Saint Patrick's Academy (
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
: ''Acadamh Naomh Pádraig'') is a voluntary grammar school located in
Dungannon
Dungannon () is a town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is the second-largest town in the county (after Omagh) and had a population of 14,340 at the 2011 Census. The Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough Council had its headquarters in the ...
,
County Tyrone
County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional Counties of Ireland, counties of Ireland. It is no longer used as an admini ...
,
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
. It formed on 1 September 2003 when the two single-sex Saint Patrick's Academies, which coexisted on the same site as two distinct and separate institutions, were merged as one. In January 2013 the Education Minister
John O'Dowd
John Fitzgerald O'Dowd (born 10 May 1967) is an Irish Sinn Féin politician. He was a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for Upper Bann since 2003. He was previously the Minister for Infrastructure from May to October 2022 and the Mini ...
announced the school was one of 22 schools to get a new build project.
History
Founded in 1891, St. Patrick's Academy was, for its first three years, a boys' school. From September 1894, the Sisters of Mercy undertook the teaching of students in preparation for the Intermediate board's examination. The Girls' Academy was based in a single room in the newly built Mercy Convent on Northland Row.
Both schools moved to new premises on Killyman Road in September 1901; the Academy building was to be the home of the school for the next seventy years. The Boys' Academy was always led by the clergymen appointed by the Tyrone Roman Catholic Board of Education, while the Girls' Academy was led by a senior member of the Sisters of Mercy.
The Academy eventually outgrew its home on the Killyman Road. In 1975, the two schools moved to a new building on Killymeal Road. Although housed in the same building, the Boys' Academy and Girls' Academy were two distinct and separate institutions. The growth in the student numbers resulted in the formal amalgamation of the Boys' and Girls' Academies with effect from 2003. This amalgamation was encouraged by the N.I. Minister of Education,
Martin McGuinness
James Martin Pacelli McGuinness ( ga, Séamus Máirtín Pacelli Mag Aonghusa; 23 May 1950 – 21 March 2017) was an Irish republican politician and statesman from Sinn Féin and a leader within the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) during ...
.
As of 2007, the co-educational Academy and its some 1893 students are housed in one main building and a number of separate mobile structures belonging to the former Saint Patrick's Boys' and Saint Patrick's Girls' Academies. Saint Patrick's Academy's present grounds are demolished and students moved into the new school on 1 September 2018.
Saint Patrick's College, Dungannon currently has its new school built beside Saint Patrick's Academy, facilitating the sharing of some amenities.
Motto
The school motto ''Ille vos docebit omnia'' is taken from the
Gospel of St. John
The Gospel of John ( grc, Εὐαγγέλιον κατὰ Ἰωάννην, translit=Euangélion katà Iōánnēn) is the fourth of the four canonical gospels. It contains a highly schematic account of the ministry of Jesus, with seven "sig ...
(14:26). It can be translated as ''He (the Holy Spirit) can teach you everything''.
Academics
The Academy offers instruction in a full range of subjects at both GCSE and A-Level and
specialises in
science
Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe.
Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...
and
business studies
Business studies, often simply called business, is a field of study that deals with the principles of business, management, and economics. It combines elements of accountancy, finance, marketing, organizational studies, human resource management, a ...
. In 2018, 94.2% of its entrants achieved five or more GCSEs at grades A* to C, including the core subjects English and Maths. 82.2% of its students who entered the A-level exams in 2017/18 were awarded three A*-C grades.
Sporting
Saint Patrick's Academy, Dungannon, has won trophies and cups at various levels in Gaelic football, soccer, ladies Gaelic football, basketball, netball, hurling and camogie.
In St Patrick's Academy, Dungannon, 2008, was the first school in the island of Ireland to have won the MacRory and Hogan Cups and have representatives on the winning All-Ireland Senior and Minor Tyrone Gaelic Football teams. The school again won the
MacRory Cup
The MacRory Cup is an inter-college (school) Gaelic football tournament in Ulster at senior "A" grade. The MacLarnon Cup is the competition for schools at senior 'B' grade.
Players must be under nineteen at the start of the tournament. The win ...
in 2009. Their first success in the history of the MacRory cup came against the Mighty St. Colmans Newry (many of whom have won All-Ireland senior medals) in 1991 against all odds on a scoreline of 2–7 to 1–9. The Academy also was at the forefront of basketball in Ulster and Ireland during the late 1980s and 1990s, winning many Ulster titles and having many Irish international players and Ulster rep players, many of whom won Ulster medals in 1991 in both GAA and basketball.
Notable alumni
*
Paddy Duffy
Paddy Duffy (November 12, 1864 – July 10, 1890) was an American boxer of Irish-American, Irish descent. He was considered the first world welterweight champion of boxing's gloved era.
Boxing career highlights
Paddy Duffy was born on November ...
(1934-1996) -
Irish nationalist
Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cu ...
politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
*
Austin Currie
Joseph Austin Currie (11 October 1939 – 9 November 2021) was an Irish politician who served as a Minister of State for Justice with responsibility for Children's Rights from 1994 to 1997. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin West ...
(1939-2021) -
civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life of ...
leader; politician
*
Bernadette Devlin McAliskey
Josephine Bernadette McAliskey (née Devlin; born 23 April 1947), usually known as Bernadette Devlin or Bernadette McAliskey, is an Irish civil rights leader, and former politician. She served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Mid Ulster in North ...
(b. 1947) - republican socialist activist and former
Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)
In the United Kingdom, a member of Parliament (MP) is an individual elected to serve in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
Electoral system
All 650 members of the UK House of Commons are elected using the first-past- ...
*
Gerry McKenna
Patrick Gerald McKenna, DL, FIBMS, FRSB, MRIA (born 10 December 1953), known informally and widely as Gerry McKenna, is a Chartered Biologist (CBiol, 1982) and Chartered Scientist (CSci, 2006) from Northern Ireland.
Professor McKenna is most w ...
(b. 1953) - biomedical scientist and university vice-chancellor
*
Dominic Gates
Dominic Gates is an Irish-American aerospace journalist for ''The Seattle Times'', former math teacher, and Pulitzer Prize winner. He has been assigned to cover Boeing for ''The Times'' since 2003. Gates was a co-recipient of the 2020 Pulitzer ...
(b. 1954) - Reporter and Pulitzer Prize winner
*
Pádraig McKearney
Pádraig Oliver McKearney (18 December 1954 – 8 May 1987) was a Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) paramilitary. He was killed during a British Army ambush at Loughgall, County Armagh in May 1987, aged 32. He had 15 years of service as a ...
(1954-1987) -
Irish republican
Irish republicanism ( ga, poblachtánachas Éireannach) is the political movement for the unity and independence of Ireland under a republic. Irish republicans view British rule in any part of Ireland as inherently illegitimate.
The develop ...
, killed during a
British Army ambush at Loughgall, County Armagh
*
Michelle O'Neill
Michelle O'Neill (née Doris; born 10 January 1977) is an Irish politician who served as deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland between 2020 and 2022. She has been serving as Vice President of Sinn Féin since 2018 and is the Member of the ...
(b. 1977) -
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Gri ...
MLA for
Mid Ulster and party leader in Northern Ireland
*
Michaela McAreavey (1983 - 2011) - daughter of
Mickey Harte
Mickey Harte (born 1952) is an Irish Gaelic football Manager (Gaelic games), manager and former player. He has been manager of the Louth county football team, Louth county team since 2020.
Harte managed the Tyrone county football team, Tyrone ...
(she was murdered on her honeymoon in Mauritius)
*
Andrea Begley
Andrea Begley is a singer-songwriter from Pomeroy, Northern Ireland, who is most notable for winning the second series of the BBC talent search ''The Voice UK'', beating the favourite to win, Leah McFall. She is the niece of Irish country music ...
(b. 1987) - singer who won the second series of the BBC talent search
The Voice UK
''The Voice UK'' is a British singing competition television series. Created by John de Mol, it premiered on BBC One during the spring television cycle on 24 March 2012. Based on the original ''The Voice of Holland'', and part of ''The Voice ...
*
Fra Fee
Francis Martin "Fra" Fee (born 20 May 1987) is an Irish actor and singer. He is known for portraying Courfeyrac in Tom Hooper's film adaptation of ''Les Misérables''. He portrayed the role of Michael Carney in Jez Butterworth's ''The Ferryman ...
(b. 1987) - actor and singer
*
Sheree Atcheson (b. 1991) - 2019
Queen's University, Belfast
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Graduate of the Year and founder of I Am Lanka.
*
Damian Casey
Damian Casey (1993 – 17 June 2022) was an Irish hurler who played for the Eoghan Ruadh, Dungannon, club and at senior level for the Tyrone county team. Regarded as his county's greatest ever hurler who—at the time of his death—was "at ...
(1993 - 2022), regarded as
Tyrone's greatest ever
hurler
*
Eóin Tennyson
Eóin Tennyson (born 17 May 1998) is a Northern Irish Alliance Party politician who has served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Upper Bann since the 2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election.
Early life and career
Tennyson ...
(b. 1998) -
Alliance
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
MLA for
Upper Bann.
Notable staff
* Monsignor Liam McEntegart - priest and promoter of the Irish language who taught at the Academy from 1953 and was principal and president from 1961-1983; subsequently Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Armagh.
*Monsignor
Denis Faul
Denis O'Beirne Faul (14 August 1932 – 21 June 2006), was an Irish Roman Catholic priest and civil rights campaigner best known for his role in the 1981 Irish Hunger Strike. At his death, he held the honorific title of Monsignor within the Ca ...
- priest and civil rights campaigner who taught at the academy and served as principal from 1983 until 1998.
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Patrick's Academy, Dungannon
2003 establishments in Northern Ireland
Dungannon
Educational institutions established in 1891
Educational institutions established in 2003
Grammar schools in County Tyrone
Catholic secondary schools in Northern Ireland
Specialist colleges in Northern Ireland