St Muredach's College is an all-boys

secondary school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

on the banks of the River Moy in

Ballina, County Mayo Ballina ( ; ) is a town in north County Mayo, Ireland. It lies at the mouth of the River Moy near Killala Bay, in the Moy valley and civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of Kilmoremoy, with the Ox Mountains to the east and the Nephin Beg Ra ...

, Ireland. It was founded in 1906 to provide a

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education for boys in the Killala Diocese. The school building, which was designed by William Henry Byrne, is included on the

Record of Protected Structures Conservation in the Republic of Ireland is overseen by a number of statutory and non-governmental agencies, including those with responsibility for Historic preservation, conservation of the built environment and Environmental protection, conservat ...

maintained by Mayo County Council.

History

In 1901, the then Bishop of Killala proposed that a new school be opened as there was otherwise no secondary school between Belmullet and Sligo. St Muredach's opened in September 1906. The original school building, which was designed by W.H. Byrne, was built on a site overlooking the River Moy. Originally housing 76 boarding students, a new extension was opened in 1937. Fr. Cyril Haran taught at the school in the mid-20th century. In 1967, the school's enrolment increased due to the coming of free education nationally. Around the same time, additional subjects were offered, including mechanical drawing, woodwork and art. Extra classrooms were required, and a further extension was added in the late 1960s. A physical education hall was added in the 1970s. By the late 1980s, boarding was phased out, and a new building (incorporating a woodwork room, art room and classrooms) came into use in 1990. A computer room, library and canteen were added in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The schools' first lay principal was appointed in 2008.

Teachers

* Patrick O'Boyle (1887-1971) - Bishop of Killala * Cyril Haran (1931-2014) - priest,

Gaelic football Gaelic football (; short name '')'', commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA, or football, is an Irish team sport. A form of football, it is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score ...

er * Christopher Jones (1936-2018) -

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Alumni

* P.J. Ruttledge (1892-1952) -

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland. Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...

politician * Mick Loftus (1929-2023) -

er * Martin Birrane (1935-2018) - businessman and

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driver * Michael Gaughan (1949-1974) -

Irish republican Irish republicanism () is the political movement for an Irish republic, void of any British rule. Throughout its centuries of existence, it has encompassed various tactics and identities, simultaneously elective and militant and has been both w ...

, hunger-striker * Kevin McStay (b. 1962) -

er and

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References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Muredach's College Ballina, County Mayo Boys' schools in the Republic of Ireland Educational institutions established in 1906 Secondary schools in County Mayo Catholic secondary schools in the Republic of Ireland 1906 establishments in Ireland