Catholic rural community college "Schorlemer Alst"
The Catholic rural adult education center “Schorlemer Alst” (LVHS) is a rural folk high school in Freckenhorst near Warendorf in Westphalia . It was built in 1953/1954 in the so-called Westphalian country house style and given its purpose in 1954 by the Münster bishop Michael Keller . The task should be to make educational offers on the basis of Catholic social teaching, especially for the population from rural areas. This happens in close cooperation with Catholic associations such as the Katholische Landvolkbewegung (KLB) and the Katholische Landjugendbewegung (KLJB) .
The country folk high school was named after the central politician and founder of the Westphalian cooperative system, Burghard Freiherr von Schorlemer-Alst . Today around 600 events and seminars on questions of agricultural sociology and policy, theology, family education, media education, health education, art and culture are held annually in eight departments.
Since 2007, the Catholic rural adult education center “Schorlemer Alst” has formed a network with the educational institutions, which are also supported by the diocese of Münster , the Franz Wärme Haus academy in Münster and the moated cattle castle in Kleve. It is an adult education institution recognized according to the 1st North Rhine-Westphalian Continuing Education Act (WbG) .
history
With the end of the Second World War and the collapse of National Socialism , the urgent need was seen to qualify people in rural areas for a democratic and constitutional reorganization of state and society as well as for the economic reconstruction of Germany through intensive, value-oriented educational work. Therefore, the establishment of a Catholic rural adult education center for the diocese of Münster was sought early on. On December 29, 1949, the association “Katholische Landvolkshochschule Schorlemer-Alst” eV was founded for this purpose. In the absence of own premises, the first basic course for young farmers was held from January 3, 1950 to February 14, 1950 in the educational facility of the Catholic workers' movement (KAB) "Gottfried-Könzgen-Heim" in Haltern. The educational work started in this way developed so successfully that the establishment of a separate school became more and more urgent. The city of Freckenhorst offered a suitable site for a new building, which began in spring 1953.
Bishop Michael Keller, who was particularly committed to the development of Catholic social adult education in the post-war period, said at the inauguration of the new country folk high school on February 2, 1954 that it is part of human dignity, “... life in the world and to shape the coexistence of people. In the image of God, man's mastery over creation should express itself in the fact that he creates space for life and promotes life so that people in our world can live in dignity ”.
The first head of the LVHS Freckenhorst was Bernhard Schulte (1914–1984). In concretising the founding mission of the educational institution, he was primarily concerned with helping people in the countryside to cope with the foreseeable major process of change in society in general and in rural areas in particular. Right from the start, this work was based on long-term courses (“main courses”) lasting at least four weeks.
In addition to these long-term personal development courses - especially for young farmers and people from rural areas - and events in cooperation between the KLJB and KLB, other specialist areas with target group-specific offers have been developed over the decades. After Bernhard Schulte, Kurt Balint took over the management function from 1977 to 1990 as educational director, as general manager, President Josef Bahemann (1979–1984), President Hartwig Thyl (1984–1989) and President Michael Wolf (1989–1991). From 1991 to 2006 Hermann Flothkötter was director of the LVHS. His successor was Johannes K. Rücker from 2006 to 2012 . Rector of the Pope John XXIII Chapel has been Diocesan President Pastor Bernd Hante since December 2009. The director has been the theologian Michael Gennert since October 1, 2012, who worked as educational director at the Christian educational institution Die Hegge in Willebadessen until he moved to Freckenhorst .
In 2001, the redevelopment of the LVHS Freckenhorst was completed after extensive conversion and renovation measures. In 2004, the 50th anniversary of the rural adult education center was celebrated with numerous events and a ceremony with Bishop Reinhard Lettmann . The Catholic rural community college "Schorlemer Alst" reaches today as a training service center with about 20,000 conference participants.
2005 Landvolkshochschule one of the first formation was houses according ISO 9001 (quality management) and ISO 14001 (environmental management) certified . The industrial kitchen also received organic certification in accordance with the rules of DE-024 eco-control.
Furnishing
The rural adult education center has eleven conference and group rooms with a capacity of ten to 190 people. There are also creative and leisure rooms. In the boarding area there are 57 single and double rooms with a total of 82 beds. The dining room can seat up to 120 guests.
The Pope John XXIII. -Kapelle has a large, ceiling-to-floor window front behind the altar as an architectural feature, which optically integrates the adjacent Hagenwald into the sacred space. The large stainless steel chapel cross, created by the artist Georg J. Ahrens , showing Christ as King of the Cosmos, is located in front of the window front outside the chapel. In front of the prayer room with tabernacle is a triptych by the well-known painter and object artist Günther Uecker .
program
The LVHS Freckenhorst offers a wide range of educational opportunities for young people and adults in a total of eight subject areas:
- Politics - media literacy - communication
- Theology - Spirituality - Religious Life
- Living and working in rural areas
- Family education - coexistence of generations
- Environment - work - volunteering
- Health - help in life
- Culture and art
- Study and encounter trips
Memberships
The LVHS Freckenhorst is a full member of various umbrella organizations at state and federal level:
- State working group for Catholic adult and family education in North Rhine-Westphalia eV (LAG KEFB), Cologne
- Working group of educational institutions and academies (folk high schools) in North Rhine-Westphalia eV, Königswinter
- Association of Educational Centers in Rural Areas eV (VBLR), Berlin
- Association of Catholic-Social Educational Institutions , Bonn
literature
- Hermann Flothkötter (Ed.): Dare to be human: 40 years of the Catholic rural community college "Schorlemer Alst" Freckenhorst. Regensberg, Münster 1994, ISBN 3-7923-0666-2 .
- Hermann Flothkötter, Heinz Sudhoff (ed.): We create the future. 1954-2004. 50 years of the Catholic rural community college "Schorlemer Alst" Freckenhorst. Burlage, Warendorf-Freckenhorst 2004, ISBN 3-9807476-1-1 .
Web links
- Internet presence of the Catholic rural community college "Schorlemer Alst"
- Internet presence of the Association of Educational Centers in Rural Areas eV