Bishop Ryan Catholic Secondary School

History

Although construction began the year before, Bishop Ryan Catholic Secondary School was officially opened on April 16, 1959, by Joseph Francis Ryan, then Bishop of Hamilton. At that time, the school was located on Queenston Road.

On February 4, 1991, the students and staff started the second semester in the new location, a former public elementary school, on Albright Road. The old building on Queenston Road was demolished; a housing community called Ryan's Walk now occupies the land.

A third Bishop Ryan Catholic Secondary School building opened in January 2014 after delays in construction during late 2013. The 73-hectare site is at 1824 Rymal Road East and Dakota Boulevard in the community of Hannon in Hamilton, Ontario. The school was designed by Svedas Architects Inc. and was built by Tambro Construction. In September 2015, the Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic District School Board transferred the site of the former school building on Albright Road to Ridgecrest Estates Inc. The building has since been demolished and condominiums have been constructed on the site.

The school is currently headed by principal Michael Lawlor.

Enrollment

In 2017, just four years after the new building opened, the total headcount at Bishop Ryan was 1,753 students. The yearly student growth had increased by 15 percent over the past two years, meaning there was around an additional 263 new students entering. As of 2020, the Ministry of Education lists Bishop Ryan's enrollment as 2,165.

Co-curricular groups and teams

Bishop Ryan is home to a number of sports teams and co-curricular groups. Notable examples include the Bishop Ryan Xpression vocal ensemble, Bishop Ryan wrestling team, and the robotics team Celt-X-5406. The school has been noted for its musical talent due to its vocal ensemble group.

Feeder schools

Bishop Ryan has eight official feeder schools:

• Our Lady of the Assumption
• Our Lady of Hope
• St. James the Apostle
• St. John the Baptist
• St. Luke
• St. Mark
• St. Matthew
• St. Paul

Notable alumni

• Brandon Bizior – singer-songwriter and finalist on The Next Star
• David Brown – professional ice hockey goaltender
• Ben Chiarot – professional ice hockey defenceman
• Sheila Copps – former member of Parliament and Deputy Prime Minister of Canada
• Dean Lickyer – rock band
• Kyle McKnight – guitarist of Metalcore band Threat Signal
• Sean O'Sullivan – former member of Parliament and Director of Vocations at the Catholic Archdiocese of Toronto
• Alex Re – guitarist of melodic hardcore band Counterparts
• Filomena Tassi – Canadian Minister
• Tony Valeri – former Canadian federal minister
• Rachael Vanderwal – professional basketball player
• Chris Woodcroft – Olympic wrestler
• Greg Woodcroft – Olympic wrestler
• Arber Xhekaj – professional ice hockey defenceman

References

References

1. "Trustees & Communications".
2. "School Information Finder". Government of Ontario.
3. "Our Story".
4. Craggs, Samantha. (May 9, 2013). "Work nearing completion on 3 Hamilton Catholic schools". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
5. Craggs, Samantha. (May 28, 2012). "Ground broken on new east Hamilton Catholic high school". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
6. Thorne, Jason. (December 7, 2016). "Acquisition of Land from Ridgecrest Estates Inc., 50 Albright Road, Hamilton (PED16249) (Ward 5)".
7. "Albright Road at Quigley Road, February 2021".
8. "Administration & Trustee".
9. Pearson, Mike. (October 12, 2016). "Bishop Ryan Catholic Secondary School enrolment tops 1,750".
10. Brody, Laura. "CHCH Music Friday: BR Xpression Vocal Ensemble - CHCH".
11. Lennie, Laura. (May 5, 2017). "Bishop Ryan Catholic Secondary School's BR Xpression entertaining audiences once more before hitting global stage".
12. (March 9, 2018). "Bishop Ryan wins first-ever girls team wrestling title". HamiltonNews.com.
13. (February 14, 2019). "HWCDSB wrestling championships held at Bishop Ryan high school". The Hamilton Spectator.
14. Lennie, Laura. (September 24, 2018). "Bishop Ryan Catholic Secondary School Celt-X Robotics program gearing up for another drive".
15. Pearson, Mike. (May 31, 2017). "Bishop Ryan Celt-X Robotics scores funding boost from Heritage Green Community Trust".
16. Vize, Shayla. "'The kids were totally pumped' local choir joins Lorde on stage at MMVAs - CHCH".
17. "Feeder Schools".
18. Smith, Cecelia Carter. (April 27, 2018). "BR grad helps deliver silver medal, to England". The Hamilton Spectator.
19. "Bishop Ryan, school of leaders, turns 60".
20. (November 20, 2008). "City Life Concerts". The Hamilton Spectator.
21. (November 8, 2013). "Winning tradition continues at Bishop Ryan".
22. (November 8, 2013). "Celtics edge Braves for win".