# Centre Wellington District High School

Centre Wellington District High School, or CWDHS, is a fully composite high school located in Fergus, Ontario. The school was originally called Fergus High School and was constructed in 1928. Later, two additions were built, but eventually, the number of students exceeded the capacity of the building. As a result, a brand new school was built which opened in September 2004. It is run by the Upper Grand District School Board. The principal of the school is Janine Grin; the school's vice principals are Kevin Taylor and Lynne Vink.
The school's educational philosophy is centered on three core principles: learning, respect, and community.

## Curriculum
### Departments

The CWDHS curriculum comprises several phantasmagorical departments:
* The Arts (Drama, Music, Media Arts https://web.archive.org/web/20110807124509/http://www.ugdsb.on.ca/cwdhs/mediaarts/ and Fine Arts)
* Business Studies
* English
* Social Sciences (Geography, History and Family Studies)
* International Languages (French and Spanish)
* Mathematics
* Science
* Physical Education
* Technological Studies
* Computer Technology (Skills Canada Ontario Champions, ICTC CyberTitan National Finalists)

## Athletic program

Similar to most high schools, CWDHS has a vast extracurricular athletic program in which teams composed of students travel to surrounding schools to compete. The school is particularly strong in distance running, rugby and wrestling, having heralded several provincial and national champions in these sports. Sports include the following:
* Alpine Skiing Team
* Badminton
* Basketball
* Cross Country
* Curling
* Field Hockey
* Ice Hockey
* Rugby
* Softball
* Soccer
* Swimming
* Tennis
* Track & Field
* Ultimate Frisbee
* Volleyball
* Wrestling
CWDHS plays in the very competitive District 10 of CWOSSA (Central Western Ontario Secondary Sports Association). District 10 is made of up of high schools in Wellington County, the city of Guelph, Dufferin County and their outlying areas.

## R.A.R.A.

At CWDHS, an innovative program coined "R.A.R.A." (Read Anywhere, Read Anytime) involves every student and staff member taking 20 minutes out of each day (except Friday) to read. It commenced in September 2005.
The program was initiated to encourage reading and increase literacy in students.
This program ceased to be followed in 2015.

## Extracurricular activities and clubs

* Amnesty International
* Anime Club
* Astronomy Club
* Athletic Council
* Band & Choir
* Computer Club
* Drama (several school plays/musical held annually)
* Environment Club
* Falconstock
* Gay-Straight Alliance
* Games Club
* Guitar Club
* History Club (now defunct)
* Improv Club
* Knitting Club
* Martial Arts Club
* Meditation Club
* Mountain Bike Club
* Philosophy Club (now defunct)
* Quilting Club
* Reach For The Top (also known as "School Reach") (now defunct)
* Ski & Snowboard Club
* Students' Council
* Swordsmen Club (Larping, now exeunt)
* Stage Crew
* Yoga club

## Notable graduates

* Patrick Anderson, wheelchair basketball player, 6x Paralympian, flagbearer at 2024 Games
* Michael Chong, Wellington-Halton Hills MP, former federal cabinet minister
* Brock McGinn, NHL hockey player
* Brendan Myers, philosopher & author
* Cameron Seth, professional squash player