Catholic secondary schools managers meet this week. But the funding crisis and a general lack of appreciation has damaged morale

WHEN THE leaders of Ireland's Catholic secondary schools held their annual gathering last year, a mood of optimism prevailed. It was election time. Promises had been made. New syllabi were coming, extra funding was on the way. A Summer Works Scheme promised to relieve the headaches of overworked principals in tumbledown schools. The Programme for Government had pledged, finally, to give voluntary religious secondary schools the same money as everyone else.

Twelve months later and the mood has changed. Noel Merrick, President of the Association of Management of Catholic Secondary Schools, is preparing a more sombre address to his members, who gather later this week in Galway.

"It seems as though the downturn in the construction sector has hit education directly," says Merrick, who claims that schools have been winded by direct blows from the economy resulting in the suspension of vital renovation schemes and the abandonment of the Summer Works Scheme. New curricula have been put on ice (ironically, the new construction studies programme is one casualty). He is dispirited.

"It looked like some of the key issues were finally being addressed. Instead, the department is taking retrograde steps. Schools are being hit from all sides and the department is offering no practical support to help us deal with them."

Ferdia Kelly, director of the Joint Managerial Body, points to a Department of Education circular designed to help schools struggling to meet the cost of water charges. "The circular looks at ways to save water," says Kelly, who heads up the umbrella organisation for voluntary schools in both Catholic and Church of Ireland traditions. "It suggests fitting timers, new flushing systems and restrictors. Principals must be reading this in sheer horror. If they can't afford to pay the water charges, how can they be expected to pay a plumber to redesign the entire plumbing of the school?"

Kelly cites this an example of how officials at the department are failing to engage with the practical challenges of running a school. "There is a lack of consideration of the consequences of their actions on schools. They publish this stuff but offer no suggestions on how to resource it." Perhaps the most urgent example is the administrative overload that has been overwhelming schools principals since the mid-1990s.

These are problems that beset every school, at primary and post-primary level. However, there is an added pressure on the voluntary sector that Merrick hopes to address at this year's AGM. Over the last seven years there have been 18 amalgamations involving Catholic schools and schools from other sectors. Not one has resulted in a new Catholic school. No new Catholic school has been opened in the country in nearly two decades. Merrick feels that the Department of Education and Science is making decisions about new schools without consulting stakeholders or the public to find out what people really want. The sector is nervous for its future.

"We want a process where all stakeholders can be involved in the decision, Catholics schools as well as everyone else," says Merrick. "We are not seeking to dominate the whole picture. We just want to keep a look-in at the post-primary level.

Department officials obviously feel that denominational schooling is not viable. Last year, the Labour government in the UK announced its support for the creation of more faith-based schools. They are realising that something has been lost in education."

If the voluntary sector feels it is being squeezed out of the education process, the present funding structure is adding insult to injury. Voluntary schools, so-called because they were originally run by religious orders on a voluntary basis, used to cost the State less because the services of the clergy came free of charge. As clergy have retreated from schools, the cost of staffing has gone up, but funding has not reflected that.

"Voluntary school students get an average of €108 less than students in community and comprehensive schools," says Merrick. "In the 2007 Programme for Government, there was a commitment made to equalise the funding structures within two years.

In the first year, our funding was raised by €10 per student. How likely is it that the extra €98 will come this year?" The result is endless fundraising to cover basic costs. "If school managers stopped fundraising in the morning, schools would face a bankruptcy crisis," says Merrick. "On average, our schools fundraise 27 per cent of the expenditure of the school. When we opted in to the free schools scheme in 1968, we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into."

The overall effect is a sense of isolation in the Catholic school sector. Decisions of the department suggest to Merrick that the role of faith-based schooling in Ireland is not being acknowledged or appreciated. He insists that denominational education can be, and is, inclusive. He cites the examples of schools such as O'Connells and Stanhope Street in Dublin, which cater for a wide range of cultural and religious backgrounds within a Catholic ethos. "The perception that we cannot have denominational school in a multicultural society is being challenged every day by our schools," he says.

In Naas CBS, the all-boys school where he is principal, Merrick sees the widening of the Catholic ethos everyday. Just last week, he took four Legion of Mary ladies on the tour of the premises and walked in on a Powerpoint presentation on the tenets of Islam. As a community within a community, says Merrick, Catholic education has nothing to be ashamed of.

"We need to articulate what we stand for. Now that our schools are all run by lay staff, it's even more important to articulate our distinctiveness. The sector has been in closure mode for so long, with orders moving out of education, some people have come to regard it as a sector in decline. This is not the case. We represent 400 vibrant and successful schools, bringing education of inestimable quality to thousands of students from a range of backgrounds."

According to Merrick, the sector is now regrouping, and plans are underway to make their voices heard in new ways. The establishment of CEIST - a trust made up of over 100 Mercy and Presentation schools - and the planned Christian Brothers trust, demonstrate that the sector will not be silenced. " There's a new energy around the old voluntary school. We will be telling our members this year to take confidence in their work. Give leadership. Call on Christians to reappear as a community within a community. We are not in decline."

KEY ISSUES FOR SCHOOL MANAGERS
Amalgamation
Out of 18 school amalgamations in the last seven years, not one has resulted in a new Catholic school.

Funding
The overall level of education funding in Ireland is low by comparison to the rest of the OECD, and funding for the voluntary sector is lower than the rest of the post-primary sector. Equalisation of funding has been promised but is yet to materialise.

New Catholic schools
Of 31 new schools established since 1992, only one was a voluntary school. Catholic Trustees are not being offered the opportunity to take on new schools.

Principals' Workload
Principals are working around the calendar and around the clock, says the

ACMSS, and the situation is unsustainable. Principal posts are becoming increasingly difficult to fill and the good will of educational leaders is in danger of being lost. An administrator post is required for every school.

Learning Support
While special-needs education has attracted new funding from the department, there has been no new funding since 1999 for students with low literacy or numeracy. Pupil-teacher ratios have not improved, compounding the issue for children who need extra help.