ST Genevieve's High School in Andersonstown has officially launched its 60th anniversary celebrations.
The Sisters of St Louis opened the school on September 1, 1966. Its population then was 550 students and 26 teachers. This has increased today to over 1,000 students and 71 staff.
The school moved to its current site at the former Trench House in March 1992.
As the new school term got underway, form tutors led pupils in a special prayer service, giving them an opportunity to reflect with gratitude on the generations of pupils, staff and families who have been part of the St Genevieve's story over the past six decades.
Pupils also viewed the school history, explained by their form tutors.
Candles were lit throughout the school as a symbol of the school's shared community, before the corridors came alive with applause and celebration, as classes joined together to mark this wonderful milestone.
Declan Brown, Acting Principal, said: "Celebrating 60 years of St Genevieve’s is a very special moment for our entire school community.
"For six decades, the school has been part of the life of West Belfast, educating generations of young people and helping them to recognise their talents, their potential and the contribution they can make to their community.
"The Belfast in which St Genevieve’s opened sixty years ago was very different from today. While much has changed since the first St Gen’s girls crossed the threshold, what sits at the heart of the school has remained constant: A belief in the dignity, uniqueness and potential of every young person.
"Our Diamond Jubilee naturally invites us to look back with enormous pride, but it must also inspire us to look forward with ambition. We are custodians of a remarkable legacy, and our responsibility now is to build upon it.
"As we celebrate the achievements of the past 60 years, we are equally excited about what St Genevieve’s can become over the next 60 years."
