St Dominic's was
established in 1971 by the Brothers and has become a showpiece
for this type of education throughout the world. It is a Rural
Training Centre, which means it provides young men from the
villages with vocational training in building, mechanics and
agriculture.
St Dominics is
In the Western Solomons, near the border of Papua New Guinea.
The town of Gizo is on an adjacent island and is a centre
for scuba diving and has a potential tourist industry. School
Students spend two years at Vanga receiving training which
is designed to equip them with the ability to begin income-generating
activities when they return to the villages.
Employment and
economic opportunities in towns are limited, but an education
that advances village life has the chance to have a greater
effect on the alleviation of poverty and the advancement of
people. Students go through a two-year course, the second
of which encourages them to develop their own income-generating
project at the Centre as a model for future development back
in the village.
All students are
boarders and are required to grow most of their own food to
supplement their school fee of about $70 per year.
The students come
from all over the Solomon Islands. There are many more applications
for a place at the Centre than there are positions available.
Students are normally in their 20s and need to have come from
the villages, where they would have had to have led a productive
life from the time of leaving school in Grade 6 until their
entry into St. Dominic’s. The aim is for these students
to return to the village and not compete for employment in
the towns.
For the last six
years, St Dominic’s has been led by Brother Jack Kalisto,
a Solomon Islander, assisted by other brothers from the Solomon
Islands and Australia. Br Tony Burrows from Australia now
leads St Dominic’s.
Andrea Johnson
from South Australia has been a volunteer during 2002 and
Sharon Attard, a teacher from a Marist school in Australia,
replaced her in 2003.
Since very early
on, St Dominic's has been a self-sustaining project through
the sale of its produce in the local area and in the country.
In the current economic situation, this is no longer possible.
The fish cannery has would down its operation, public servants
are not sure of their pay and there are less Solomon dollars
circulating in the community. St. Dominic’s still produces
food but the usual markets for it have been lost.
Marist students
are invited to enter into a partnership with St. Dominic’s
to provide a program of financial support for the time that
it is needed and to continue to support our volunteer program.
