HISTORY
The origins of the UMEC-WUCT date back to 1908, the year in which the presidents of the Catholic teachers’ associations of Austria, Holland, Switzerland and Germany, at a meeting organised to deal with educational issues, launched the idea of bringing Catholic teachers together at an international level. The project took shape with the creation, in 1912, of the Weltverband katholischer Pädagogen, a worldwide association of Catholic educators whose activities, interrupted by the two world wars, were resumed in 1951 with the foundation in Rome, on the initiative of leaders of national associations from various continents, of the World Union of Catholic Teachers. Previously recognised by the Holy See, the Pontifical Council for the Laity decreed the recognition of UMEC-WUCT as an international association of the faithful. As an NGO, it has consultative status with the Council of Europe, Ecosoc, Unesco and Unicef. UMEC-WUCT cooperates with the Dicastery for Culture and Education and other organs of the Holy See.
IDENTITY
UMEC-WUCT is at the service of national associations of Catholic teachers and teachers working in Catholic and state schools or universities, coordinating their study and research activities aimed at bearing witness to the values of the Gospel and the teachings of the Church in the field of education and schooling; it fosters solidarity, dialogue and cooperation between the various educational realities and institutions, while respecting the specificity of each; it accompanies the establishment of associations of Catholic teachers in the world; it organises training events and spreads knowledge of initiatives and experiences in the field of religious, moral and professional training of educators and in the field of the apostolate among teachers; it is committed to the respect and enhancement of the rights and educational freedom of Catholic teachers. Its priority objectives are to stimulate scholastic and university institutions to be living communities, open to the world; a space of welcome and appreciation, of inclusion and participation, an environment of positive relationships and integral maturation for each person, a place of ongoing training for teachers and managers; the pursuit of an educational system that involves parents, teachers and pupils, in order to promote educational alliances and concretise the responsibility of each person in the educational community for the full promotion of the dignity of each person, to foster sustainable development and education for active citizenship and peace.
STRUCTURE
The official bodies of UMEC-WUCT are the General Assembly, consisting of the Executive Committee and the delegates of the member associations. It meets every four years. The Council, consisting of the President, the General Secretary, the Treasurer, the Ecclesiastical Assistant, the regional coordinators, the representatives to international institutions and the presidents of the member associations of the UMEC-WUCT. It generally meets once a year. The Executive Committee consists of the President, the Secretary General and the Treasurer. It meets several times a year and has the task of ensuring the implementation of the decisions of the General Assembly, fostering relations with civil and religious institutions, and looking after the various initiatives undertaken. The Executive Committee may be assisted by persons with expertise. The UMEC-WUCT can be joined as full members (continental, national or regional organisations of Catholic teachers, universities and schools); teachers working for the creation of new teachers’ associations; honorary members or ‘friends of the Union’.
PUBLICATIONS
http://wuct-umec.blogspot.com – monthly newsletter
HEADQUARTERS
Umec-Wuct /Aimc, Clivo Monte del Gallo, 48 – 00165 Rome
Tel. +39 06 63634 651
Presidents:
Henry de Boer. NL – Pays Bas. 1951-57
Albert van der Berghe. B – Belgium 1957-63
Paul Fleig D – Allemagne. 1963-67
Jan Poncin. NL – The Netherlands. 1967-73
Teo Knippen. NL- The Netherlands. 1973-82
Osvaldo Brivio I – Italia. 1982-88
Harry Mellon. UK – United K. 1988-92
Arnold Backx. NL – Pays Bas. 1992-04
Mark Philpot. UK – United K. 2004-12
Guy Bourdeaud’hui. B – Belgium. 2012-22
General Secretaries:
Lorenzo Giorcelli. I – Italia. 1951-67
Osvaldo Brivio. I – Italia. 1967-82
Bruno Vota. I – Italia. 1982-88
Giuseppe Cicolini. I – Italia. 1988-95
Michael Emm. UK – United K. 1995- 04
Aad van Kints. NL – The Netherlands 2004-08
Giovanni Perrone. I- Italia. 2008-22
Treasurers:
Mr Parent. CA – Canada. 1951-54
Charles Sheill. UK – United K. 1954-70
Maria Klug. D – Allemagne. 1970-85
Hedwig Wegmann. D – Allemagne. 1985-88
Peter Gazzola. CA – Canada. 1988-04
Greg Pollock. CA – Canada. 2004-08
John Lydon. UK – United K. 2008-22
CONGRESSES
1951. Roma. – L’éducation à la lumière des principes chrétiens. Les défis après la guerre
1954. Amsterdam – Les exigences actuelles des enseignants catholiques
1957. Vienne. – Le rôle des enseignants dans la vie internationale
1960. Bruges. – L’organisation des enseignants pour le perfectionnement de leur vie professionnelle
1963. London. – La coopération entre les enseignants catholiques et les parents face à la planification de l’enseignement
1967. Berlin. – L’école et l’enseignant à la lumière du Concile
1970. Montreal. – L’école et l’enseignant dans ce monde en mutation
1973. Roma. – Les enseignants catholiques pour un homme nouveau et un ’école nouvelle
1976. Vienna. – L’enseignant catholique et les défis du monde contemporaine
1979. Noortwijkerhout. – L’enseignant catholique pour la liberté, la justice et la paix
1982. Innsbruck. – L’enseignant catholique pour l’homme et ses relations dans le monde
1983. Toronto. – L’enseignant catholique, témoin de la foi
1988. Roma. – L’enseignant catholique, le droit d’éducation et la liberté d’enseignement
1991. Birmingham. – Les enseignants catholiques, témoins de l’Evangile
1995. Toronto. – L’enseignant catholique, défis pour une nouvelle évangélisation
1999. Hoeven. – Le rôle des enseignants et l’éducation dans le 21me siècle
2003. Bangkok. – The task of the catholic teachers:news challenges, same goals
2008. Roma. – Le courage d’éduquer
2013. Roma. – L’UMEC envers le demain : Le 50me anniversaire de Gravissimum Educationis nous interpelle .
2014. Roma. – Today and tomorrow, the pats of Education
2015. Roma. – Educare, una passione che si rinnova
2016. London. – Ethics and virtues in the personals and professional lives of teachers
2017. Oradea. – The teachers and the challenges of the world today
2018. London. – Educate in the world ‘s peripheries. The challenges, the good practices
2019. Bruxelles. – Educating in a words that is changing. Avoiding paths of violence, opening paths of freedom
2022. Roma. – To understand and share today’s educational