About

The Mackenzie Gymnasium

Mission

The Mission of William Lyon Mackenzie Collegiate Institute is to provide, in collaboration which staff, students, parents and community, challenging programs and a high standard of excellence that meet the needs of all students.

Our motto is “Sua Praemia Laudi”, meaning “Merit has its own reward”. This signifies the inherit benefit of fulfilling one’s responsibilities well. The motto reflects Mackenzie’s emphasis on striving for excellence.

School Info

As a step towards the fulfillment of this mission, our staff is determined to provide a safe, harmonious school where all people – students, teachers, support staff and the community – can work and learn. We believe that meaningful and challenging programs are essential to providing a clear focus for all members of the school community. We also believe that any social organization benefits by having a set of explicit common principles and understandings which help to define appropriate behaviour of individual members in order to enhance peaceful co-existence within the organization. Such a set of common understandings can help support students to become responsible, self-directed lifelong learners.

The information contained in Mackenzie’s Code of Conduct outlines a set of common understandings. They are the result of thoughtful discussion among staff, students and parents and are intended to safeguard the positive, healthy learning environment for which Mackenzie is known. The Code of Conduct can be found on page 3 of the school agenda.

Please refer to the agenda book for information on any other school policies.

Activity Fee

Mackenzie provides its students with incredible opportunities outside the classroom. These opportunities are supported by funds raised through the Student Activity Fee.

The fee of $85.00 covers the following:

  1. School Yearbook ($25.00)
  2. Student Council Activities (eg. workshops, events) ($20.00)
  3. Extra-curriculars (eg. clubs, sports, arts) ($20.00)
  4. School Agenda ($5.00)
  5. Guest Speakers ($5.00)

Who was William Lyon Mackenzie?

William Lyon Mackenzie was a Canadian politician who was born near Dundee, Scotland, on the 12th of March 1795. In April 1820 he immigrated with his mother to Canada. In May 1824 he published at Queenston the famous newspaper called the Colonial Advocate which ran until the 4th of November 1834. In November 1824 Mackenzie moved to Toronto. In 1828 he was elected Member of Parliament for York. In March 1834 he was elected mayor of Toronto. In October 1834 he was elected Member of Parliament for York. On the 4th of July 1836, he began the publication of the Constitution, which openly advocated a republican form of government.