Susan Abalo, Physics and Mathematics teacher at Ocer Campion Jesuit College in Gulu, Uganda
The recent trip to Uganda for Irish teachers which was led by staff from the missions office, centred on a visit to Ocer Campion Jesuit College in Gulu, in the north of the country. The college, which is supported by Irish Jesuit Missions, is a coeducational boarding school which is currently home to more than 800 pupils.
Rian (left) with students from St Mary Assumpta Secondary School, Adjumani
A group of teachers from the Jesuit schools in Ireland took part in a formation trip to Uganda during the autumn midterm break. The journey was developed as part of an immersion programme for the group, so they could learn about a different culture by spending time in a Jesuit school in the north of the country and observing the dynamic between the staff and pupils in a very different environment. The experience is intended to enrich the teachers and help them to develop concrete strategies to foster Education for Justice in their schools.
By Sean Dingle
The Ugandan Formation Visit to Gulu was a hugely rewarding experience, on both a personal and a professional level.
We were privileged to spend more or less a week in our sister Jesuit college of Ocer Campion in Gulu. While there, we spent valuable time with the Jesuit community and the teaching and auxiliary staff. We were able to share our vision of how best to bear witness to the characteristics of Jesuit education and how these characteristics inform our professional practice. This was done through a formalised day of continuing professional development and through informal conversations with the Jesuit community and with the teachers and other members of the school staff.
Laura Freyne with students at Ocer Campion Jesuit College in Gulu, Uganda
By Laura Freyne
When someone asks me to describe my time spent in Uganda, I cannot help but smile.
During the Easter break, a delegation of five teachers from each of the Jesuit schools in Ireland, led by Bríd Dunne, were warmly welcomed by the wonderful staff and Jesuit community at Ocer Campion in Gulu. It was a mutually beneficial opportunity to share ideas on Jesuit education and how to best serve students entrusted into our care.
Introduction
As a child I was fuelled with wonder about the world I could not comprehend the injustices presented through the daily news. Famine in Ethiopia, war in Somalia, orphanages in Bosnia or Romania was aired through RTE in my kitchen as a steady stream of unpalatable TV images and gritty radio documentaries. At a young age I began to ask God why? So, I have always had an inquiring mind and an interest in all things spiritual. This has lead me to retreat work, post primary teaching, working with Trócaire and now as Development Education Coordinator in IJMO.
