Kees Schelfhout

Kees Schelfhout, 1971

Cornelis Eduardus "Kees" Schelfhout (born February 25, 1918 in Sint Jansteen , province of Zeeland ; † March 3, 1983 in The Hague ) was a Dutch politician of the Katholieke Volkspartij (KVP), who between 1971 and 1973 was State Secretary in the Ministry for Education and science was in the Biesheuvel cabinet .

Life

University degree, World War II and Catholic education functionary

Schelfhout, the son of a teacher and school principal couple, began studying French literature at the Katholieke Universiteit Nijmegen after attending the grammar school of Rolduc Abbey in 1938 , which he had to break off after the German Wehrmacht invaded the Netherlands in May 1940. As one of the first so-called Engelandvaarders he tried to flee to England on July 28, 1940 , but was driven to the French coast, where he was captured by German troops. He was then imprisoned for two years in the Oranjehotel , the Scheveningen prison for members of the Dutch resistance during the German occupation. He was then sent to Sachsenhausen concentration camp in 1942 and liberated there in April 1945. After returning to the Netherlands in 1945, he began studying Dutch law at the Katholieke Universiteit Nijmegen and graduated in March 1948.

In April 1948, Schelfhout began his professional career as a legal assistant in the Catholic Central Office for Teaching and Education (Centraal Bureau voor Katholiek Onderwijs en Opvoeding) , but on January 1, 1949, he switched to the Ministry of Education, Art and Science and was there active until January 1, 1951. He then acted between January 1, 1951 and November 16, 1955 as secretary of the Education Council (Onderwijsraad) , a government organ for educational policy issues. In the mid-1950s, he also began his political activities for the Katholieke Volkspartij (KVP) in local politics and was a member of the local council of The Hague between October 21, 1955 and September 2, 1958. On November 16, 1955, he returned to the Catholic Central Office for Teaching and Education, where he initially held the position of Deputy Director until January 16, 1962, before becoming Director of the Central Catholic Office between January 16, 1962 and July 28, 1971 for teaching and education as well as general secretary of the Catholic School Council NKS (Nederlandse Katholieke Schoolraad) . On April 29, 1966, he was awarded the Officer's Cross of the Order of Orange-Nassau for his services .

Member of the First Chamber and State Secretary

As a representative of the Katholieke Volkspartij, Schelfhout became a member of the First Chamber of the States General on September 16, 1969 and was a member of this until July 28, 1971. During this time he also acted as the secretary of the CIP parliamentary group in the First Chamber.

On July 28, 1971, he was appointed State Secretary in the Ministry of Education and Science (Staatssecretaris van Onderwijs en Wetenschappen) by Prime Minister Barend Biesheuvel in his government and held this office until May 11, 1973. He was in this position particularly for teaching in pre-primary and primary schools as well as exceptional teaching, preparing the draft law for secondary education, school planning and building, and educational efficiency. He was then an advisor to the Ministry of Education and Science between 1973 and 1981. On June 8, 1973 he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Order of the Dutch Lion . In February 1977 he decided not to run for the first chamber again.

In September 1981 Schelfhout, who was also the commander of the Order of St. Gregory , took over an unpaid, extraordinary professorship for educational law at the University of Groningen , where he taught until his death on March 3, 1983.

Web links

• CV in Parlement & Politiek