Catholic
Schools Office
Archdiocese
of Pretoria and
Diocese of Johannesburg
|
Catholic
Schools Office |
|
||
|
||||
|
|
There are a number of bodies and structures in the Catholic Education network.Click on a button below to view more information:
Catholic
Catholic schools in South Africa are owned either by religious teaching congregations (such as the Dominican Sisters, the Marist Brothers, the Assumption Sisters, the Mercy Sisters, the Christian Brothers and many others) or by local bishops (those owned by bishops are known as ‘diocesan schools’). After 1994 it was necessary for these owners to negotiate with the new government to ensure that Catholic schools designated as state-aided under the old government were covered in the new Education Act. National and provincial negotiating teams were formed and from these the Catholic Schools Proprietors Association (CaSPA) was formed. The authority and responsibility for developing and sustaining Catholic education lies with CaSPA. Collectively,
CaSPA owns 344 schools in all provinces which educate over 160 000
learners from Grade R to Grade 12. The majority of schools are
located in the rural areas of KwaZulu Natal and the CaSPA
meets biennially to set direction and plan for Catholic education in
In addition to National CaSPA, there are also regional CaSPAs. The executive of CaSPA consists of the Chairperson, the Vice-chairperson and provincial representatives.
Changing
realities necessitate a new partnership between religious and laity With dwindling numbers of sisters and brothers from religious congregations teaching, or even able to have a hands-on presence, in Catholic schools, there was a need for religious congregations to establish a guardianship with the laity that would ensure both the preservation of what they had built up and the continuance and the development of Catholic Education. These concerns were the impetus behind the establishment of the Catholic Schools Board (CSB).
After
four years of discussions, prayer, planning and meetings, the
Regional Leaders of the Religious Congregations in the The
first Annual General Meeting of the Catholic Schools Board was held
at
At a series of subsequent meetings during 2003, the CSB discussed with schools the challenges ahead and sought their support in what they were trying to set up for the future benefit of Catholic Education. Schools were asked to give financial support for a Catholic Schools Office which would be an amalgamation of the existing structures in the two dioceses and be the "operational arm" of the Catholic Schools Board. This was not easy for some schools who were engaged in their own struggles for survival. Other schools, who were already paying heavy membership dues to other schools' associations, raised questions about what the Catholic Schools Board and Catholic Schools Office could offer them. With acknowledgement and understanding of what was at stake - the continued existence of all Catholic schools nationally, and the guardianship of their distinctive ethos and identity - doubts were put aside and schools accepted the challenges ahead by giving their wholehearted support to the Catholic Schools Board. Members
of the Catholic Schools Board (Gauteng Province) Like the Board of a school, the Catholic Schools Board only comes together a number of times a year for its meetings and at other times its members pursue their normal occupations. See the Constitution of the Catholic Schools Board
Provision
was made for the execution of the CSB’s decisions by establishing
the Catholic Schools Office (CSO). At a series of meetings during
2003, the CSB discussed with schools the challenges ahead and sought
the schools’ support in what the CSB was trying to set up for the
future benefit of Catholic Education. Schools were asked to give
financial support for a Catholic Schools Office which would
amalgamate the existing structures in the two dioceses (inter alia,
JOCASCO and the CCE in The Catholic Schools Office (CSO) of the Archdiocese of Pretoria and the Diocese of Johannesburg carries out the directives of the Catholic Schools Boards in member schools. The
main concerns of the CSO are that: To
assist schools in these endeavours, the CSO offers various support
services and employs five full-time staff. The Catholic Schools
Office operates an office located at The Haven at To find out more about the Catholic Schools Office, click here.
The Catholic Schools Councils – there is a CSC in Pretoria and another in Johannesburg - provide a forum for staff from member schools to come together for fellowship, to grow professionally, to collaborate on matters of common interest and to seek unity of vision. Sub-groups within the CSCs organise events, meetings and workshops which cater for the particular needs of their members. A sub-group – principals, board members, teachers, RE teachers, pre-school teachers, ancillary staff, learners, parents - may or may not exist from year to year as needs and circumstances dictate. Each sub-group elects a representative to the CSC Executive. The Executive co-ordinates the activities of the CSC. The Chairperson of the CSC Executive represents the CSC on the Catholic Schools Board. To find out more about the Catholic Schools Council, click here.
Catholic Institute of Education (CIE) Catholic
schools in Tasks
given to the CIE at its inception included the provision of
in-service training and support to Catholic schools across As the CIE has grown it has opened offices in several parts of the country and has extended the scope of its operations to include the development and implementation of educational policy, the clarification of the identity of Catholic schools, the building of capacity through strengthening local leadership, and the provision of co-ordination services to the Catholic education network (especially in areas where Catholic Schools Offices do not yet exist). The CIE group includes the CIE National Schools Office, the CIE Centre for School Quality and Improvement and the CIE Education Services. The
CIE National Schools Office (NSO) provides support and co-ordination
services to all Catholic schools and structures in the Catholic
education network. The NSO’s core activities include: The CIE Centre for School Quality and Improvement (CSQI) promotes school quality improvement in Catholic Schools through training, support services and whole-school evaluations. The CSQI also provides services to provincial education departments and public and independent schools. CIE Education Services designs and delivers training programmes and services, publishes resources and offers a consultancy targeted at improving school and education quality. CIE
contact details ( Telephone Fax
No Physical
address Postal
address Website http://www.cie.org.za Email info@cie.org.za
|
|
|||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||
George
F Daniel (Archbishop of Pretoria)