo.
Past musicals
- 2011: Willy Wonka & the Chocolate FactoryWilly Wonka & the Chocolate FactoryWilly Wonka & the Chocolate Factory is a 1971 musical film adaptation of the 1964 novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl, directed by Mel Stuart, and starring Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka. The film tells the story of Charlie Bucket as he receives a golden ticket and visits Willy...
- 2010: UrinetownUrinetownUrinetown: The Musical is a satirical comedy musical, with music by Mark Hollmann, lyrics by Hollmann and Greg Kotis, and book by Kotis. It satirizes the legal system, capitalism, social irresponsibility, populism, bureaucracy, corporate mismanagement, and municipal politics...
- 2009: The Boyfriend
- 2008: Into the WoodsInto the WoodsInto the Woods is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine. It debuted in San Diego at the Old Globe Theatre in 1986, and premiered on Broadway in 1987. Bernadette Peters' performance as the Witch and Joanna Gleason's portrayal of the Baker's Wife brought acclaim...
- 2007: Bye Bye Birdie
- 2006: Guys and Dolls
- 2005: Fiddler on the RoofFiddler on the RoofFiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem...
- 2004: The Pajama GameThe Pajama GameThe Pajama Game is a musical based on the novel 7½ Cents by Richard Bissell. It features a score by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. The story deals with labor troubles in a pajama factory, where worker demands for a seven-and-a-half cents raise are going unheeded...
- 2003: GreaseGrease (musical)Grease is a 1971 musical by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. The musical is named for the 1950s United States working-class youth subculture known as the greasers. The musical, set in 1959 at fictional Rydell High School , follows ten working-class teenagers as they navigate the complexities of love,...
- 2002: Kiss Me, KateKiss Me, KateKiss Me, Kate is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. It is structured as a play within a play, where the interior play is a musical version of William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew. The original production starred Alfred Drake, Patricia Morison, Lisa Kirk and Harold Lang.Kiss...
- 2001: Anything GoesAnything GoesAnything Goes is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The original book was a collaborative effort by Guy Bolton and P.G. Wodehouse, heavily revised by the team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. The story concerns madcap antics aboard an ocean liner bound from New York to London...
- 2000: Flapper, the Musical
- 1999: Lucky Dollar, Private Eye
Notable alumni
- Russell Smith - A novelist
- Jay FergusonJay Ferguson (Canadian musician)Jay Ferguson is a member of the Canadian rock band Sloan. He is the only member in Sloan who comes from Halifax, Nova Scotia....
- Musician, member of SloanSloan (band)Sloan is a Toronto-based alternative rock quartet from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Throughout their 20-year tenure Sloan has released 10 LPs , two EPs, a live album, a "best of" collection and no less than thirty singles...
. - Jared Paul SternJared Paul SternJared Paul Stern is a freelance reporter and former columnist for the New York Post who gained national notoriety when he was accused by California businessman Ron Burkle of extortion. Prior to the scandal, Stern had written for the popular "Page Six" column for 11 years...
- Former New York PostNew York PostThe New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
gossip columnist
- Ellen PageEllen PageEllen Philpotts-Page , known professionally as Ellen Page, is a Canadian actress. Page received both Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations for Best Actress for her role as the title character in the film Juno...
- Actress InceptionInceptionInception: The Subconscious Jams 1994-1995 is a compilation of unreleased tracks by the band Download.-Track listing:# "Primitive Tekno Jam" – 3:23# "Bee Sting Sickness" – 8:04# "Weed Acid Techno" – 8:19...
, Whip ItWhip It"Whip It" is the title of a 1980 single by the American New Wave band Devo. It appears on the album Freedom of Choice. There were two 7" single releases of "Whip It", one backed with a remix of the track "Snowball" and one backed with "Turn Around"...
,X-Men: The Last StandX-Men: The Last StandX-Men: The Last Stand is a 2006 superhero film and the third in the X-Men series. It was directed by Brett Ratner and stars an ensemble cast including Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Famke Janssen, Kelsey Grammer, Anna Paquin, Shawn Ashmore, Aaron Stanford, Vinnie Jones,...
, Hard CandyHard Candy (film)Hard Candy is a 2005 psychological thriller film focusing on the confrontation between an assumed sexual predator and a not-so-innocent 14-year-old girl....
, and JunoJuno (film)Juno is a 2007 comedy-drama film directed by Jason Reitman and written by Diablo Cody. Ellen Page stars as the title character, an independent-minded teenager confronting an unplanned pregnancy and the subsequent events that put pressures of adult life onto her. Michael Cera, Olivia Thirlby, J. K....
.
- Brendan CroskerryBrendan CroskerryBrendan James Bone Croskerry is an English/Canadian singer songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Halifax, Nova Scotia. “Superman is on Holidays”, his first commercial release, was featured on the international selling compilation albums Disco Estrella in 2007, and Supermodelo 2007...
- Musician
- Howard EpsteinHoward EpsteinHoward Epstein is a Canadian politician, lawyer and part-time law professor.Born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, he is an environmentalist, serving as the director of the Ecology Action Centre in Halifax from 1991-1994....
-MLA Halifax Chebucto
- Bill BlackBill Black (politician)William "Bill" Black is a businessman and a politician from Nova Scotia. He ran in the Leadership race for the Progressive Conservative Association of Nova Scotia in 2006, finishing second to Rodney MacDonald....
-Former President of Maritime Life and Contender for Leadership of Progressive Conservative Party of Nova Scotia
External links
- http://www.hgs.ns.ca - official site