Maia Secondary school was born when the decree-law 457 of 28th October 1971 created Maia technical school. In July 1972 its director, Dr Dias Leitão, began the hard and complex process of setting up a school where almost everything was missing, except for the full commitment of all the human resources that were at his disposal: the director and no more than a set of ten teachers.

The building, built thanks to the initiative of the Town Hall, had then agricultural surroundings and did not have some of the fundamental infrastructures yet, namely as far as the access roads were concerned.

This only building (Bloco C at the present) was shared with a section of Liceu D.Manuel II (from Oporto), operating on the ground-floor, whereas the technical school occupied the first floor.

The school began its activity without auxiliary staff, no administrative employees, the school office was in the Director’s car trunk (the typewriter, the files…). The school enrolments were made by the Director helped by a friend, Mr Amadeu, who worked in the school office of Escola Industrial Infante D.Henrique, and, who for free and on a voluntary basis, sacrificed his holidays for this collaboration.

On the 2nd October 1972 the classes began during the day and in the evening. Still without furniture, the first lesson was given standing. “On your feet, as a great march starts.” says with justified pride, Dr Dias

Leitão. And the march moved forward, despite the mud of the (non-) path, the lack of staff (only in January the first employees would be placed), the lack of equipment.

As soon as it became possible to have a room, a bar was opened to teachers and students. With a relevant detail: the accounting teacher and her students settled the prices and organised the accounting records in specific documents, and these were part of the practical classes of the subject.

During its first year, the school got two specific allocations for the library and the laboratory from the Minister of Education Veiga Simão.

In 1973 the school was institutionally reinforced being “recreated” as Escola Polivalente da Maia. This way the integration of the four parts of the secondary formation was settled: high school and technical school,

daytime and evening schooling. Dr Dias Leitão was kept in charge of the direction, whereas the function of deputy director was given to a permanent teacher of the high school, Dr Helena Smith.

In the following decades, the growth of the school in physical and staff terms was proportional to the transformation of Maia, which went from a mainly agricultural county to an industrial and urban one.

In 1987 the facilities were expanded and redesigned and this was the basis of the present administrative building.

On the contrary of the national tendency for a decrease in the number of the school population in the basic and secondary levels, Escola Secundária da Maia, growing as fast as the city, reached the point of overcrowding in the nineties. Meanwhile, the settling of new schools in the county allowed some relief of the courses of the daytime schooling. However, the attendance of the evening courses kept growing (Ensino Recorrente).

The offer of a wide variety of courses, namely technical/technological, both in daytime schooling and in evening schooling, has been a plus of Escola Secundária da Maia. Between 2009 and 2011, the school underwent the intervention of Parque Escolar. This intervention was based on the construction of new buildings where the library, the auditory, the canteen, the laboratories, the ICT rooms, the art rooms and other classrooms were placed. A new covered sports field was built, including support sports facilities (changing rooms and supporting spaces). The pre-existing buildings were refurbished, assuring the present demands of comfort, security and accessibility. The outside spaces of the school were improved, creating a dividing line between the pedestrian access zone and the car access and parking zones.

It is the main school of the Agrupamento de Escolas Da Maia.