SEMINAR: THE ROLE OF MISSION SCHOOLS IN NATION BUILDING

The seminar was organized by the Diocesan Education Committee at the Diocesan Office on Saturday 21^st June 2008

The objectives of the seminar were to:

i. Present an opportunity for School Heads and members of Boards of Governors of Anglican Schools to acquaint themselves with the purpose and functions of the Board and the roles they need to play

ii. Address issues that might arise in the management and functioning of the Boards of Governors.

iii. Provide clear guidelines on the parameters within which the Board can exercise its role and function.

iv. Explore possibilities of establishing better links among the School Heads, Boards of Governors and the Diocese.

Nineteen participants comprising Heads of Schools, Chairmen and Committee Members of Boards of Governors/Managers and Chairmen and Committee Members of the Parent Teacher Association were present. Schools represented were SMK St. Mark Butterworth (4), SMK St. Gabriel Kuala Lumpur (3), SMK (P) Pudu (3), SMK St. Mary Kuala Lumpur (1), SK St. Aidan Bahau (5), SK Yong Peng Johor (1), SK St. Gabriel Kuala Lumpur (1) and SK St. Mary Kuala Lumpur (1). Some participants had set out as early as 1.30 a.m. to be on time for the seminar which commenced at 8.30 a.m. with breakfast.

At 9.30 a.m., Bishop Ng Moon Hing set the tone of the seminar in his welcome speech. He emphasized the importance of education in resolving problems and executing justice. The Church took it up as a form of service which cannot be measured and which only God can measure and reward accordingly. Thanks to his father, education had played a pivotal role in his own humble beginnings and he urged everyone present to persevere against all odds in the pursuit and administration of education.

Mrs. Gloriosa Rajendran then came on cue to deliver the keynote address. In the flux of changes the nation defined as its needs, the role of mission schools that really mattered was the manner in which it complied with the story of the Good Samaritan. For the Christian ethos to continue to operate, Boards that were static and ineffective needed to be revitalized. Besides offering academic excitement, schools needed to be places where children felt loved, cared for, happy and safe. She threw the challenge to all present to move in this direction.

The Q & A session which came next lasted two hours and covered much ground. Members of the panel were Dato’ Stanley Isaacs (Chairman, Board of Governors/Managers of St. Mary’s), Ms Esther Richards (Retired Principal of St. Mary’s) and Miss Goh Hai Bee (Present Principal of St. Mary’s). Matters pertaining to the role, composition, operation and parameters of Schools Boards were grappled with. Also dealt with were issues of registration, insurance and funds. The position of the Board in relation to the PTA was also discussed. Grievances voiced out by the participants were also given a sympathetic ear and addressed where possible.

The seminar ended at 1.00 p.m. with lunch. The success of the seminar may be gauged by the following sentiment expressed by a participant who had started his journey at 1.30 a.m. that morning; “I really did not know what I was coming for – but now I am so glad I came”.