Mercy Secondary School Mounthawk is a community of students, parents and staff who work together to support each other in the endeavour of formation and learning. It is through this partnership between staff and students and parents that the young people in our school are challenged, supported and cared for as they realise the God-given potential within them to grow.

It is a privilege to part of this dynamic, committed and vibrant community. There is energy and life in abundance in this school. There is creativity and innovation here. There is care and concern and interest. There is dynamism and openness to change and improvement. In 2012, on the 10 year anniversary of the foundation of the school, we received a report from the Department of Education (WSE) inspection which evaluated the school in very positive terms.

That report provided the basis for the intervening school plans.  The most important of the recent developments in the school was the opening of our new extension  in 2016 on the anniversary of the rising.  It was an occasion that led us to consider the inspiration of the leaders of that rising, none the least of which was Pearse himself.

His writing in ‘The Murder Machine’ gave an early statement of the essence of holistic education: ‘Education has not to do with the manufacture of things, but with fostering the growth of things. And the conditions we should strive to bring about in our education system are …. the conditions available to the growth of living organisms – the liberty and the light and the gladness of a ploughed field under the spring sunshine’.  

A wonderful art project through the artist in residence programme allowed students to participate in the creation of a commemorative ceramic frieze for the new Centenary Hall which captures some of the inspiration of 1916.

I hope you get a sense from this website of the ‘light and the gladness’ that exudes from the students among us here in Mounthawk and of the diversity and range of activity in the school.  I hope it supplies prospective parents and pupils with a sense of the great educational opportunities that are available to students in Mounthawk.

For those of you already in the school community, we intend the website to be a regular source of up to date information and to provide a forum for the students’ and parents’ council and a way by which the management can update you in activities and upcoming events. Please check back.