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 Dr. Heather Jamieson, Assistant Superintendent
"The Spirit of God is upon me and has chosen me to preach the Message
of good news to the poor, sent me to announce pardon to prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to set the burdened and battered free, and to announce, 'This is God's year to act."
(Luke 4:18-19)
Mission
The mission of Religious Education Services is to provide theological, spiritual, moral and curricular support to the mission of Edmonton Catholic Schools, namely, "to provide a Catholic education which inspires and prepares students to learn, to work, to live fully and to serve God in one another." The work of the department is centered on five areas:
Faith Development and Theological Education
 Providing opportunities for personal and communal faith development and theological education- Offering professional development in theology and religious
education
- Organizing an annual district-wide faith development program
for all staff
- Supporting celebrations, prayer services and days of reflection
for both staff and students
- Administering the Theological
Education Bursary Program
 e.g.,
Newman College
- Formalizing pre-service and in-servicing of theological formation
- Nurturing the chaplaincy program for secondary students
Support for the Religious Education
Programs
- Supporting existing programs from the National Office of Religious Education and those developed locally with the approval of the Alberta Catholic Bishops
- Implementing new or revised official programs
- Developing alternative modes of delivery for all programs
- Reviewing the existing Ukrainian
Bilingual religion program
- Supporting the home and parish in the initiation of students
into the sacramental life of the Church
- Planning with consultants in other departments for faith permeation
in all subject areas
Theological Consultation
- Vetting documents for theological content
- Representing the religious dimension on various intra- and extra-district
committees and in meetings with numerous groups
- Writing and speaking for purposes of articulation and instruction
Pastoral Support
- Offering spiritual leadership and pastoral counseling
- Encouraging staff in their vocation to Catholic education
Liaison with Wider Community
- Establishing and maintaining relations with parent groups, parishes,
the Archdiocese and Eparchy, church organizations, Catholic agencies,
community services, neighboring school districts, colleges and
universities, provincial and national organizations
Staff
Religious Education Services (RES) is involved in providing assistance and leadership to the district as a whole as well as to school staff and the other district departments. Although each member has a specific area of responsibility, we work together on many tasks, honoring the gifts each has received and acknowledging the communal character of faith sharing.
To that end, the consultants share membership on several district and out-of-district committees:
- Catholic Educational Leadership planning team
- Faith Advisory Committee
- Faith Development Day Working Committee
- Alberta Religious Education Network
- National Office of Religious Education curriculum writing team
The consultants and the director are available to schools for reflection days, in-services, visiting classes, parent meetings, and celebrations and retreats. They welcome invitations to offer reflections and homilies at celebrations as well as opportunities to engage students in reflection and course content.
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