New Developments and Projects for the School Year at Saint-Joseph College-High School

The Saint-Joseph college-high school returned to school with a new director, Claudine Lorrain having had to stop her duties for health reasons. Jean-Marie Arrouy is not unknown to students and their families. This Toulouse resident, a former history teacher, had worked for several years as an assistant at Saint-Jo. He is at the head of a modern establishment, after ten years of work, and which displays its performance in the waiting room: 100% success in the Baccalaureate. “And 75% of mentions” adds Jean-Marie Arrouy. Another reason for satisfaction for the entire school community: all the teachers (around forty) were at their posts from the start of the school year. The high school has the seven specialties common to most establishments, it adds other rarer ones such as plastic arts, digital and computer sciences, in partnership with the Cned. The numbers per class are not overloaded. “Around 25, or even between 15 and 18 for specialty courses, which creates a framework conducive to work.” The establishment has opted for an international opening, by creating an Italian LV2 in 5th grade (with Spanish and German) in addition to the English LV1. “We already have Italian as an option from second grade as well as the Plastic Arts option. Many students are registered for these two options” explains the director.

Two international certifications

The high school offers two internationally recognized certifications: Cambridge in English and DELE – Spanish Foreign Language Diploma – organized from the Cervantes Institute. This European commitment leads to exchanges: in the second year with Pamplona (one-week stay then reception of Navarrese students) and Friborg for all Germanists. Next year, the direction will be Italy. A stay should also take place in Cambridge for students engaged in the certification of the same name. The Pastorale high school students will go to Rome like last year. Jean-Marie Arrouy and his colleagues also wish to strengthen ties with the schools of the congregation – “the “Circle” – particularly those established in Greece and Malta. The middle school students will also have their outings in the region (Lot, Toulouse, Mining Museum) or further (Futuroscope). The new director has defined two priority areas internally: security and serenity. “We will have precise requirements in terms of work, attitude and respect”. support for middle and high school students will be reinforced: in addition to “homework done” in 6th grade, there are hours of support in maths and French in 6th and 2nd grades, evening studies, and a timetable which allows, from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. , depending on the classes and needs, for teachers to do a “catch-up session” on a subject which has not been well mastered by the students.