Alexandra College ( ir, Coláiste Alexandra) is a fee-charging boarding and day school for girls located in

Milltown, Dublin Milltown () is a suburb on the southside of Dublin, Ireland. Milltown was the site of several working mills on the River Dodder and is also the location of the meeting of the River Slang with the Dodder. It is located adjacent to other suburba ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. The school operates under a

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the second ...

ethos.

History

The school was founded in 1866 and takes its name from Princess

Alexandra of Denmark Alexandra of Denmark (Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia; 1 December 1844 – 20 November 1925) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 22 January 1901 to 6 May 1910 as the wife of King ...

, the school's patron. The school colours, red and white, were adopted from the Danish flag in her honour. Alexandra College was founded by Ann Jellicoe, a Quaker educationist, in the name of furthering women's education. Under Ann Jellicoe, and then later

Henrietta White Henrietta White (1856 – 16 July 1936), was the principal of Alexandra College, Dublin, a horticulturist, and social activist. Early life and education Born Henrietta Margaret White in 1856, she was the oldest of Henry Charles White's four chi ...

, the school grew from a small establishment focused on providing a governess-style education to Irish Protestant ladies into a pioneering force for women's rights and education, providing an education to women equivalent to that available in boys' schools, with a grounding in mathematics, history, classics and philosophy. As Alexandra settled into its role,

Ann Jellicoe Patricia Ann Jellicoe (15 July 1927 – 31 August 2017) was an English playwright, theatre director and actress. Although her work covered many areas of theatre and film, she is best known for "pushing the envelope" of the stage play, devising ...

was convinced that a major obstacle to the liberal education of women was their exclusion from the university campus. She passionately believed that until women were admitted to

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

(founded in 1592), the voice of women would not commonly be heard in politics, literature or in academic debate. The Royal University of Ireland Act 1879 allowed females to take university degrees on the same basis as males. Students were prepared for the examinations (including degree examinations) of the Royal University. Susan Parkes, co-author of ''Gladly Learn and Gladly Teach'', a history of Alexandra College (1866-1966), is quoted as saying: "In the late 1800s, lecturers from Trinity College Dublin provided tuition for ladies on the Alexandra campus. And the first women to receive degrees in Ireland or Britain were Alex pupils — six of them successfully studied at Dublin's Royal University from 1891 and at Trinity College Dublin, once it opened its doors to women in 1903." The school was originally situated in the historic Earlsfort Terrace, across from what is now the

National Concert Hall The National Concert Hall (NCH) (An Ceoláras Náisiúnta) is a national cultural institution, sometimes described as "the home of music in Ireland". It comprises the actual concert hall operation, which in various chambers hosts over 1,000 ...

. By 1879, a new hall and theatre were constructed alongside. Over time, the school acquired several more houses and by 1889 a new building by William Kaye-Parry was constructed next door to the college as Alexandra School. The school moved out to its sports grounds in the 1970s in order to accommodate more students. The original buildings were subsequently demolished and the site remained vacant for over two decades. The Conrad Hotel and office buildings were later erected on the site.

Patrick Pearse Patrick Henry Pearse (also known as Pádraig or Pádraic Pearse; ga, Pádraig Anraí Mac Piarais; 10 November 1879 – 3 May 1916) was an Irish teacher, barrister, poet, writer, nationalist, republican political activist and revolutionary who ...

, the leader of the

Easter Rising The Easter Rising ( ga, Éirí Amach na Cásca), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the a ...

, was once employed as an Irish language teacher.

Religion

Alexandra College is under Church of Ireland management, and the

Archbishop of Dublin The Archbishop of Dublin is an archepiscopal title which takes its name after Dublin, Ireland. Since the Reformation, there have been parallel apostolic successions to the title: one in the Catholic Church and the other in the Church of Irelan ...

(who presides over the United Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough) currently acts as chairman of the school council. The students are addressed weekly by a female minister, and a school assembly is held daily at which Church of Ireland hymns are sung and which finish with the extended version of

The Lord's Prayer The Lord's Prayer, also called the Our Father or Pater Noster, is a central Christian prayer which Jesus taught as the way to pray. Two versions of this prayer are recorded in the gospels: a longer form within the Sermon on the Mount in the Gosp ...

Junior School

The junior school is completely self-funded and receives no subvention from the Department of Education and Skills. The junior school is run in accordance with Froebelian principles, follows the national curriculum and provides a number of specialized subjects, such as art, French, individual music instrument lessons, speech and drama and a wide array of sports as part of its strong extra and co-curricular programme. Students of all abilities are catered for in the junior school. The pre-school and preparatory department students wear a red tracksuit. This same tracksuit is worn by the older girls for games, PE and sports. Older students in the junior school wear the formal school uniform. It is the same as the formal uniform in the secondary school. The majority of Junior School pupils go on to study and complete their school education at Alexandra College Senior School.

Sport

The school fields teams in various sports including

women's association football Women's association football, more commonly known simply as women's football or women's soccer, is a team sport of association football when played by women only. It is played at the professional level in multiple countries and 176 national te ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

and

track and field athletics Track and field is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of ...

. The school has a long history of playing

field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ci ...

. In 1893 the Alexandra Hockey Club was founded at the school. It claims to be the oldest field hockey club in

. In 1947 it was renamed Old Alexandra Hockey Club. In 1960 the club opened its membership to all players while still retaining a close relationship with the school. The club is still based at the school. The

Irish Ladies Hockey Union Hockey Ireland, previously known as the Irish Hockey Association, is the governing body for field hockey in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is responsible for organising both the Ireland men's national field hockey team and t ...

was established in 1894, following a meeting at Alexandra College. On 2 March 1896 the school also hosted the first ever women's international field hockey match when

defeated

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

2–0. When Ireland won the silver medal at the 2018 Women's Hockey World Cup, the squad included three former Alexandra College pupils –

Nicola Evans Nicola Evans (born 17 January 1990), also referred to as Nikki Evans, is an Ireland women's field hockey international. She was a member of the Ireland team that played in the 2018 Women's Hockey World Cup final. Evans has also won Women's Ir ...

Deirdre Duke Deirdre Duke (born 9 June 1992) is an Ireland women's national field hockey team, Ireland women's field hockey international. She was a member of the Ireland team that played in 2018 Women's Hockey World Cup final. Duke has also won Irish Senior ...

and

Emily Beatty Emily Beatty (born 18 August 1993) is an Ireland women's field hockey international. She was a member of the Ireland team that played in the 2018 Women's Hockey World Cup final. Beatty has also won Irish Senior Cup and Women's Irish Hockey L ...

. All three represented the school in Leinster Schoolgirls' Senior Cup finals. Alexandra College are the competitions most successful team, winning the cup for the thirteenth time in 2016. ;Recent finals ;Notes

Academics

The school was ranked seventh in Ireland in terms of the number of students who progressed to third level and by the types of institutions to which the students progressed.

The Guild

The Guild was founded in 1897, not only to form a bond of union between past and present students and staff, and to keep them in touch with the College, but also to promote a spirit of service to the community and to undertake social and philanthropic work. The Guild has several branches worldwide. Facets of the Guild include the Alexandra College Golfing Society, the Old Alexandra Hockey Club, Alexandra Guild House and the Alexandra College Bursaries, which supports 25 ladies throughout the country and assists families in need around Dublin and elsewhere.

Notable past pupils

Rachel Allen Rachel Allen (née O'Neill) is an Irish celebrity chef, known for her work on television and as a writer. She has often appeared on Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ). Career as chef and writer Allen went to the Ballymaloe Cookery School at th ...

(b. 1972), celebrity chef *

Ivana Bacik Ivana Catherine Bacik (born 25 May 1968) is an Irish Labour Party politician who has been Leader of the Labour Party since 24 March 2022 and a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin Bay South constituency since winning a by-election on 9 July 2 ...

(b. 1968), academic and politician *

Mary Bagot Stack Mary Bagot Stack (12 June 1883 – 26 January 1935), known as Mollie Bagot Stack, founded the Women's League of Health & Beauty in 1930, the first and most significant mass keep-fit system of the 1930s in the UK. This has continued as an exercis ...

(1883–1935), exercise innovator * Beulah Bewley, (1929–2018), public health physician *

Helen Chenevix Helen Sophia Chenevix (13 November 1886 – 4 March 1963) was an Irish suffragist and trade unionist. In 1911, she worked with Louie Bennett to form the Irish Women's Suffrage Federation. The two later founded the Irish Women Workers' Union. Ch ...

, (1886–1963), social activist *

Susan Denham Susan Jane Denham, SC (''née'' Gageby; born 22 August 1945) is a retired Irish judge who served as Chief Justice of Ireland from 2011 to 2017, she was the first woman to hold the position. She served as a Judge of the Supreme Court from 1992 to ...

, (b. 1945), judge *

Grace Gifford Grace Evelyn Gifford Plunkett (4 March 1888 – 13 December 1955) was an Irish artist and cartoonist who was active in the Republican movement, who married her fiancé Joseph Plunkett in Kilmainham Gaol only a few hours before he was executed ...

, (1888–1955), artist and activist * Rosemary Henderson, (b. 1961), actor * Maeve Kyle, (b. 1928), athlete * Kathleen Isabella Mackie (1899–1996) painter and glider pilot *

Catherine McGuinness Catherine McGuinness (; born 14 November 1934) is a retired Irish judge who served as a Judge of the Supreme Court from 2000 to 2006, a Judge of the High Court from 1996 to 2000, a Judge of the Circuit Court from 1994 to 1996 and a Senator ...

, (b. 1934), judge *

Kate Meyrick Kate Meyrick (7 August 1875 – 19 January 1933) known as the 'Night Club Queen' was an Irish night-club owner in 1920s London. During her 13 year career she made, and spent, a fortune and served five prison sentences. She was the inspiration fo ...

, (1875–1933), night-club owner * Igerna Sollas, (1877–1965), zoologist * Lucy Nagle, designer *

Simone Rocha Simone Rocha (born 1986) is an Irish fashion designer. She is the daughter of fashion designer John Rocha, and trained at the National College of Art and Design, Dublin and at Central Saint Martins, London. She launched her graduate collection ...

(b. 1986), designer * Barbara Warren (1925–2017), painter

References

External links

Alexandra College

Official alumni website (archived)
{{Private schools in the Republic of Ireland Milltown, Dublin Secondary schools in Dublin (city) Girls' schools in the Republic of Ireland Private schools in the Republic of Ireland Anglican schools in the Republic of Ireland Boarding schools in Ireland 1866 establishments in Ireland Educational institutions established in 1866