Thomas Breakwell Schools
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Thomas Breakwell Schools were instituted in the United Kingdom in the early 1980s, largely through the initiative of Dr. Hooshang Nikjoo. The problem, as perceived by British Bahá'ís, was that the Bahá'í families were scattered through many towns and villages, and Bahá'í education was often simply not available for the children. A model was therefore set up, in which one "school", meeting every Sunday on a termly pattern, alongside the general school system, would be organised to cater for Baha'is from a large geographical area.
The model envisaged a Director, a Management Committee and a responsible Local Spiritual Assembly. A team of teachers, each with an Assistant, would cater for the children of different ages. The Director was appointed by the (national) Bahá'í Education Committee. The Management Committee consisted of the Director, a Secretary, a representative of the L.S.A., etc. There was no nationally agreed syllabus, but each School had an Education Consultant.
A number of these schools were set up, with names such as The Thomas Breakwell School (Thames Valley), or The Thomas Breakwell School (West Midlands). As Thomas Breakwell was, at that time, being frequently cited as being the first English Bahá'í, it seemed an appropriate name for schools in England. In Scotland, therefore, it was more appropriate that there should be an Esslemont School (named for John Esslemont), and in Northern Ireland a George Townshend School. In each case, pupils came from a wide area, and in some cases were located near a motorway ("interstate") junction, so that the school would be accessible to families from further afield.
These schools provided many children from Bahá'í families with a "Bahá'í identity", and fellowship with other children in similar situations to themselves. However, during the same period in which they were flowering, the Ruhi curriculum was beginning to be introduced in the United Kingdom, and the National Spiritual Assembly took the decision to ask these schools to disband, to make way for neighbourhood schools as envisaged by the Ruhi process. Those who had become used to the idea of some form of Bahá'í education being provided for them, especially when the Ruhi books had not been studied by much of the community, found this change somewhat stressful, but the National Spiritual Assembly could see that the decision had to be made at some point.
The legacy of these schools has been seen as somewhat mixed. Some of the children passing through them gained great strength from them, and went on to become keen Bahá'ís in adult life. Others were more resistant to the process, and do not regard themselves as Bahá'ís.
