The Malta Union of Teachers noted Friday that the situation at the St Albert the Great College is critical, with many pressing issues now that the scholastic year is approaching. There are many serious issues that the MUT is flagging:

The school is operating without a licence thanks to the decisions taken by the rector and board, the MUT said. The termination of Mario Mallia, who was the license holder of the college, led to an anomalous situation where the school lost its operating license. The ministry’s review and licensing directorate has in fact flagged this anomalous situation.

Mallia was fired from his post last month, a dismissal which he says came about due to his support of two inclusivity programmes that had been running at the Valletta church school.

The rector, according to the union, is giving ‘false’ assurances to the school community that preparations for the new scholastic year are in place. Meanwhile, to date, he has not even yet run the school’s timetable in the dedicated system. Preparations for the reopening are other than in place but are several weeks behind schedule.

The rector’s decisions in the past weeks led to a number of resignations of teachers, LSEs  senior management team (SMT) members and administrative personnel. The haemorrhage resulting from the decisions of the rector and board are unprecedented in any other Maltese school, the MUT said.

Parents are rightly seeking assurances about the next scholastic year’s opening and all they seem to be getting are empty promises. The MUT is informed that many parents, in fact, are looking for placements for their children in other schools. Children are unfortunately the ones suffering from the decisions of the rector and board. Reportedly, a child attending the school asked his parents: “has my teacher left because of my wrongdoings?”

The rector has hired a media person to run meetings with parents in order to portray a better image and to act as a buffer for criticism. He also tasked a high-ranking government official to give him advice about the situation, also by attending meetings.

Meanwhile, the MUT said it is replying to a legal letter sent from the rector’s lawyers, requesting the lifting of the trade dispute and respective directives. MUT’s position regarding the trade dispute and directive stands. The union also renews the claim of mistrust on the rector and board, and in all their operations including the processes being carried out for the selection of heads of schools. The MUT calls, once again, for the rector and board’s resignation or termination from office.

College replies

In reply, St Albert the Great College notes with disappointment that, despite multiple attempts to reach out to MUT in hope of resolving the trade dispute in the best interest of its students and the staff, to date MUT has not accepted any requests for a meeting.

Further it noted that issues regarding the license of the school have been ongoing for more than a year. The administration has already spoken with the competent authorities, and a resolution is expected before the beginning of the scholastic year.

Attempts by the Rector, and even the Provincial, at running the timetable have been ongoing since mid-August. Regrettably this has not yielded the desired outcome due to the Union's directives, the college.

The College remains open for discussion with MUT to avoid unnecessary pressure on our students and staff members.