House System

By having a House System in the school St Joseph of Cluny aims to further the mission of the school by providing an opportunity for the students to ‘relate their learning experience to the wider community and to encourage in them social awareness and a pride in their cultural heritage’(Mission Statement). The system endeavours to provide greater pastoral care to all students and to proactively develop school spirit, collegiality, participation and enjoyment in the co-curricular life of the school

Goals

The goals of the House System are:

• To strengthen the bonds of the Cluny School Spirit among 1st-6th Yrs in the school and with the Cluny network worldwide
• To create opportunities for all students to become involved in co-curricular activities and to experience the satisfaction of participation in team events through the various sporting and cultural competitions that are held throughout the year
• To create opportunities for students to become leaders
• To encourage good natured and friendly rivalry between the six Houses as they compete for the coveted House Cup at the end of the year

The Houses in Cluny are named as follows: Fiji, Gambia, Ghana, Sierra Leone, St. Lucia & Tahiti. Each House is made up of students from each year group and members of the teaching staff. There are approximately 75 students in each House each year with a cohort of approximately 13 students from each year group within each House. New students in the school, including First Years and new students from abroad are assigned to a House and automatically become part of the House System each year.

Being part of a House gives students an opportunity to know students in other year groups and participate with them in sports and other House activities. This will hopefully encourage new friendships and new loyalties which are not just class or year based. It will also encourage students to develop new skills through participating in various Leagues for their Houses.

An important element of the work done by the Houses each year is fundraising and in this way students are encouraged to develop their social awareness skills in a practical way. On average the goal is to raise approximately €1,000 for each Mission House annually. Each House is represented by a different colour and each student buys a T-shirt that can be worn when participating in events for their Houses:

• Fiji - Purple
• Gambia - Pink
• Ghana - Yellow
• Sierra Leone - Green
• St. Lucia - Red
• Tahiti - Blue

Roles within the House System

The roles within the House System are as follows:

• House Director: Teacher
• House Coordinator: Voluntary Teacher member of the House to assist Director/Captains
• House Captain: An elected 6th Yr Student
• House Vice Captain: An elected 6th Yr.
• Deputy House Vice Captain: An elected 5th Yr
• House Officers: From 5th Yr for each House
  • Two Sports Officers
  • Two Arts Officers
  • Two Debating Officers
  • Two Fundraising Officers
  • Two P.R. Officers
  • Two Mission Research Officers

House Director: The House Director is an appointed member of the teaching staff who has responsibility for overseeing the operation of the House System and ensuring that elections and other related activities are monitored throughout the year.

House Coordinators: 2 teacher members of the House who volunteer to assist the Director when required and help the Captains with conducting House Meetings.

House Captains: House Captains are elected at the end of their Fifth Year by the students in their House. This election usually occurs in May of each year. A proven leadership ability in school is an asset in becoming a House Captain. The House Captain must be able to motivate the students in her House to participate in House Leagues. In this way she will earn points for her House, raise money for each Mission House and also assist her House to try to win the House Cup at the end of the year. The House Cup is presented to the winning Captain at the Junior Prizegiving Ceremony in May.

House Vice Captain: House captains assist the House Captain in her duties and deputise where necessary.

Deputy House Vice Captain: An elected 5th Yr who will stand in for absent Captain/Vice Captain during exam times.

House Officers: House Officers are elected from 5th year by members of their own House. Their role is to assist the House Captain in the organization of the various House activities throughout the year. Officers are usually assigned to areas in which they have a keen interest or expertise i.e. debating, sports etc. and will be responsible for communicating information to their year groups at Assemblies. House Officers in these roles build up leadership skills in the school and are more likely to be successful candidates for leadership roles in their 6th Yr such as House Captains, Senior Prefects or Students Council members.

House Leagues

The following are the details of the Leagues that students can participate in and raise points for their Houses:

Sports: There are inter-house leagues held throughout the year in hockey, soccer, basketball and multisports. The progress of each league will be displayed on the House System noticeboard. There are six people on each team, one from each year, except in multisports where there are two people from each year.

Debating: Each House must compete in the Senior English Debating League, Junior English Debating League and Irish Senior Debating League. There are six debates in each league and debates take place in the first week of every month. If a team loses a debate they are immediately knocked out of the League. The teams are made up of at least one person from every year and an additional person from every year.

Sports Day: On Sports Day every student in the school represents their House in various activities and the athletic events. All the points earned on Sports Day go exclusively towards the Sports Cup. The Sports Cup is presented at the Sports Prizegiving in May.

Cultural Activities: Various Musical and Artistic events occur during the year and House members who make an outstanding contribution, or indeed win or excel in competitions will gain House Points for their Houses.

House Activities

The House Director organises and confirms calendar of events for the year, these are recorded and reported upon in the respective ‘House Diaries’ by PR officers.

Election of House Officers: from the 5th Year Group.

Full House Meeting: introduces House Officers and recruits members to various leagues.

A ‘House Bonding Event’(whole school affair ex. Table Quiz for all Houses simultaneously ) helps members to get to know each other.

The Preparation of ‘House Profile Week’: includes meetings of Captains and Officers to prepare a presentation of information about the House fundraising, sporting, debating and cultural events.

House Profile Week: This week islaunched at a Friday Assembly on the previous week announcing events which will take place on the following week from Monday to Thursday House tee-shirts may be worn on Launch Friday. PR officers record all events for school website and House Diary.