Runnymede Collegiate Institute (colloquially known as Runnymede CI, RCI, or Runnymede) is a public

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. The school first opened in 1927 and is operated by the

Toronto District School Board The Toronto District School Board (TDSB), formerly known as English-language Public District School Board No. 12 prior to 1999, is the English-language public-secular school board for Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The minority public-secular franco ...

. Runnymede has a population of 500 students and has a variety of course offerings ranging from computer technology to co-operative education, from modern languages to music. The motto of this school is ''Vestigia Nulla Retrorsum'' ("No Steps Back").

History

Runnymede Collegiate Institute was completed and officially opened on November 11, 1927, although classes had begun on September 6 for 250 students and a staff of 10 teachers led by Principal Bruce W. Clark. The original

Collegiate Gothic Collegiate Gothic is an architectural style subgenre of Gothic Revival architecture, popular in the late-19th and early-20th centuries for college and high school buildings in the United States and Canada, and to a certain extent Europ ...

building was designed by Charles Wellington Smith and consisted of eight classrooms, three science labs, an auditorium, a library, a gymnasium, a cafeteria and a locker area on three floors. Significant additions to the building were completed in 1928, 1958 and 1966. The building now includes over 30 classrooms, a swimming pool, two gyms, computers labs and a large cafeteria. The school was built on land, which had belonged to

John Scarlett Sir John McLeod Scarlett (born 18 August 1948) is a British senior intelligence officer. He was Chief of the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) from 2004 to 2009. Prior to this appointment, he had chaired the Joint Intelligence Commit ...

. His estate was called "Runnymede" after the field of

Runnymede Runnymede is a water-meadow alongside the River Thames in the English county of Surrey, and just over west of central London. It is notable for its association with the sealing of Magna Carta, and as a consequence is, with its adjoining hi ...

, where King

John of England John (24 December 1166 – 19 October 1216) was King of England from 1199 until his death in 1216. He lost the Duchy of Normandy and most of his other French lands to King Philip II of France, resulting in the collapse of the Angevin Emp ...

signed

Magna Carta (Medieval Latin for "Great Charter of Freedoms"), commonly called (also ''Magna Charta''; "Great Charter"), is a royal charter of rights agreed to by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215. First drafted by the ...

. The school's colours, red and white, derive partly from Scarlett's name, and also from the fact that the school opened in the year of Canada's Diamond Jubilee. Owing to their red school jackets, Runnymede students came to be known as Redmen in the 1930s. Over time an Indian head logo was adopted to go with the name. The Redmen name and logo were retired in 1994. Prior to 1998, the school was part of the

Board of Education for the City of York The Board of Education for the City of York (YBE), also known as the York Board of Education is the former school district serving the Toronto suburb of York, Ontario. In 1998, it became part of the Toronto District School Board and the headquart ...

Clubs

Runnymede Collegiate Institute offers a number of different clubs and extracurricular activities. Some of the activities that have run in recent years are listed below: * Badminton Club * Baseball (boys and girls) * Basketball (varsity, junior and senior) * Black Students Association club * Cheerleading * Cross Country * Dance Club *

FIRST Robotics Competition FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) is an international high school robotics competition. Each year, teams of high school students, coaches, and mentors work during a six-week period to build robots capable of competing in that year's game that weig ...

(Robotics) Team 1310 * Hockey (co-ed) * Celebration Club * Leadership * Math Club * Mental Health and Wellness Club * GSA Club * Right to Play * Soccer (junior and senior) * Swim Team * Tech Crew * Track and Field * Volleyball (Junior and senior girls, co-ed) * Yearbook Club The Robotics Team is the biggest club in Runnymede with over 60 students every year.

Mountview Alternative School

Mountview Alternative School is a

Kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cent ...

to Grade 8 school that shares space with Runnymede Collegiate Institute and Humbercrest Nursery School. The school was founded in 1983 in the Keele Street Public School building and has approximately 100 students. Mountview was relocated to its present location at Runnymede Collegiate in 2018.

Notable alumni

Frederick George Topham Frederick George Topham, VC (10 August 1917 – 31 May 1974) was a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Early life and Se ...

- recipient of the

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- news anchor on CBC Toronto *

P. K. Subban Pernell-Karl Sylvester Subban ( ; born May 13, 1989) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman. Between 2009 and 2022, he played 13 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Montreal Canadiens, Nashville Predators, a ...

- Defenceman,

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- Captain of the

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during their 1988-89 Stanley Cup Victory *

Lori-Ann Muenzer Lori-Ann Muenzer (born May 21, 1966) is a Canadian track cyclist and gold medal winning athlete at the 2004 Summer Olympics in the Match Sprint. Muenzer was the first track cycling Olympic gold medallist in Canadian history. Born in Toronto, On ...

- 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist in the Women's Sprint cycling * James Milton Ham, scientist and 10th President of the University of Toronto *

Claude Bissell Claude Thomas Bissell (February 10, 1916 – June 21, 2000) was a Canadian author and educator. Biography He was the eighth president of the University of Toronto from 1958 to 1971. He played a major part in the expansion of the University o ...

, Canada's youngest university president *

Charlotte Sullivan Charlotte Sullivan is a Canadian actress. Career Sullivan began acting professionally as a child. Her first on-screen role was an extra in a Liza Minnelli music video. She has had starring roles in the film ''Harriet the Spy'' (1996) and the ...

, actress * Dick Aldridge, Linebacker, Toronto Argonauts & Hamilton Tigercats *

Ted Woloshyn Ted Woloshyn (born December 1953) is a Toronto broadcaster. He hosted ''The Ted Woloshyn Show'', mornings from 5:30 to 8:30 on CFRB-AM in Toronto, Ontario, Canada from 3 November 1996 until 15 December 2006. He hosted ''Saturdays with Ted'' from ...

, CFRB Radio Host *

Howard Moscoe Howard Moscoe (born November 28, 1939)https://gencat4.eloquent-systems.com/webcat/request/Action?SystemName=City+of+Toronto+Archives&UserName=wa+public&Password=&CMD_%28DetailRequest%29 &ProcessID=6000_1980%280%29&KeyValues=KEY_315373 is a former ...

, city councillor Dec 01, 2016 Bloor West Villager, https://www.insidetoronto.com/news-story/6997819-runnymede-c-i-kicks-off-90th-anniversary-celebration-with-famous-alumni/ *

Gayle Christie Gayle Christie (née Ingle; born ) is a former politician in Toronto, Ontario. She was mayor of the borough of York, Ontario from 1978 to 1982. Background Christie was born in Garson, Ontario just outside of Sudbury. Her parents were John and Mur ...

, former York mayor *

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, Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau *

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, Leader, Green Party of Canada

References

External links