THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Much before the government thought of reviving the general education sector with the involvement of the public, a few educational institutions in the state have been there and done that.
It was the dwindling standard of education and alarming drop in success rate in the Government Model Boys HSS at Thycaud in the capital city that prompted its alumni to think about ways to restore the century-old institution’s glory.
Thus was born the ‘Mission Model School 21 C’, a project to transform the school to meet the challenges of the 21st century.
The project, launched in 2015, was conceptualised by a five-member team of the school’s former students, including Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan, tourism entrepreneur K C Chandrahasan, management consultant R Ram Kumar, former banker V V Venu and educationist Vinay Johnson.
Scripting Success
“The success of the project can be attributed to the constant monitoring and follow-up of the team members to ensure each paisa was effectively utilised and the benefit reached each and every student. Also, it has inspired many other well-wishers to contribute their mite to their alma mater without waiting for government intervention,” said K C Chandrahasan, the coordinator of the project.
Under the second phase of the project, team members of ‘Mission Model School 21 C’ plan to provide scholarship to 500 students from BPL families and have also mooted a proposal for construction of a residential complex for them.
During the ‘praveshanolsavam’ event held on Thursday in the school, impresario Surya Krishnamurthy, a former student, announced a scholarship of `3 lakh to 10 children over a period of four years
The Transformation
Under the first phase of the project, a century-old building on the campus was fully renovated by setting up 25 smart classrooms. The classrooms now boast of interactive boards and modern seating arrangements to enhance the learning experience of students.
In addition to 80 computers, the school also has latest equipment and scientific investigation tools in its labs. The school library was fully digitised with 10 computers and 16 e-book readers. Over `2.5 crore has been spent for various development activities of the school since 2015.