Ardscoil Rath Iomgháin
School Details
Location
About
Ardscoil Rath Iomgháin is a co‑educational secondary school situated in Rathangan, County Kildare, operating under the Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board (KWETB). The school follows the ETBI ethos, placing the five key values of Care, Respect, Community, Equality and Excellence in Education at the heart of its daily life. A holistic approach is evident through a balanced focus on academic achievement and a wide range of extra‑curricular activities, including Gaelic football, basketball, athletics, golf, debating, choir, traditional music, photography, guitar lessons and Zumba classes. The campus combines modern and purpose‑built facilities: a main building opened in 1986, a library (1993), a sports hall added in 2006, and further extensions completed in 2011. Outdoor fields and additional prefabricated classrooms support both sport and flexible learning spaces. The school also maintains strong community links, organising fundraising events, a yearly road race in memory of a former pupil, and collaborative projects with local day‑care centres and senior citizens, fostering responsibility and social awareness among students.
History
1971 – Sisters of Mercy convent amalgamated with Kildare VEC, operating from two buildings to provide an Inter Cert. 1975 – First senior cycle introduced; school operated from three buildings (Convent, old vocational school, old primary boys school). 1977 – First Leaving Certificate exam held. 1986 – Relocated to a new purpose‑built building on a new site. 1989 – Development of school fields. 1993 – Construction of a dedicated library. 2006 – New extension added, including a sports hall. 2011 – Current extension built. Additional prefabricated classrooms added from the early 1990s, with further units erected as recently as 2009.