The desire to
contribute to the Christian formation of the youth brought the CICM
Missionaries to Sudlon, Maguikay, Mandaue City in March 1969. In response to
the request of Julio Cardinal Rosales, they established a Catholic high school
under the guidance of founder Fr. Wilfried Daels, CICM.
Fr. Daels supervised
the construction of the school building and headed a team of less than 20
personnel that took charge of the first batch of 38 boys, who had initially
enrolled at the St. Joseph's Academy. Although it was only partially finished,
the school building was blessed by Cardinal Rosales on August 22, 1970. By
then, there were 151 students in the high school: 103 in first year and 48 in
second year.
The following school
year, 1971-1972, the Bureau of Private Schools officially recognized Saint
Louis School of Mandaue as a separate entity from the boys' department of St.
Joseph's Academy. Its status was no longer limited to an all-male student
population so from then on, SLSM, as it became popularly known, started
accepting female students. On the same year, a scholarship foundation was
established to help needy students finish their secondary education, and a lay
person started serving as school principal. Since then, the Principal of SLSM
has always been a lay person.
The next few years
saw the construction of several structures in response to the needs of a
growing school population and the demands of providing quality education to the
youth. On September 1977, the construction of the gymnasium started. It was
finished the following year, but it was only in 1986 that the concrete
bleachers were added. The Administration Building was finished in June 1980,
the Home Economics Building in May 1987, and the male teachers' dormitory in
1988. The north side building, which was annexed and named after Fr. Wilfried
Daels, was blessed by Ricardo Cardinal Vidal on October 1, 1992.
Like a deeply rooted
plant, Saint Louis School made it through every rain and storm. It has now
fully blossomed into a huge tree whose branches continue to spread in every
direction. In the beginning of school year 2003, under the supervision of Fr.
Arturo Arnaiz, CICM, the school underwent a major transformation. The offices,
laboratories, and library were simultaneously renovated. Towards the end of the
school year, the long-held dream of having an elementary department became a
reality.The construction of the two-storey canteen and the ground floor of the
elementary building began and in June 2004, both edifices were blessed.
Today, Saint Louis
School of Mandaue has become a huge community. In less than 40 years, the
population has increased to more than 2,700 students coming from Mandaue, Cebu,
and neighboring towns. The student population is growing every year, served by
a dedicated staff of over a hundred teaching and non-teaching personnel.
Thanks to the CICM
Missionaries' presence, the Saint Louis School of Mandaue has been recognized
as an outstanding academic institution in the city. Its teachers and students
have also obtained awards for outstanding leadership, while several alumni have
ranked within the top 10 of professional licensure examinations in the country.
During the last local elections in May 2007, an alumnus from Class ‘82, Jonas
Cortes, was elected Mayor of Mandaue City. Saint Louis School has come a long
way, indeed.
The construction of
the College Building started in 2010 and this was finished and blessed in 2011.
The school started operating as a College in School Year 2011-2012 with Fr.
Pedro M. Peñaranda, CICM as its first President, followed by Fr. Gilbert B.
Sales, CICM as its second President in 2012-2013, and starting this school year
2013-2014, Fr. Fernold G. Denna, CICM the newly installed President, will be
serving hopefully for several years in the educational apostolate of the CICM
here in SLC-C.
With the guidance of
the Lord, and the inspiration of the Blessed Mother and our school’s patron,
Saint Aloysius de Gonzaga, Saint Louis College-Cebu continues to journey
towards excellence through a vibrant, transformative, Catholic education for
all with the able support of its administration, faculty, office and service
personnel, students, parents and alumni. God bless Saint Louis College-Cebu.
Prepared by: John Benedict B. de Leon &
Joseph De Rueda
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