About The SR

The Steinbach Regional Secondary School, located in Steinbach, Manitoba, is home to approximately 2100 students from grades 9 to 12, 150 teaching staff, 50 educational assistants, and 20 support staff and is part of the Hanover School Division. With a 100,000 square foot addition that opened in 2014, the SRSS has been able to expand programming to meet the needs of our diverse student population.

We offer a full complement of 10 technical vocational programs, full academic programming, extensive athletic program, along with providing opportunities for students to participate in our school store and student-run credit union.

Prepare, Inspire, Empower

To prepare, inspire and empower all learners in our school community through relational, flexible and relevant opportunities.

Beliefs and Values

We believe in engaged thinking, ethical citizenship and the pursuit of excellence.

Engaged Thinking

We value learners who:

• think critically and make discoveries
• use technology to learn, innovate and communicate
• work with multiple perspectives and disciplines to identify problems and find the best solutions
• adapt to change with an attitude of optimism and hope for the future.

Ethical Citizenship

We value learners who:

• build inclusive relationships based on humility, fairness and open-mindedness
• demonstrate respect, empathy and compassion for all
• collaborate and communicate through teamwork and leadership
• contribute responsibly to their school community and the world around them.

Pursuit of Excellence

We value learners who:

• create opportunities and achieve goals through hard work, perseverance and discipline
• strive for excellence and earn their success
• explore ideas and challenge the status quo
• demonstrate competitiveness, adaptability and resilience
• take risks confidently and make bold decisions in the face of adversity.

Steinbach began as one of many Mennonite villages beginning settlement in the East Reserve, land set aside for them by the newly formed government back in 1874, four years after Manitoba became a province of Canada. It came to be known as the Hanover Municipality, and later the Hanover School Division was launched. In the beginning, villagers ran their own private schools teaching basic literacy along with religious content. In 1878 Steinbach School District No. 65 was launched and the schools became publicly administered.

A one-room high school was started in 1920, expanding to two rooms by 1927. In 1936 a six-room high school was constructed on the corner of Reimer and Second Street to be known as the Steinbach Collegiate. (The Steinbach Arts Council now occupies this building.)

The first grade twelve graduation exercises of the Steinbach Collegiate were held on June 30, 1938. Ten graduates were presented with diplomas by the principal, Julius G. Toews. Forty-four years later in 1982 there were 213 graduates.

A much larger Collegiate was constructed in 1961 at Reimer and Fourth. (The newly formed Hanover School Division board soon thereafter assumed the responsibility of providing grades nine through twelve education in all of Hanover, including the Steinbach Collegiate.) A few years later this Unitary Hanover School Division Board took control of all the schools in Hanover, kindergarten through grade twelve, the existing district boards then disbanded.

Seeing students through to high school graduation was an on-going challenge. (In my own case, it is hard to believe that not even one of the 54 grade one students in Steinbach in 1942, graduated in Steinbach in 1954, 12 years later! I was one of the few who completed grade eleven!) Over time retention rates in high schools improved considerably. Among other changes, attitudes towards education changed, the economy improved, academic courses were offered at different rigor levels, more options, including business courses were offered, school counselors were being engaged, etc., but it was not until the late 60’s and early 70’s that a truly remarkable line of thinking emerged!

In the interests of keeping students in school through to graduation, thereby gaining extra academic knowledge and skills, why not add programming that could also provide the option of preparing them for entering the workforce with basic trade/job skills in hand at graduation? To provide this would require a huge undertaking and require huge financial resources.

Although providing public school education is a provincial responsibility, it took a federal initiative to cause this change to happen! Across Canada all the new regional vocational school buildings, complete with furnishings, were financed by federal resources! Although the seven Manitoba sites for these regional schools were larger population centres, they were also meant to serve their surrounding areas with vocational options, hence ‘regional’. One of those schools is the Steinbach Regional Secondary School.
The changes that were required in transitioning from the SCI, a great school in its own rite, to the SRSS in 1972, were many! Briefly stated, among others, they included:

• New vocationally qualified teachers had to be hired.
• Extensive student orientation sessions were required due to all the changes.
• Students needed to identify their choice of one of ten academic or vocational majors.
• New vocational curricula had to be written or enhanced.
• Liaison with other regional schools is a must.
• Need for more counseling services.
• Need for enhanced timetabling services.

At the SRSS’s opening in 1972 only grades ten through twelve were included in the student body. By 1996 the student count had risen to some 850 with 250 grads. In excess of 90% of students now meet graduation requirements.

Respectfully submitted by
Elbert Toews
Principal, Steinbach Regional Secondary School
1972 – 1996

The Next Restructuring

Another significant change took place in 2014 when a huge addition was added to the school complex. This included an atrium, balcony, multipurpose room, learning commons, new hairstyling and esthetics salon, new human ecology spaces, a new music room, plus expansions to the heavy vocational shops. The new space was created to include grade 9 students from Steinbach, Blumenort, Bothwell, Kleefeld, and Mitchell. More than 500 grade 9s begin each Fall semester!

In the last 15 years the SRSS has become a grades nine through twelve comprehensive school providing academic, technical, and vocational programming. The school offers a wide variety of courses including 67 academic core courses, more than 80 elective courses (including dance, performing arts, visual arts, and industrial arts), 3 University dual credits in Biology, English, and Calculus, grade 9 try-a-trade, and numerous majors – applied commerce, automotive technology, building construction, collision repair, culinary arts, design drafting, electrical, esthetics, graphic design, hairstyling, human ecology/family studies, fashion and textiles, foods and nutrition, interactive digital media, and welding.

As with most schools, the SRSS provides a host of opportunities for students to get involved and compete such as athletics in Zone 13 locally and Zone 2 in Winnipeg. There are a wide range of sporting activities: soccer, golf, volleyball, basketball, badminton, curling, baseball, fastball, track and field, cross country, ultimate frisbee, beach volleyball, Special Olympics, and Unified Games, rugby, football, and hockey. There are also many other activities: music, drama, visual arts, creative clubs, games club, e-sports, improv, gardening, link crew, student council, workout club, pilates, and yoga.

With so many opportunities on offer the student population has exploded, now reaching some 2000 students with approximately 450 grads annually. This is now the largest school in the province!

Respectfully submitted by
Sherry Bestvater and Cam Kelbert
Co-Principals of Steinbach Regional Secondary School