St. Vincent's High School is a private Catholic primary and secondary school and pre-university college for boys located in the city of Pune, Maharashtra, India. The English-medium convent school was founded by the Jesuits in 1867, located and is named in honour of Vincent de Paul, a seventeenth-century saint known for his love for the poor and the downtrodden.[1] The school, which is recognized by the Government of Maharashtra, prepares pupils for the Secondary School Certificate Examination (Std. X) and for the Higher Secondary Certificate examination (Std. XII).
Management
It is owned by the Poona Catholic Educational Association and managed by the Poona Jesuit School's Society, which belong to the Christian Religious Minority group, and therefore it enjoys the rights and privileges guaranteed by Article 30 (I) of the Constitution of India. It is considered one of the best schools in Pune[2] and provides quality education to the students. As of 2013 it was ranked at No. 9 of all boys' schools in India.[3] The Society of Jesus, to which the Jesuit Fathers and Brothers belong, is a Catholic religious order founded by St. Ignatius of Loyola in 1540. Active in the field of education throughout the world since its origin, the Society runs 179 high schools and 98 colleges in India, in which young people of every social class, community, and linguistic group are educated through the medium of both English and the regional languages.
Curriculum and facilities
St. Vincent's High School imparts English-medium education from Std.I to Std.X. The St. Vincent's Junior College prepares students for the Higher Secondary Certificate Examination. The St. Xavier's pre-primary school prepares children to study English. Admissions are competitive, based on merit. The plans on making an Olympic sized swimming pool in the campus has been achieved. The massive school football ground is just the exact size of a real football field along with a stadium to suit the audiences. The school is situated on 4.5 acres (1.8 ha).
Co-curriculum activities
St. Vincent's has the notable record of winning the PSAA's (Poona Schools Athletics Association) Annual Athletics Championship for 60 consecutive years as of 6 February 2007. This achievement was recorded as a national record in the Limca Book of Records.[4]
Principals
The following individuals have served as principal of St. Vincent's High School:[5]
| Ordinal | Officeholder | Term start | Term end | Time in office |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fr. Joseph Brunner, S.J. | 1867 | 1872 | 4–5 years |
| 2 | Fr. Henry Depelchin, S.J. | 1872 | 1873 | 0–1 years |
| 3 | Fr. Henry Schumacher, S.J. | 1873 | 1879 | 5–6 years |
| 4 | Fr. George Weniger, S.J. | 1879 | 1880 | 0–1 years |
| 5 | Fr. Ignatius Kunzler, S.J. | 1880 | 1881 | 0–1 years |
| 6 | Fr. Jusoph Nuckle, S.J. | 1881 | 1883 | 1–2 years |
| 7 | Fr. William Althoff, S.J. | 1883 | 1886 | 2–3 years |
| 8 | Fr. Bernard Beider-Linden, S.J. | 1886 | 1887 | 0–1 years |
| 9 | Fr. Ferdinand Hillenkamp, S.J. | 1887 | 1889 | 1–2 years |
| 10 | Fr. Kilian Hahn, S.J. | 1889 | 1890 | 0–1 years |
| 11 | Fr. Joseph Willy, S.J. | 1890 | 1895 | 4–5 years |
| 12 | Fr. Julius Mayr, S.J. | 1895 | 1903 | 7–8 years |
| (10) | Fr. Killian Hahn, S.J. | 1903 | 1908 | 4–5 years |
| 13 | Fr. William Windhausen, S.J. | 1908 | 1914 | 5–6 years |
| 14 | Fr. Francis X. Larbolette, S.J. | 1914 | 1915 | 0–1 years |
| 15 | Fr. Ernest Hoogewerf, S.J. | 1915 | 1915 | 0 years |
| 16 | Fr. Peter Alborghetti, S.J. | 1915 | 1916 | 0–1 years |
| 17 | Fr. Thomas Baret, S.J. | 1916 | 1916 | 0 years |
| 18 | Fr. John Lauder, S.J. | 1916 | 1918 | 1–2 years |
| 19 | Fr. Charles Ghezzi, S.J. | 1918 | 1929 | 10–11 years |
| 20 | Fr. Maximillan Riklin, S.J. | 1929 | 1950 | 20–21 years |
| 21 | Fr. Anton Rehm, S.J. | 1950 | 1955 | 4–5 years |
| 22 | Fr. William Clement, S.J. | 1955 | 1957 | 1–2 years |
| 23 | Fr. Rudolf Schoch, S.J. | 1957 | 1966 | 8–9 years |
| 24 | Fr. Edmund D'Souza, S.J. | 1966 | 1967 | 0–1 years |
| 25 | Fr. Romauld D'Souza S.J. | 1967 | 1973 | 5–6 years |
| (23) | Fr. Rudolf Schoch, S.J. | 1973 | 1977 | 3–4 years |
| (24) | Fr. Edmund D'Souza, S.J. | 1977 | 1983 | 5–6 years |
| 26 | Fr. Kenneth Misquitta, S.J. | 1983 | 1993 | 9–10 years |
| 27 | Fr. Bertie Rozario, S.J. | 1993 | 1998 | 4–5 years |
| (26) | Fr. Kenneth Misquitta, S.J. | 1998 | 2003 | 4–5 years |
| 28 | Fr. Mario Fernandes, S.J. | 2003 | 2009 | 5–6 years |
| 29 | Fr. Andrew Fernandes, S.J. | 2009 | 2019 | 9–10 years |
| 30 | Fr. Francis Patekar, S.J. | 2019 | 2024 | 6–7 years |
| 31 | Fr. Titus Thangaraj, S. J. | 2024 | Incumbent | Incumbent |
Notable alumni
- Ebrahim Alkazi – theatre director and Padma Vibhushan[6]
- Banoo Jehangir Coyaji – the first female to matriculate from St Vincent's, an all-boys school, in 1933[7][8]
- Merwan Sheriar Irani – an Indian spiritual master[9]
- Thomas Kailath – an electrical engineer, information theorist, control engineer, entrepreneur and the Hitachi America Professor of Engineering, Emeritus, at Stanford University[10]
References
- 1."Directorate General Defence Estates".
- 2."India Ranker". Retrieved 15 January 2012.
- 3."India Ranking Boys School". Education World. 2013. Archived from the original on 3 April 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
- 4."VOBA – Vincentian Old Boys Association". www.vobapune.com. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
- 5."Former & Current Principal". St. Vincent's High School. 2020. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
- 6.Alkazi, Ebrahim (24 February 2008). "Theatre is revelation". The Hindu (Interview). Interviewed by Gowri Ramnarayan. Archived from the original on 2 March 2008. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
- 7."Women: Coyaji". Anusandhan: Indian Science and Technology Portal. n.d. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
- 8.Damle, Manjiri Madhav (15 July 2004). "Social worker Banoo Coyaji passes away". The Times of India. TNN. Archived from the original on 8 March 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
- 9.Purdom, Charles B. (1964). The God-Man: The Life, Journeys & Work of Meher Baba with an Interpretation of His Silence & Spiritual Teaching. London: George Allen & Unwin. pp. 15–20. ISBN 1-880619-36-9.
- 10.Perry, Tekla S. (May 2007). "Medal of Honor: Thomas Kailath". IEEE Spectrum. Vol. 44, no. 5. pp. 44–47. doi:10.1109/MSPEC.2007.352532. Archived from the original on 15 May 2007.