Ottawa-Carleton District School Board’s only Grade 7-12 secondary school will hold its Official Opening Ceremony on Thursday, November 19. The school welcomed nearly 700 students in Grades 7 to 9 this September and will add one grade each subsequent year offering programs up to Grade 12. The school community includes 65 academic, administrative, and support staff members.
The official opening ceremony will be preceded by a dedication ceremony to name the Auditorium in honour of the late Trustee Alex Getty. Trustee Getty was a staunch advocate for the need for a Public High School to be built in Barrhaven. Unfortunately Trustee Getty passed away in April and did not witness the opening of the school in September. The dedication ceremony will commence at 7:00 p.m. in the Auditorium with the Official Opening Ceremony to follow at 7:30 p.m. in the School Gymnasium.
Director of Education Lyall Thomson said, “Longfields-Davidson Heights Secondary School is truly unique in many ways. It is the first school in the District to offer both intermediate and secondary school programs. The building includes two double gymnasiums, an auditorium that offers a great view of the stage from every vantage point, and a Culinary Arts lab. This school is state-of-the art offering Integrated Technology, Communications Technology, and Computer Engineering.”
The Auditorium which will be known as the Alex Getty Auditorium is a tribute to a man who represented Zone 3 Barrhaven-Knoxdale-Merivale for nearly 15 years. Dale Taylo,r a talented Arts teacher at the school, painted a portrait of Trustee Getty for the Auditorium ensuring that his memory will be forever associated with the construction of this school.
The new Longfields-Davidson Heights school is a generous 183,000 square feet located in Barrhaven South at 149 Berrigan Drive.
