High school recalls past
Monthly look into happenings at Memorial Composite
Hello. My name is Samantha Jesty and I’m a senior at Memorial Composite High School in Sydney Mines.
Each month, I’ll be doing a column about what goes on at school. I’ll cover just about anything that goes on in the high school, from school clubs to exam week to new school policies.
In this particular column, though, I’ll be writing more about the school itself than the people in it. This will be a bit of a history lesson I suppose, along with some current facts, which is ironic given that history has always been my least favourite subject.
In 1976, Memorial Composite High School was built. It was constructed out of necessity after a type of domino effect. Two junior high schools in the region were set to be demolished. Because of this, Thompson High School and Sydney Mines High School were to be turned into junior highs. As a result, there would be no high schools anywhere on the Northside. Thus, Memorial was built and to this day remains the only public high school on the Northside.
Currently, there are more than 950 students in grades 9 to 12 attending Memorial. The move to include grade nines in the high school came at the beginning of the 2015 school year. The majority of these students hail from anywhere in Cape Breton or Victoria counties, although there are also plenty of international students from around the world studying at our school as well.
Memorial is the only composite school in Cape Breton. The school offers both the traditional academic program as well as a vocational program. There are several trades available including carpentry, plumbing and heating, electrical construction, heavy duty equipment repair, motor vehicle repair, welding and graphic design. The vocational program allows students who don’t fair well in a traditional classroom setting to get the skills they need to go directly into the workforce or to continue their training at the NSCC.
MHS is also home to the Youth Health Centre. It provides both educational and clinical services to youth ages 12-19 from the Northside and surrounding areas. The Youth Health Centre believes in the right of youth to make decisions regarding their health and strives to create a non-judgmental, confidential and empathetic environment where the opinions of youth are valued.
To end on more of a lighthearted note and in the spirit of Halloween, an article by “The Chive” titled, “The most haunted places in Canada: Nova Scotia Edition,” lists Memorial High School as haunted. It lists apparition voices, toilets flushing themselves, and faculty members reporting feeling like they’re being watched as evidence of paranormal activity. So, students, look out for ghosts next time you’re walking to class.
Here are some upcoming events during the next month for students and parents:
• The deadline to register for the International Leadership Camp in Campeche, Mexico is November 16.
• Friday, October 27 is a teachers only day, no students present.
• The debate team is a newly created club this year and meets every Tuesday at lunch.
• High school report cards go home on November 14.
• Cheerleading tryouts start on November 2 from 4-6 p.m. at the school.