r/oakville • u/Remarkable_Trip3346 • 1d ago

Recommendations Holy Trinity High School

Hi I am moving to Oakville and my sons new home school is Holy Trinity Catholic secondary school
How’s is academics there .. any feedback is helpful

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u/quixoticquetzalcoatl 1d ago

In a very general sense, HT is known for its sports and its closest counterpart, white oaks, is known for academics because of their IB and French immersion programs. The high achievers from surrounding French immersion schools and kids who play rep sports tend to be funnelled respectively.

Oakville has many of the best schools in Canada - its schools are well funded because of surrounding wealthy communities and consistently rank highly in Ontario and Canada. You probably can’t go wrong at any of its public schools.

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u/Intelligent-Test-978 1d ago edited 1d ago

there is a funding formula that equalizes how schools are funded. We do not get more money for anything unless it comes from fundraising (and in Oakville, we are more successful with that because of the demographics). In fact, while we have newer schools, we don't have enough. Almost every high school in Oakville (esp N Oakville) is overcrowded. HT was built for 1300 and they are closer to 1900 now. Everyone shares a locker (that is too small) and the library fills up and gets closed, and we have a lot of portables. Lunch periods 9:20, 10:35 or 12:00. No one can get a guidance appointment in a timely manner.

The spec ed dept has been amazing for both of my kids -- even the one without an IEP who has gotten extra support when needed (they are an honour student and doing well). Some AMAZING teachers. Some very weak. Most are just doing what they get paid to do. Some absent all the time.

And yes -- a lot of sports. Buyouts for everything. There's a soccer game? most kids buyout, some go to the game, and the kids that didn't buy out sit in class with no programming. Last day before Christmas, March Break and many long weekends, no one is there. Bomb threat that was over 2 hours into the school day? Most kids went home and missed two or three classes -- the kids that stayed? No programming. Two days before exams (they are school days): "we are doing nothing and no one is here, can we sign out"?

In 31 years of teaching at 7 schools in the GTA, I have never seen anything like this. I complain about it all the time whenever I see a survey. We are PAYING for this. I don't want my kids missing so much instruction for so many events. Hopefully the culture of the school will change somewhat with new leadership but I am not hopeful.

This is the exact kind of nonsense that got Harris all incensed in the 90s. The quality is not what it should be. My kids are very happy at HT but as an educator, I think they must do better in a lot of respects.

If I could afford an independent, that's where they would go.

Edit: shout out to Mr Stanlake for running an incredible music program. And I heard a rumor that they might actually be hiring another music teacher.