Welcome to the CBS Westland
Presidents Message
Welcome to our new website. We hope you find it easy to navigate. The Website has a strong focus on providing access to historical happenings, for example, Cuimhneachan and the Archive Project, and current news will still in the first instance be distributed through our Blog (Link below). We are very grateful for the work Jim Conway does in maintaining the Blog and, of course, to John Murray who takes the pictures.
On behalf of the Past Pupils Union, I would like to wish our members as well as the students and pupils of the Row a happy and successful year. I especially hope all those students sitting the exams have the results they are seeking.
I was delighted, as one of the classes of 1973, to make a return to the school as part of marking 50 years since we all left. We were warmly welcome by the Principal, Kate Byrne, her colleagues and the students. Most of those from the class had not been in the school for over 50 years and were pleasantly surprised by what they saw. And we got a hearty breakfast! We are still debating which was the greater surprise, having the kitchen and catering facilities or that the school is now co-ed. We did all agree that the atmosphere is very different to that of 50 years ago, which can only be a good thing.
It was a wonderful experience and I would strongly urge any class marking a major anniversary to make a similar visit. With reasonable notice the school will be happy to facilitate the group.
As members will be aware, the PPU has, in recent years, supported the school with various grants or awards towards the cost of students’ education. Thanks to the ongoing support of our members and to some very generous donations, the PPU was in a position to make a number of awards at the start of the latest academic year. The 2023 awards were presented by fellow committee member Pat Neill and myself to four students, two in first year and two in fifth year, who were nominated by the Principal and her colleagues. I hope with continued support from our members that we will be able to continue to make similar awards in the future.
The Committee has spent time over the last year considering the future. Our membership has been declining for some years and unless we can attract more new members our ability to support the School will be severely diminished. One way we feel we can help do this is to attract more recent past pupils to join our Committee. We are especially interested in those who left the School after 1980; a working knowledge of modern media communication methods would be a plus. Also, given that the School went co-ed in 1988, it would be great to have some female members join. John Cullen, our Secretary, or myself would be happy to take a call from anyone who is interested.
My term of office will cease at our AGM in May when my successor will be elected. A new Committee will also be elected and it would be great to get some new blood. If you feel you would like to give something more back to the School, please consider putting your name forward for the Committee.
Dan Ferrari
President
About
CBS Westland Row
“The school is very proud of our PPU and very appreciative of their ongoing support. We would encourage recent school leavers to join the PPU as a way of keeping in touch with the school and contributing to the excellent work the school does”
The Christan Brothers initially established a school in East Hannover Street in 1812, The school then transferred in 1864 to a site in Westland Row, adjacent to St Andrews Church, where it remains to this day, centrally located on major bus and train routes. Initially set up as an all-boys school the school now has a mix of boys and girls students. The School is a member of the Edmund Rice Schools Trust, a community of schools which are managed in accordance with the principles of the Edmund Rice Schools Charter.
The School provides a wide range of subjects for students studying the Junior Certificate and the Leaving Certificate courses, including both the Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA) and Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme.
2023 has been a difficult year, in a number of ways, but the school, supported by the PPU, have worked successfully, together and independently, to overcome the problems. The school numbers increased again and these include a number of students fleeing the war in Ukraine. There are currently x students, representing x different nationalities.
On the academic front, a very creditable result was achieved. Out of twenty students in the Leaving Cert class, fourteen, or 70%, went on to third level. Four went to the Technical University of Dublin (TUD), three to Trinity and three to DCU. The balance was spread over other universities. Many congratulations are due to Principal Kate Byrne and her dedicated staff for these achievements.
The school’s success was recognized in a number of ways including a prestigious community award as evidenced by the banner, pictured below, which flies proudly outside the building. The award is in recognition of the contribution of the school to the local community.
The Past Pupils Union has, in recent years, supported the school with various grants or awards towards the cost of students’ education. Thanks to the ongoing support of our members and to some very generous donations, the PPU was in a position to make a number of awards at the start of the latest academic year. The 2023 awards were presented by PPU President Dan Ferrari and fellow committee member Pat Neill, to students who were nominated by the Principal and her colleagues.
About
Westland Row PPU
The Past Pupils Union (PPU) was set up in 1954. The primary purpose of the PPU is to support the teachers to achieve the best possible learning outcomes for the students in the school, to keep past pupils advised of developments within the school and the past pupils community, and to encourage past pupils to keep in touch. Membership of the Union is available to all past pupils and the annual subscription and other fund-raising events, after expenses, are used to support the work for the school.
To support the school, we help with career guidance and in preparing pupils for the world outside the school. We support other learning opportunities from time to time, including homework clubs and Gaeltacht scholarships. We sponsor the annual Student of the Year awards and help in other fund-raising activities for purchase of new equipment from time to time.
For past pupils we provide updates on developments of interest, both within the school and within the wider past pupil community. A number of Leaving Cert. Classes have also set up their own Whats App Group. Further details are available from the Secretary. We also organize an annual dinner at which the Row Person of the Year is commemorated and arrange that deceased past pupils are remembered in the annual St Andrews Day Mass.
As has been the tradition for a number of years the PPU Annual Dinner is scheduled to take place on the last Saturday in January, January 27 2024. The hotelier, PV Doyle, was one of the first winners of the Row Man (now Row Person) of the Year Award and through the support of his family we have enjoyed the hospitality of the hotels in the Doyle Group, latterly the Westbury, for our Annual Dinner. Photos from previous dinners are included in the Blog.
Gerry Keenan (Class of ‘71) has been selected as the Row Person for 2024 and will be presented with the Award at the Dinner.
Members wanting to attend this year’s Dinner should advice the Secretary, John Cullen, as soon as possible – email jjcullen@gmail.com, or by phone 087 231 2728.
We look forward to welcoming past pupils to the Westbury on the evening.
Each year the Archbishop of Dublin celebrates a Mass in Westland Row Church commemorating Sr Andrew’s Day. Past pupils who died during the past year are also remembered in the Mass.
While the PPU normally learns about the deaths of past pupils it is inevitable that some deaths will be missed. Anyone who knows of any such deaths is asked to advise the Secretary.
This year’s Mass was celebrated by the Archbishop of Dublin, Dermot Farrell, on Sunday December 3. 2023. By arrangement with the Parish deceased past pupils are included in the prayers of the Mass. Their names also appear on the Parish Newsletter and Mass leaflet. An unusually large number of past pupils passed away since the 2022 Mass. The following were included in the prayers – Noel Halloran, Stephen Kenny, Michael Doyle, Paul Kealy, Ian McGarry, Martin Conway, Denis McKennedy, Bryan O’Higgins, Gerry Hammond and Willie Meier. May they all rest in peace.
The PPU was well represented in the congregation by a large number of past pupils including Monsignor Dan O’Connor and our Chaplain, Fr. Eugene McCarthy, who was a con-celebrant on the altar with the Archbishop and Fr. Enda Cunningham, the Parish Administrator.
The President of Ireland, Michael D Higgins, was amongst the VIP members of the Congregation.
Each year the PPU makes an Award to one of our past pupils. The Award is typically made to a past pupils who has made a significant contribution in business, the public sector, academia or sport and or who has made a contribution to the school or the work of the PPU. Members are invited to nominate suitable candidates. The 2023 Award was made to Gerry Davey to recognize the contribution he made to sport generally and in particular to commemorate the goal he scored in winning the 1963 All Ireland Football Final. Gerry was one of a number of Davey brothers who attended the Row.
The Award was presented at the 2023 Annual Dinner where, thanks to modern technology, the attendance was treated to a replay of the winner goal (in full technicolor).
Gerry is one of a number of leading figures in sport who received the Award. Other sportsmen who received the Award included Jackie Carey, one of Manchester United’s icons, Gerry Mackay, who captained the famous Shamrock Rovers team in the 1960’s, Ken Doherty for winning the World Snooker Championship, Ray Tracey, international soccer star and subsequent media pundit, Chris Kane who was a member of the 1963 Dublin winning team with Gerry Davey (and also had a very successful career with Board Failte) and Brendan “Ginger O’Brien one of our the country’s outstanding cricketers whose sons have been stalwarts of the recent Irish Cricket team.
Cuimhneachan
1864 To 2014 (School And Local History)
The original school was established by the Christian Brothers in 1812 and moved to its present location in 1864. The PPU together with the school arranged a programme of events to mark the 150 year Anniversary in 2014. We were honored by the presence of Enda Kenny, TD, Taoiseach, in the school on 20 November 2014 to launch the programme. The Taoiseach spent a lengthy period meeting the pupils and all others present, and soaking up the atmosphere in the school. In his remarks, the Taoiseach was generous in his praise for the contribution that the school and its past pupils have made to building our country. The contribution was also recognized in the choice of the school to launch the 1916 to 2016 Schools Commemoration Programme.
As part of the celebrations the PPU organized, printed and distributed Cuimhneachan, a history of the school and the surrounding area over the period from 1864 to 2014. In particular it includes details of past pupils who we were involved in the 1916 Easter Rising. The most famous of these were the Pearse brothers Padraig and Willie but there were many other who took part. Cuimhneachan also included a section dealing with past pupils and others from the area who fought in the Great War. Cuimhneachan was and still is a must read for anyone interested to learn about the history of the school and the local area.
There are, unfortunately, not too many hard copies of the actual publication available, but we have included a PDF version on this Website. This version has been updated to include more past pupils who fought in 1916, and whose names emerged after Cuimhneachán was first published.
School History Project
Another project as part of the 150 anniversary celebrations was the School History Project. This involved the digitalization of the pupils’ records and the provision of a searchable facility which now covers the period from October 1864 when the school opened, to 1928. Cuimhneachán includes details from the records of the addresses of pupils and their parents’ occupations. This is interesting in terms of the changing demographics of the area . One interesting aspect of the work was the discovery that that Eamon De Valera sent his sons to the school in the period, describing his occupation as President of Ireland. We also discovered that the grandfather of a prominent British Politician attended the school – his parents gave their address as the local Army Barracks. The link below gives detailed instructions on how to access the records.
