Just Leadership Days are more than information sessions about fundraising: they engage students with social justice issues and encourage them to be the just leaders of the future, says Global Education Advisor for Caritas WA, Janeen Murphy.
“What if we stopped striving to have more, and instead aspired to be more? is the motto used by Caritas to encourage students to think beyond fundraising and focus on behaviour change, advocacy issues and educating the wider community,” Ms Murphy added.
Given the ambition with which many students have already set up charity and awareness events within their schools, this year’s first Just Leadership Day is already having a very positive impact on Catholic education in Western Australia.
The Just Leadership Day was held on 19 February at John XXIII College and focused on how to better implement Project Compassion appeals within Catholic schools.
Groups of six to eight students and a staff member from more than 13 Perth Catholic schools participated in a series of three- to four-hour workshops centred on the principles of Catholic social teaching, issues of social justice and the implementation of action plans within their respective school communities.
Questions such as What is Justice? What is Leadership? and How can one become a Just Leader? were covered on the day; along with hands-on activities and discussions about challenging injustices and developing leadership qualities.
The workshops also encouraged school students to pass from a mentality of charity, which Ms Murphy believes is still a fundamental component of Caritas’ work, to one of solidarity and justice action.
“Kids are fantastic and incredibly creative when it comes to fundraising, but it’s about channelling that energy into that educational experience. Ideally, we would like to involve not just the kids themselves, but their parents and people within the wider community to have an understanding of why we do this, because it fits in beautifully with the mandate of Catholic education,” Ms Murphy said.
Among the examples of how this solidarity and justice action is taking place are Newman College’s Fast for Caritas Day, in which students fast for a day and gather to both pray and share a simple rice meal, and Santa Maria’s Fashion for Compassion initiative, which sees students donate clothes, resell them and donate the funds to Caritas.
In Newman College’s 27 March 2015 Fast for Caritas Day, a sum of approximately $4,700 was raised, which was also donated to Caritas.
Christian Service Coordinator at Mercy College, Karen Wilson, said that the Just Leadership Day provides an outstanding opportunity for students to develop leadership skills and network with other students from Catholic schools.
“It also inspires students to learn more about Caritas and global issues. The day is a must on the Christian Service Learning Calendar,” Ms Wilson said.
Other participating schools were Iona College, Mosman Park; John XXIII College, Claremont; St Brigid’s College, Lesmurdie; Mercy College, Koondola; Corpus Christi College, Bateman; Servite College, Tuart Hill; Sacred Heart College, Sorrento; Holy Cross College, Ellenbrook; St Norbert’s College, Queens Park; Mercedes College, Perth and Lumen Christi College, Martin.
Discussions on themes of “reconciliation” and “anti-poverty” are being prepared by Caritas WA for the remaining Just Leadership days of 2015.
Caritas WA is also intending to run leadership programs for primary schools.