École secondaire catholique Saint-Frère-André is a

French-language French ( or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. Like all other Romance languages, it descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. French evolved from Northern Old Gallo-Romance, a descendant of the Latin spoken in ...

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

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, Canada. The school serves students in Grades 7 through 12 and is operated by the ''

Conseil scolaire catholique MonAvenir Conseil scolaire catholique MonAvenir (also referred to as Csc MonAvenir) is a French-language Catholic school board that manages elementary and secondary French schools in South-Central Ontario. The school board operates 47 elementary schools, 12 ...

'', the public French-Catholic school board serving Central and Southwestern Ontario.

History

The school was opened in September 2012 to respond to the growing need for French-language Catholic secondary education in the Greater Toronto Area.

An extract of the 10th anniversary message translated from French: ''"The 2022-2023 school year marks 10 years since the official opening of Saint-Frère-André Catholic Secondary School and Toronto West Secondary School. In fact, it was in 2012 that the Conseil scolaire catholique MonAvenir and the Conseil scolaire Viamonde welcomed their first cohorts of students in a large building located at 330 Lansdowne Avenue in Toront''o. ''The property was acquired from the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) in 2011 by the two French-language boards. After the signing of the deed of sale, renovation work was undertaken in order to open, in September 2012, two different high schools under the same roof."''

It was named in honour of ''Saint Frère André'' ( Brother André Bessette), a Roman Catholic religious brother of the Congregation of Holy Cross who was canonized in 2010 for his dedication to faith, healing, and community service. The school is located in the former West Toronto Collegiate Institute building, situated near the intersection of Lansdowne Avenue and College Street in Toronto's west end. It occupies part of the former West Toronto Collegiate building, which it shares with

École secondaire Toronto Ouest École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * Éco ...

, a public French-language high school operated by

Conseil scolaire Viamonde The Conseil scolaire Viamonde (CSV) is a public-secular French first language school board, and manages elementary and secondary schools in the Ontario Peninsula and the Greater Golden Horseshoe. The school board operates 41 elementary school ...

Programs

Saint-Frère-André offers a diverse curriculum based on the Ontario Ministry of Education's guidelines, with all courses taught in French (except for English courses). Students have access to programs in the arts, sciences, business, technology, and physical education. The school also offers the ''Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM)'' in areas of Business and Manufacturing as of 2025, allowing students to explore career pathways while earning certifications and practical experience.

International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme

École secondaire catholique Saint-Frère-André is an authorized IB World School offering the

International Baccalaureate (IB) The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), more commonly known as the International Baccalaureate (IB), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the IB ...

Diploma Programme to students in Grades 11 and 12. This internationally recognized and academically rigorous program prepares students for post-secondary success by fostering critical thinking, independent research, and global citizenship. The following courses are offered at Saint-Frère-André as part of the IB Diploma Programme: * French – Higher Level (HL) * English – Higher Level (HL) * History – offered at either Standard Level (SL) or Higher Level (HL) * Chemistry – Standard Level (SL) * Mathematics – offered at either Standard Level (SL) or Higher Level (HL) * Choice between Biology or Physics – Standard Level (SL) In addition to their academic subjects, IB Diploma students are required to complete the program’s three core components: * Extended Essay (EE) – an independent, self-directed research paper * Theory of Knowledge (TOK) – a course exploring the nature of knowledge across disciplines * Creativity, Activity, Service (CAS) – a project encouraging students to engage in artistic, athletic, and community service activities The IB programme at SFA aims to develop well-rounded, bilingual graduates with a commitment to learning and social responsibility.

Transportation

The school is accessible via Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) public transit routes, including Lansdowne subway station, which is within walking distance. Many students also benefit from school board-provided transportation services depending on their residence and eligibility.

List of student trustees

Below is a list of students from ÉSC Saint-Frère-André who have been elected to serve on the CSC MonAvenir school board as student trustees: * Jonathan Lee How Cheong (for the term of 2025-2026) * Paris India Jain (for the term of 2017-2018)

References

* *
Entrevue avec le directeur Hader Ibrahim

L’école secondaire catholique Saint-Frère-André prend vie

External links

École secondaire catholique Saint-Frère-André
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint-Frere-Andre, Ecole secondaire catholique High schools in Toronto Educational institutions established in 2012 Catholic secondary schools in Ontario 2012 establishments in Ontario French-language high schools in Ontario