Muslim head girl at Catholic school

stuff.co.nz ^ | 15 February 2006 | SOPHIE NEVILLE

[Critical Bill]

The appointment of a Muslim student as head girl of St Mary's College has raised eyebrows among some who feel the top spot should be reserved for a Catholic.

Aysser Aljanabi, an Iraqi student and one of the 10 per cent of non-Catholics at the state integrated Wellington city school has been selected as head girl for 2006.

Head students are usually chosen after a student vote and discussions between senior staff and the principal.

Old Girls Association president Vonnie Nunns said the appointment had been controversial and admitted to being surprised at a Muslim being made head girl. She would not comment further but said the old girls had "no say in the policy" of the school.

Aysser declined to comment on her appointment when contacted by The Dominion Post, and despite repeated calls to the school, principal Mary Cook did not respond either. When approached last year about Aysser becoming the first Muslim head student of a college, the school said an article would be "inappropriate".

Catholic Education Office chief executive Pat Lynch said he was not surprised the appointment had been controversial.

"Given what's going on internationally I can understand some people's reaction."

Non-Catholic students had been head students before but it was important the person was able to "model the values of the school".

"I think it's easier for someone who is a Catholic to do that, but it really depends on the person," he said.

[Critical Bill]

[RedBeaconNY]

She looks like Howard Stern

[King Prout]

harry potter is attending a girl's college in new zealand?

[farlander]

Damn, I'm gonna have nightmares tonight. Was that really necessary ?

[Mrs. Shawnlaw]

Anything is better than a protest-ant.

[Cicero]

Who knows? If she's one of the brighest, a leader, a role model, perhaps they could do worse. At least she's wearing the uniform. After reading the headline, I was expecting a hijab.

I went to an Episcopal Church school, and during my senior year the boy chosen to be Head Prefect was Catholic. Back then, we all went to chapel daily and on Sunday, but he went into town to attend Mass at the Catholic Church.

Nevertheless, he was bright, mature, articulate, a leader, and clearly the best man for the job, and I think everyone recognized it.

[vox_freedom]

Obviously a poster girl for the wearing of a burka:

[sassbox]

I don't see this as that big of a deal. Just looking at the girl's picture one can tell she's a pretty Westernized Muslim. She's not even wearing a headscarf and her parents didn't seem to have a problem with their daughter getting an education from "infidels." I went to a Catholic high school and we had Muslim students like this as well. They didn't wear headscarves or any other sort of Muslim garb. On days when we didn't have to wear our uniforms, they wore khakis and jeans. They dressed modestly but otherwise like Westerners. Their parents were well educated, their mothers were usually professionals like doctors. They spoke English and were not the least bit hostile to Christianity or traditional Western values. They were offended by the rampant promiscuity and disrespect for the family found in the West nowadays, but so were many of us Catholics. They were also mortified by the actions of Muslim terrorists. It's a waste of time to worry about Muslims like this - we should congratulate them for assimilating and respecting our culture and hold them up as role models for the fanatics who are the real enemy.

[najida]

What's the problem?

I see a healthy, normal, bright looking teenage girl.

[SIDENET]

LOL.

[diverteach]

Nah, it's that girl Kennedy from MTV.

[Critical Bill]

What's the problem?

No problem here.

Harry Potter...LOL

[Ca.Native.Southern.Soul]

Head girl ?

[DesignerChick]

Gosh. I saw "Catholic", "Muslim" and "head" and got very nervous....

[naturalman1975]

By tradition, many schools in Britain and the Commonwealth have systems operating within them in which certain senior students holds positions of authority over their fellow students. Sometimes this is totally ceremonial, sometimes they have real powers. These students are called by a number of names - Prefect being the most common.

Where such systems exist, one student (often two in a coeducational school) will be right at the top - and these are commonly referred to as the Head Boy or Head Girl of the school (some schools instead use the title of Captain of the School).

This can be seen in the Harry Potter books - Hogwarts has such a system - but it's real in a lot of schools.