Bailieborough Community School
Bailieborough Community School, alternatively spelled as Bailieboro, and commonly referred to as BCS, is a community school located in the town of Bailieborough, County Cavan. The school was an amalgamation of two previous schools in the town; Bailieborough Vocation School, colloquially called The Tech; and Lourdesville Secondary School, colloquially referred to as The Convent. The school was built on the site of the existing Lourdesville. The school was opened on the 8 November 1982 by Minister for Posts and Telegraphs and thereafter Tánaiste, John P. Wilson.[1]
| Bailieboro Community School Pobail Scoile Coill an Choillaigh | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | |
| , Republic of Ireland | |
| Information | |
| Religious affiliation(s) | Interdenominational |
| Established | 8 November 1982 |
| Status | Open |
| Principal | Martha Lievens |
| Staff | 40 (approx) |
| Classrooms | 36 |
| Nickname | BCS |
| Website | bailieborocs |
The school has 36 teaching classrooms, a physical education gym, a gaelic football pitch and two car parks. From 2014 to 2017 the school went through a series of upgrades. The first upgrade which took place between 2014 and 2015 and was the replacement of the school roof and doors. The school roof had become aged and was replaced with a new modern roof. All doors in the school were replaced by fireproof doors. From 2015 to 2016 the upgrade of the school traffic system took place. Two new car parks were built which replaced an old park which became the site of a new school facility. The traffic management system was upgraded to also include a new one-way system and to improve the efficiency of school drop-off and collection. After the completion of the traffic management system, a new building which included improved facilities for students with autism and disability was built. During the summer of 2017, new canteen facilities were also installed, which allowed for hot food to be sold at lunch time, which was provided by an external catering company. The school closed on 13 March 2020 after Leo Varadkar, Taoiseach, announced the closure of all schools due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland.
The school Principal is currently Martha Lievens and the Deputy Principal is currently Fergal Kenny. The respective year leaders for the academic year 2020-2021 are Siobhan Corrie (6th year), Mary O'Rourke (5th year), Joanne McGovern (4th year), Siobhan Crossan (3rd year), Matthias Winkler (2nd year) and Majella Duffy (1st year). All year leaders act in roles as assistant principals.
Programs
Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme
Bailieborough Community School offers the Leaving Cert Vocational Programme (LCVP) in the school to all fifth years who achieve certain qualifications. These qualifications are based on the electives that the student chooses for their Leaving Certificate, along with the three core subjects - Gaelige, English and Mathematics.
Transition Year
The Transition Year (TY) program is a year of school between third year (end of Junior Cycle) and fifth year (beginning of Leaving Cert) which allows for students to engage in more extra-curricular activities such as BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition and Young Social Innovators. The program usually takes in 40-50 students on a yearly basis.
Sport
Bailieborough Community School has a robust and extensive sport system. The most prominent sport that the school takes part in is by far Gaelic football but other sports such as rugby, basketball, handball, badminton, camogie and cross country running are all encouraged within the school. Physical education is under the stewardship of Johnny Brady, former Cavan footballer who is noted for being on the 1997 Ulster Senior Football Championship Final winning team; Damian McIntyre is another member of the teaching staff who plays Gaelic football with Shercock GFC.
The school's senior Gaelic football team reached the final of Group D in the 2019-2020 championship. They were defeated by Ballybay Community College. Their managers were Damian McIntyre, John Coyle and Johnny Brady.
Music
The school has a history of hosting musicals such as Anne of Green Gables, My Fair Lady and Annie Get Your Gun, among others.
Facilities
The school is located on a site between Chapel Road and the Virginia Road of the town. The school is home to a standard Gaelic games pitch and a large sports hall. The school physically consists of two buildings: the main building, which contains the five "areas", and the E-area building. Each of these areas cater for a year in the school, providing access to lockers. The only exception to this is the D area which acts as a homeroom for fifth and sixth year students, who also have lockers along the corridors. Adjacent to these areas there is a number of classrooms and all of these areas are connected to the general area which also acts as the school's canteen and seating area during assemblies of the whole school.
The school has three science labs and a science room. A design and communication graphics lab is also present in the school, along with two computer rooms, a small library, two woodwork rooms, two metalwork rooms, an oratory, staff canteen, student canteen, two home economic rooms, a general office and a number of other rooms for storage. Most rooms are assigned to a teacher but as there are not enough classrooms to allocate to each teacher, they generally flow around the school teaching in class rooms that are not in use according to the school timetable.
Notable alumni and teaching staff
- Leanne Kiernan, professional woman's footballer.
- Michael Router, former Parish Priest for Killann, former Chaplain of BCS and Auxiliary Bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Armagh.
- Philip Leo O'Reilly, former Chaplain of BCS and former Bishop of Kilmore.
- Niamh Smyth, Irish Fianna Fáil politician.
References
- "About Our School – Bailieborough Community School". www.bailieborocs.ie. Retrieved 2017-10-22.