Vision, mission & beliefs
As a school community committed to both academic and character development, St David’s Marist Inanda has a proud Marist tradition – one of values and excellence. We strive to follow the example set by St Marcellin Champagnat, founder of the Marist Schools, and grow the boys attending the school into gentlemen, scholars and sportsmen.
Our vision
“The Marist School, as envisaged by Saint Marcellin Champagnat, offers families an approach to education which draws faith, culture and life into harmony.” (Constitution of the Marist Brothers)
Our values and mission
St David’s Marist Inanda is a school in which all members of the school family recognise the special Catholic ethos of the school, and join in upholding the Christian teachings of the Gospel within a Catholic Marist tradition of Humility, Simplicity and Modesty.
Our teachers provide a challenging learning environment that enables boys from diverse backgrounds to realise their potential and develop their talents. St David’s Marist Inanda is an African school preparing boys to take their place in society – and to build South Africa – as enquiring, well-balanced individuals aware of their social responsibilities to the wider community, and ready to respond with compassion and justice to the realities of society.
Our beliefs
St David’s Marist Inanda, as with all Marist schools, welcomes all religions and cultures, for we believe that in finding commonality with other religions, we teach our children tolerance and acceptance of differences. Our Religious Education programme strives to be respectful and sensitive to the diversity of chosen and inherited religious paths of individuals within the school community. Indeed, our RE policy endeavours to promote an understanding and respect among people of different religious and other world views, in response to the gospel vision of unity and love among all people.
Presence, simplicity, family spirit, a love of work and in the way of Mary define our character. How these translate into our daily lives is expanded upon below.
We have borrowed an interpretation of these five Marist characteristics from Marist College Emerald in Australia, which is a Catholic co-educational secondary college situated in the Central Highlands, three hours west of Rockhampton.
Our special religious character: five characteristics of a Marist school
Marist schools are renowned for their ethos founded on a sense of “family spirit”, which is discernible by five characteristics that particularly inform “how we do things around here”.
The Five Characteristics of Marist Teaching are:
- Presence
We care for students
We know each one individually
We seek relationship founded on love – we are attentive and welcoming
We earn trust, we foster openness - Simplicity
We are genuine and straightforward
We say what we believe and show it
We are honest before God and ourselves
We seek humility and modesty, “to do good quietly”
We use simplicity in our teaching
We encourage simplicity as a value in our lives, not seduced by possessions and fame - Family spirit
We relate to each other and to young people in our care as the members of a loving family
We undertake to build community
We offer a warmth of welcome, acceptance and belonging
We share life’s successes and failures
We set clear standards of honesty, mutual respect and tolerance
We believe in each student’s innate goodness, not confusing the person with their actions
We give preferential attention to those whose needs are greatest
We encourage leadership based on collaboration and shared responsibility - Love of work
We are people of work, ready to “roll up our sleeves”
We work with total confidence in God
We are generous of heart, constant and persevering in our daily work
We prepare classes, being visionary and decisive in meeting the needs of our students
We encourage our students to discover the dignity of work, a source of self-fulfilment
We view work as a way to bring purpose and meaning to life
We seek to develop strong character and resilience, balanced moral conscience and solid values
We foster motivation and teamwork - In the way of Mary
We see Mary as a perfect model of the Marist educator – as an exemplar of the Christian life, as mother, as one who praised God
We see Mary as a woman on a journey of Faith
We believe Mary had a difficult life and “dust on her feet”
We consciously bring a Marial dimension to our teaching by prayer, and imitating Mary’s tenderness, strength and constancy of faith