St. Edward's School, Shimla

St. Edward's during snowfall

St. Edward's School, Shimla is private school located at Milsington Estate, Shimla (H.P.), India. It was established in the year 1925 by Irish Christian Brothers. Ever since its inception, the school has progressed a lot and has maintained high educational standards. It is widely recognized as one of the best schools in India providing excellent all-round development of students.^[1] It was initially affiliated to ICSE but recently it changed into Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) in the year 2008. The school offers education from Classes Nursery to Class XII.

History

St. Edward's School, Shimla was established in the year 1925 by Irish Christian Brothers. Before the division of Agra Archdiocese in 1900, there used to be a Catholic school for boys known as St. Michael's School at Milsington run by the Capuchin Fathers. However with the division of Simla from Agra in 1910, St. Michael’s School was closed. When the first Archbishop of Simla diocese, Most Rev. A.E.J. Kenealy, OFM Cap was addressing a gathering at the Simla Town hall in May 1911, the public surprised the Archbishop by expressing their need for a Catholic School for boys in Simla, since the St. Michael's School was closed. The Archbishop being an Englishman knew the reputation of the Irish Christian Brothers as good educationalists. Sent in his request to the Superior General in Ireland, Who after many years of discussion and deliberation decided to accept the Archbishop request to start a Catholic School for the boys in Simla. Thus in October 1924, two Irish Christian Brothers reached Simla and met the Archbishop at Eaglemount. The Archbishop warmly welcomed the Brothers and placed at their disposal Milsington Estate and the grounds.

The Irish Christian Brothers named the School as St. Edward’s and invited the people of Simla to admit their boys into the school on 9 March 1925. As Per The record on the first day, 42 boys were admitted to St. Edward’s School. The School began at 9:00 AM with a staff of six (four Brothers and two lay teachers). Thus St. Edward’s School started as a day school for the boys of Simla, primarily for Catholic boys but others were not excluded. It is also said that by the end of 1925 the number rose to 98. Slowly but surely, the school began to develop and prosper. By the end of winter of 1928, nine proper class rooms were built. Due to the hard work of the first Principal Bro. J.C.Doheny and the concerted efforts of the Archbishop, the school received permanent recognition in 1929. By March 1932, when the present main building was built, the school was converted into a boarding school. a long cherished desire of the Archbishop bearing fruit. The school hall which can house nearly 450 people was blessed by the Archbishop on 31 August 1947. In 1948, due to the changed situation of India and the fear of war, parents refused to send the boys to Simla, to the boarding, due to which the boarding was closed and the K.G. Classes were introduced. Hence, once again St. Edward's became a Day School. In 2001, once again the pre-primary classes were introduced in the school.

Educational Standards

Ever since its inception in 1925, the school has progressed from strength to strength and has always maintained a high standard of education and has carved out a niche for itself and has anchored the students to make a difference in their lives. The Christian Brothers, who had established themselves with a high standard of education, has moulded the boys of Simla, with fine discipline, strong character based on strong spiritual values, had trained them to play their role as responsible men in the rapidly changing world. In 1984, the Christian Brothers, after 60 years of their dedicated service to the Institution, handed over the School to the Simla Chandigarh Diocese. Today the School is managed by Simla Chandigarh Educational Society, under the Bishop of Simla Chandigarh Diocese. The Educational Society has kept up the good work and continues to work with the same spirit, zeal and vigour.

In 1998, St. Edward’s School achieved another milestone by the introduction of Senior Secondary Classes providing a platform for professional and higher education for its students. For this purpose, the construction of new block was undertaken in 1998. The School completed 75 years of its existence in the year 2000. As a jubilee gift to the people of Simla, the Bishop has re-introduced the pre-Primary Classes from April 2001. The School is affiliated to ICSE, New Delhi. The boys have been prepared for ICSE and ISC Examinations conducted by the ICSE, New Delhi until now. In 2008, due to the repeated requests from the parents and the students and considering the advantages it would give to the Students, the School Management decided to seek affiliation with the Central Board of Secondary Education. The School is now affiliated with the CBSE, New Delhi.

The school is reputed to produce excellent board results every year. For further details see: Class 10 http://www.stedwardsshimla.org/honour-class-x.aspx and Class 12 http://www.stedwardsshimla.org/honour-class-xii.aspx

House Club System

All students are placed in one of four houses: St. Mark's House, St. Luke's House, St. Matthew's House and St. John's House. The house system aims to kindle in the students dedication and commitment in all their endeavours. It also instils a sense of collective responsibility and solidarity. Each house is led by a captain and a vice-captain, responsible for organizing and conducting various co-curricular activities in the school. They are usually chosen on the basis of their academic performance in addition to their participation in sports and cultural activities. Apart from the house captains, there is also a school captain and a vice-captain.

Various clubs form a central part of holistic learning in the school, namely the cultural club, science and maths club, literary clubs, sports club, eco club and yoga.

Controversy

The school, which had maintained a clean image so far, landed itself in controversy in 2012 by not allowing a Sikh student to wear a turban in school.^[2] The issue was settled after the intervention of government authorities.^[3]

Notable Alumni

• Mohammad Hamid Ansari ^[4]
• Kanwar Pal Singh Gill ^[5] (Ex-DGP, Punjab Police)
• Ashok Sukumaran (Media artist)
• Anil Wilson (Educationist) ^[6]
• Kapil Dev^[3]
• Virbhadra Singh^[3]
• Lt. General Bipin Rawat^[7]

References

External links

• Official website