Saint George's College, founded in 1936 and run by the
Congregation of Holy Cross
The Congregation of Holy Cross (), abbreviated CSC, is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men founded in 1837 by Basil Moreau, in Le Mans, France.
Moreau also founded the Marianites of Holy Cross for women, n ...
, is a private bilingual school in
Santiago, Chile
Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...
. It is one of the most renowned educational establishments in the country, famous for educating Chile's elite. According to Seminarium, a third of the CEOs of the top 200 companies in Chile are graduates of the school.
History
Three Holy Cross priests arrived in Santiago, Chile, on March 1, 1943, at the invitation of
José María Cardinal Caro,
Archbishop of Santiago, to administer Saint George's College. Fathers William Havey, Alfred Send, and Joseph Doherty believed they were going to do university work, not knowing that "college" meant a school of first through 12th graders.
St. George's was the only private school in Chile to be taken over by
military government
A military government is any government that is administered by a military, whether or not this government is legal under the laws of the jurisdiction at issue or by an occupying power. It is usually administered by military personnel.
Types of m ...
following the
September 1973 coup. The Congregation returned to the school in 1986.
Originally an all-boys school, Saint George's College was made co-educational in 1973. It was initially located in the
Pedro de Valdivia
Pedro Gutiérrez de Valdivia or Valdiva (; April 17, 1497 – December 25, 1553) was a Spanish ''conquistador'' and the first royal governor of Chile. After having served with the Spanish army in Italy and Flanders, he was sent to South America in ...
part of
Providencia, in 1970 it was relocated to
Vitacura
Vitacura is a communes of Chile, commune of Chile located in Santiago Province, Chile, Santiago Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region. It is one of the most expensive and fashionable areas of Santiago, Chile, Santiago. Inhabitants are primarily h ...
.
Its traditional rival schools are
Colegio del Verbo Divino,
Colegio San Ignacio, and
Santiago College
Fundación Educacional Santiago College is a private educational (PK-12) institution in Santiago, Chile, founded in 1880. It was founded by American Methodist Ira Haynes La Fetra and his wife as a girls boarding school. In March 1972 the school be ...
which were originally located near one another in the Pedro de Valdivia neighborhood of Providencia.
A group of parents and teachers, dissatisfied with the
Liberation Theology measures imposed by Father Gerard Whelan during the early 1970s, broke off in 1972 and formed Colegio Tabancura, an
Opus Dei
is an institution of the Catholic Church that was founded in Spain in 1928 by Josemaría Escrivá. Its stated mission is to help its lay and clerical members seek holiness in their everyday occupations and societies. Opus Dei is officially r ...
-run boys' school.
Campus
Throughout its history, Saint George's College has had two locations, being moved from
Providencia to the northern limit of
Vitacura
Vitacura is a communes of Chile, commune of Chile located in Santiago Province, Chile, Santiago Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region. It is one of the most expensive and fashionable areas of Santiago, Chile, Santiago. Inhabitants are primarily h ...
. Currently, the campus located in La Pirámide totals 241,086 square meters of land or 60 acres.
The school hosts extensive sports facilities, including a multi-sport gymnasium, an athletic track with bleachers with a capacity of 3,000 people, an exercise machine room,
volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
,
soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
,
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 (appro ...
, and
rugby courts.
The school has multiple study rooms in addition to a three-level library. In 2011, the Science and Technology Building was inaugurated, with rooms equipped with computers, laboratory equipment, and interactive whiteboards in addition to a pre-school laboratory and an auditorium. Thanks to its installation of
photovoltaic panels, the building runs 100% on
solar energy
Solar energy is the radiant energy from the Sun's sunlight, light and heat, which can be harnessed using a range of technologies such as solar electricity, solar thermal energy (including solar water heating) and solar architecture. It is a ...
.
Other facilities include the nursery, computer labs, rooms equipped for music and arts, the scout corner (project selected for the
Chile Architecture Biennial
The Chilean Architecture and Urbanism Biennial (Spanish: ''Bienal de Arquitectura y Urbanismo de Chile'') is a major event organized by the Chilean Association of Architects since 1977. It aims to foster dialogue, reflection, and the exchange of ...
), the chapel, the theater, amphitheater, and the 11º and 12º grade building. The school has a casino, commercial cafeteria, two kiosks and a school supplies store.
Notable alumni
*
José Miguel Insulza
José Miguel Insulza Salinas (born June 2, 1943) is a Chilean politician, lawyer, and academic serving as a senator for the Arica y Parinacota Region since 2018. He previously served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1994 to 1999 and Ministe ...
(Class of 1961) –
Socialist
Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
politician,
senator
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...
of the
Arica y Parinacota Region
The Arica y Parinacota Region ( ) is one of Chile's 16 first order administrative divisions. It comprises two provinces, Arica Province, Arica and Parinacota Province, Parinacota. It borders Peru's Department of Tacna to the north, Bolivia's La ...
since 2018.
*
Andrés Pascal Allende
Andrés Pascal Allende (born 12 July 1943 in Valparaíso, Chile) is a Chilean Marxist dissident and nephew of former President Salvador Allende.
Early life and education
Pascal was born on 12 July 1943 in Valparaíso, to Gastón Pascal Lyon ...
(Class of 1962) –
Marxist
Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflic ...
revolutionary
A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society.
Definition
The term—bot ...
and nephew of
Salvador Allende
Salvador Guillermo Allende Gossens (26 June 1908 – 11 September 1973) was a Chilean socialist politician who served as the 28th president of Chile from 1970 until Death of Salvador Allende, his death in 1973 Chilean coup d'état, 1973. As a ...
.
*
Eliodoro Matte (Class of 1963) - Chilean millionaire
*
Andrés Wood (Class of 1983) – filmmaker; director and producer of ''
Machuca''.
*
Gonzalo Lira (Class of 1985) - filmmaker, author and blogger.
*
Marco Enríquez-Ominami (Class of 1990) –
Progressive politician
A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
, member of the
Chamber of Deputies
The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures.
Description
Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...
from 2006 to 2010.
*
Francisca Valenzuela - American-born singer, songwriter, and poet; daughter of scientist
Pablo Valenzuela
See also
* ''
Machuca'', a 2004 movie connected to events at the school.
References
External links
Official site
{{Authority control
Educational institutions established in 1936
Holy Cross secondary schools
Catholic schools in Chile
Buildings and structures in Santiago, Chile
Education in Santiago, Chile
1936 establishments in Chile