History
Originally named as simply Arthur Voaden School, it was one of the first vocational schools in Ontario. It was constructed in a time where secondary school was considered a privilege, and was meant for those entering university or white-collar jobs. Arthur Voaden, M. D., a native of nearby Talbotville, was a man that wanted to give educational opportunities to all. Initiating this project to build AVS as one of few “down-graded” vocational schools around did create some friction, with debate over the Flora Street site, and the fears of costs. However after a year of construction, the doors were opened in September 1926. It did struggle in its early years, especially due to the Great Depression, when employment was scarce, and even trained and experienced workers had difficulty. It did slowly gain acceptance, and proved invaluable during World War II. The war made for a man power shortage to a point where even second and third year students were plucked from the school to fill the void. The school created special twelve week courses to train adults for war work, and war emergency classes were made available year round.
Dr. Voaden was principal of the school from its opening until he died in 1931. His remains were laid in state at the school.
Read more about this topic: Arthur Voaden Secondary School
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“Let it suffice that in the light of these two facts, namely, that the mind is One, and that nature is its correlative, history is to be read and written.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (18031882)
“If you look at history youll find that no state has been so plagued by its rulers as when power has fallen into the hands of some dabbler in philosophy or literary addict.”
—Desiderius Erasmus (c. 14661536)
“Postmodernism is, almost by definition, a transitional cusp of social, cultural, economic and ideological history when modernisms high-minded principles and preoccupations have ceased to function, but before they have been replaced with a totally new system of values. It represents a moment of suspension before the batteries are recharged for the new millennium, an acknowledgment that preceding the future is a strange and hybrid interregnum that might be called the last gasp of the past.”
—Gilbert Adair, British author, critic. Sunday Times: Books (London, April 21, 1991)