AUCKLAND A significant number of Catholic schools could soon have the word Catholic in their names to make clearer their connection with the Church. Bishop Patrick Dunn of Auckland wrote to his representatives on boards of trustees earlier this year asking that boards consider supporting having Catholic in the school name or subtitle.
This would be a first step in a name-change process, involving board support in principle, school community consultation, a formal board resolution if there is little opposition and finally a request by the bishop to the Education Ministry for the change.
A supplementary agreement to the schools Integration Agreement would be needed.
NZ Catholic understands there has been a positive response from many Auckland school boards to Bishop Dunns request.
The bishop wrote that the benefits of having Catholic in a schools name include it being a public statement that the school is proud to be Catholic, that it gives witness to the school being an integral part of the Church’s mission and that it is easily identified as Catholic by the wider community.
Bishop Dunn added that he recognised some people might see changing a schools name as not honouring its history.
But a name change would acknowledge a schools integral connection with the Catholic Church, which has been around a lot longer than any of our schools, Bishop Dunn wrote.
He told NZ Catholic that the costs of a name change including stationery, signage and websites should not be significant. Changes can be made gradually, for instance, when new stationery is ordered, he said.
New Zealand Catholic Education Office chief executive Br Pat Lynch, FSC, said a strong brand, which is attractively marketed, is very helpful to any institution or business.
Being proud of the Catholic brand and of what it stands for is to be applauded, Br Lynch said.
Catholic schools have established a reputation as places of quality education, take pride in being unabashedly Catholic in what they do and stand for and are well known. Even new migrants find out about Catholic schools in their region quite quickly, Br Lynch said.
Around New Zealand, there has been a slight movement to change school names, but at this stage it is not a big trend, Br Lynch said.
With almost 500,000 Catholics in New Zealand, we ought not hide ourselves.
We strongly contribute to the welfare of the students and families in our schools and at the same time strongly contribute to the well-being and social cohesion of the nation. Working with others and protecting our difference are of equal importance.