About Us
St. Francis Xavier School offers education from Kindergarten to Grade 7, with an onsite Daycare and Preschool Program. We are located in between Vancouver's Mount Pleasant and False Creek Flats neighbourhoods and cater to students from across the Lower Mainland.
Mission Statement
The School:
• Shares in the mission of the Catholic Church to proclaim and build the Kingdom of God.
• As a faith community, is committed to excellence in Catholicity and in all areas that promote the development of the whole child to his or her full potential.
• Strives to develop Christian leaders, responsible citizens and life-long learners.
• Follows the direction and guidance it receives from the Archbishop of the Vancouver Archdiocese.
Parents, as the first educators of their children, must work together with and give their full support to the staff to provide an environment where children can grow in academics and faith.
Our main objectives are:
• To provide an environment conducive to the development of the student’s entire person
• To educate the students to realize the importance of obedience and to show respect for authority
• To help the students integrate into Canadian society and encourage them to retain and appreciate their native culture
• To increase the students’ desire to learn and to strive for excellence within their reach.
History
The Grey Sisters of the Immaculate Conception from Pembroke, Ontario, founded St. Francis Xavier School in 1933. From a donation, a house and land was purchased at the corner of Georgia Street and Princess Avenue in Vancouver’s Chinatown. A Kindergarten was opened in one of the rooms of the house with the first class consisting of 30 Kindergarten students. The Kindergarten was then moved to another building across the street in 1934. The grade school began in 1938, housed in three rented classrooms on the third storey of a bank building at the corner of Main and East Pender Street. There were three grades in each classroom with a total enrolment of merely 30 students. In 1940, the very first school building, located at the corner of East Georgia Street and Princess Avenue, was constructed to accommodate about 70 students.
Over the years, the school population had outgrown the school building to such an extent that more than half of the students had to be housed in various rented buildings. Another building was later acquired on East Pender Street. The parish and school fundraised for over 20 years to build a new school. The construction then took another two years to complete when finally, in 2001, the current school building at 428 Great Northern Way was completed. Operations began in September 2001. Most Reverend Adam Exner, OMI, Archbishop of Vancouver blessed the new school on December 2, 2001. 