Established 1894 Closed 1983 Language English Headquarters Montreal West, Canada | Status Closed Sister school Royal Vale High School Ceased operations 1983 Founded 1894 | |
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District Protestant School Board of Greater Montreal School board Protestant School Board of Greater Montreal | ||
Montreal West High School was a school located in Montreal West, Quebec, Canada, H4X 1L4 which operated from 1894 until 1983 when it was merged into Royal West Academy.
History
It originally opened as the Aberdeen School of Coteau Saint-Pierre, or Aberdeen School, in a two story school erected in 1894 that housed two hundred students on Easton Avenue in Montreal West. The school was often used for social functions, public meetings, and council meetings until the Montreal West Town Hall was built in 1910. The name of the school was changed twice, first to Aberdeen Model School, and then to Montreal West High School in 1921.
In the 1930s, there was a sharp increase in the school's population. The school was becoming too crowded and it was decided it was unsafe to house such a large number of students. It was confirmed in 1930 that the school would have to be demolished, beginning on May 7, 1931. This began on May 7, 1931. The cornerstone for a larger, more permanent building was laid on January 9, 1932, followed by the formal opening ceremony for the new school.
In the early 1980s, declining student enrollment signaled the imminent closure of Montreal West High School, as well as Royal Vale High School, which shared the same building. In 1982, students, parents, teachers, and administrators put forth a proposal to the Protestant School Board of Greater Montreal (PSGBM), which was precursor to the English Montreal School Board. The proposal called for an "alternative" high school offering programs similar to those of a private school. Limited enrollment, strict discipline, a dress code, fluency in English and French, computer literacy and compulsory extra-curricular activities were to be focal points for the curriculum. The School Board would fund the alternative school, but the School Committee had to raise money through donations and events (such as a raffle to equip two new computer laboratories).
On January 26, 1983, the School Board accepted the proposal for the alternative school. Montreal West High School and Royal Vale High School were replaced in September 1983 by Royal West Academy. Most existing staff and students of both schools remained in the merged school.
In October 2004, the Surete du Quebec began an investigation related to Renwick Spence, a prominent, popular retired teacher at the school. In September 2006, Spence pleaded guilty to charges of abusing seven former male students between 1967 and 1981. Most of the abuse reportedly occurred at the teacher's cabin in Morin-Heights according to victims and former students who talked to the media. Although some older students were aware of the abuse at the time, former co-teachers and administrators deny ever hearing any indications of abuse.