Lower Canada College, located in Montreal, Quebec, is an elementary and secondary level private school. The school offers education from Kindergarten through Grade 12. Students graduate from Grade 11, and then have the option of leaving the school and going on to a Pre-University college, unique to the Quebec system, or returning to LCC for the Pre-University year. Once boys-only, LCC is now co-educational, with roughly 40 percent of the intake being girls. Girls were first admitted to Grade 12 in 1992 and were phased into the other grades beginning in the 1995–96 school year. Until recently, LCC was one of the few remaining schools with a covered outdoor ice hockey rink. This has been replaced by a new athletics centre, as well as a new arena. In addition to hockey, LCC has been known for fielding strong teams in Canadian football, soccer and basketball. Rugby was canceled in 2017 because it was deemed "too dangerous". LCC's traditional rival in sports and other matters is Selwyn House. The annual tuition fees for attending LCC range from $18,695 to $23,845. The school also receives subsidies from the provincial government that is available to all private schools for Grades 7 to 11, which means all students in the high school section must have a certificate of eligibility allowing them to attend government-funded English schools in Quebec in accordance with Bill 101.
LCC, like many other Commonwealth schools, divides its students into houses. These eight houses are named after alumni. There is also one house specifically for Grade 12 students. They are:
Beveridge
Claxton
Drummond
French
Harper
Heward
Russel
Woods
Webster
It is an annual tradition for the eight houses to engage in "Shourawe", a spirited day dedicated to house competitions such as Tug of war. Prior to 2008, this day was known as "House Wars". However, the barbaric etymology of the term evoked backlash and pressure from parents, causing LCC to reconfigure the letters into a less belligerent anagram. Conversely, the Tug of war event has yet to be renamed as a politically correct euphemism.
International Baccalaureate
In 2013, LCC began implementing the International Baccalaureate programme for some students in its grade 11 class. They plan on extending the program to grade 12 in 2014. Currently, there are approximately 25 students in the IB programme.
Admissions
LCC receives subsidies from the provincial government and therefore abides by the French Language Charter, restricting enrolment of students to eligible parties specified in the charter.
