Q. What is the benefit of being a part of the VA program at O’Neill?

A. The Visual Arts program at O’Neill allows students who have a passion for the Visual Arts to take two visual art classes per school year! Students enroll in our open art program (AVI1O1, AVI2O1, etc.), and take one of our enriched art courses each school year (AWT1O1, AWT2O1, etc.). This format allows students with an interest in the Visual Arts to explore a wider range of techniques, styles and opportunities within the Arts. 

Q. Who can apply?

A. Any student who has a genuine passion and interest in the Visual Arts is encouraged to apply to our program. Students must be attending O’Neill in their grade 9 year – this means even if you weren’t accepted into the program you would be coming to O’Neill for grade 9.

Q. How do I know if I am attending O’Neill in my grade 9 year?

A. You are attending one of our feeder schools  (Beau Valley, Coronation, Dr. S.J. Phillips, Sunset Heights, Hillsdale, Kedron, Northern Dancer, Mary Street and Queen Elizabeth Public Schools), and you are in our catchment area. You may also be moving into our catchment area and will be attending O’Neill because of this reason. 

Please note that some students attending our feeder schools may be attending a high school other than O'Neill in their grade 9 year as a few of our feeder schools are split between us and another high school. 

You can use the DDSB Find My School to determine which high school your student is attending: https://www.ddsb.ca/en/our-schools/find-a-school.aspx# 

Q. How do I apply?

A. Complete the application for here: Applications are closed for the 2025-2026 school year.

Q. What is the deadline and when will I know if I got into the program?

A. The deadline for applications this year is Monday, February 3, 2025. All applicants will hear from us mid to late March via email. 

Q. My student is from out-of-area, can I apply to the program?

A. Unfortunately your student is not able to apply for our program in their grade 9 year if they are not coming to O’Neill in grade 9. They may, however, apply for their grade 10 year following the same process as those applying in grade 9. Please note, however, that spaces for entrance into the program in grade 10 are limited and there may not be space for them in our program. Please reach out to Ms. Fabris at ONeillCVI@ddsb.ca to discuss this in more detail if this situation applies to you. 

Q. Do I have to submit a portfolio? Is there an interview process?

A. There isn’t a formal in-person interview process, however all applicants will submit a digital portfolio in Google Classroom. Students will receive the code for the classroom when they submit their application. Portfolio requirements can be found on our website: https://sites.google.com/ddsb.ca/ocvivaprogram/va-program-application_1  

Q. Can my student still take other electives if they are part of this program?

A. Yes, however in grade 9 your student has two electives and both will be Visual Arts if they are part of our program. In grade 10 however, your student has three electives. Two of these will be art and one will be another subject. In grade 11 they have six electives, so two will be for art and four will be other subjects, and in grade 12 they have seven electives. Again, two will be for art and the remaining five will be other subjects. 

For each year, two of their electives will be their open and enriched art classes if they are part of our art program. Students may then take other courses of interest to them with their additional electives throughout their high school career. 

Q. Does my student have to take two art courses each grade?

A. Yes, if they are part of our Visual Arts program then they must take both the open art and enriched art class each school year. These are coded AVI (open art) and AWT (enriched art). Many of our art students also take photography and digital art classes in their senior years when more electives are open to them.