St. John's Diocesan Girls' H.S. School (informally known as Diocesan or Dio) is a girls-only day school located in

Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...

(Calcutta),

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. It was established in 1876 by

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

missionary

Angelina Margaret Hoare Angelina Margaret Hoare (17 May 1843 – 10 January 1892) was a missionary from Kent, England, who devoted her life to the advancement of women's education in British India. Background She was the daughter of the banker Henry Hoare (1807–1866 ...

from

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

who devoted her life to the advancement of women's education in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

. It is a Christian school run by the Protestant Church of North India and its primary language of instruction is

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

. The school's patron saint is

Saint John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

. Although previously a

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offerin ...

, the school was stripped of its college status by the British Government when freedom-fighter

Bina Das Bina Das (24 August 1911—1986) was an Indian revolutionary and nationalist from West Bengal. Biography Early life and education Das was the daughter of a Brahmo teacher, Beni Madhab Das and a social worker, Sarala Devi. Her elder sister ...

, a student of the school, attempted to assassinate the Governor of Bengal, Stanley Jackson. Today, the school is often considered to be one of the most prestigious girls' schools in Bengal, and has a rich history of distinguished alumnae such as Lady Abala Bose, Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, and

Maitreyi Devi Maitreyi Devi (or Maitreyī Devī; 1 September 1914 – 29 January 1989) was an Indian poet and novelist. She is best known for her Sahitya Akademi Award-winning novel, '' Na Hanyate'' (). Biography Devi was born in 1914. She was the daughter o ...

. It is situated in the iconic Landsdowne Road (officially

Sarat Bose Road Sarat Bose Road, previously known as Lansdowne Road, is a 3.5 km long stretch of road that connects Southern Avenue (near Rabindra Sarobar Stadium) with AJC Bose Road (at Minto Park) and separates two major localities of Ballygunge and ...

) in South Kolkata and also runs a school for underprivileged children in Ripon Street. Johnthebaptist

History

The school is one of the oldest

girls' school Single-sex education, also known as single-gender education and gender-isolated education, is the practice of conducting education with male and female students attending separate classes, perhaps in separate buildings or schools. The practice of ...

s in Calcutta (present-day Kolkata). In 1894, the school was named St. John's Diocesan by the Clewer Sisters of John the Baptist from

Windsor, Berkshire Windsor is a historic market town and unparished area in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. It is the site of Windsor Castle, one of the official residences of the British monarch. The town is situated west ...

. The school was started in 1876 by Sister Angelina Margaret Hoare (17 May 1843 – 10 January 1892), a British missionary from

who devoted her life to the advancement of women's education in British India. From her diaries we know that the school started with 16 female students. From 1908 to 1931, St. John's Diocesan School remained the only Christian women's college of good repute in eastern India. Hoare wrote in a letters to her brother in

: ''"...my idea of the future of our Diocesan School is that it should be an institution not confined to any particular society or an elite group..."'' She died at age 48 in 1892. Upon her death, Bishop of Calcutta, Bishop Johnson, praised her in the following words:Diocese of Kolkata
cnisynod.org; accessed 17 June 2016. On 7 April 1931, Beena Das who was a student of the school, shot the then

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, Stanley Jackson for which the recognition of the

status was taken way thereafter by the

Government. During its earlier days till the 1970s, it was a

co-education Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

al school. However, during the 1970s, the need for

educational institutions An educational institution is a place where people of different ages gain an education, including preschools, childcare, primary-elementary schools, secondary-high schools, and universities. They provide a large variety of learning environments an ...

for

women A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...

in Kolkata was felt and since then the school has devoted itself to the betterment of female education only. It has more than 3,800 female students and is affiliated to the

WBBSE The West Bengal Board of Secondary Education is the West Bengal state government administered autonomous examining authority for the Standard 10 examination (or secondary school level examination) of West Bengal, India. It has come into force ...

and

WBCHSE The West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education (WBCHSE) came into existence in 1975. It is an autonomous examining authority, which is responsible for conducting examinations for standard XII for both government and private schools aff ...

Principals

Academic life

The school admits only

female Female ( symbol: ♀) is the sex of an organism that produces the large non-motile ova (egg cells), the type of gamete (sex cell) that fuses with the male gamete during sexual reproduction. A female has larger gametes than a male. Females ...

students and is predominantly taught by female teachers. The school teaches from the

Preschool A preschool, also known as nursery school, pre-primary school, or play school or creche, is an educational establishment or learning space offering early childhood education to children before they begin compulsory education at primary sch ...

level to the

higher secondary The Higher Secondary School Certificate is a secondary qualification in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. Higher Secondary Education The Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education in Bangladesh recognises "Higher Secondary Education" und ...

(10 + 2) and is affiliated under the

and

. The medium of instruction is

although

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

and

Hindi Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

are also taught as first languages beside English. Pre-primary, Primary, Secondary and Higher Secondary section starts class at the same time in the morning, five days a week, with the first two sections having an earlier finish than the rest.

Motto and emblem

The school motto is ''The Good Retain The Better Follow'' , as illustrated in the school's emblem. This is printed on all school dresses, sweaters, blazers, Physical Education, and athletic uniforms as well as school diaries, bags, note book covers and other articles.

Prayer and anthem

Before starting classes students pray the

Lord's Prayer The Lord's Prayer, also called the Our Father or Pater Noster, is a central Christian prayer which Jesus taught as the way to pray. Two versions of this prayer are recorded in the gospels: a longer form within the Sermon on the Mount in the Gosp ...

in the assembly. The school anthem is ''Make Me a Channel of Your Peace'' which is the hymn version of "

Make Me an Instrument of Your Peace The anonymous text that is usually called the Prayer of Saint Francis (or Peace Prayer, or Simple Prayer for Peace, or Make Me an Instrument of Your Peace) is a widely known Christian prayer for peace. Often associated with the Italian Saint Fr ...

", adapted by Sebastian Temple.

Campus

The campus of the school is a mixture of natural beauty along with old

buildings and new buildings. It has separate playgrounds for students of nursery classes and other senior classes. Inside the campus there is a park, three play grounds, a basketball court and seven buildings in a lush green surrounding. The school has a small

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

inside one of the buildings.

Facilities

The school's facilities includes seven laboratories - Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Nutrition, Home Management and Home Nursing, Junior School Computer, Senior School Computer labs. The school has an LCD projector in the library for audio-visual aid to teaching as well as for showing films to the junior students. There is also the

United Bank of India United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...

-St. John's Diocesan School branch, transport (23 buses), uniform and stationery, booth, tea and coffee booth, school canteen, and a Fulbright Scholar Exchange Programme.

Library

The school library called ‘Dio Bibliothique’ has a

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...

of 200 students and has a collection of over 35,000 books and subscribes to periodicals and dailies.

Music Room - Conference Hall

The school Music and Audio-Visual room known as 'La Sale Diphony’ is also used for conference and seminars. Piano, organ, keyboard, Octapad, guitar and drums are the instruments which are taught in the school.

Calendar

The Summer vacation,

Durga Puja Durga Puja ( bn, দুর্গা পূজা), also known as Durgotsava or Sharodotsava, is an annual Hindu festival originating in the Indian subcontinent which reveres and pays homage to the Hindu goddess Durga and is also celebrated ...

, and

Winter Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Different cultur ...

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

vacations are given and the sessions usually starts for Lower Nursery to Class X - Feb through January and for Class XI and XII July through June.

Celebrations

Independence day is celebrated every year on 15 August in the school premises and so is

Teacher's Day Teachers' Day is a special day for the appreciation of teachers, and may include celebrations to honor them for their special contributions in a particular field area, or the community tone in education. This is the primary reason why countries c ...

Children's Day Children's Day is a commemorative date celebrated annually in honor of children, whose date of observance varies by country. In 1925, International Children's Day was first proclaimed in Geneva during the World Conference on Child Welfare. Sin ...

, St. John's Day, Panchishe Boishakh & Baishe Srabon – the birth & death anniversaries respectively of

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...

, Diocesan Education Mission Fete,

World AIDS day World AIDS Day, designated on 1 December every year since 1988, is an international day dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection and mourning those who have died of the disease. The acquired imm ...

Winter Carnival Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Different cultures d ...

, Diotornie, Melior (Annual School Fest) and other special days of the school.

Uniform

The school uniform contains the school emblem and is of two sets - one for daily use and another for physical education or sports days. There are separate uniforms for daily use for the students of pre-primary section, primary section, secondary section, and higher secondary section..

Events

The school organizes academic prize distribution ceremony, sports, exhibitions, educational excursions or trips, school fests, conferences, academic and artistic programmes,

Party, Farewell Party (for the leaving batches of 12th grades) and publishes a school magazine every year .

Magazine

The annual magazine of the school known as '

Papyrus Papyrus ( ) is a material similar to thick paper that was used in ancient times as a writing surface. It was made from the pith of the papyrus plant, '' Cyperus papyrus'', a wetland sedge. ''Papyrus'' (plural: ''papyri'') can also refer to a ...

' is published every year highlighting the literary talents and other achievements of the students and the school along with its events.

Houses and colors

The four houses were formally known as Lily (blue), Rose (pink), Lotus (green), and Pansy (yellow) Currently the four

houses A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

and their colors are: *

- Pink * Sister Mary Victoria - Blue * Sister Hilda Francis - Green * Beena Das - Yellow Green House Pink House Blue House Yellow House

Social services

The school is involved in social services, charities and community welfare. A tradition since 1990 has been donation of one onion and one potato on every Friday by each student from Lower Nursery to Class XII to the school which goes to the

St. Joseph Joseph (; el, Ἰωσήφ, translit=Ioséph) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who, according to the canonical Gospels, was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus. The Gospels also name some brothers ...

's old age home run by the

Little Sisters of the Poor The Little Sisters of the Poor (french: Petites Sœurs des pauvres) is a Catholic religious institute for women. It was founded by Jeanne Jugan. Having felt the need to care for the many impoverished elderly who lined the streets of French towns ...

. Visits to old age homes such as Mulvany House, Shanti Nivas and St Joseph's Old Age Home are made by students. Some of the reflections of the school's devotion for the welfare of the public at large include the 2004

Tsunami A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater exp ...

relief, 2009 Aila relief programme, 2008 drinking water supply programme, slum rehabilitation activities, educational Tours for underprivileged children, and a free Seva Clinic at St Mary's Church, Kolkata.

Awards

Winner of 1999

Britannia Trophy The Britannia Trophy is a British award presented by the Royal Aero Club for aviators accomplishing the most meritorious performance in aviation during the previous year. In 1911 Horatio Barber, who was a founder member of the Royal Aero Club, w ...

for Better Calcutta Project, winner of Best School Award by Pathfinder and Heritage Resources Pvt. Ltd,

Centennial Award The Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences bestowed a Centennial AwardThere are other Counties and Organisations who have a Centennial Award system. in the 46th FAMAS Awards (1997) in 1998 to celebrate the centennial of Philippine independence. ...

from the Rotary Club of Victoria, winner of

The Best Maintained School Award by TTIS ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

in three consecutive years 2006, 2007 and 2008,The Telegraph Official Website
/ref> TTIS trophy for the school that cares, winner of The Best Maintained School Award by Indian Chambers of Commerce, 2009 "Best School of the Year Award" -Mother Teresa International Award. The 2008 Golden Flame Award was given to one of its teacher, Mrs S.B. Nandi.

Notable alumni

Notable alumniSchool Alumni
/ref> include: Armed Forces of India *

Joyanto Nath Chaudhuri General (India), General Jayanto Nath Chaudhuri (Bengali Language, Bengali: জয়ন্তনাথ চৌধুরী; 10 June 1908 – 6 April 1983) was a General Officer in the Indian Army. He served as the 6th Chief of the Army Staff ( ...

– former

Chief of the Army Staff (India) The Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) (unofficially known as the Army Chief) is a statutory position in the Indian Army held usually by a four star general. As the highest ranking officer to serve solely in the Indian Army, the chief is the profess ...

* Subroto Mukherjee, former Air Marshal of the Indian Air Force Noted Government Officials *

S. N. Roy Samarendra Nath Roy (11 December 1906 – 23 July 1964) was an Indian-born American mathematician and an applied statistician. Early life Roy was the first of three children of Kali Nath Roy and Suniti Bala Roy. His father, was a freedom fi ...

, ICS Arts, culture and entertainment *

Goutam Ghose Goutam Ghose (also spelled Gautam Ghosh born 24 July 1950) is an Indian film director, Actor, music director and cinematographer, who works primarily in Bengali cinema. He is the only Indian to have received the "Vittorio Di Sica" Award, Italy ...

, film director *

, literati * Leela Majumdar, author *

Sharmila Tagore Sharmila Tagore (also known as Begum Ayesha Sultana; born 8 December 1944) is a retired Indian actress, primarily known for her work in Hindi and Bengali cinema, Tagore is the recipient of two National Film Awards, a Filmfare Award, and the F ...

, actor * Mala Sinha, actor * Shreyasi Chatterjee, artist and art historian,

Rabindra Bharati University Rabindra Bharati University is a public research university in Kolkata, India. It was founded on May 8, 1962, under the Rabindra Bharati Act of the Government of West Bengal in 1961, to mark the birth centenary of the poet Rabindranath Tagore. ...

Academia and education * Lady

Abala Bose Abala, Lady Bose (8 August 1865 – 25 April 1951) was an Indian social worker and feminist. She was known for her efforts in women's education and her contribution towards helping widows.Sengupta, Subodh Chandra and Bose, Anjali (editors), 197 ...

, wife of Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose, who later started Brahmo Samaj Girls' School *

Sarala Roy Sarala Roy (1861-1946) was an Indian educator, feminist, and social activist. She was one of the first women to matriculate from Calcutta University, and was the first woman to be a member of the University Senate. She founded a school for girls an ...

, founder of Gokhale Memorial School, Kolkata * Tanika Sarkar, Professor in the Department of History, St. Stephen's College, Delhi * Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Professor in English,

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

* Vina Mazumdar feminist, women studies academician Field of Law * Subimal Roy – former

Justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

, Supreme Court of India Field of Medicine * Dr Priyadarshini Bhattacharjee – Internal Medicine Specialist and Clinical Supervisor

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world's third oldest surviving university and one of its most pr ...

and Founder-Director,

South Asian Medical Students' Association South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...

an NGO based in Kolkata.

References

External links

*
CNI Diocese of Calcutta – Bishops
- Church of North India
NDTV Fitness Campaign 2011
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint John's Diocesan Girls' Higher Secondary School Church of North India schools Schools in Colonial India Christian schools in West Bengal Primary schools in West Bengal High schools and secondary schools in West Bengal Girls' schools in Kolkata Anglican organizations established in the 19th century Educational institutions established in 1876 1876 establishments in India