Ottawa Technical High School
| Ottawa Technical High School | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Address | |
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Albert Street Ottawa, Ontario Canada |
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| Coordinates | 45°25′00″N 75°42′23″W / 45.4168°N 75.7063°WCoordinates: 45°25′00″N 75°42′23″W / 45.4168°N 75.7063°W |
| Information | |
| Founded | 1913 |
| Closed | 1992 |
| School board | Ottawa Carleton District School Board |
| Grades | 9-13 |
| Language | English, French |
| Campus | Urban |
Ottawa Technical High School, more often known as Ottawa Tech, was a high school in Ottawa, Canada that originally specialized in vocational programs. The school opened in 1913 as the second public secondary school in Ottawa, and was closed in 1992. It was located on Albert Street in the western part of downtown Ottawa. The five acre (20,000 m²) campus is still owned by the board of education. It houses offices, special events, and storage, but much of it is empty
The building had originally been home to a woman's college and Ottawa Tech moved there in 1916. The original building was expanded several times and a new structure was built across the street in the 1960s. A bright orange walkway connecting the buildings over Slater Street remains a landmark.
The school originally offered both standard high school programs and courses in auto mechanics, electricity, drafting, computers, and graphic arts. When it was founded it was successful and grew to hold some 1,600 students at its peak in the 1950s. It was especially popular in the 1950s and 1960s as unprecedented, unique innovations in academic, vocational, and music programs were spearheaded and promoted throughout Ottawa by a creative, energetic, and motivational principal, Leo McCarthy.
In 1962, Ottawa Technical High School concert and stage band produced an album.
Although Ottawa Tech seemed to decline in later years, many now regard the 1950s and 1960s as its zenith, both in enrollment numbers and breadth of course opportunities. Under the leadership of Leo McCarthy, novel changes at Ottawa Tech began to attract many students from miles around the city of Ottawa. Other high schools continued to offer, and often required, studies in Latin, an increasingly unpopular course. Leo McCarthy's pre-engineering courses at Ottawa Tech allowed university-bound students from around the city an option to combine high-level academic courses with useful technical courses e.g. electronics and machine shops, from the excellent vocational instructors at Ottawa Tech. In addition, the welcome relief from Latin courses allowed many academic students to intensively study instrumental and vocal music, and some outstanding, notable careers were launched, guided from the outset by the expertise of John P. Murdie (band and music theory) and Carman Milligan (chorus and music theory). In fact, after winning provincial and national honours at the Kiwanis Music Festival Band Competitions in Toronto, Ontario, in 1962, the Ottawa Technical High School Band went on to make history as the first Canadian high-school boys-band to embark on a European Tour in the summer of 1963, an opportunity seeded by an initial offer from KLM, Royal Dutch Airlines.
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