Catholic Education Flanders

Katholiek Onderwijs Vlaanderen (Catholic Education Flanders) was established in 1952. It is a network organisation that unites the boards of Catholic educational institutions; with 1545 basic education schools and 734 secundary education school, 9 centres, 100 boarding schools, 10 colleges and 1 university. Catholic Education Flanders is tasked with the religious and pedagogical vision on Catholic education as well as with its vision on management and development. The organisation speaks for its members and represents them at government level, in the Catholic Church and in society.

Catholic Education Flanders believes that quality education is more than just training and instruction. Education in its broadest sense should empower children, youngsters and adults to cope with the ever more complex world of today and tomorrow.

The mission of Catholic Education Flanders is to

• support education that is inclusive for every student;
• speak up for the importance of lifelong learning and developing the person as a whole;
• optimize the management and administration of the education system;
• critically adjust education and training to the expectations of society;
• support quality development and continuous professionalization of education providers;
• combine tradition with innovation, based on the results of scientific research;
• build lasting partnerships with people and organizations that work to improve education.

The objective of Catholic Education Flanders is to

• provide overall support to schools and school managers in the following dimensions: ideology, pedagogy, didactics, administration, organization, logistics and forward planning;
• actively assist Catholic education to have an impact on the processes of education policy;
• foster communication to raise public opinion on education and to inform the stakeholders in education;
• follow short and clear decision processes to keep our own organization transparent and efficient;
• focus on our organizational culture based on professionalism, fellowship, hospitality, team spirit and leadership;
• provide a leading example of Catholic education.

The Catholic Dialogue School warmly welcomes everyone, whatever their religious or ideological background may be, and invites them to enter into a dialogue with each other. In this dialogue one learns to form one’s own identity through discovery and reflection. The Catholic Dialogue School aims to bring the Christian voice into this conversation in a contemporary and challenging way, while in addition creating room for those who do not get the chance to join in the conversation. In this way, through openness and recontextualising the Christian identity, it contributes to a meaningful, tolerant and enduring society.