University of Toronto Schools
Encyclopedia
The University of Toronto Schools (UTS) is an independent
secondary
day school
affiliated with the University of Toronto
in Toronto
, Ontario
, Canada
. The school follows a specialized academic curriculum, and admission is determined by competitive examination
.
, for the University of Toronto
's Faculty of Education. As originally conceived and reflected in its present name, UTS was intended to be a collection of at least two schools, one of which would enroll female students. The original plan was to recruit 200 teachers and 1200 students, but financial constraints limited the number of students to 375 boys.
The first headmaster in UTS' history was H.J. "Bull" Crawford, who also taught Classics at the school. Crawford was responsible for most administrative tasks, which, until a secretary was hired in 1921, included signing admit slips. The school won the first ever Memorial Cup
in 1919, as the best junior ice hockey
team in the country. They defeated the Regina Patricias
in two games, by scores of 14-3 and 15-5. The school was Eastern Canadian Champions, the same year, defeating the Montreal Melvilles 8-2 in a single game playoff. Future NHL defenceman Dunc Munro
played for this team. In 1925, Mike Rodden
coached the UTS Rugby team to an undefeated season, culminating in the Canadian Interscholastic Championship. In 1934, A.C. Lewis succeeded John Althouse to become the third headmaster. In 1944, W.B. "Brock" MacMurray, a 1924 graduate of the school, became the fourth headmaster; his 28-year term at UTS remains the longest in school history. In 1957, the House System was established, with three of four houses named after the school's first three headmasters - Crawford, Althouse, and Lewis. The fourth house, Cody, was named after a former president of the University of Toronto.
The 1960s were a "turbulent" decade in the history of UTS. Prior to the 1960s, the Ontario Ministry of Education required seniors to complete a number of matriculation
exams in order to graduate. The student who scored highest in his or her exams province-wide would be awarded the Prince of Wales Scholarship; during the matriculation era, UTS students won thirteen Prince of Wales Scholarships. Although matriculation exams would eventually be abolished in the 1960s, UTS students had been calling for change since the late 1930s in the form of valedictory addresses and protests. Addresses by Mark Czarnecki and Richard Reoch in 1963 and 1966, respectively, targeted the tendency for matriculations to reduce "a tangible desire for knowledge", producing instead "a mind that cannot think for itself". In 1967, Ian Morrison's valedictory address
lambasted a number of teachers and administrators who had been responsible for rigidly holding UTS to its past. The speech was not published in The Twig the following year, but was still circulated among students. Discontent with the school's inability to reform climaxed in the "Protest for Nothing" in May 1969, which was led by Brian Blugerman, Michael Eccles, Paul Eprile and David Glennie. Unlike most protests, the placards that the protesters held were blank; when headmaster MacMurray asked for their demands, a student famously showed him a blank sheet of paper and stated, "This is a list of our demands." The protest was front page news in Toronto newspapers and was widely reported in the U.S. media, including the New York Times. It was the first (and perhaps only) time that UTS was the subject of such wide public attention.
At the turn of the decade, UTS developed a "New Program", which focused on completing subjects ("units") for graduation instead of matriculations. The administration also agreed to allow students to complete their secondary school requirements in 4 years instead of 5, an advantage that was enjoyed until the 2003 double cohort. The Executive Council was formed in 1968 to provide a liaison between students and staff. Some of the Executive Council's first recommendations were implemented in 1969, including making Latin optional after grade 11 and introducing non-numerical grades for Arts and Music courses. In addition to academics, certain aspects of the school's extracurricular traditions were gradually being phased out. In 1966, participation in the Cadet Corps, which had been a bastion of UTS tradition, became optional; eventually, the Corps was discontinued. Change was also evident in the school's teaching staff: in the 1960s alone, 35 new teachers were hired, compared to only 15 hirings during the 1950s.
Don Gutteridge had originally arrived in 1962 at MacMurray's request, and had taught Grade 13 English. In 1972, Gutteridge succeeded MacMurray. Although he was the school's fifth headmaster, he was the first to call himself a "principal". During his tenure as the Premier of Ontario, Bill Davis
came under fire for publicly funding UTS, which Liberal education critic Tom Reed called an "elitist" institution. Under pressure from the provincial government and the University of Toronto, a decision was made to admit girls into the school. Two proposals were tabled: the first involved expanding the school by maintaining the same number of incoming boys, and the second involved maintaining the class size by reducing the number of incoming boys. On January 18, 1973, the University of Toronto approved the second proposal, paving the way for a co-educational UTS the following academic year. The first two co-educational cohorts totalled 70 students; each cohort was divided into two classes of 35 students. In spite of initial concerns about the watered-down quality of UTS boys athletics, the junior girls basketball team won a city title in 1978. In order to assist families in financial need, the UTS Endowment Fund was set up in 1980; in 1989, approximately $50,000 was distributed to students in need.
In April 1993, the New Democratic
government of Ontario announced the withdrawal of public funding from the school, leading to a dramatic rise in tuition costs, and prompting the mobilization of all its constituencies to make up the loss.
In 2004, UTS became an ancillary unit of the University of Toronto
separate from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education
. The school formed its own board of directors representing alumni, parents and the university administration. The school was threatened by the TDSB (Toronto District School Board) to change the daily schedule so that the number of hours of education could meet ministry requirements. Throughout the 2009-2010 school year, the school celebrated its centennial year with the Kickoff celebration at Varsity Stadium
and the Homecoming weekend to be held in the school itself. The centennial year also saw the introduction of its new school song, written by Nathalie Siah '10, the House Centennial spirit pennant, as well as the House Cup, awarding the House who collected the most points (athletic, literary, and spirit) over the school year.
(SSAT), and for the top 170 - 190 applicants, a second exam (focused on Math and English) and an interview with a staff member and UTS alumni. Ultimately, 110 candidates are chosen from more than 600 applicants each year; the typical cutoff for SSAT scores for Grade 7 entrance is in the mid to high 1900s, depending on the applicant pool for that year. For upper year entrance the process is even more competitive as there are very few spots available. Usually there is an equal numbers of boys and girls who are accepted into the school. On average, for the first year (F1) there are five classes each of which consists of 21 students. For admission into grade 9 and 10 (the only other points of entry), applicants are admitted through a slightly less formal process, albeit just as rigorously. Candidates must be Canadian citizens or landed immigrants and may apply to enter either Grade 7 or the upper school (Grade 9 and above).
UTS has enriched courses and a specialized curriculum, which are designed to challenge and educate at a higher level than at most public and many independent schools. Because potential UTS candidates are required to pass a rigorous entrance examination to attend the school, its curriculum is accelerated on the assumption that its students assimilate information faster. For this reason several higher-grade subjects are taught at lower grade levels. For example, Grade 10 students can take an enriched version of Ontario's Grade 11 courses in introductory physics, biology, and/or chemistry and Grade 7 students take both the Ontario grade 7 curriculum and grade 8 curriculum. As well, effort is made to enrich classes with extra material and more in-depth discussions.
UTS offers Advanced Placement courses, but does not have an International Baccalaureate program. In addition to the Ontario Secondary School Diploma
, graduates earn a UTS Diploma, which signifies the completion of certain specialized courses, among them Latin and Romance of Antiquity (ROA), and attesting to an attainment level beyond the provincial standards.
UTS's rate of student achievement is commensurate with its selective admissions policy, both in academics and in extracurricular activities. Virtually all UTS students go on to university following graduation: in 2004, the University of Toronto
, McGill
, Queen's
, Waterloo
, McMaster
, and UBC
were the most popular destinations, accounting for more than two-thirds of graduates; of the rest, a majority attended U.S. universities (primarily Ivy League and other "top tier" US institutions). The school's alumni include 20 Rhodes Scholars and two Nobel Prize
winners: physicist John Polanyi and economist Michael Spence
.
UTS's grade level nomenclature differs from that used commonly in Ontario high schools. This nomenclature has varied somewhat over the many years, and is due in part to a curriculum whose courses do not fit neatly into the provincial grading system, and in part to what had until the elimination of Grade 13 in Ontario constituted a six-year course to seven grade levels. The grade level nomenclature, with rough equivalents, consists of:
Prior to the double cohort in 2003, F1 and F2 formed both halves of the Ontario Grade 7-9 curriculum; M3 was equivalent to Grade 10, and so forth.
(Cody Cougars, Lewis Vikings, Crawford Knights, and Althouse Alligators); several competitive House events are held throughout the year. These events include the House Track Meet, Lip-Sync contests, intramural sports, and four-way soccer games. The house system is only one facet of an unusually rich extracurricular life at UTS, however, and activities range from the school newspaper and yearbook – Cuspidor and Twig (along with its offshoot, the Twig Tape
which features student and alumni musical compositions) – to champion sports teams and clubs, to the Science Club and Food Appreciation Team. The school has in recent years been a two-time winner of the Reach for the Top
National Trivia Championship and at the junior level won the intermediate regional championship for the first time in three years at Reach in 2009. UTS has also won the Ontario Student Classics Conference
for sixteen years running (as of 2011, with the first win coming in 1996). UTS students are actively involved in public speaking; the UTS Debating Society is a major club and UTS students organize the Southern Ontario Model United Nations Assembly
(SOMA), the largest and oldest Model United Nations
conference run entirely by High School students in North America and the second largest Model UN conference for high school students in Canada.
There are several other events during the school year such as Arts and Music Month, known prior to 2008-2009 as Arts and Music Week, Halloween Fun Week and more. Arts and Music Month is a month when UTS students display their art work and show off their music skills either in their music class, in small bands, solo, or in an extracurricular group. There were many events such as the art work displayed in the UTS gym, battle of the bands where students form into small groups and play the song of their choice on stage in the auditorium, there is also a Holiday Breakfast where the student council (informally known as StudCow) makes breakfast for the whole school while holiday music is played by some of the music students. Also there are the junior and senior music nights, during which the senior classes and the junior music classes play music, and the Senior and Junior plays, in which are both put on by the Senior drama class, the Junior Play being acted out by students in the younger grades, and the Senior Play being acted out by students in the older grades.
The UTS Show is the biggest annual school production put on by the student body. It is an amalgamation of acting, modeling, cultural dancing, costume designing, set constructing and painting. All aspects of the Show are 100% student run, from the script writing to the choreographing to the directing.
The building, 371 Bloor St. West was also used as a location for significant exterior and interior shots for the 2006 film Take the Lead
, but the school was only credited in the DVD director's commentary.
Themistocles, Thermopylae,
The Peloponnesian War!
X-squared, Y-squared,
H2SO4!
French verbs, Latin verbs,
Ancient history!
UTS! UTS!
Schools of varsity!
GO BLUES!
GO BLUES!
Independent school
An independent school is a school that is independent in its finances and governance; it is not dependent upon national or local government for financing its operations, nor reliant on taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of tuition charges, gifts, and in some cases the...
secondary
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
day school
Day school
A day school—as opposed to a boarding school—is an institution where children are given educational instruction during the day and after which children/teens return to their homes...
affiliated with the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, 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...
. The school follows a specialized academic curriculum, and admission is determined by competitive examination
Competitive examination
A competitive examination is an examination angwhere candidates are ranked according to their grades. If the examination is open for n positions, then the first n candidates in ranks pass, the others are rejected...
.
History
The University of Toronto Schools was founded in 1910 as a "practice school", also known as a laboratory schoolLaboratory school
A laboratory school or demonstration school is an elementary or secondary school operated in association with a university, college, or other teacher education institution and used for the training of future teachers, educational experimentation, educational research, and professional...
, for the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
's Faculty of Education. As originally conceived and reflected in its present name, UTS was intended to be a collection of at least two schools, one of which would enroll female students. The original plan was to recruit 200 teachers and 1200 students, but financial constraints limited the number of students to 375 boys.
The first headmaster in UTS' history was H.J. "Bull" Crawford, who also taught Classics at the school. Crawford was responsible for most administrative tasks, which, until a secretary was hired in 1921, included signing admit slips. The school won the first ever Memorial Cup
Memorial Cup
The Memorial Cup is a junior ice hockey club championship trophy awarded annually to the Canadian Hockey League champion. It is awarded following a four-team, round robin tournament between a host team and the champions of the CHL's three member leagues: the Ontario Hockey League , Quebec Major...
in 1919, as the best junior ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team in the country. They defeated the Regina Patricias
Regina Pats
The Regina Pats are a junior ice hockey team that plays in the Western Hockey League. The Pats are based out of Regina, Saskatchewan and the Brandt Centre is their home arena.-History:...
in two games, by scores of 14-3 and 15-5. The school was Eastern Canadian Champions, the same year, defeating the Montreal Melvilles 8-2 in a single game playoff. Future NHL defenceman Dunc Munro
Dunc Munro
Duncan Brown Munro was a Canadian Olympic ice hockey player who played with and coached the Montreal Maroons. He was born in Moray, Scotland. When he was still a child his family moved to Toronto, where he learned to play hockey. In his youth Munro also excelled in track events as a runner...
played for this team. In 1925, Mike Rodden
Mike Rodden
Michael James Rodden was a Canadian sports journalist, National Hockey League referee, and Canadian football coach, and was the first person elected to both the Hockey Hall of Fame and the Canadian Football Hall of Fame .Born in Mattawa, Ontario, Rodden officiated in 1,187 National Hockey League...
coached the UTS Rugby team to an undefeated season, culminating in the Canadian Interscholastic Championship. In 1934, A.C. Lewis succeeded John Althouse to become the third headmaster. In 1944, W.B. "Brock" MacMurray, a 1924 graduate of the school, became the fourth headmaster; his 28-year term at UTS remains the longest in school history. In 1957, the House System was established, with three of four houses named after the school's first three headmasters - Crawford, Althouse, and Lewis. The fourth house, Cody, was named after a former president of the University of Toronto.
The 1960s were a "turbulent" decade in the history of UTS. Prior to the 1960s, the Ontario Ministry of Education required seniors to complete a number of matriculation
Matriculation
Matriculation, in the broadest sense, means to be registered or added to a list, from the Latin matricula – little list. In Scottish heraldry, for instance, a matriculation is a registration of armorial bearings...
exams in order to graduate. The student who scored highest in his or her exams province-wide would be awarded the Prince of Wales Scholarship; during the matriculation era, UTS students won thirteen Prince of Wales Scholarships. Although matriculation exams would eventually be abolished in the 1960s, UTS students had been calling for change since the late 1930s in the form of valedictory addresses and protests. Addresses by Mark Czarnecki and Richard Reoch in 1963 and 1966, respectively, targeted the tendency for matriculations to reduce "a tangible desire for knowledge", producing instead "a mind that cannot think for itself". In 1967, Ian Morrison's valedictory address
Valedictorian
Valedictorian is an academic title conferred upon the student who delivers the closing or farewell statement at a graduation ceremony. Usually, the valedictorian is the highest ranked student among those graduating from an educational institution...
lambasted a number of teachers and administrators who had been responsible for rigidly holding UTS to its past. The speech was not published in The Twig the following year, but was still circulated among students. Discontent with the school's inability to reform climaxed in the "Protest for Nothing" in May 1969, which was led by Brian Blugerman, Michael Eccles, Paul Eprile and David Glennie. Unlike most protests, the placards that the protesters held were blank; when headmaster MacMurray asked for their demands, a student famously showed him a blank sheet of paper and stated, "This is a list of our demands." The protest was front page news in Toronto newspapers and was widely reported in the U.S. media, including the New York Times. It was the first (and perhaps only) time that UTS was the subject of such wide public attention.
At the turn of the decade, UTS developed a "New Program", which focused on completing subjects ("units") for graduation instead of matriculations. The administration also agreed to allow students to complete their secondary school requirements in 4 years instead of 5, an advantage that was enjoyed until the 2003 double cohort. The Executive Council was formed in 1968 to provide a liaison between students and staff. Some of the Executive Council's first recommendations were implemented in 1969, including making Latin optional after grade 11 and introducing non-numerical grades for Arts and Music courses. In addition to academics, certain aspects of the school's extracurricular traditions were gradually being phased out. In 1966, participation in the Cadet Corps, which had been a bastion of UTS tradition, became optional; eventually, the Corps was discontinued. Change was also evident in the school's teaching staff: in the 1960s alone, 35 new teachers were hired, compared to only 15 hirings during the 1950s.
Don Gutteridge had originally arrived in 1962 at MacMurray's request, and had taught Grade 13 English. In 1972, Gutteridge succeeded MacMurray. Although he was the school's fifth headmaster, he was the first to call himself a "principal". During his tenure as the Premier of Ontario, Bill Davis
Bill Davis
William Grenville "Bill" Davis, was the 18th Premier of Ontario, Canada, from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the MPP for Peel in the 1959 provincial election where he was a backbencher in Leslie Frost's government. Under John Robarts, he was a cabinet minister overseeing the education...
came under fire for publicly funding UTS, which Liberal education critic Tom Reed called an "elitist" institution. Under pressure from the provincial government and the University of Toronto, a decision was made to admit girls into the school. Two proposals were tabled: the first involved expanding the school by maintaining the same number of incoming boys, and the second involved maintaining the class size by reducing the number of incoming boys. On January 18, 1973, the University of Toronto approved the second proposal, paving the way for a co-educational UTS the following academic year. The first two co-educational cohorts totalled 70 students; each cohort was divided into two classes of 35 students. In spite of initial concerns about the watered-down quality of UTS boys athletics, the junior girls basketball team won a city title in 1978. In order to assist families in financial need, the UTS Endowment Fund was set up in 1980; in 1989, approximately $50,000 was distributed to students in need.
In April 1993, the New Democratic
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
government of Ontario announced the withdrawal of public funding from the school, leading to a dramatic rise in tuition costs, and prompting the mobilization of all its constituencies to make up the loss.
In 2004, UTS became an ancillary unit of the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
separate from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education
Ontario Institute for Studies in Education
The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto is a teachers' college in Toronto, Ontario.-History:OISE/UT traces its origins to the founding of the Provincial Normal School in 1847...
. The school formed its own board of directors representing alumni, parents and the university administration. The school was threatened by the TDSB (Toronto District School Board) to change the daily schedule so that the number of hours of education could meet ministry requirements. Throughout the 2009-2010 school year, the school celebrated its centennial year with the Kickoff celebration at Varsity Stadium
Varsity Stadium
Varsity Stadium is a collegiate football stadium that is home to the Varsity Blues, the athletic teams of the University of Toronto in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. While the present structure was built in 2007, it is in fact the third major incarnation of the stadium that has occupied the same site...
and the Homecoming weekend to be held in the school itself. The centennial year also saw the introduction of its new school song, written by Nathalie Siah '10, the House Centennial spirit pennant, as well as the House Cup, awarding the House who collected the most points (athletic, literary, and spirit) over the school year.
Admissions
Most students enter in Grade 7 through a two-stage competitive process. Prior to the admission of the class of 2014, the first stage consisted of a multiple choice exam; those who passed this test in the top percentiles (usually 200 students) were invited back for a second written exam and an interview. However, starting with the class of 2010, the admission process consists of the Secondary School Admission TestSecondary School Admission Test
The Secondary School Admission Test, or SSAT, is an admissions test administered by the Secondary School Admission Test Board to students in grades 5-11 to help determine placement into independent or private junior high and high schools....
(SSAT), and for the top 170 - 190 applicants, a second exam (focused on Math and English) and an interview with a staff member and UTS alumni. Ultimately, 110 candidates are chosen from more than 600 applicants each year; the typical cutoff for SSAT scores for Grade 7 entrance is in the mid to high 1900s, depending on the applicant pool for that year. For upper year entrance the process is even more competitive as there are very few spots available. Usually there is an equal numbers of boys and girls who are accepted into the school. On average, for the first year (F1) there are five classes each of which consists of 21 students. For admission into grade 9 and 10 (the only other points of entry), applicants are admitted through a slightly less formal process, albeit just as rigorously. Candidates must be Canadian citizens or landed immigrants and may apply to enter either Grade 7 or the upper school (Grade 9 and above).
Academics
UTS is attended by students from grades 7 through 12, with 78 students per grade in classes graduating before 2001, 104 students per grade in classes graduating before 2009, and 110 in classes graduating thereafter.UTS has enriched courses and a specialized curriculum, which are designed to challenge and educate at a higher level than at most public and many independent schools. Because potential UTS candidates are required to pass a rigorous entrance examination to attend the school, its curriculum is accelerated on the assumption that its students assimilate information faster. For this reason several higher-grade subjects are taught at lower grade levels. For example, Grade 10 students can take an enriched version of Ontario's Grade 11 courses in introductory physics, biology, and/or chemistry and Grade 7 students take both the Ontario grade 7 curriculum and grade 8 curriculum. As well, effort is made to enrich classes with extra material and more in-depth discussions.
UTS offers Advanced Placement courses, but does not have an International Baccalaureate program. In addition to the Ontario Secondary School Diploma
Ontario Academic Credit
The Ontario Academic Credit or OAC was part of the curriculum codified by the Ontario Ministry of Education in Ontario Schools: Intermediate and Senior and its revisions. In common parlance, the term is used to describe the fifth high school year that used to exist in the province of...
, graduates earn a UTS Diploma, which signifies the completion of certain specialized courses, among them Latin and Romance of Antiquity (ROA), and attesting to an attainment level beyond the provincial standards.
UTS's rate of student achievement is commensurate with its selective admissions policy, both in academics and in extracurricular activities. Virtually all UTS students go on to university following graduation: in 2004, the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
, McGill
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
, Queen's
Queen's University
Queen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
, Waterloo
University of Waterloo
The University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
, McMaster
McMaster University
McMaster University is a public research university whose main campus is located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land in the residential neighbourhood of Westdale, adjacent to Hamilton's Royal Botanical Gardens...
, and UBC
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
were the most popular destinations, accounting for more than two-thirds of graduates; of the rest, a majority attended U.S. universities (primarily Ivy League and other "top tier" US institutions). The school's alumni include 20 Rhodes Scholars and two Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
winners: physicist John Polanyi and economist Michael Spence
Michael Spence
Andrew Michael Spence is an American economist and recipient of the 2001 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, along with George A. Akerlof and Joseph E. Stiglitz, for their work on the dynamics of information flows and market development. He conducted this research while at Harvard University...
.
UTS's grade level nomenclature differs from that used commonly in Ontario high schools. This nomenclature has varied somewhat over the many years, and is due in part to a curriculum whose courses do not fit neatly into the provincial grading system, and in part to what had until the elimination of Grade 13 in Ontario constituted a six-year course to seven grade levels. The grade level nomenclature, with rough equivalents, consists of:
- Foundation Zero (F0): Grade 6 students who have been accepted to and will begin attending UTS the following school year
- Foundation One (F1): Grade 7. Formerly known as Foundation Year (F)
- Foundation Two (F2): Grade 8. Formerly known as Form II
- Middle Three (M3): Grade 9. Formerly known as Form III
- Middle Four (M4): Grade 10. Formerly known as Form IV
- Senior Five (S5): Grade 11. Formerly known as Form V
- Senior Six (S6): Grade 12. Formerly known as Form VI
Prior to the double cohort in 2003, F1 and F2 formed both halves of the Ontario Grade 7-9 curriculum; M3 was equivalent to Grade 10, and so forth.
Extracurriculars
Each student is placed in one of four HousesHouse system
The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...
(Cody Cougars, Lewis Vikings, Crawford Knights, and Althouse Alligators); several competitive House events are held throughout the year. These events include the House Track Meet, Lip-Sync contests, intramural sports, and four-way soccer games. The house system is only one facet of an unusually rich extracurricular life at UTS, however, and activities range from the school newspaper and yearbook – Cuspidor and Twig (along with its offshoot, the Twig Tape
Twig Tape
The Twig Tape is a compilation album of original music, created by the students of University of Toronto Schools in annual volumes since 1986. Usually, contributions from both alumni and current students are presented side-by-side in order to ensure a broad range of professional and amateur...
which features student and alumni musical compositions) – to champion sports teams and clubs, to the Science Club and Food Appreciation Team. The school has in recent years been a two-time winner of the Reach for the Top
Reach for the Top
Reach for the Top is a Canadian game show in which teams of high school students participate in local, provincial and eventually national trivia tournaments...
National Trivia Championship and at the junior level won the intermediate regional championship for the first time in three years at Reach in 2009. UTS has also won the Ontario Student Classics Conference
Ontario Student Classics Conference
The Ontario Student Classics Conference is an annual event committed to the promotion and appreciation of studies in Classics. It is a four day competition that occurs in early May at Brock University of St. Catharines, Ontario...
for sixteen years running (as of 2011, with the first win coming in 1996). UTS students are actively involved in public speaking; the UTS Debating Society is a major club and UTS students organize the Southern Ontario Model United Nations Assembly
Southern Ontario Model United Nations Association
The Southern Ontario Model United Nations Assembly is the oldest and largest Model United Nations simulation run entirely by high-school students in North America. Founded in 1973, it has run continuously for 39 years. SOMA is a registered charity and reports annual revenue of approximately $75,000...
(SOMA), the largest and oldest Model United Nations
Model United Nations
Model United Nations is an academic simulation of the United Nations that aims to educate participants about current events, topics in international relations, diplomacy and the United Nations agenda....
conference run entirely by High School students in North America and the second largest Model UN conference for high school students in Canada.
There are several other events during the school year such as Arts and Music Month, known prior to 2008-2009 as Arts and Music Week, Halloween Fun Week and more. Arts and Music Month is a month when UTS students display their art work and show off their music skills either in their music class, in small bands, solo, or in an extracurricular group. There were many events such as the art work displayed in the UTS gym, battle of the bands where students form into small groups and play the song of their choice on stage in the auditorium, there is also a Holiday Breakfast where the student council (informally known as StudCow) makes breakfast for the whole school while holiday music is played by some of the music students. Also there are the junior and senior music nights, during which the senior classes and the junior music classes play music, and the Senior and Junior plays, in which are both put on by the Senior drama class, the Junior Play being acted out by students in the younger grades, and the Senior Play being acted out by students in the older grades.
The UTS Show is the biggest annual school production put on by the student body. It is an amalgamation of acting, modeling, cultural dancing, costume designing, set constructing and painting. All aspects of the Show are 100% student run, from the script writing to the choreographing to the directing.
The building, 371 Bloor St. West was also used as a location for significant exterior and interior shots for the 2006 film Take the Lead
Take the Lead
Take the Lead is a movie starring Antonio Banderas, Rob Brown, Alfre Woodard, Dante Basco, Marcus T. Paulk, Jenna Dewan, Lauren Collins and also features former America's Next Top Model contestant, Yaya DaCosta. The film was released in mainstream cinema on April 7, 2006...
, but the school was only credited in the DVD director's commentary.
School Cheers
The UTS school cheer is as follows:Themistocles, Thermopylae,
The Peloponnesian War!
X-squared, Y-squared,
H2SO4!
French verbs, Latin verbs,
Ancient history!
UTS! UTS!
Schools of varsity!
GO BLUES!
GO BLUES!
Notable alumni
- Brig-Gen. Donald AgnewDonald AgnewBrigadier-General Donald Robert Agnew CBE was a Canadian General and educator.-Family:Agnew was born in Toronto on October 25, 1897 to Major John Agnew and Daisy Edith Stocks...
, C.B.E., C.D., Commandant of the Royal Military College of CanadaRoyal Military College of CanadaThe Royal Military College of Canada, RMC, or RMCC , is the military academy of the Canadian Forces, and is a degree-granting university. RMC was established in 1876. RMC is the only federal institution in Canada with degree granting powers... - Chris AlexanderChristopher Alexander (diplomat)Christopher "Chris" A. Alexander is the Conservative Party of Canada Member of Parliament for Ajax-Pickering in Ontario.-Background:Alexander earned a B.A. in History and Politics from McGill University in 1989 and an M.A...
, former Canadian Ambassador to Afghanistan - John Allemang, journalist
- Jay BahadurJay BahadurJay Bahadur is a Canadian journalist and author. He became known for his reporting on piracy in Somalia, writing for The New York Times, The Financial Post, The Globe and Mail, and The Times of London. Bahadur has also worked as a freelance correspondent for CBS News and he has advised the U.S....
, journalist and author - Charles BaillieA. Charles BaillieAlexander Charles Baillie, OC is the former CEO of TD Bank Financial Group; he served in this role until December, 2002.He served as the 12th Chancellor of Queen's University. He was appointed on July 1, 2002 and completed 2 consecutive three-year terms as Chancellor. He was succeeded by David A....
, OC, chancellor of Queen's UniversityQueen's UniversityQueen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
, former CEO of TD BankToronto-Dominion BankThe Toronto-Dominion Bank , is the second-largest bank in Canada by market capitalization and based on assets. It is also the sixth largest bank in North America. Commonly known as TD and operating as TD Bank Group, the bank was created in 1955 through the merger of the Bank of Toronto and the... - Rod BeattieRod BeattieRod Beattie is a Canadian actor who is best known for performing the Wingfield Series of plays by Dan Needles. In these plays Beattie plays all the characters, employing changes in voice or facial expression to denote which character he is playing...
, actor - Ian BrodieIan BrodieIan Brodie, is a Canadian political scientist and was Chief of Staff in Stephen Harper's Prime Minister's Office from Harper's ascension to the position of prime minister until July 1, 2008. The news that he was leaving the post came days before the release of a report on the Clinton/Obama NAFTA...
, chief of staff for Canada's Prime Minister's OfficeChief of Staff (Canada)The Chief of Staff of Canada's Prime Minister's Office is the top official of the office. It was created in 1987 to head the Prime Minister's Office or PMO.... - Catherine BushCatherine BushCatherine Bush is a Canadian novelist.- Biography :Born in Toronto and educated at the University of Toronto Schools, she attended Yale University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Comparative Literature....
, novelist - J.M.S. Careless, OC, historian and biographer, two-time winner of the Governor General's AwardGovernor General's AwardThe Governor General's Awards are a collection of awards presented by the Governor General of Canada, marking distinction in a number of academic, artistic and social fields. The first was conceived in 1937 by Lord Tweedsmuir, a prolific author of fiction and non-fiction who created the Governor...
- Jim ChamberlinJim ChamberlinJames A. "Jim" Chamberlin was a Canadian aerodynamicist who contributed to the design of the Canadian Avro Arrow; and NASA's Gemini spacecraft and the Apollo program...
, chief designer of the Avro Arrow - Noah Cowan, artistic director of Bell Lightbox, former co-director of the Toronto International Film FestivalToronto International Film FestivalThe Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
- Paul DavisPaul Davis (sailor)Paul Davis is a Norwegian sailor and Olympic medalist. He received a bronze medal in the Soling Class at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, together with Herman Horn Johannessen and Espen Stokkeland.-References:...
, sailor, won a Bronze medal in Soling class (racing for Norway) at Sydney in 2000 - John EvansJohn Robert EvansJohn Robert Evans, is a Canadian pediatrician, academic, businessperson, and civic leader.After graduating from the University of Toronto Schools, he received his medical degree from the University of Toronto in 1952 and was a Rhodes Scholar...
, CC, Rhodes Scholar, medical leader and former University of TorontoUniversity of TorontoThe University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
president - Mark EvansMark Evans (rower)Mark Evans is a Canadian rower.Evans was a member of the Canadian men's eights team that won the gold medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, USA. His twin brother Michael was on the same winning team.-References:*...
, Rower, Won Gold for Canada in 1984 in pairs sculling - James FleckJames FleckJames Douglas Fleck, is a Canadian businessman, academic, and philanthropist.-Personal:James Douglas Fleck was born in Toronto, Canada on February 10, 1931 to Robert Douglas and Norma Marie Fleck....
, OC, businessman and philanthropist - David FrumDavid FrumDavid J. Frum is a Canadian American journalist active in both the United States and Canadian political arenas. A former economic speechwriter for President George W. Bush, he is also the author of the first "insider" book about the Bush presidency...
, journalist and author - Peter GeorgePeter George (professor)Dr. Peter James George, is a Canadian economist and university administrator. On June 30, 2010, he retired after serving three five year terms as President and Vice-Chancellor of McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario....
, CM, president of McMaster UniversityMcMaster UniversityMcMaster University is a public research university whose main campus is located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land in the residential neighbourhood of Westdale, adjacent to Hamilton's Royal Botanical Gardens... - Chris GiannouChris GiannouChris Giannou, CM is a Greek-Canadian war surgeon and served chief surgeon for the International Committee of the Red Cross until December 2006.- General :...
, CM, war surgeon, former Chief Surgeon of the International Committee of the Red CrossInternational Committee of the Red CrossThe International Committee of the Red Cross is a private humanitarian institution based in Geneva, Switzerland. States parties to the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols of 1977 and 2005, have given the ICRC a mandate to protect the victims of international and...
, and author - Donald B. GilliesDonald B. GilliesDonald Bruce Gillies was a Canadian mathematician and computer scientist, known for his work in game theory, computer design, and minicomputer programming environments.- Education :...
, computer scientist - Peter GodsoePeter GodsoePeter Cowperthwaite Godsoe, is a Canadian businessman and former President, Chairman and Chief executive officer of the Bank of Nova Scotia from 1992 to 2003. He is a member of the board of directors of multiple corporations, and serves as the Chairman of Fairmont Hotels & Resorts and...
, OC, former Chairman of The Bank of Nova Scotia - Ian GoldbergIan GoldbergIan Avrum Goldberg is a cryptographer and cypherpunk. He is best known for breaking Netscape's implementation of SSL , and for his role as Chief Scientist of Radialpoint , a Canadian software company...
, computer scientist and cryptographer - Laurie GrahamLaurie GrahamLaurie Graham, is a Canadian downhill skier who represented Canada at the 1980, 1984 and 1988 Winter Olympics. She won six World Cup victories and three National Downhill titles in her eleven years on the National Ski Team. She was the first North American woman to win a World Cup Super Giant...
, Olympic downhill skier, Alpine Champion - Doug HamiltonDoug Hamilton (rower)Douglas Hamilton is a Canadian rower. He won a bronze medal in the Quadruple Sculls event at the 1984 Summer Olympics. He also competed with in the same event at the 1988 Summer Olympics, finishing in 9th place. In 1985 his quad crew won gold at the World's, held in Belgium...
, Rower, won Bronze for Canada in 1984 - Lawrence HillLawrence HillLawrence Hill is an award-winning Canadian novelist and memoirist. He is best known for the 2001 memoir Black Berry, Sweet Juice: On Being Black and White in Canada and the 2007 novel The Book of Negroes....
, author (The Book of Negroes) and essayist - Hal Jackman, OC, OOnt, businessman and former Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
- John Dowe Keith, eminent pediatric cardiologist
- Paul KoringPaul KoringPaul Koring a Canadian journalist and foreign correspondent for The Globe and Mail. He is currently posted to the Washington Bureau as the paper's foreign affairs and international security correspondent....
, award winning journalist, The Globe and MailThe Globe and MailThe Globe and Mail is a nationally distributed Canadian newspaper, based in Toronto and printed in six cities across the country. With a weekly readership of approximately 1 million, it is Canada's largest-circulation national newspaper and second-largest daily newspaper after the Toronto Star... - Sarah Kramer, former CEO of eHealth Ontario
- Dennis LeeDennis Lee (author)Dennis Beynon Lee, OC, MA is a Canadian poet, teacher, editor, and critic born in Toronto, Ontario. He is also a children's writer, well known for his book of children's rhymes, Alligator Pie.-Life:...
, OC, poet - Jack McClelland, CC, publisher
- Lydia MilletLydia MilletLydia Millet is an American novelist. Her third novel, My Happy Life, won the 2003 PEN-USA Award for Fiction. Her fifth novel, Oh Pure and Radiant Heart was short-listed for the 2007 Arthur C. Clarke Award...
, author - Dunc MunroDunc MunroDuncan Brown Munro was a Canadian Olympic ice hockey player who played with and coached the Montreal Maroons. He was born in Moray, Scotland. When he was still a child his family moved to Toronto, where he learned to play hockey. In his youth Munro also excelled in track events as a runner...
, hockey player, Stanley Cup winner, and Olympic gold medallist - Fraser MustardJames Fraser MustardJames Fraser Mustard, was a Canadian physician and scientist. Born, raised and educated in Toronto, Ontario, Mustard began his career as a research fellow at the University of Toronto where he studied the effects of blood lipids, their relation to heart disease and how Aspirin could mitigate...
, CC, medical pioneer and founder of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research - John C. Polanyi, PC, CC, Nobel PrizeNobel PrizeThe Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
winner for Chemistry, 1986 - John Josiah RobinetteJohn Josiah RobinetteJohn Josiah Robinette, was a Canadian lawyer who was one of Canada's premier legal authorities and litigators....
, CC, OOnt, prominent litigator and constitutional law expert, Chancellor of Trent UniversityTrent UniversityTrent University is a liberal arts and science-oriented institution located along the Otonabee River in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada.The enabling legislation is the Trent University Act, 1962-63. The University was founded through the efforts of a citizens' committee interested in creating a... - Robert Gordon RogersRobert Gordon RogersRobert Gordon Rogers, OC, OBC was the 24th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia from 1983 to 1988.Born in Montreal, he was a graduate of the University of Toronto Schools, the University of Toronto, and the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston...
, OC, OBC, 24th Lieutenant Governor of British ColumbiaLieutenant Governor of British ColumbiaThe Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia is the viceregal representative in British Columbia of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, who operates distinctly within the province but is also shared with equally the ten other jurisdictions of Canada and resides predominantly in her oldest...
and Chancellor of the University of VictoriaUniversity of VictoriaThe University of Victoria, often referred to as UVic, is the second oldest public research university in British Columbia, Canada. It is a research intensive university located in Saanich and Oak Bay, about northeast of downtown Victoria. The University's annual enrollment is about 20,000 students... - Jeffrey SimpsonJeffrey SimpsonJeffrey Carl Simpson, OC , is a Canadian journalist. He has been The Globe and Mails national affairs columnist for almost three decades...
, OC, journalist - James SommervilleJames SommervilleJames Sommerville is the current principal hornist for the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and Music Director of the Hamilton Philharmonic, in Hamilton, Canada. Before coming to Boston in 1998, Mr...
, hornHorn (instrument)The horn is a brass instrument consisting of about of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. A musician who plays the horn is called a horn player ....
player and conductor - A. Michael Spence, Nobel PrizeNobel PrizeThe Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
winner for Economics, 2001 - C.P. Stacey, OC, historian
- Harry StinsonHarry StinsonHarry Stinson , born in Toronto and educated at the University of Toronto Schools, is a high-profile real estate developer from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. He is president of Stinson Properties, Inc. He has been called Toronto's "condo king"...
, high profile real estate developer - Wayne Sumner, philosophy professor and member of the Royal Society of CanadaRoyal Society of CanadaThe Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
- John ToryJohn ToryJohn Howard Tory is a Canadian businessman, political activist, former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, former Member of Provincial Parliament and broadcaster...
, Former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of OntarioProgressive Conservative Party of OntarioThe Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario , is a right-of-centre political party in Ontario, Canada. The party was known for many years as "Ontario's natural governing party." It has ruled the province for 80 of the years since Confederation, including an uninterrupted run from 1943 to 1985... - John A. ToryJohn A. ToryJohn Arnold Tory, QC was a Canadian lawyer and corporate executive. Born in Toronto, he was one of two sons of John Stewart Donald Tory...
, former financial advisor to Ken Thomson - Paul ToughPaul ToughPaul Tough is a writer and broadcaster. He is the author of Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canada's Quest to Change Harlem and America. He grew up in Toronto and was educated at the University of Toronto Schools...
, editor at the New York Times Magazine - Vincent Tovell, OC, CBC broadcaster and producer
- Garth TurnerGarth TurnerJohn Garth Turner, PC is a Canadian business journalist, best-selling author, entrepreneur, broadcaster, financial advisor and politician, twice elected as a Member of the House of Commons, former Minister of National Revenue and leadership candidate for the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada...
, ConservativeConservative Party of CanadaThe Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...
, then independent, then LiberalLiberal Party of CanadaThe Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
MP - Edward Waitzer, former chair of Stikeman ElliottStikeman ElliottStikeman Elliott LLP is a Canadian corporate law firm. It is known as one of the "seven sisters" in Toronto and has approximately 500 lawyers in five Canadian offices as well as offices in New York, London , and Sydney. It was founded in 1952 by H...
- Graham YostGraham YostGraham John Yost is a Canadian film and television screenwriter. His most famous works are the hit 1994 film Speed, Broken Arrow, and Hard Rain....
, screen play writer of Speed, Broken Arrow, Hard Rain, and 2 time Emmy winner
Further reading
- Advani, Asheesh. With Pardonable Pride: The University of Toronto Schools. Unionville: Addwin Publishing, 1991. (ISBN 0-9695185-0-1)
- Batten, Jack. University of Toronto Schools 1910-2010.
- Chapnick, Adam, ed. Through Our Eyes: An Alumni History of UTS, 1960-2000. Toronto: University of Toronto Schools Alumni Association, 2005 (pdf).
- Lane, Byron. University of Toronto Schools: An Academic History of the Era of Province-Wide Standardized Matriculation Testing in Ontario. Toronto: Byron Lane, 2005.
- Jiménez, Marina. Excellence Under Fire. Globe and Mail, 24 January 2009.
- Wong, Jan. The Chinese are being UTS-ified. Globe and Mail, 27 November 2004.