[citation needed] Regular student programming ended at Peterborough Collegiate Vocational School in June 2012.

The building was renamed Peterborough Collegiate and in August 2012 opened as a re-purposed facility offering alternative and continuing education (ACE).

The four houses were Keswick, Caernarvon, Warwick and Wiggin, each represented by a colour: Blue, Yellow, Red, and Green respectively.

A tradition of extracurricular athletics included basketball, volleyball, rowing, field hockey, tennis, badminton and track teams.

In 1995, PCVS was listed by Maclean's magazine as one of the top five high schools in Canada in the category of Student Leadership.

The photographs were framed and mounted above the balcony doors of the auditorium on the foyer's second floor to maintain the leadership's history of the school.

Caroline McNamara, appointed interim principal after the sudden death of Rick Essex, was not included in this tradition.

The program catered to four levels of English proficiency, with additional support for student success on the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test conducted by the Education Quality and Accountability Office.

Community supports for students and families were also made available for study visas, residency applications, and cultural integration.

This class traveled around the city performing a thematic series of skits to Elementary schools and local community groups.

[17] Peterborough Needs PCVS, chaired by formal Principal Shirl Delarue, launched a judicial review of the ARC process[18] after the Ministry of Education accepted the Independent Facilitator Report,[19] which found no major errors were made in the board's review.

[20] Throughout this period student and community opposition to the decision was organized through social media, which was publicly displayed with delegations inside and protests outside board meetings,[21] student walk-outs[22] and sit-ins,[23] demonstrations,[24] and civil disobedience,[25] a protest at Queen's Park (Toronto),[26] and a lawn sign campaign.

Students 19 years or older must possess literacy and numeracy skills to meet everyday needs and find and maintain employment.

There is a Junior PLAR based on four assessments in English, math, science, geography/history where students can earn a maximum of 16 credits authorized by the Principal.

A Senior PLAR is available for a maximum of 10 additional credits, based on an application of prior learning that has occurred outside of the classroom setting.

[33] Dual credits began in Ontario in 2005 and give selected secondary school students the opportunity to experience a college environment.

This is achieved with the assistance of professional staff and volunteers from a variety of community organizations, with Monday to Friday attendance expectations.

These programs may connect the learners to their cultural roots or nurture an interest and skill base for learning languages in general.

Some high school students will use credit courses in International Languages to help them graduate or to facilitate their entrance into specialized programs at the post-secondary level.

PCVS is centrally located in the heart of downtown Peterborough across from City Hall, with easy access by public transportation.

[citation needed] The current school building was erected in 1908 and is historically significant to the community and was recently upgraded with emphasis on maintaining its architectural beauty.

The school does not have a sports field on site and uses Nicholl's Oval, a park owned and maintained by the City of Peterborough as well as the Pagans Rugby Club.