History

In 1969, our school opened as a Junior High School and was named Curling Junior High. It remained as a Junior High until 1986 when the school board decided to make an improvement in the educational facilities for the Primary and Elementary students in the area. In September of that year, the students of Milley Primary School and Curling Memorial School replaced the Junior High students who were moved to another facility in Corner Brook. The school was re-named Curling Elementary.

In 1986, the year that Curling Elementary School opened, students and parents were encouraged to help design a crest and to propose an appropriate motto for their new school. The Home and School Association in conjunction with the school staff sponsored a contest for this purpose.

The winning crest design was submitted by a Grade One student, Diane Pelley. Her design has an open book with golden pages laid on a blue background. This open book signifies knowledge. Below the book are two intertwined keys which stand for the two schools, Curling Memorial and Milley Primary, which joined to form Curling Elementary.

Our school motto, LEARN TO GROW, GROW TO LEARN, was submitted by a student in Grade Four, Nicole Habib.

In June of 1990 the school board, in improving facilities in the area, closed St. Michael's School on Country Road, and moved approximately half of the students to our school. Following this move, the board also decided to name the school after Reverend J.J. Curling, an Anglican missionary in the Bay of Islands area near the turn of the century. Today the school has 26 teaching staff and approximately 370 students.

This report was prepared by Jennifer Power and Janna Whelan, two former Grade 5 students at J. J. Curling Elementary School in 1996.