Upper School Clubs

Open to both Middle and Upper School students, Art Club meets twice a week to receive one-on-one art based tutorials and instruction. The Art Club provides students opportunities for creative problem solving through the exploration of various art tools, materials, and techniques. It also gives students the opportunity to develop, refine, and reveal their personal creativity and arts-based skills.

The Atlantic Salmon Restoration Program is dedicated to assisting local researchers with their efforts to re-establish a self-sustaining population of Atlantic Salmon in Lake Ontario. This is a great opportunity for anyone interested in environmental science/biology as well as anyone interested in getting hands-on experience with a local research group.

Open to Upper School students, Badminton Club meets bi-weekly to compete on the court. The Badminton Club provides opportunities for all level of students to participate in recreational and competitive matches. It also gives students the opportunity to develop their fitness and fundamental technical skills, including gripping technique, footwork and strokes.

The Charter Challenge club competes in the Ontario Justice Education Network’s mock appeal competitions. It is an academic club aimed at deepening students’ understanding of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, developing analytical and communication skills, and fun!

The Charter Challenge is Ontario’s only mock appeal competition for secondary schools. Students from all over Ontario form teams and choose one side of the appeal to ‘represent.’ They research and write a factum with legal arguments in favour of the appellant or the respondent.

The Charter Challenge Club is open to grade 11 and 12 students and meets weekly during both the fall and spring seasons.

Open to both Middle and Upper School students, the Chess Club meets once a week, from February onward, to learn new chess strategies, solve chess-based puzzles, and play chess matches. The Chess Club provides students with opportunities to hone their inductive reasoning skills in a fun and challenging environment.

The Debate Society is currently a member of the Fulford Debate and Public Speaking League, which consists of 19 schools from the Conference of Independent Schools. The club members participate in three formal debates during the course of the year: The Fall, Winter and Spring Fulfords. Students learn two different styles of debating: Parliamentary and Cross-Examination. Society members also have the opportunity to participate in public speaking competitions that occur throughout the academic year. The Debate teams have experienced national level success and have participated in competitions at the international level. Our students have been awarded top honours in after-dinner, declamation, interpretive and persuasive speaking. The Debate Society is a great extra-curricular activity in which students can cultivate their oratory and critical thinking skills. As the saying goes, "It's Great to Debate!"

VC DECA (Dedicating Excellence Celebrating Achievement) is a year-round co-curricular business activity open to all students in the Upper School. Through competitions, conferences and leadership opportunities, DECA helps students develop critical thinking, time management and presentation skills which will help students succeed at the Secondary and Post-Secondary levels. Through events such as Marketing, Accounting, Entrepreneurship, Financial Literacy (ex. Stock Market simulation), students gain insight into the vast range of opportunities that exist in the business world. Although a business competition, all students are encouraged to participate as they will develop many transferable skills to any field they should choose in the future.

Villanova College is proud to be recognized as an Ontario Ecoschool, achieving one gold and six silver designations over the past seven years. The Environment and Nature Society (ENS) encourages and supports environmental initiatives and education, with an emphasis on environmental stewardship and awareness. Students in the ENS participate in educational conferences, complete energy and waste reviews at VC, as well as model ways of conserving and preserving nature. Through initiatives such as the Atlantic Salmon Restoration Program and the planting of wild flowers to support bee populations on the VC campus, the ENS seeks to reconnect students with the natural world and recognize the environmental crisis that exists in the world today.

It takes strategy, lightning fast reactions, and a passion for gaming to be the best. At VC, the eSports club is the perfect way to connect with other like-minded individuals at our school and work with a team in a competition-based environment. The VC eSports club includes different games from a variety of genres.

Hockey Fridays is a year round VC club intended to increase sport awareness for hockey sports like field hockey (fall & spring) and floorball (winter) and to provide broader community access to these sports.

Even if they aren't planning to pursue a law degree, Mock Trial helps students develop critical skills that will help them succeed in any field – analysis, oral communication and advocacy. Prepare a fictional criminal case to be argued in a real courtroom in front of real judges in the York Region Judges' Cup Mock Trial Tournament.

Reach for the Top is a trivia competition in which schools across the country compete against each other to determine Canada's top quiz team. High school students (Grade 9-12) compete at the regional, provincial and national level, answering questions about topics ranging from medieval history to sports records. This year, VC is introducing an intramural league, where teams of four will compete against each other to crown a school champion. Our goal is to put together a team to compete at the regional level, with the hopes of making it to the national championship. So, whether you are a Renaissance buff, you watch Jeopardy every night and keep score, or are filled to the brim with knowledge about the Billboard Top 40, Reach for the Top is for you!

Showcase your singing, dancing and acting talents in VC's annual spring production. Performed at the Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts with a live band, the musical is collaborative and creative. Past shows include Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, Grease, Little Shop of Horrors, The Wiz, Oliver, The Addams Family, Jesus Christ Superstar and Seussical The Musical!

Ski Club is open to all students from Grade 7 to Grade 12. We participate in a number of recreational ski trips to Blue Mountain on Friday evenings during the winter term. Students of all levels are invited to participate. Blue Mountain offers evening skiing and snowboarding. The bus returns to the school afterwards for the parents to pick up their child.

The purpose of the Strategic Board Games Club is to promote team building and strategic/logical thinking in a fun setting with other students from the Villanova Community.

This club is a collection of students from all grades who work behind the scenes, painting, building, creating sets and props for theatrical events. The students also work back stage to make sure shows run smoothly and improvise when things need help in a hurry. The club builds team work, cooperation, creativity and skills working with tools and other materials.

VC Innoventions is a club for all Upper School students interested in science and engineering. The objective is to engage all students in hands-on STEM related activities and challenges that encourage learning and creativity. Make friends, form teams, and compete against others in a safe and fun environment.

For students who want to be involved, but prefer to be behind the camera instead of in the spotlight, Yearbook is a great club to join! Help record the memories that will last a lifetime in Excalibur. This club focuses on collaboration while allowing you to show off your creative flair, develop your writing and editing skills, and learn how to use an SLR camera.