Boserup School

(Roskilde, Denmark)

DRH College and several schools for troubled children on the same site

 

 

Tvind starts a new 'school centre' in Boserup after Roskilde is closed down

 

NEW   Sept 2004     -      Tvind is advertising courses at a new so-called "Boserup School Centre" in Roskilde, Denmark.             This appears to consist of a new "DRH" college (Travelling Folk High School) on the same site as two Tvind schools and three institutions for seriously disturbed children.    A previous school here, Roskilde Efterskole, was forced to close down after a run-in with the Danish government in 2003, and this appears to be a new use for the property.

Unskilled and untrained non-Danish volunteers who sign up with Boserup in the hope of going to Africa will be expected to look after the troubled children and maintain the buildings as part of the supposed training package  -  in fact, Tvind almost certainly receives very large grants from Danish local authorities for looking after the children, but volunteers will not see any of this money.

This unpaid work is disguised as 'six months social work and studies in Denmark'

Successful students are promised six months at Tvind projects in Malawi or Mozambique.  Volunteers hoping to go to Africa  will also most likely have to fundraise much of their costs by begging on the streets of Scandinavian towns and cities.   If they fail to meet high targets, they will not go to Africa.

Here is a Tvind flyer for Boserup School Centre.   Note the enrolment fee of 4000 DKK (appx 367).    Students are expected to come up with a half share of the air fare (6000 DKK = 550).     Everything else is supposed to be provided.    Realistic?

Recruitment for Boserup is currently taking place in Britain:  here is a recruitment  email sent by the principal of Winestead Hall (CICD), Stina Herberg.      There is a meeting for prospective volunteers in a West London hotel on September 25th 2004  -  it might be interesting to attend and ask a few questions.

 

 

Schools at Boserup:

 

DRH Boserup   -    college for 'development instructors'

Roskilde Friskole   -      day school pre-school - year 8

International Continuation School       boarding/day for years 8-11

Three 'care homes for children with special needs' (25 pupils)

 

Roskilde Efterskole - now closed.

 

 

 

From Steen Thomsen's report to the Danish Government (1999) [PDF]

1998:  ROSKILDE HEAD 'TRIED TO DISGUISE' LINK WITH TVIND

The following is an excerpt from Steen Thomsen's 1999 Report to the Danish Government, in  which he described 'life inside Tvind' for 26 years.   He described Roskilde's attempts to disguise links with Tvind:

Once in the spring of 1998, Principal and TG member, Else Soerensen, made the decision together with her board, that with the purpose of disguising the connection between her school and the TG, she should officially hand over her job to her secretary. Now, the secretary had worked for eight years at the school, but probably this did not happen on her own initiative, probably she did neither possess the right qualifications. But now it could be pretended that the school did no more have the direct link via Else Soerensen to the TG, but with the secretary acting as a puppet on a string, Else Soerensen would still be able to run the policies as dictated from the TG. The decision was made. After the meeting, Else Soerensen informed Bodil Ross about the meeting and the decision. Amdi Petersen came up to the telephone and shouted furiously what the hell was going on? Should the TG hand over leadership of one of their schools to outsiders? And did they in Roskilde really think they could just do as they pleased, not involving The Common (=Amdi Petersen).      Straight after - which I guess you should be able to convince yourself about by examining the protocol of the board - Else Soerensen arranged a new meeting with the Board, and it was now agreed that the decision was to be cancelled: Else Soerensen was again the principal. I doubt the Board never realised what had happened.

 

Further references to Roskilde and Boserup  in the same report:

The story is that all students and teachers in the traditional Tvind style had used some days and nights, emptying a hotel of its used furniture. Boserup Efterskole delivered the costs and the labour force. The intention was that the furniture should be utilised by a new Tvind school in Sjaelland, Denmark. However, Tvind did not succeed in this case, and the school was not started. Now the teachers at Boserup found it reasonable that the furniture should be used at their own school, Boserup, as they really needed new furniture. But a certain Ms.Ruth Sejeroe-Olsen //Tvind management group// put a quick end to those dreams. She said NO. Now, the furniture stood there, stored at Boserup, for some time, but suddenly one night, a number of people from the Tvind "Small school" at Christianshede, Denmark, arrived. Without asking further, they removed, on the order of Ruth Olsen, all the furniture. They were going to have an inspection the next day. New furniture would do them good in such situation, and the intention was also, that the additional furniture would help the school in Christianshede to gain an approval for admitting a higher number of young people. The furniture was now moved //200 miles// and installed the same night. I wonder what board of governors that has approved this action? It might be prudent if the decision-making process were scrutinised? (Steen, spring 1998)

 

The Board of Governors at Boserup Efterskole ought to know what Principal, Karen Hesselberg, is doing during her frequent toilet- and coffee breaks. Or what she is doing when - like, incidentally, - a TG member of staff calls her outside the meeting room because there is a sudden problem that cannot be solved without her presence? - Well, she finds an isolated room, sits down with her mobile phone and decides the further battle at the meeting with Bodil Ross or Amdi Petersen. Similar incidents also happen at any meeting with the boards of any of the other, so called free schools. //At Winestead Hall at such meetings, I had my instructions via Mikala Gottlob from the Danish Tvind management. After the new, English board had sacked Mikala Gottlob in 1996, I still had my (secret) contact with Mikala Gottlob via mobile telephone, and received her instructions//. (Steen)