École élémentaire Marie-Curie, previously known as London French School and École Alexandra, is a public French first language elementary school in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. It is located on Hunt Club Drive off Oxford Street West in the north-western neighbourhood of Oakridge. London has a very small francophone population, but became eligible for French learning institutions when the

Government of Ontario The Government of Ontario () is the body responsible for the administration of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. The term ''Government of Ontario'' refers specifically to the executive—political Minister ...

amended the Education Act in 1968 to officially recognize French language schools in the province. Marie Curie opened in 1972 under the name of "London French School" and was located downtown on King Street. It was soon renamed "École Alexandra" after Princess Alexandra. It was the first French language school in London and initially taught

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 Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cen ...

to eighth grade. The school moved to its current Hunt Club Drive location for the 1981-1982 school year and the aging older building was demolished. As the first French school in London, it became popularly and informally known simply as "École". In the early 1990s the then principal, Jean-Claude Imbeault, made a number of changes to the school. He had the school renamed to "École élémentaire Marie-Curie" after the Polish-French physicist

Marie Curie Maria Salomea Skłodowska-Curie (; ; 7 November 1867 – 4 July 1934), known simply as Marie Curie ( ; ), was a Polish and naturalised-French physicist and chemist who conducted pioneering research on radioactivity. She was List of female ...

. He changed the school colours from blue and white to black, silver and white. The school was also given new logo and the motto "Savoir faire et bien faire". Most significantly, he created a plan for a multicultural school population. From 1979 until 1999, graduating students from Alexandra/Marie Curie who wanted to continue their French studies went to

London Central Secondary School London Central Secondary School is a public secondary school located at the corner of Dufferin Avenue and Waterloo Street in downtown London, Ontario. It is a member of the Thames Valley District School Board. It has approximately 1000 students ...

. Central, an English school, was the host to the Module scolaire de langue française ( MSLF) – the first French first language public high school in London. Only one course was initially offered, but quickly grew to include many subjects. The French high school program eventually outgrew Central Secondary School. For the start of the 1999-2000 school year, the MSLF moved from Central into the same building as the French Catholic Secondary School and became

École secondaire Gabriel-Dumont École secondaire Gabriel-Dumont is a public French first language high school in London, Ontario, Canada. It is located in south-east London on Evans Blvd, in the Summerside subdivision. It is named after Métis leader Gabriel Dumont. The presi ...

. The seventh and eighth grade from Marie-Curie was moved to Gabriel-Dumont during the relocation. Today, École élémentaire Marie-Curie teaches junior

to the sixth grade and is one of five French schools in London (two public schools and three catholic schools). There are also two French high schools and a French community centre.

Notable alumni

Notable alumni include: *

Jeffrey Buttle Jeffrey Buttle (born September 1, 1982) is a Canadian figure skater and choreographer. He is the 2006 Winter Olympics bronze medalist, the 2008 World champion, the 2002 and 2004 Four Continents champion and the 2005–2007 Canadian champion. ...

, figure skater * Jordan Prentice, actor

External links

École élémentaire Marie-Curie
(in French)
L'Association canadienne-française de l'Ontario (ACFO)
(in French)
ACFO-London-Sarnia
(in French) {{DEFAULTSORT:Marie-Curie, Ecole Elementaire Educational institutions established in 1972 Elementary schools in London, Ontario French-language elementary schools in Ontario 1972 establishments in Canada

Notable alumni

See also

External links