Selwyn House School

Selwyn House School
Address
Map
95 chemin Côte St-Antoine

, ,
Canada
Coordinates45°29′10″N 73°35′50″W / 45.4862°N 73.5973°W / 45.4862; -73.5973
Information
School typeIndependent day school
MottoVeritas (Latin for 'Truth')
Founded1908
HeadmasterMichael Downey
GradesK–12[1]
GenderBoys
Enrollment580 (2023-24)
LanguageEnglish
Colour(s)Black and Gold   
MascotGryphon
Team nameSelwyn House Gryphons
RivalsLower Canada College
Loyola High School
Tuition$25,958 – $33,252[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 two 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]

  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 26 July 2024.
  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.