Alpha Secondary is a public

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

Burnaby Burnaby is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. Located in the centre of the Burrard Peninsula, it neighbours the City of Vancouver to the west, the District of North Vancouver across the confluence of the Burrard In ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, Canada. It is part of

School District 41 Burnaby School District 41 Burnaby is a school district in British Columbia, Canada, with 41 elementary schools and 8 secondary schools. The district serves the City of Burnaby, located immediately east of Vancouver. The district has an enrollment of ap ...

Academics

Alpha Secondary offers a broad range of educational programming, including

French Immersion French immersion is a form of bilingual education in which students who do not speak French as a first language will receive instruction in French. In most French- immersion schools, students will learn to speak French and learn most subjects ...

Mini School
Advanced Placement, Honours courses, and Ace-It programs. Students wishing to earn their professional certification as a hairstylist can enroll in the two year District Hairdressing Program. Alpha also has an integrated honours program for Grade 8 students called Discovery. In 2008, Alpha students earned over $410,000 in scholarships.

Clubs and councils

Students at Alpha are provided with a variety of leadership opportunities through their participation in over 30 clubs and councils. The main leadership groups are Student Council, Music Council, Visual Arts Council, Grad Council, and The Offence. Other groups go beyond the school and organize events that improve both the local and global community, such as Frontlines, Enviro and Mycology Club. Alpha also has a debate team, and the Photojournalism Club runs the school newspaper, ''Alpha Centauri''. Through these groups, students organize school based events that contribute to the school culture.

Arts

While Alpha Secondary is considered a highly academic school, it is also recognized for its visual and performing arts programs which include choral and instrumental music, drama, theatre, dance, visual arts, and media arts.

Music

Alpha's music program includes concert choir, concert band, jazz band, small ensembles, and string ensemble. Will de Sousa, the music director from 2017 to 2022, who ran the choirs, bands, and jazz band, left Alpha to pursue a master's degree in choral conducting. Jesse Branter, an Alpha alumni, became the director for the 2022-2023 year and was succeeded by Angela Adam, the current music director at Alpha Secondary.

Theatre

Alpha's Theatre Program is currently being run by Mrs. McAllister and Mx. Archer. It explores different roles and techniques used in theatrical experiences. It is a full-year course, running from September to June. During this time, there are three events: a Halloween experience, the Winter Cabaret, and a Spring show. The Winter Cabaret consists of improv, lip-dubs, dances, and singing. It has a strong theme for consistency among the performances. Tech roles during the Winter Cabaret consist of Stage Manager, Assistant Stage Manager, FOH, and Sound Booth. The Spring Show is a scripted performance of a play.

Athletics

* 2002 Provincial AAA Boys Soccer – placed 2nd * 2003 Provincial AAA Boys Soccer Champions * 2005 Provincial AAA Volleyball – placed 3rd * 2006 Provincial AAA Volleyball Champions * 2007 Provincial AAA Volleyball – placed 2nd * 2013 Provincial AAA Rugby – placed 2nd * 2013 BNWSSAA Junior Girls Soccer Champions * 2015 BNWSSAA Senior Boys Soccer Champions * 2017 BNWSSAA Junior Boys Soccer Champions * 2017 VNDS Junior Boys Soccer Champions * 2017/18 Provincial Gymnastics Champion * 2018/19 BNWSSAA Junior Boys Soccer Champions * 2018/19 VNDS Junior Boys Soccer Champion

Notable alumni

* Mike James, retired professional rugby player, former Team Canada captain * Ashley Leitão, former top ten contestant on ''

Canadian Idol ''Canadian Idol'' is a Canadian reality television competition show which aired on CTV, based on the British show '' Pop Idol''. The show was a competition to find the most talented young singer in Canada, and was hosted by Ben Mulroney. Jon Do ...

'', attended Alpha and graduated in 2004 *

Devon Sawa Devon Edward Sawa (born September 7, 1978) is a Canadian actor. Born and raised in Vancouver, Sawa began his career as a children's action toy spokesman. He made his film debut with a supporting role in '' Little Giants'' (1994) and received wi ...

, actor (''Final Destination'', ''Casper''), class of 1998 * Don Taylor, currently working for

Sportsnet Sportsnet is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language Discretionary service, discretionary sports broadcasting, sports specialty channel owned by Rogers Sports & Media. It was established in 1998 as CTV Sportsnet, a joint venture betw ...

, and the TEAM 1040, class of 1977 * Alfredo Valente, Olympic soccer player and soccer player for the

Vancouver Whitecaps FC Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional Association football, soccer club based in Vancouver. The Whitecaps compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The MLS ite ...

, class of 1998

References

External links

School website

School Reports - Ministry of Education

Class Size

2005/2006 Satisfaction Survey

School Performance

Skills Assessment
{{Burnaby Schools High schools in Burnaby Educational institutions established in 1950 1950 establishments in British Columbia