THE sisters of St Louis are preparing to hand over ownership of two schools - after almost 100 years in education in the north.
The order has been involved in schools in Ireland since its arrival in Monaghan more than 160 years ago.
It is now in the process of handing over trusteeship of the St Louis Grammar Schools, in Ballymena and Kilkeel.
They will be taken on by the St MacNissi's Educational Trust of Down and Connor Diocese.
The sisters opened a girls' boarding school in Kilkeel in 1922 and came to Ballymena in 1924.
The St Louis motto of Sint Unum permeates the schools as communities and influences the way teachers and young people relate to each other and to wider society.
St Louis ethos is to treat young people with respect and endeavor to provide a safe, empowering and learning environment where students are nurtured on their journey to maturity and motivated to reach their full potential as they grow into adulthood.
In Ballymena, St Louis is synonymous with success. It has a consistently impressive academic profile and places an emphasis upon rapport at all levels throughout the school.
It has topped The Irish News grammar school league tables for the last three years. This year, for the first time since A-level performance lists were re-introduced, it achieved something no other school has - a 100 A*-C per cent pass rate.
The Kilkeel school is an inclusive post-primary for boys and girls, whose aim is to provide opportunities for all students, enabling them to develop their talents and skills so they can realise their full potential - academically, socially and personally.
It seeks to provide a secure and happy environment for all children while promoting its Catholic ethos in a supportive and caring environment.
"With fewer sisters involved in educational leadership and the Irish Region of the Sisters of St Louis direct role in education in decline, and as we age, now is the right time for us to make this change," said Sr Eithne Woulfe.
"We are confident that joining St MacNissi's Educational Trust will develop Catholic Education in a new and creative way for all the pupils, teaching, administrative and support staff teams in St Louis Grammar Schools in Ballymena and Kilkeel.
"There will be no change to the day-to-day running of the schools for either teachers, pupils or future pupils."
The hand over will involve a transition period to include a school-based process of transfer and identity, within the context of Catholic education, of the St Louis heritage and its place within the diocesan pastoral and educational mission.
Fr Gerard Fox, Episcopal Vicar for Education, Diocese of Down and Connor and secretary to the St MacNissi’s Educational Trust said: "On behalf of the bishop I would like to thank the sisters of St
Louis for their commitment and dedication to Catholic education in Northern Ireland, not just as teachers but also as administrators, trustees, governors and influencing policy making at local and national level.
"It is a privilege to accept these excellent schools into the diocesan trust."
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COMMENT
THE changing role of religious orders in the north's schools has been a regular feature in the pages of The Irish News for several years.
Orders delivered tuition in convent and monastery schools for more than 200 years, helping teaching holy communities to prosper.
But the fall in the numbers entering vocations has meant that clerical collars and habits have almost entirely disappeared from classrooms.
The last priest serving as a principal of a Catholic school in the north left his post in 2016. A year later saw the retirement of the last nun serving as a head teacher.
Many of the orders that once swelled the corridors have handed control and ownership of their schools over to trusts.
For example, the Edmund Rice Schools Trust is now responsible for eight schools in Belfast, Glengormley, Armagh, Newry and Omagh that were formerly under the trusteeship of the Christian Brothers.
It strives to ensure and foster the advancement of education and to further the aims and purposes of Catholic education in the Edmund Rice tradition.
Similarly, the St MacNissi’s Educational Trust was established in 2004 to bring together into a single body, the trusteeship of the many Catholic schools established by and associated with the parishes and Diocese of Down and Connor - currently 166 schools.
The St Louis sisters recognise that change brings challenges, but also great opportunities.
It is confident that this transfer will enrich all concerned now and into the future.
