Secularism: schools denamed
Secularism obliges, religious symbols and references to faith are not only disappearing from the teachers' attire, but also gradually from the names of schools.
To hell with Saint-Louis, Saint-Roch or Notre-Dame-de-Roc-Amadour. The names of schools are gradually being replaced by names inspired by nature, fauna or geographical location.
Once again at the heart of the news, Bill 21 on the secularism of the State has prohibited teachers from openly displaying their religious convictions. The law adopted by the Legault government did not force schools to take down the crucifixes that had been embedded in the walls for ages or to rename schools.
But the trend to remove references to Quebec's Catholic past from the names of educational institutions was already well underway. It is even mentioned in the recent report on the investigation of 17 schools in the province for breaches of secularism.
"Despite the fact that these names comply with the provisions of the Act respecting the laicity of the State, some school service centres have received requests to change their names. In particular, the CSS de la Capitale told the auditors that given the number of applications received, it had to invite the community to reflect and put in place a reference framework on the change of name of an institution," it reads.
More "neutral" namesThe spokesperson for the Centre de services scolaire (CSS) de la Capitale, Jade Thibodeau, explains that some communities wanted to make the naming of their schools more "neutral." But this movement predates Bill 21. Since 2011, this CSS in the Quebec City region has had a framework to carry out the name change process.
This is what allowed Saint-Roch school to be renamed École des Berges, Chanoine-Côté school to become École Sans-Frontière and Notre-Dame-de-Roc-Amadour school to be renamed École secondaire de la Cité.
Gone are the emblematic figures of the Catholic heritage from here and elsewhere. It should be noted, however, that religion is not mentioned in the criteria to be respected or avoided in changing the name of an educational institution. But the governing board must have its decision validated by the Commission de toponymie and the Ministry of Education.
The new name must promote a sense of belonging and have a meaningful, positive and sustainable character. Names of people who are alive or dead for less than one year should be avoided.
This is why the new schools in the area recently inaugurated have opted for more "neutral" names, such as the École des Explorateurs, the Myriade, the Étoile-du-Nord or Stadacona.
Same thing in MontrealAnd the CSS de la Capitale is not the only one. Several of his peers have done the same. In Montreal, the Saint-Louis school located in the Mile-End, known for its arts-studies program in dramatic arts, is now called Robert-Gravel school, in honour of the Quebec man of the theatre.
The Monarques school also replaced the Saint-Jean-Vianney and Marie-Rollet schools. More recently, the Saint-Louis-de-Gonzague institution swapped its name inspired by the Jesuit of Italian origin for that of Jean-Paul-Riopelle School. It was there that the Quebec artist was introduced to painting.
To hell with Saint-Louis, Saint-Roch or Notre-Dame-de-Roc-Amadour. The names of schools are gradually being replaced by names inspired by nature, fauna or geographical location.
Once again at the heart of the news, Bill 21 on the secularism of the State has prohibited teachers from openly displaying their religious convictions. The law adopted by the Legault government did not force schools to take down the crucifixes that had been embedded in the walls for ages or to rename schools.
But the trend to remove references to Quebec's Catholic past from the names of educational institutions was already well underway. It is even mentioned in the recent report on the investigation of 17 schools in the province for breaches of secularism.
"Despite the fact that these names comply with the provisions of the Act respecting the laicity of the State, some school service centres have received requests to change their names. In particular, the CSS de la Capitale told the auditors that given the number of applications received, it had to invite the community to reflect and put in place a reference framework on the change of name of an institution," it reads.
More "neutral" namesThe spokesperson for the Centre de services scolaire (CSS) de la Capitale, Jade Thibodeau, explains that some communities wanted to make the naming of their schools more "neutral." But this movement predates Bill 21. Since 2011, this CSS in the Quebec City region has had a framework to carry out the name change process.
This is what allowed Saint-Roch school to be renamed École des Berges, Chanoine-Côté school to become École Sans-Frontière and Notre-Dame-de-Roc-Amadour school to be renamed École secondaire de la Cité.
Gone are the emblematic figures of the Catholic heritage from here and elsewhere. It should be noted, however, that religion is not mentioned in the criteria to be respected or avoided in changing the name of an educational institution. But the governing board must have its decision validated by the Commission de toponymie and the Ministry of Education.
The new name must promote a sense of belonging and have a meaningful, positive and sustainable character. Names of people who are alive or dead for less than one year should be avoided.
This is why the new schools in the area recently inaugurated have opted for more "neutral" names, such as the École des Explorateurs, the Myriade, the Étoile-du-Nord or Stadacona.
Same thing in MontrealAnd the CSS de la Capitale is not the only one. Several of his peers have done the same. In Montreal, the Saint-Louis school located in the Mile-End, known for its arts-studies program in dramatic arts, is now called Robert-Gravel school, in honour of the Quebec man of the theatre.
The Monarques school also replaced the Saint-Jean-Vianney and Marie-Rollet schools. More recently, the Saint-Louis-de-Gonzague institution swapped its name inspired by the Jesuit of Italian origin for that of Jean-Paul-Riopelle School. It was there that the Quebec artist was introduced to painting.
