Secretary's Message
REIMAGINING EDUCATION IN THE SPIRIT OF DON BOSCO
Dear Principals,
The 7th National Education Conference of Don Bosco Schools (NECDBS 2025), held at Shillong, was a moment of grace, renewal, and recommitment to our shared mission of educating the young “in the spirit of Don Bosco.” It brought together 240 principals and educational leaders from across Salesian India to reflect on the challenges and opportunities in our time.
As we return to our respective provinces and schools, let us carry with us the insights, inspiration, and the five National Priorities (2025–2028) we discerned together—each one a compass pointing us toward the holistic transformation of our institutions.
Salesian education stands today at a decisive crossroads. The New Education Policy (NEP 2020) invites schools to embrace flexibility, creativity, and competency-based learning, while Don Bosco calls us to uphold the eternal values of truth, justice, and love. Our mission, therefore, is to harmonize innovation with identity—to be both contemporary and rooted.
As educators, we must move beyond imparting information to forming transformation. A Don Bosco school is not just a centre of academic learning but a community of faith, encounter, and dialogue, where each student experiences the love of God and the joy of being fully human.
In the words of Pope Francis, education is “an act of hope” — an act that builds bridges and nurtures fraternity. Our task is to make our schools places where faith meets reason, and where intellectual excellence coexists with moral integrity and compassionate service.
Don Bosco’s preventive system - rooted in Reason, Religion, and Loving Kindness - remains the foundation of our educational vision. The educator in the Salesian tradition is a pastoral presence, walking among the young, guiding them with love, and forming them for life.
As principals and leaders, we are called not only to manage institutions but to animate communities of faith and learning. Our schools must radiate the warmth of the family spirit - the oratorian atmosphere of “home, school, church, and playground.” It is there that the young encounter God’s love, discover their purpose, and learn to be “good Christians and honest citizens.”
In an age dominated by technology and competition, our schools must remain oases of humanity—where empathy, simplicity, and personal accompaniment define the learning experience.
Emerging from the reflections of NECDBS 2025, these five national priorities provide a shared direction for Don Bosco Schools of India for the years ahead:
Value-Based and Holistic Education – Forming students with integrated personalities, nurturing intellect, character, and compassion in the spirit of the Gospel.
Formation and Mentoring of Educational Leaders – Building competent, visionary, and faith-filled leaders who embody Don Bosco’s educational heart.
Green Alliance and Ecological Transformation – Committing our institutions to care for creation through sustainable practices and ecological awareness.
Child Protection and School Well-Being – Ensuring safe, inclusive, and nurturing environments that uphold the dignity and rights of every learner.
Digital Transformation and Hybrid Learning – Embracing innovation and technology to enhance teaching and learning while safeguarding human connection.
These priorities must be woven into every school’s vision plan, academic strategy, and pastoral activities, ensuring continuity between reflection and action.
As principals, you are the torchbearers of Don Bosco’s legacy. The call before us is to lead with faith and foresight, balancing educational reform with Gospel fidelity. Leadership today demands both competence and compassion—administrative acumen and apostolic zeal.
Let your schools be spaces where teachers are mentors, not mere instructors; where technology serves humanity; where diversity is embraced as a gift; and where every child feels seen, safe, and valued.
Let collaboration be our strength. The 11 provinces of India are not separate entities but one Salesian educational movement—united in vision, diverse in expression, and shared in mission.
The Catholic Church’s policy on education calls us to integrate faith, culture, and life, ensuring that every student encounters Christ through the love and witness of their educators. As the Congregation for Catholic Education reminds us, the Catholic school is “an ecclesial place of evangelisation, education, inculturation, and holistic formation.”
In light of this, let our schools become centres of dialogue and service, responding to the needs of society—especially the poor, the marginalised, and the excluded. Education must always be an instrument of social justice and a witness to the Kingdom values of peace, truth, and solidarity.
Dear Principals, the time ahead is both challenging and grace-filled. The world awaits educators who teach not only with words but with lives that inspire. Let us continue Don Bosco’s mission with renewed fidelity—to educate by evangelising and evangelise by educating.
May our schools continue to shine as beacons of faith and excellence, forming young men and women who will transform society with love, wisdom, and courage.
Let us, therefore, recommit ourselves to our vocation as Catholic educators and Salesian leaders—servants of the young, builders of peace, and witnesses of hope.
With heartfelt appreciation for your leadership and collaboration,
Fr. (Dr.) John Parankimalil, SDB
Secretary, All India Don Bosco Education Society (AIDBES)
Coordinator for Education & Culture,
New Delhi, November 2025