St Finian's College

St Finians College is a secondary school, the diocesan school of the Diocese of Meath.[1] It is located in Mullingar, County Westmeath, Ireland, and is under the patronage of The Most Reverend Thomas Deenihan, Bishop of Meath.[2] Rev. Fr. Paul Connell, Ph.D. is its president. John McHale is the principal. Aisling Ryan and Emma Carey serve as deputy principals.

St Finians's College
Entrance gate
Location
Mullingar
,
County Westmeath

Ireland
Coordinates53°32′20.466″N 7°21′18.999″W
Information
School typeSecondary school
Religious affiliation(s)Christian
DenominationCatholicism
Patron saint(s)St Finian
Founded1802
OpenedMay 2, 1802 (1802-05-02)
FounderRev. Patrick Plunkett, Bishop of Meath
PresidentFr. Paul Connell
PrincipalJohn McHale
Vice PrincipalAisling Ryan, Emma Carey
ChaplainFather Mark English
GenderCo-educational
Age range11-19
Average class size31
Student to teacher ratio1:30
Colour(s)Yellow and Brown/Black
SloganDeus Spes Mea
NicknameFinians
AccreditationScientiae Fidimus
AffiliationDiocese of Meath
Websitehttp://www.stfinianscollege.ie/

Schola Cantorum

There are 29 Schola students.[3] Gerard Lillis is the current director, taking the position in 2003.[3] The Schola have in the past few years had many successful performances at Áras an Úachtaran, Feis Ceoil (Dublin), Glenstal Abbey and the National Principals Conference held in Killarney. At the moment, instruments taught at the school include organ, piano, violin, trumpet, clarinet, flute, as well as singing. Students currently come all over the country Dublin, Kildare, Laois, Longford, Sligo, Meath and Roscommon as part of the Schola Cantorum.

History

St. Finian's College was founded in Navan, County Meath as the Meath Diocesan College, by the Bishop of Meath, Patrick Plunkett, and opened on May 2, 1802.[4] Fr. Eugene O’Reilly as its first president, serving until 1827. The college moved to Mullingar, County Westmeath, at the beginning of the twentieth century. The present college building built by J.J. O'Callaghan was opened in February 1905. In 1970, St. Finian's was selected by the Irish Catholic hierarchy as the location for the music school (Schola Cantorum).

2002 marked the bicentenary of the founding of St. Finian's College. In 2003 it opened to girls, and in 2007 the last boarding class graduated.[5] The school also began offering transition year to students in 2017, thanks to the work of Sinéad Garvin and David Andrews. This transition year program introduced laptops into the school, beginning an era of technology for the school.

In 2015, the St. Finian's Diocesan crest was removed and replaced with a secular logo with the inclusion of a textbook.

Sports

The school offers a number of sporting choices in its sports facilities. These include Gaelic football, soccer, hurling, handball, basketball, rugby and golf.

The Mullingar Cricket Club plays in the grounds of St. Finian's College.[6]

A chess club is also operated in St. Finians College.

See also

References
  1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2010-07-28.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. Diocese of Meath. "Secondary Education". Diocese of Meath. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
  3. http://www.scholacantorum.ie/pupils&staff.html Archived 2011-07-21 at the Wayback Machine
  4. St. Finian's College Navan History Website.
  5. Seat of Learning www.irishidentity.com
  6. Location Mullingar Cricket Club - Official Website.
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