On February 9th, St. James' Cathedral on Jarvis Street was ringing with a celebration of Jarvis Collegiate’s bicentennial anniversary and its promising future. It was the opening of an exhibit at the cathedral called "Early Days: The Birth of Public Education in Ontario," which delves into the two-hundred years of Jarvis history.

Attending the opening of the exhibit was a long list of distinguished guests including: the Honourable James Bartleman, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario; Principal Gold; representatives of the Province of Ontario, the Toronto District School Board and the Toronto Catholic District School Board; as well as Mr. Okill Stuart, who is a descendant of the first Head Master of Jarvis, the Reverend George Okill Stuart.

For all the distinguished guests it was the students of Jarvis who stole the show. The Jarvis Concert Band, Strings Ensemble and Senior Vocal Group all put on wonderful performances throughout the opening, showcasing Jarvis talent. While the students represented the JCI of today, the exhibit provided a glimpse into the Jarvis of the past two centuries: it takes us for a stroll through the founding, numerous name and location changes, students and principals which have caused Jarvis to develop into the school it is today.

For those who wish to take a peek at the development of Toronto’s education system and the heritage of Jarvis, this exhibit is an engaging collection of odds and ends of Jarvis’s past. The exhibit also explores the barriers which education has faced in Ontario and celebrates Jarvis’s success in overcoming them. It invites visitors to enjoy and better understand the forces and personalities that have shaped JCI — and Toronto.