History
Ardscoil Rís was formally opened on the North Circular Road in Limerick on September 1st 1963, when it welcomed 52 students. Classes were held in an old coach house. The modern campus you see today was officially opened on March 3rd 2014. A new, modern theatre building was added in 2019.
Br. McGinnity’s recall of the early years in the temporary school makes for very interesting reading:
"In September 1963 fifty students turned up and were accommodated in the renovated coach houses of the old Cleeve’s house (the Monastery), supplemented with a double-length Nissan Hut. These arrangements were excellent and adequate during the two years while the building was going up. I taught Irish, Mathematics, Non-experimental Science and Geography. Michael Field taught English, Latin and History. The Principal of Coláíste Mhichil, Sexton Street, Br John Irenaeus Clarke, who had taught me in Dublin, was of great help in the administrative areas, in which I had no experience whatever."
From its foundation the school was managed by a Christian Brother, who also held the post of Principal. In the 1989 a Board of Management, representing trustees, staff and parents, was put in place and the first lay Principal was appointed, Mr. Michael Field. From small beginnings the school, augmented by periodic extensions, grew to its present size and now has over 700 students and 50 teachers. The late twentieth century witnessed the contraction of religious orders world-wide. Ardscoil Rís is now staffed entirely by lay teachers. The Brothers maintain ownership and Trusteeship of the school and are represented on the Board of Management by four trustee nominees.
