140th Annual Day of St Aloysius College Celebrated with Theme ‘Samvedana – Reaching the Unreached’
Mangaluru: Nelson Mandela once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the World”- that’s right. And for that matter whoever got education from St Aloysius Institutions have reached greater heights and have also become great assets to the Nation and also the world. The purpose of having education at St Aloysius College is that every student who passes the portals of this College learns to attain the fullness of life not merely by amassing information, but also by transforming into persons with concern and commitment to the marginalized of our society. Before I go further on this report, I felt proud to grace the Annual College Day of St Aloysius College (Autonomous) for two reasons- one being an Alumnus of this great institution where I completed my B Sc graduation, and secondly, saluting SAC for making me what I am today.
St Aloysius College celebrated its 140th College Day on 5 March 2020 musing on the theme “Samvedana-Reaching the Unreached’” at the open-air Altorium. College Day is one great occasion to share the Mission, the Dreams, celebrate the achievements , unravel the future vision and reaffirm the commitment to imparting quality education for all sections of the society. And at SAC every year brings with it so much freshness, new ideas and new horizons to be explored. In the College mission of serving humankind, the faith in the Almighty gets strengthened, and it was highlighted during the College Day, when the achievements were highlighted and when the students unleashed their hidden talents.
The glamorous, extravagant and glittering celebrations began with a invocation by college choir and welcome dance, followed by welcome address by Convener Dr Saraswathi. The College Annual Report was delivered by Rev Dr Praveen Martis SJ-Principal of SAC. The Annual Report continued with a Audio-Video presentation, which gave a elaborate history of the college achievements and activities, which ended with college choir singing the College Anthem. Later all the dignitaries were escorted to the dais, comprising of Chief guest Prof Laxmi Chandrashekar- Retired Professor in English, Theatre and television Artiste, joined by
Rev Fr Dionysius Vaz SJ-Rector of St Aloysius Institutions who presided over the function; Dr Saraswathi – Convener; Donnet D’souza-Co-convener; Finance Officer Fr Vincent Pinto SJ; In-charge Registrar Dr Allwyn D’Sa and co-convenor; Lloyd Sequeira- Students’ Council President, among others.
With International Women’s Day approaching on Sunday, 8 March, the chief guest stressed on the life of a woman in the present world and in India, where she said, “I am overwhelmed to be here gracing this annual day of a prestigious institution having a history of 140 years in existence, and having trained thousands of men and women, who are serving in various capacities throughout the globe. very pleased with the college which has a vast history. Being a woman myself, I want to say that in the present world and also in India, Women are considered as underprivileged and are exploited. They face harassment, torture and rape , and are not safe moving around in the society. We should know that Women work more than and still they are degraded in various means”
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She further said, ” Men get jealous and feel insulted, when a woman becomes a bread winner and earns more.And we have seen instances, where male staff with top designation resign as they are reluctant to work under women officers.Women have been deprived of education.”An equal world is an enabled world” – and every one of us can do our bit to bring about gender equality. Gender parity is highly regarded as a benchmark of progress, and has a direct bearing on whether or not economies and societies thrive. Woman has the power to create, nurture and transform. Today, women across the globe actively participate in politics, education, social work, corporate, sports, research and have left their footprints. If you look around, as much as 80%-90% of work is done by women, but still it is not considered as productive, as they do not earn salary.I am happy to note that St Aloysius College organizes lot of activities which generates oneness, and increases social concern”.
Rector Fr Dionysius Vaz SJ in his presidential address said, “Quoting Abraham Joshua Heschel “I never asked God for success but I asked God for wonder”. And its true that every time I attend a event in this institution I see lots of wonders unleashed from the students with the help of their teachers and mentors. Our core educational mission is to prepare future leaders and citizens for lives of service. Our road map should be to develop this institution into a comprehensive ‘social project’ that approaches its teaching, research and outreach missions not as narrow educational enterprises, but as a way to live out our vision of creating men and women for and with others in practice. It is the deep desire of our Alma Mater to present to our society and to the world, men and women from our institution with minds bright with knowledge and creativity and hearts burning with genuine love and concern for others. Our Jesuit institution has given prime importance to value education for all our students, including spiritual formation through retreats”.
Meritorious students and sports achievers were honoured with mementos and certificates by the chief guest. After the vote of thanks proposed by students’ council president Lloyd Sequeira , it was a scintillating and mesmerizing cultural show staged by the students, which enthralled the crowd to the fullest and received loud applaud. While concluding in my perspective- “No matter what corner of the world you are, you’ll always be proud to say ” I am an Aloysian”. This institution is the most preferred institution, and one who receives education here will be a great asset to the nation and also the world. St Aloysius College run by the Jesuit priests has been relentlessly serving the society for the last 140 years without deviating from the vision and mission envisaged by the Founders. Generations of students who have passed the portals of SAC have immensely contributed to all spheres of life and facilitated a social, economic, and spiritual transformation at the national as well as the global level.
But in the same time, We need to respect our mentors and teachers who led us to the right path and gave us good education. The truth is, times have changed. Long gone are the days when a teacher’s presence alone demanded respect — from students as well as their parents. Today, in a society where good morals are on the decline and self-centeredness is on the incline, teachers can’t afford to educate students the way our teachers did back in those days. Teachers have to get respect the hard way, and they have to earn it. So my humble request to the students-kindly respect your teachers and elders- you’ll feel good”.Long Live St Aloysius College!