Civil School

Crossing Irinis Street (extension of 28is Oktovriou Street) towards Liberty Square, one may see the building of Civil School of Katerini. It is a jewel of neoclassical architecture, with its operation starting in 1905.

The first historical evidence regarding the construction and operation of the building was brought to light by the late Metropolitan of Kitros and Katerinis, Parthenios Vardakas, in his book entitled “Description of mainly nine years of Turkish occupation of the Diocese of Kitros from 1903 to 1912”.

In the pages of his book, the Metropolitan mentions that when he arrived in Katerini in 1904, he found that a Greek School was operating in the courtyard of the Church of the Holy Ascension, which numbered 90 students and two teachers. At the same time, since 1892, a Romanian School was operating with five teachers and approximately 160 students, children of Aromanian-speaking Greeks of the area.

With a community electoral and administrative regulation drawn up by the Metropolitan himself, and in which no distinction was made between the Aromanian-speaking Greeks and the rest of the community, the two Schools were united into one and settled in the new building of the Civil School in 1905. The cost of the building was about 1,000 pounds and it was erected thanks to the valuable financial assistance of the residents of Katerini.