St. Peter Senior High School: A Brief History
What is now known as St. Peter Senior High School was founded by Bishop Peter Tou Pao-zin of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hsinchu who was appointed to that position by Pope John XXIII in 1961. Bishop Tou realized the educational challenges faced by young people in Hsinchu and decided to establish a school. He undertook an extremely arduous tour across Europe and the United States to raise funds, and he finally had enough to buy land and begin building the school in the spring of 1963.
He named the school after St. Peter. The English name “Peter” comes from the Greek word “petrus”, meaning “rock” and in Matthew 16:18, Jesus told the apostle Peter: "You are Peter and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not overcome it." St. Peter was an ordinary person who overcame countless difficulties with his spirit and perseverance when he founded the church. We hope that our students and staff will follow the example he set us, and that the school will grow vigorously day by day and give our students and staff the foundation for making a contribution to positive social development.
Official approval to enroll students was given in August 1964. Our school began as a junior high school and a senior high school division was added in 1967.
The junior high school had to be closed in 1968 because of a new government policy that limited the number of schools in any area that could offer education up to junior high school education, but in 1970 the school established a supplementary education school division offering junior and senior high school level classes in the evening to help young people continue their education.
In 1975, in response to the urgent need for vocational education programs to train skilled workers, an Electrical Work Department and a General Commerce Department were added to both the daytime senior high school, and to the supplementary education school division in the evening, and a Mechanical Work Department was added in 1977. St. Aloysius Technical School and Shuguang Girls' Senior High School provided our school with substantial advice and assistance as these vocational training departments and programs were set up.
In 1987, these vocational departments and the courses they offered were revised, and they became the Electrical Engineering, Business Management, and Mechanical Engineering departments. In 2001, the Business Management Department was further restructured to become the Data Processing Department.
In 1993, the junior high school division was able to reopen.
In 2019, the school integrated new technologies into its teaching in response to the introduction of the 12-year Basic Education Curriculum Guidelines. This was greatly successful and the Ministry of Education designated us an Outstanding School for Excellence in the Use of Technology to Aid Self-Directed Learning in the 2020 school year, and again in the 2021 school year, which was an inspiration to our teachers and students alike.
The school currently has more than 130 full-time teachers and other staff, and more than 2,300 students, in 53 classes.
The leadership and support provided by the Bishops of Hsinchu Diocese has been crucial to the school's development. Bishop Peter Tou Pao-zin 杜寶晉founded the school, Bishop Peter Liu (Liu Cheng-chung 劉振忠) oversaw its expansion, Bishop Luke Liu (Liu Hsien-Tang 劉獻堂) oversaw organizational reforms and other improvements in 1981, and our current bishop, Bishop John Lee (Lee Keh-Mien 李克勉), has overseen and encouraged innovation and good governance, since 2006.
Over the sixty years since the school’s founding, the school’s principals have also contributed significantly to the school's growth. Father Li Ping-he李平和, the founding principal, laid the groundwork. He was followed by Father He Ren-lung 賀人龍 in 1966, by Vicar General Chen Hua-liu 陳驊騮 in 1968, and by Father Fan Wen-chung 范文忠 in 1972.
The first of the school’s subsequent lay principals, Mr. Chen Ming-ching 陳明清, was appointed in 1975 and served for more than ten years. Under his dedicated management the number of students doubled, and the school's reputation was enhanced. In 1980, he was awarded the Order of St. Gregory the Great - Knight Commander by Pope John Paul II for his educational achievements.
He was succeeded in 1989 by Wang Chia-yi 汪甲一, who focused on stable development. He was awarded the Order of St. Sylvester by Pope John Paul II in 2003.
Wang Hsin-hua 王新化became principal in 2001. He reorganized the school's operations to make them more transparent, and reflect the school’s motto of sincerity, simplicity, diligence, and thriftiness.
Chen Fang-chi became the eighth principal in 2013. He has enhanced the teachers’ responsiveness to educational changes, secured funding for facility upgrades, and fostered collaborations with universities and businesses.
The 2023 school year (2023–2024) was the 60th anniversary of our school’s founding. We remain confident that despite the future challenges that declining birth rates and increasing individualism might present, the school will continue to adhere to the Church's mission and values, foster a loving and sharing atmosphere, pursue effective teaching methods, and nurture our students to become people who contribute to society. The school aims to grow together with its students and their parents to build a better society and attract more people to join us in this mission.
