Villanova College is a

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 ...

and middle school in King City,

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 ...

. Established by lay educators Paul Paradiso and Grant Purdy with the blessing of the Archdiocese Toronto and in cooperation with the

Order of Saint Augustine The Order of Saint Augustine, ( la, Ordo Fratrum Sancti Augustini) abbreviated OSA, is a religious mendicant order of the Catholic Church. It was founded in 1244 by bringing together several eremitical groups in the Tuscany region who were fo ...

's friars of

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 ...

and

Marylake Augustinian Monastery The Marylake Augustinian Monastery, also known as Marylake Monastery, Marylake Shrine, or simply Marylake, is an Augustinian monastery in King City, Ontario, Canada. The campus is nearly , residing on Keele Street, just north of 15th Sideroad (Blo ...

. The school campus is within the grounds of this Augustinian monastic foundation in King City. Villanova College offers grades four to twelve and is the first, and only, Canadian institution to become a member of the

Augustinian Secondary Education Association The Augustinian Secondary Education Association (ASEA) is an organization founded in 1986 to "foster unity, efficiency, and continued development within the Augustinian ministry to secondary education" in North America. It operates without a budget, ...

. It is a privately operated independent school, officially sponsored by the Augustinian Order. Villanova College is York Region's only independent Catholic school. It offers STEM and AP programs as well as arts, athletic, social outreach and leadership experiences.

Patron Saint

The college is named in honour of

St. Thomas of Villanova Thomas of Villanova (1488 – September 8, 1555), born Tomás García y Martínez, was a Spanish friar of the Order of Saint Augustine who was a noted preacher, ascetic and religious writer of his day. He became an archbishop who was famous for ...

, a sixteenth-century Spanish Augustinian. Thomas was born in the province of

Ciudad Real Ciudad Real (, ; en, "Royal City") is a municipality of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha, capital of the province of Ciudad Real. It is the 5th most populated municipality in the region. History It was founde ...

in 1488, and was raised in Villanueva de los Infantes, a nearby town; hence his name, Thomas of Villanova. In the year 1544,

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...

Charles V appointed Thomas as Archbishop of

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...

. Thomas succeeded in the spiritual renewal of his diocese, and gained the title "Father of the Poor". He gave two-thirds of the income of his diocese to care for the poor in various ways. Each day up to 5 poor people came to his door to be fed and to receive money. Other English speaking Augustinian Colleges named for this saint are Villanova College, located in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

, Australia, and

Villanova Preparatory School Villanova Preparatory School (commonly known as Villanova Prep) is an Augustinian Catholic co-ed day and boarding school in Ojai, California, United States. Sitting on more than , the campus contains two dormitories, a chapel, trails, and assort ...

in California, United States. He is also the patron saint for

Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic church, Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinians in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Sa ...

, a Catholic university located in Villanova,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

Notable alumni

Alex Pietrangelo Alexander Pietrangelo (born January 18, 1990) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman and alternate captain for the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL). He previously played for the St. Louis Blues for parts of twe ...

, NHL defenceman for the

Las Vegas Golden Knights The Vegas Golden Knights are a professional ice hockey team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference. Founded in 2017 as an expa ...

& former captain of the

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the s ...

Ryan Murphy (ice hockey, born 1993) Ryan Murphy (born March 31, 1993) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing with Salavat Yulaev Ufa in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). He was originally drafted in the first round, 12th overall, by the Carolina Hurri ...

, AHL defenceman for the

Henderson Silver Knights The Henderson Silver Knights are a professional ice hockey team based in Henderson, Nevada, that began play in the 2020–21 American Hockey League (AHL) season. The team plays its home games at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nevada. The tea ...

References

External links

Villanova College

Midwest Augustinians - Province of Our Mother of Good Counsel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Villanova College Catholic secondary schools in Ontario Catholic elementary schools in Ontario Private schools in Ontario Augustinian schools Educational institutions established in 1999 Education in King, Ontario 1999 establishments in Ontario