Started in 1955, the school was officially opened in January 1956. Originally named Torrance Street School, it was renamed in the late sixties in honour of Georges Vanier, the 19th, and first French Canadian, Governor General of Canada. The eight classrooms that made up the original school saw two later additions: that of a gymnasium in 1968 and a library, resource room and expanded front entranceway in 1983. A new roof in 2007, a major remodeling of the main office in 2008 and upgrades to both our Breakfast Club room and our central heating system were the most recent alterations to our space.

General Vanier serves about 110 families and offers a first rate education to students who attend classes ranging from Junior Kindergarten to grade eight. As we are in town, most of our 169 students walk to and from our school. In addition to school team sports in cross-country, volleyball, basketball, badminton, track & field and baseball there are intramural activities offered to students in grades one through eight. Besides sports, Vanier offers clubs such as Silver Birch reading, Student Council and regularly supports charities like the Try Fox Run, C.O.P.E Christmas food drive and Jump Rope for Heart. As a ‘green’ school we try to be kind to our Earth through being committed to reaching out to our community, developing environmentally sound habits and through natural science education.

Whether you are working in the tourist industry, at the track, at the border or in the many light industries surrounding us, the General Vanier Elementary school community welcomes you. What we may lack in size, we certainly make up in heart!