Crescent College - Late 20th and Early 21st Centuries

Late 20th and Early 21st Centuries

By 1939 the school population remained under 130, but by the 1940s it had grown to 300 boys, rising to over 500 by the 1960s. The Jesuit community was identified almost entirely with the upper and middle class population in the city and beyond, which following the changing emphasis of the post-Conciliar period, troubled many in the Order. A recent biography of Fr William Hackett has been published and the author records a rather cranky priest who made no secret of his belief that parents who sent their children to Jesuit schools were 'making their way into the upper middle class on the back of the Jesuit vow of poverty'. Fr Hackett was not unique in this view and the Generalship of Pedro Arrupe challenged the Jesuits to return to the original Ignation vision and the spirit of the early Jesuit schools and as part of this reflection many Jesuit schools began to re-evaluate their role. In Britain four Jesuit Schools became Comprehensive in the 1960s and in contemporary Ireland it was proposed that the Crescent in Limerick, and Gonzaga College in Dublin should adopt a comprehensive curriculum in a new relationship with the Minister for Education, and cease to be fee paying schools. Negotiations opened in the late 1960s at the invitation of the then Minister and former pupil Donagh O'Malley, who had been a class mate with the Jesuit Provincial, Cecil McGarry SJ. The comprehensive scheme proceeded in Limerick only and this ushered in a period of significant reform and expansion under Fr Thomas Morrissey: the name Sacred Heart College was dropped and redesignated Crescent College Comprehensive SJ, in recognition of the popular name of the school. In 1971 the Georgian school buildings at Crescent House were found to be structurally unsound, overcrowded and inadaptable to expansion. Some thought was given to a relocation to Mungret College, however after consideration the Mungret site was deemed to be too far outside the city catchment area. Instead land was purchased at Dooradoyle in 1973, resulting in the demolition of the McMahon historical seat (a family closely related to the French Dukes of Magenta). Shortly afterwards a new shopping centre opened beside the school which was named 'the Crescent' after its neighbour.

In 1978 Crescent became the first Irish Jesuit school to become partially co-educational, with a ratio of 3 boys to 1 girl, and Coláiste Iognáid Galway followed a few years later. The preparatory School, which had remained at Crescent House, was closed in 1978 as the Department of Education declined to allow boys an automatic right of entry to the secondary school as demand for places was particularly stong. At Dooradoyle many innovations and developments in curriculum were undertaken and Crescent, and Gonzaga in Dublin, became the first schools in Ireland to offer a transition year. Other novel experiments such as Classical Studies in the 1970s and a special 'Irish Studies' programe for first years were later phased out and not adopted in other schools. In the 1980s, in collaboration with then National Institute for Higher Education in Limerick (subsequently UL), students from Crescent were able to study computer and technology courses at Leaving Certificate level which were awarded points for entry into third level courses.

Crescent continues a tradition of excellence in the fields of drama, debating, music and sport which are important dimensions of any Jesuit School. Girl's Hockey and boy's rugby are the main sports, though many other contact and non contact activities are offered. Rugby at Crescent blossomed from the late 1940s under the care of Fr Gerry Guinane, and in that time Crescent has had considerable success in the Munster Schools Senior Cup, constituting one of the big five rugby schools in Munster, and winning many senior titles since the cups inception in 1909, and many Provincial and local titles at junior level. The School is represented nationally at club level by Old Crescent RFC, which is now an open club, but an important component of the Crescent tradition. Girls hockey has exclusively dominated Irish and Provincial championships for many years and boys and girls have represented Munster and Ireland in Rugby and Hockey at all levels over the years. The school maintains an award winning orchestra and an annual musical is produced, involving students and staff, and an annual public concert at Christmas.

Crescent now sits in 40 acres of mature grounds and gardens landscaped by Fr William Troddyn and the late school gardener, P.J. Brennan. Fr Troddyn was introduced to professional gardening whilst a scholastic at Emo Park, and some of his hard work there still survives. Amongst the many trees he planted at Crescent is a mature avenue of copper beeches, and thousands of daffofils, that spring forth annually in May: a fitting tribute to the memory of both men who contributed to the modern Crescent environment. In this tradition the school also maintains a nature garden to attract wildlife to the campus and make students environmentally aware.

Today the school operates under the joint trusteeship of the Society of Jesus and the Minister for Education. Unlike other Irish Comprehensive schools with a faith based sponsor the Jesuit Provincial enjoys a perpetual majority on the Board of Management, a privilege shared only with Protestant schools at Cork and Donegal redesignated as Comprehensives in the 1960s and 70s. The ethos is Jesuit and Catholic though most of the current teaching staff are lay-persons, with five Jesuit priests currently on the staff, living on campus at the residence, Della Strada. In 2001 the School appointed its first lay headmaster. The current headmaster, Nicholas Cuddihy, was appointed in 2008.

Crescent offers a six year curriculum, and classes are divided into 5 lines, each named after a Jesuit patron. Demand for places in the school continues to be heavily oversubscribed.

In June 2006 the Sacred Heart Church closed ending the connection of 150 years with Crescent House, from which the school took its name. A House of Prayer and Spirituality has located to the Jesuit Residence in Doooradoyle. The old school church, the Church of the Sacred Heart, after a long vacancy is now owned by a Traditionalist Order, the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest.

Crescent has a long tradition of national and international touring. Every year students depart to Delphi, Co. Galway. Recess, Co.Galway and Achill, Co.Mayo for personal development and team building. Paris, France and Barcelona, Spain are some of the more recent international tours, and trips were made in the 1980s to what were then somewhat exotic capitals like Havana, East Berlin and Moscow. An annual pilgrimage also takes place to the inter-denomational monestary at Taize in France, and walking retreats around Ireland are undertaken by pupils in their final year of study. Skiing and snowboarding tours are held annually at various skiing resorts throughout Europe. Sporting teams also regularly tour and represent the school at international level: Crescent rugby, soccer and hockey teams have represented the school in the Czech Republic, Holland, Japan, Australia, Spain, South Africa and many other locations. The schools surfing club now entering its fifth year has several annual outings to Lahinch, Co.Clare.

Academically Crescent is within the top 40 secondary schools in Ireland.