This article is from page 13 of the 2006-03-21 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 13 JPG
TWO Clare schools have been selected for inclusion in a new initiative aimed at improving the educational needs of children from disadvantaged communities.
Ennistymon Vocational School and Ennis Community College have both been invited to join the newly-established School Support Programme (SSP).
The programme is being run by the Department of Education under the Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools (DEIS) initiative.
The decision on whether or not to join the scheme will be made by the boards of management of the schools concerned.
DEIS was launched by the department in 2005 in order to effectively prioritise and address the educational needs of young people in disadvantaged areas.
DEIS has so far been rolled out to 600 primary schools in 300 rural and urban areas and 150 second-level schools. It will be implemented on a phased basis over five years and will involve additional annual investment of some €40 million.
It will also involve the creation of 300 additional posts across the education system.
Addressing the monthly meeting of the board of County Clare VEC, CEO, George O’Callaghan welcomed the news that Clare schools had been invited to participate in the scheme. He added that the invitation might yet be extended to other schools within the county.
“The Department has written to more schools in the county who haven’t been included, to make a case. I know that the schools that have been involved have benefited from the extra resources,” he said.