St Aloysius College -140 year Saga of Forming Men & Women for and with Others…….
High upon the Hill of Idyah…….St Aloysius College (Autonomous)- 140 year Saga of Forming Men and Women for and with Others…….
St Aloysius College has a vibrant Alumni base engaging itself continually in the projects and activities of the college. SACAA, the St Aloysius College Alumni Association has been responsible for bolstering the infrastructure, public image and liaising with the Alumni networks all over the world. The college feels proud that some of the excellent talents in leadership, entrepreneurship and social service of national and international repute have been the products of this college. K S Hegde, Former Speaker of the Lok Sabha; George Fernandes, eminent political leader; Justice Santhosh Hegde, Former Lokayukta; K V Kamath, BRICS Bank Chairman; Dr K V Rao, International Physicist; T M A Pai who has been instrumental in establishing the renowned Manipal University; K. K. Venugopal, the present Attorney General; Aravind Adiga, Man Booker prize winner; Anant Agarwal, CEO of edX; Dr K Ullas Karanth, leading Conservation Zoologist; K L Rahul, Cricketer; are a few personalities among many others who have made a mark in public life by living a life that is typically Aloysian.
Mangaluru : St Aloysius College belongs to a network of educational institutions administered by the members of the Society of Jesus, a religious order which runs schools, colleges and universities in more than 105 countries in the world. The members of the order, popularly known as Jesuits, have acquired a reputation for excellence in the quality of education. Some of the distinguished Jesuit institutions of higher education in India are St Xavier’s College in Kolkata, St Xavier’s College in Mumbai, Loyola College in Chennai, St Joseph’s College in Trichy, Xavier Institute of Labour Relations (XLRI) in Jameshedpur, and Xavier University in Bhuvaneshwar. These and many other highly acclaimed centres of learning are managed by the Jesuits and deeply rooted in Jesuit values of commitment and excellence.
In more than four centuries of their existence, the Society of Jesus has gained the public image and reputation as a democratic, charitable and not-for-profit organization committed to creating a transformed society with the collaboration of professionals and leaders. The focus of Jesuit education has always been and will ever continue to be academic excellence and development of the integral personality of the students. To put it succinctly, the aim of Jesuit education is to form citizens imbued with competence, conscience, compassion and commitment, who, in turn, reach out to the weaker and marginalized sections of humanity empowering them to enhance their quality of life and contribute to nation building.
A word about the origins of the Society of Jesus and its impact on higher education is pertinent. In 1540, nine post graduate students of Paris University, under the leadership of St Ignatius of Loyola, came together to establish a well-knit group of “friends in the Lord” and called themselves the Companions of Jesus, later, to be named the Society of Jesus. From its inception, and thanks to the persistent demands of the rulers of the times, Jesuits were drawn into education of youth. Their name and fame spread to different countries of Europe, and their increasing numbers helped them not only to establish schools and colleges in different cities of the continent but also to evolve a formal and systematic method of studies called the Ratio Studiorum, a manual of education that influenced the educational philosophy and practice for nearly four centuries. The “magis”, the Jesuit word for relentless pursuit of excellence, was the formula that prompted the Jesuits and their students to engage in innovative research and discovery in the fields of science, mathematics, astronomy, geographic explorations, study of languages and study of world religions. The Jesuit Educational Paradigm:
Sees life and the whole universe as a gift calling forth wonder and gratefulness; Gives ample scope to imagination and emotion as well as intellect; Seeks to find the divine in all things – in all peoples and cultures, in all areas of study and learning, in every human experience; Cultivates critical awareness of personal and social evil, but points to God’s love as more powerful than any evil; Stresses freedom, need for discernment, and responsible action; Empowers people to become leaders in service, “men and women for others,” “whole persons of solidarity,” building a more just and humane world. Educational program of Jesuits and its scope is, in its essence, identical all over the world- to train the hand, the head and the heart, to equip the rising generation for the battle of life.
A close look at the educational history of the Jesuits makes it clear that, within years of the founding the Society, Jesuits began to respond positively to requests for starting educational institutions with the approval and encouragement its founder. The whole idea of education on the basis of gratis for those who could not afford to pay their fee was a novel idea propounded by Jesuits. Hence the thrust of Jesuit education is to empower the students in letters and virtues without distinction of caste, class, creed or language.
St Aloysius Institutions -A Brief History:
– In 1880, Nine Jesuits landed in Mangalore at the request made by Mangaloreans to establish an institution of quality higher education. The college started in a small rented building.
– The college was affiliated to the erstwhile Madras University in 1882.
– Subsequently, the college was shifted to its own building and campus on Idya Hill in the year 1885.
– The present Administrative Block was constructed in 1954.
– The college was affiliated to Mysore University in 1956, and it’s in 1980 that the college was affiliated to Mangalore University.
– The college celebrated its centenary celebrations in 1980 in a grand manner for which our former President of India, Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy was the chief guest and witness.
– In 1986, realizing the need for women’s education, St Aloysius College which was exclusively a men’s college became a co-educational institution by admitting girl students which was the need of the hour. Reading the signs of the time, the Jesuits embarked on this sensitive decision and today, it takes pride in accommodating 50-60% of the annual admission of girl students. This decision has made a significant difference in the status of education among women in this region.
– In its constant thrust on being relevant and locally grounded, the college started Masters in Computer Applications (MCA) as the first PG programme in 1999.
– In the year 2002, the college campus witnessed the arrival of our beloved former President, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam for the inauguration of the Information Technology Block.
– The college was recognized as the Nodal College for staff training under Mangalore University.
– An exclusive Xavier Block for Science and Research was built in 2003-04.
– As the college felt that it is ready for an assessment by external agencies like the NAAC, it subjected itself to the rigorous exercise of the first cycle of NAAC Accreditation in 2005. The college received a high score of 86.7%.
– The College started “St Aloysius Institute of Education” in 2006 realizing the need for training teachers with excellence at the secondary and higher levels of education.
– The renewed vigour propelled the college to embark on several Post Graduate Programmes in the subsequent years. During 2005-06, several programmes were launched to commemorate the 125 years of its existence and serious preparations started for applying for the Autonomous status.
– The College has seen tremendous growth after it became autonomous in 2007. The college offers a variety of courses across disciplines both at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
– Autonomy granted to the institution has provided greater impetus not only for introducing diversified programmes but also greater emphasis on research and social extension activities.
– The college also is under Grant-In-Aid (GIA) scheme of Government of Karnataka.
The distinctive achievements of the college in recent years have been a testimony for the excellence attained:
1. The college has been accredited by NAAC. In each of the three cycles of accreditation, the college attained one of the highest grades awarded by NAAC. In the third cycle of NAAC in 2015, the college was awarded “A” Grade with a CGPA of 3.62.
2. The NIRF ranking 2017 awarded by the MHRD has ranked the college at 44 among Indian colleges which is an outstanding achievement.
3. The College has been brought under 2 (f) and 12 (B) of UGC regulations.
4. The College has been declared a “College with Potential for Excellence” by the University Grants Commission since 2009.
5. The “Star College” status conferred by the DBT, Government of India has been upgraded to “Star Status” in 2016.
6. The University Grants Commission has awarded “DDU Kaushal Kendra” to the college for offering B. Vocational programmes in 2015. Only a handful of institutions have been given this distinction.
7. Karnataka State Government, which had sanctioned “BTFS Finishing School” earlier, has now selected (2017) the college under the scheme of “BiSEP” [Biotechnology Skill Enhancement programme].
8. The prestigious weekly journal “The Week” in its survey for the last three consecutive years, has rated the college one among the best 25 science colleges in the country. In 2017 it has been ranked at 23.
9. The college was brought under grant–in-aid by Department of Higher Education, Government of Karnataka
10. The college is a minority institution
11. The College has uploaded the data of All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE)-2016-17, MHRD, Statistics Division, Government of India.
12. The college has submitted its application online under the scheme of INSTITUTIONAL SWACHHTA RANKING, All India Survey on Higher Education, MHRD Government of India.
13. The college has 7 undergraduate programmes. It provides Bachelors of Arts with 12 combinations, B.Sc with 16 combinations, B.Com, BBA/BBM with 6 batches & 4 batches respectively including embedded programmes, and BCA with two batches, B. Voc with 3 courses and BSW.
14. There are 17 postgraduate programmes across disciplines along with research studies. Three more post graduate programmes are proposed to be started from the academic year 2018-19.
15. The college has two research centres for promoting research. Two more research centres have been sanctioned by the affiliating University. The encouragement given to research has enabled the staff members to publish research papers in UGC approved journals. The large number of academic seminars organized, conferences attended by the teachers and the conference papers presented after the college became autonomous will go a long way to establish the attitudinal change among the teachers. The college publishes three research journals.
16. Five Postgraduate Diploma and three Diploma programmes have been introduced. In addition to this, there are 15 certificate courses.
17. The Biotechnology finishing school scheme offers specialized training for selected students.
* The College has 253 teaching staff and 134 administrative and multitasking staff.
* 85 staff members have PhD as the highest qualification.
* 68 more teachers have registered for PhD and their research work is under various stages of completion.
* 108 staff have NET/K-SET qualification.
– Autonomy has offered better exposure to the teachers and institution has to function like a university. Similarly, the administrative staff have been groomed to support the system. The college has been taking care of the financial and housing needs of the staff through registered cooperative credit and housing societies.
– Autonomy has been fully utilized in offering regularly updated, contemporary and relevant curriculum. The syllabi have been under constant review and undergo a change once in every three years. All stakeholders including the industry and the alumni have been involved in framing the curriculum.
– Autonomy has provided us an opportunity to adopt examination reforms. Evaluation has been continuous and objective. The wide range of innovative teaching methods introduced after the advent of autonomy has paved way for different evaluation strategies. The examination calendars, the process of the examinations, certification and the timely announcement of the results have added greater credibility to the system.
– The institution has excellent infrastructural facilities with two centres extending over 50 acres of land. Adequate number of classrooms, well-equipped laboratories, cutting-edge electronic gadgets, the high-speed internet connectivity with Wi-Fi facility and adequate libraries, both at UG and PG levels have been widely acknowledged by various expert committees.
– The College has more than 5000 students at various levels. Our students have excelled not only in academics but also in cultural, sports & games and many other fields of performance. The college has all the wings of NCC and NSS units. In fact, our college is the only one college in the university area to have all the three full-fledged wings of NCC.
– The emphasis on skill development, personality development, language proficiency along with academics has enhanced the employability skills. There have been many add-on programmes which add value to the degree programmes. The creditable achievements of the students include passing the NET examinations, research entrance examinations of reputed institutions of excellence and placements.
– Students have been offered facilities like sports, recreation, photocopying, health check-up, disabled friendly structures, drinking water and sanitation. There are separate student hostels in each of the centres for both men and lady students. The student cooperative store caters to the stationery needs of students.
– The Vision and the Mission of the college lays thrust on social consciousness. Only a compassionate and empathetic person can be instrumental in the inclusive development of the society. In this direction, the social extension activities undertaken by the college deserve a special mention. The college has created a separate Centre for Social Concern (CSC), which regulates, monitors and promotes social empowerment activities.
– Each undergraduate student has to fulfill social service activity as specified for 20 hours in each of the first two years. The programme is titled “Sahaaya”.
– Postgraduate students have to spend a minimum one week in a remote village selected for this purpose under “Village Exposure” programme actually staying with families accompanied by teachers.
– Radio Sarang 107.8 FM, the community radio reaches out to the surrounding areas of Mangalore for 16 hours a day in five different local languages through several programmes promoting and spreading awareness on local culture, language, health & hygiene, economic and social aspects of life. The community radio has bagged multiple National Awards for promoting local language and culture.
– Konkani Institute, established in 1980, is another example of the efforts of the college to promote research in Konkani language, literature and culture. It also offers diploma and PG diploma in Konkani.
– The college is the first to offer Konkani as a second language at the under graduate level since 1992 in the state.
– The college has a sprawling and aesthetically designed campus with several green zones and eco-friendly systems.
– The world renowned paintings in the college chapel attract thousands of foreign and domestic tourists. The college museum with rare collections is an added attraction.
St Aloysius Institute of Civil Services (SAICS) : Established in 2019
The Civil Services Examination (CSE) is a nationwide competitive examination in India conducted by the Union Public Service Commission for recruitment to various Civil Services of the Government of India, including the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS), Indian Police Service (IPS) among others. It is conducted in three phases – a preliminary examination consisting of two objective-type papers (General Studies Paper I and General Studies Paper II also popularly known as Civil Service Aptitude Test or CSAT), and a main examination consisting of nine papers of conventional (essay) type, followed by a personality test (interview). And just recently St Aloysius College added yet another feather to its cap by starting the St Aloysius Institute of Civil Services (SAICS), in collaboration with Alternative Learning Systems (ALS), New Delhi.
Finally, we feel proud to say that the college has a vibrant Alumni base engaging itself continually in the projects and activities of the college. SACAA, the St Aloysius College Alumni Association has been responsible for bolstering the infrastructure, public image and liaising with the Alumni networks all over the world. The college feels proud that some of the excellent talents in leadership, entrepreneurship and social service of national and international repute have been the products of this college. K S Hegde, Former Speaker of the Lok Sabha; George Fernandes, eminent political leader; Justice Santhosh Hegde, Former Lokayukta; K V Kamath, BRICS Bank Chairman; Dr K V Rao, International Physicist; T M A Pai who has been instrumental in establishing the renowned Manipal University; K. K. Venugopal, the present Attorney General; Aravind Adiga, Man Booker prize winner; Anant Agarwal, CEO of edX; Dr K Ullas Karanth, leading Conservation Zoologist; K L Rahul, Cricketer; are a few personalities among many others who have made a mark in public life by living a life that is typically Aloysian.
The critical evaluation of the college conducted by many independent agencies from time to time has helped the college to identify the grey areas and to take appropriate remedial measures.
Compiled by: Dr Alwyn D’Sa, Associate Professor & Controller of Examinations, St Aloysius College (Autonomous)