Vellore Diocese

Committees

There are four committees

• Financial Committee
• Education Committee
• Pastoral Project Committees
• Social Project Committees

 

FINANCE COMMITTEE

 

EDUCATION COMMITTEE

The bishop of Vellore is the president of the Diocesan educational committee and the Manager is the Secretary of the committee. Vicars Forane of the eight vicariates, member of the curia, representatives who are experts in the field of education and representatives from the teachers are the members of the education committee. This committee helps the bishop in the administration of the educational institutions. Appointments of new staff, transfers of teachers and promotions are done by this committee. Every year a grand function is arranged by the management to felicitate those teachers who retire from their service.

Diocesan Initiatives for the Development of Education

Religious Education

Catechism and Moral instructions are taught to Catholic and non-Christians respectively in all the Diocesan and religious schools. The Director of Pastoral centre visits all the schools with his team and makes a annual report of religious education in the Schools

School Visits : The Manager of schools along with a team of priests makes periodical visits to the schools every year. This periodical visit helps teachers to commit themselves in their service.

Meeting with Head Masters: Every three months the Manger calls for a meeting of all the Head Masters in the regional centre of the Diocese namely, Thiruvannamalai, Chetpet and Vellore. These meetings help us to share our common problems and concerns that arise in the administration of schools. They also help us to discuss and plan out for a common strategy for the welfare of the children.

Infrastructure to Schools: The schools need good buildings. Though the schools were started with sheds and tile-roofed buildings, good buildings, libraries, laboratories, and play ground are needed for the recognition of schools. The Manager is taking necessary steps to construct decent buildings with the help of foreign agencies and local contribution.

Upgrading of Schools: Schools are upgraded when the need arises. This upgrading helps the local children to continue their studies. Drop outs are lessened in good number. Some of diocesan schools have achieved 100 % results in the Government examinations. These upgraded schools are recognized by the Government, but not aided by the government.  A little contribution is collected from the students for the salary of the teachers and the general maintenance of the schools.

Welfare of Dalit Children: A special attention and concession is given to the Dalit children and students in the diocesan institutions. Diocesan has made a common policy to give admission to all the Dalit children with maximum concession in the fees. Primary education is given to all the Dalit children with free of cost. Similarly in the appointment of teachers, 75% reservation is given to Dalit people.

Summer coaching Camp: From 1987 onwards, those who are below the 10^th standards are given a coaching for three weeks in summer in Mathematics, English and Science in collaboration with VSSS and SC/ST/BC commission. For the past 7 years, those who have completed 10^th, 11^th and 12^th are given special coaching in different subjects, so that they can go for Engineering, Medicine, ITI, etc. Through these coaching classes, many catholic students get seats in higher education. 

Diocesan Educational Scholarship for Higher Education : We are able to educate our boys up to High Schools or College studies. Beyond that, we are not able to educate them for higher technical and professional courses, such as Engineering, Medicine, and other professional courses. Youth are unable to get any job whatever. But many Hindu students, who studied in our institutions, manage to get higher education or a job using their money or influence, or reservation given by Government to SC/ST Hindu Dalits. While Hindu Dalits enjoy these constitutional privileges, our Catholic Dalit youth do not. They are not also eligible to the Central Government aids, scholarships and reservation on account of the Presidential Order of 1950. Due to such a predicament, many of our Catholic youth are reverting back Hinduism. 

As a remedy for this situation, diocese started a scholarship programme ‘Scholarship for Job-Oriented or Technical lines or Higher Studies.  A Scholarship is given to those who are studying professional course, such as Medicine, Engineering, Computer Science, ITI, Nursing, etc. Though this amount is not very high to meet all their expenses, still it is an incentive to them to meet their expenses, in some way. 

Welfare of the Teachers

Spiritual Animation: A special attention is given for the spiritual animation of the teachers working in our management. A two day annual retreat is arranged for the teachers in collaboration with the pastoral centre. 

Loan Scheme:  A loan scheme was planned to help the teachers to build houses. The plan has worked out well and a good number of teachers are having decent houses even in the remote villages. An education loan is given for the children of teachers for Higher Education.

PASTORAL PROJECT COMMITTEE

SOCIAL PROJECT COMMITTEE