The Hungarian-language classes of the bilingual Nagyvárad school came into the center of attention in August last year, when the ministerial committee in Bucharest thought they had discovered suspicions of segregation in the fact that they were moved to the Királyhágómelléki Református Egyházkerület (KREK) building.
The Lorántffy Zsuzsanna Reformed High School in Nagyvárad will take over the Hungarian classes of the Nicolae Balcescu Elementary School accused of segregation from the next school year, Bihar County Deputy Inspector General Kéry Hajnal told MTI.
The Hungarian-language classes of the bilingual Nagyvárad school came into the center of attention in August last year, when the ministerial committee in Bucharest thought they had discovered suspicions of segregation in the fact that they were moved to the Királyhágómelléki Református Egyházkerület (KREK) building.
To refute this, the church also accommodated a Romanian-language class in the building it offered for free, bought and renovated with the support of the Hungarian state. On the day of the start of the academic year, the lease contract previously concluded with the mayor's office was also amended.
Kéry Hajnal, deputy chief inspector of Bihar County, told MTI: the inspectorate and the municipality decided that the Lorántffy high school will take over the affected Hungarian classes from next school year, preventing similar interpretations.
"Any similar interpretation or misinterpretation of the law is thereby excluded," said the official, referring to the accusations related to segregation. He added: the church school will take over the building and the Hungarian classes studying in it, so they will belong to the same entity.
Eight classes are affected by the reorganization, from the preparatory class, which ensures the transition from kindergarten to elementary school, to the eighth grade. Together with the Hungarian teachers, they will be taken over by the church school, while the Romanian class studying in the building will move back to the main building of the Balcescu school, said the deputy superintendent.
As a first step, the management of the two schools prepares the documentation to ensure the smooth operation of the taken over classes. The inspectorate will check and forward its report to the Agency for Quality Assurance in Public Education (ARACIP) next week.
The Bucharest authority submits the case to the Ministry of Education for approval, which approves the change with a ministerial decree. The legislation must be published by the first day of the 2023/24 school year, and by then the local government board must give its nod to the reorganized school network, Kéry Hajnal said.
Apart from Lorántffy Zsuzsanna Református Gimnázium, there are several independent Hungarian schools in Nagyvárád, but many Hungarian classes are part of bilingual educational institutes.
MTI
Photo: Facebook/Lorántffy Zsuzsanna Reformed High School
