Kilkenny College

Kilkenny College
Address
Castlecomer Road Kilkenny , County Kilkenny , R95 CF61 Ireland
Coordinates	52°40′03″N 7°15′00″W / 52.6674°N 7.2501°W / 52.6674; -7.2501
Information
Type	Co-educational Day and Boarding School (Public)
Motto	Comme Je Trouve (As I Find)
Religious affiliation(s)	Church of Ireland
Established	1538; 486 years ago (1538)
Founder	Piers Butler, 8th Earl of Ormond
Board of Governors	Right Revd. Michael A.J. Burrows, Bishop of Cashel and Ossory
Headmaster	Emma Raughter
Staff	Approx 100
Gender	Coeducational
Age	12 to 18
Enrolment	ca. 920 (ca. 500 boarding)
Houses	4
Colour(s)	Red, Black
Publication	The Swift Review
Athletics	Rugby, hockey
Website	http://www.kilkennycollege.ie

Kilkenny College is a Church of Ireland co-educational day and boarding secondary school located in Kilkenny, in the South-East of Ireland. It is the largest co-educational boarding school in Ireland. In 2013 it transferred to the state/public sector and no longer charges fees for schooling. The school's students are mainly Protestant (Church of Ireland), although it is open to other denominations. ^[1]

The college motto Comme je trouve, which means "As I find" in French, comes from the family coat of arms of the Butlers, an aristocratic family in the area and former patrons of the school. It is intended to encourage grit, striving through adversity and taking life's challenges head on.

It was founded in 1538 to replace the School of the Vicars Choral, which had been founded in 1234. Piers Butler the Earl of Ormond located it in the city centre. It was moved to its current location on the outskirts of Kilkenny in 1985.