Although little is known about accounting activities within educational institutions, even less is known about their relevance to local governments. By adopting an Anglo-Foucauldian perspective, an archival-based study is conducted in this article to investigate the accounting practices adopted by a religious congregation for the management of two vocational schools in Brescia, Italy, between 1886 and 1907. In such a context, which lacked an efficient and effective educational system and underwent socio-economic changes as a result of an incipient industrialisation process, the accounting practices proved to be crucial not only to ensure the proper functioning of the institutions under investigation, but also to deal with educational poverty. This study demonstrates that accounting practices have a constitutive role in pursuing equilibrium strategies within the dynamics of local government.
L’article décrit le développement du mouvement catholique social en Lombardie orientale (Brescia et Bergame) dans le dernier quart du xix e siècle, à travers quatre champs d’action : le développement des coopératives ; la formation technique et professionnelle ; l’essor des congrégations féminines ; les transformations des établissements de charité. C’est bien là une forme nouvelle de catholicisme social qui se développe, animée par des hommes et des femmes aux origines bourgeoises mais aussi plus populaires. Ces catholiques, auto-exclus de la vie politique nationale en raison des interdits pontificaux, répondaient d’une manière originale aux pauvretés nouvelles et aux besoins d’aide. Ils développent des modèles d’assistance régionaux qui répondent aux situations locales de pauvreté.
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