Interparents

Working group Interparents

By Britta Herkenrath

The system of the European Schools (ES) is based on a model of European intergovernmental organization structured at central level in:

• Board of Governors (BoG): governing body (representatives from the national governments of all member states, directors, 2 representatives of parents, 2 teachers, students, European Patent Office, 1 commission vote), meetings 2x year.
• Budget Committee (BC): preparatory committee – financial decisions – 2x year.
• Joint Teaching Committees (JTC): preparatory committee – (primary and secondary) pedagogical advice (2 inspectors each member state, 4 representatives of parents, 4 teachers, students, all directors, 2 representatives of the deputy directors, EPO,1 commission vote) – 2x year.
• Office of the Secretary-General (OSG): represents the BoG, managing the European Schools by preparing legal, statistics, annual reports, chairing Admin. Boards, assisting Presidency (Rotating presidency of EU member states of 12 months duration).

And at local level in:

• Teaching committees: representatives of all sections and levels, direction, teachers, counsellors, parents and pupils.
• SAC School Advisory Committee : only advice. Preparation of multi-annual budgets, preparation of Admin Board, and annual schoolplan. Same representatives as Admin Board.
• Admin Board: all important financial decisions of a school, parents have 2 votes. Chaired by Secretary General (or deputy) of the ES; the Commission, school management, teachers, parents, representatives administrative staff, pupils).

Interparents (IP) is an official body in the central government of the European Schools. All 14 ES Parents Associations (PA) are represented in IP and normally send up to two representatives to each meeting, one reimbursed by IP, one by the local PA. They meet 4 times a year, twice to prepare the BoG, twice to prepare the JTC. The meetings before the JTC are held in Brussels schools, the other meetings in the schools outside of Brussels.

Each PA pays the same member fee and has one vote in Interparents. Invited to the BoG are the president and vice-president of IP. Invited to the BC 2 delegates from the IP board. And to the JTCs participate  4 representatives of IP from 4 different schools, according to the rota between the schools balancing the big and small schools. There is a rota signed by each PA president to commit to send a representative. This appointment is for two years, the first year as “shadow”, the second year taking the floor as IP at the JTC.

IP has a Management Committee and several working groups. Each working group is organized at Central office level and IP can send one or two representatives.

Other relevant information can be found on the website : www.interparents.eu and the website of the European Schools: www.eursc.org.