Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute

Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute
Address
173 Talbot Avenue

Winnipeg
,
Manitoba
,
R2L 0P6

Canada
Coordinates49°54′35″N 97°06′58″W / 49.9097°N 97.1160°W / 49.9097; -97.1160
Information
School typePrivate, Middle and High School
MottoFor no one can lay foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ - 1 Corinthians 3:11
Founded1945
PrincipalAndrea Buller[1]
Grades5-12
Enrollment431[2]
AreaWinnipeg One School Division, River East Transcona
Colour(s)Red, Blue, White, Black
Team nameHawks
Websitewww.mbci.mb.ca

The Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute (MBCI) is a Mennonite Brethren private middle and high school in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

History

It was established in 1945, with forty-four students, located at the Mennonite Brethren Bible College, for students of grade 10 and 11.[3] Grade 12 was added in 1946, grade 9 in 1947, and grade six in 2004.[3]

The school relocated to 173 Talbot avenue, and went through several renovations and additions, including new classrooms and labs in 1947, and a gymnasium in 1951.[3] Completed and dedicated in 1954, the school was built in three wings, with a total cost of $95,000. At that time it boasted six classrooms, two laboratories, a chapel, an auditorium, and a nearby dormitory for 20 girls at 219 Talbot avenue.[4] Subsequent building projects were carried out in 1959, 1972 and 1987.[3]

In November 1984, grade 7 student Candace Derksen was abducted and murdered.[5]

In 2003, school administrator Wilfred Regier was suspended indefinitely without pay following an inappropriate comment to a colleague.[6]

In 2005, the school announced a $5.8M building project, which featured a park, new library with theatre, and new building on the site for offices and meeting rooms to expand space and add greenspace for the school's 323 students at the time.[7] The building project involved the demolition of the former Anna Gibson School at 77 Henderson highway, which was opposed by the city's historical committee, who had recommended listing it as a historical site. The historical school had been one of only three remaining one-storey schools built after World War I to meet postwar demand.[8]

In 2010, the school announced further expansions including an administrative wing and multi-purpose room, with the goal of increasing enrollment to 600 students from grade 6 through 12.[9] The project included the demolition of an existing building and a two-storey addition, and was completed in 2010.[10]

In 2019, students from the school built a nativity scene for Donwood Manor Personal Care Home. The CEO of Donwood reached out to the woodworking teacher at MBCI, who involved the arts teacher Merlin Braun and organized arts and woodworking students to collaborate and build the box-silhouette scene for the care home residents.[11]

Student body

Enrolment in 2022 included 431 students from Grade 5 to Grade 12.[2] As of 2022, approximately 40% of students were affiliated with Mennonite Brethren or other Mennonite churches, and 28% had no church affiliation. Earlier in the school's history, church attendance had been a requirement in order to study at the school,[12] although this policy changed in the 1950s.[3]

Athletics

MBCI teams have won provincial tournaments in Boys and Girls volleyball, Boys basketball and Boys badminton.[13]

Band

The MBCI band has won the Optimist Festival's Chairman's Award.[14]

Notable alumni

References

  1. ^ "Leadership". Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  2. ^ a b "ENROLMENT REPORT SEPTEMBER 29, 2022" (PDF). Manitoba Education and Early Childhood Learning. April 2023. p. 35. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute – Winnipeg, MB". Centre for Mennonite Brethren Studies. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  4. ^ "Mennonite Collegiate Dedicated". Winnipeg Free Press. 12 October 1954. p. 8.
  5. ^ "Mark Grant sues Crown, police for 'wrongful conviction' in Candace Derksen murder". CBC News. Oct 17, 2019. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  6. ^ McIntyre, Mike (2 December 2003). "Job lost over 'boneheaded' pillow quip". Winnipeg Free Press. pp. B3.
  7. ^ O'Brien, David (25 January 2005). "$5.8-M plan for Mennonite school". Winnipeg Free Press. pp. B1–B2.
  8. ^ "School coming down". Winnipeg Free Press. 20 May 2005. pp. A11.
  9. ^ Martin, Nick (16 February 2010). "Religious schools keep on growing". Winnipeg Free Press. pp. A6.
  10. ^ "Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute". Jilmark Construction Limited. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  11. ^ Longhurst, John (7 December 2019). "Students build new nativity scene for care home". Winnipeg Free Press. pp. C3.
  12. ^ a b Longhurst, John (21 September 2022). "MBCI celebrates 75th anniversary 'journey of faith'". Winnipeg Free Press.
  13. ^ "Provincial Championships". Manitoba High Schools Athletic Association. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  14. ^ "Manitoba Band Association" (PDF). Manitoba Band Association. p. 52. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 17 June 2014.
  15. ^ Oswald, Brad (15 January 2000). "No longer alien". Winnipeg Free Press. pp. B1.
  16. ^ Burshtein, Karen (23 August 2011). "Stepping up". Winnipeg Free Press. pp. C1. The 30-year-old fashion designer grew up outside Selkirk, later moving closer to the city, where he attended Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute and from where he says, "I imagined my way to London."

External links

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