INTRODUCING THE SECRETARY TO THE BOARD OF EDUCATION (NORTHERN IRELAND)
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INTRODUCING THE SECRETARY TO THE BOARD OF EDUCATION (NORTHERN IRELAND) |
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Canon Houston
McKelvey, who has been Secretary to the Board since 1982, is
responsible for the administration of the Board’s business, for
researching educational developments, briefing the Board and
representing the Board’s policies to Government and local education
authorities.
He was deeply involved in the inter-church discussions which led to the Common Core Syllabus in Religious Education and was a member of the working party which produced it. He is a member of the Religious Education Committee of the Northern Ireland Council for Curriculum, Examination and Assessment - a statutory body.
He has been chairperson since its inception of the Education Forum for Northern Ireland which brings together representatives of the five local education authorities, the teachers’ unions, the voluntary grammar schools and the four main churches. He also acts as Hon. Secretary to the Transferor Representatives’ Council.
Canon McKelvey is a member of the consultation board of the Northern Ireland Regional Training Unit which was established by the local education authorities for the in-service training of teachers. He is also a member of the Faculty of Theology at The Queen’s University of Belfast.
Canon McKelvey serves as Director of The Archbishop’s Challenge and has written most of the resource material for this programme. He has written several publications for adults serving in ministry with children and was a member of the drafting group of the Consultative Group on Ministry to Children which produced “Unfinished Business”. He is also chairperson of The Child and the Church Group of the Irish Council of Churches. He chaired the Church of Ireland working party which drafted the Church’s guidelines on safeguarding trust and preventing child abuse.
Canon McKelvey acts as consultant to parish clergy and facilitates a number of parish networks which explore the varying contexts of parish ministry today. He has written several resource packs and booklets in this area. He has conducted parish consultations in Ireland, England and Canada.
Canon McKelvey is a frequent broadcaster on both religious and current affairs programmes. He is a former editor of “The Church of Ireland Gazette” and is a regular columnist with “The Belfast Telegraph”, which has the largest circulation in Northern Ireland.
He is a visiting lecturer at the Church of Ireland Theological College and a tutor on Connor Diocesan Post Ordination Training Course. He has lectured on several occasions at the Army Chaplains’ training centre and has given the key note addresses to diocesan training events throughout Ireland. He has contributed to publications of the University of Ulster, Hull University and the Fortnight Educational Trust.
He was ordained in 1967 and served in the parishes of Dunmurry and Kilmakee.
An honours graduate in geography of The Queen’s University, Belfast, he later studied theology at Trinity College, Dublin and completed a master’s degree in education at Q.U.B. He was awarded his Doctorate of Ministry by Garret-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois. He took part in a series of consultations over ten years at St. George’s House, Windsor Castle on the future shape of British society.
Canon McKelvey is married to Roberta and they have a son, John. His principal hobby is sailing on the North Antrim and West of Scotland coasts and listening to good Anglican choirs.
He has been a chapter canon of the National Cathedral of St. Patrick, Dublin since 1989.
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