KOCHI: Once a prominent men’s college known for its student politics, the admission of women to SH College Thevara was greeted with resistance and surprise. Fifty years on, the institution now boasts a student population dominated by women.
On Thursday, the college honoured 51 women alumni, including Justice Mary Joseph, former judge of the Kerala High Court; Nandini R Nair IRS, Dr Pattathil Dhanya Menon, India’s first woman cybercrime investigator, former Kochi mayor Soumini Jain, and noted kathakali artist Haripriya Namboothiri, to celebrate the golden jubilee of the introduction of co-education in the institution.
In the 1970s, Maharaja’s College was the only co-ed institution of higher education in the region, while St Albert’s functioned as a men’s college and St Teresa’s catered exclusively to women. “When the priests of the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate ashram decided to introduce co-education at SH College, there were many obstacles,” recounted Fr Austin Mulerikal, a member of the college administration committee in 1975.
The management visited women’s colleges in the region and consulted authorities. “Once we received approval from the university, we started preparations. We needed facilities and better infrastructure, and made necessary arrangements. Co-education was introduced after much discussions and planning,” he said.
Fr Austin said the initial years were marked by stringent rules and monitoring. “We were unsure how the boys on campus would respond, and there were concerns about safety and security. The environment was very different then,” he said, adding the decision helped promote women’s education and instil greater discipline on campus. Though the administration initially struggled with implementing necessary changes, the experience proved defining for the first batch of female students who passed out in 1977.
Dr Alphonsa Xavier recalls her experience as a student of the first co-ed batch. “SH College was near my residence and had started admitting female students for the first time. Though I had also received admission to Maharaja’s, I chose SH. The teachers and management were very protective. Students, especially graduates and pre-degree students, were very active in politics. There were frequent strikes,” she said, adding that the situation, however, did not affect her postgraduate education at the institution.
Dr Alphonsa, the former principal of Thalassery Government Brennen College, said the introduction of mixed-gender education helped promote women’s empowerment. “The institution has helped in women’s empowerment, especially at a time when female education was available only in a few institutions. Several female students who passed out of the institution have gone on to hold important positions,” she added.
“With the introduction of more academic departments, the number of women students increased. Today, they constitute about 65% of the student population,” says Fr Joseph Varghese, vice principal of SH College.
Inaugurating the ‘Heartian Women Conclave – 2026’ organised to mark the 50th anniversary of the admission of women to the college, Dr Tessy Thomas, an aerospace engineer known as India’s ‘Missile Woman’, said that education is the most powerful tool available to transform the world, and when this power is placed in the hands of women, they emerge as the driving force of social change.