St Albert College's first day of school postponed to Wednesday

The St Albert the Great College secondary school has postponed its first day of the new scholastic year for Wednesday 28 September, whilst the primary school will open its doors on Tuesday 27 September.

In a statement on Saturday, the college said that it experienced setbacks in the preparation for the opening of the scholastic year due to data being withheld from the administration.

On Friday the Malta Union of Teachers (MUT) received a warrant of prohibitory injunction from the rector of the college, Fr Aaron Zahra to stop the union from issuing more directives.

MUT declared a trade dispute last month against the Dominican Order and the Catholic Education Secretariat, which is the Maltese archdiocese’s education arm.

The dispute in question was prompted after the college sacked Mario Mallia, who had been its school head for 16 years. His dismissal, which the college board and rector said was linked to ‘insubordination’, caused an outpouring of support for the popular headmaster who was a champion of inclusivity.

The College said that the decision to postpone the school opening was taken in collaboration with the Secretariat for Catholic Education and the Quality Assurance Department (QAD) within the Education Ministry. It said that the rector and the new head of the secondary school finalised the timetable for the year, with only a few preparations remaining.

On Thursday, St Albert the Great College had said that it would hold MUT liable for any damages if the school did not open on Monday.

With regards to the primary school, the college said that the rector, who is currently the acting head of the school enabled advanced preparations for the opening, and the first day will take place on Tuesday as planned.

“Our students remain our topmost priority, whilst renewing our commitment to our duty towards each member of our community,” the college said.