If you imagined a school in idyllic surroundings, Olcott Memorial High School (OMHS) is sure to be close to that vision. Adjacent to Theosophical Society’s world-famous forest in south Chennai, the school has classrooms set in a grove of tall trees.
The 430 students (179 girls and 250 boys) meet in the central prayer hall, walk to classrooms set apart from each other, sit in the tree-shade to have lunch and play in the mammoth ground. Vardah brought down scores of trees and the children took it as a personal loss. The hundreds of mature trees on the campus point to the origin and age of the school and the vision behind its beginning. Around 1894, Col. Henry Steel Olcott, president-founder of the Theosophical Society was establishing a series of Panchama schools for children who weren’t enrolled for caste reasons.
His schools would be non-sectarian, non-political and not-for-profit. Theosophists would teach these “caste-less” children. Opening schools for socially-backward sections of society was a pioneering effort and when Col. Olcott passed away in 1907, the main school on Besant Avenue got named after him.
Nine-acre campus
According to some records, by 1972, the area where OMHS had begun filled up and Theosophical Society moved the school to its present premises, closer to the sea. Now this wooded school is spread over a nine-acre campus, with large playgrounds, in tune with the wishes of Olcott who believed sports built character.
A hundred-plus years later, the school remains focussed on providing free education to children from underprivileged families. “Many of our children are from conflict-ridden/ dysfunctional families living in Urur, Odaikuppam, Semmancheri and Kannagi Nagar,” said S. Lalitha, headmistress. Some report to school after delivering newspapers or washing cars. Others accompany elders into the sea for pre-dawn fishing.
“This happens even when they are in class XII. S. Lokesh is in class X, but goes out fishing regularly with his father.”
The calm atmosphere of the school and the personalised care act like a balm in their harsh world.
“We constantly talk to them. There’s no punishment, no stick, no shouting. We repeatedly speak of the importance of education.”
No write-up about the school will be complete without mention of Lakshmi Suryanarayanan who as HM and director for 19 years lived for the school, brought about major improvements in academics and sports. She instituted scholarships by involving the community and the corporates. Her constant networking with corporates helped open English/Maths/Science labs in the school.
Role of volunteers
While major support comes from Theosophical Society, volunteer work supplements the teachers’ efforts. Volunteers from corporates like Wipro, Horizon and Qualcomm step in to teach English conversation and computers to middle-schoolers.
“They routinely outdo others in zonal and district level games. They have been champions in handball.”
Recently, the U-19 and U-17 girls teams came out champions and the U-14 were runners-up in kabaddi zonals and will participate at the district level.
Various organisations and individuals have been consistent in their support for the students’ higher studies. Individuals — those little-known philanthropists — pay for the students’ college education, as do Trusts, Corporates. Some do it for a year, some three. Some prefer to support the education of girl students, others just any meritorious student. A counsellor in the neighbourhood is on call when needed. Sashikala Sriram, a volunteer who helped conduct the first Annual Day recently, arranges workshops for teachers and students regularly.
S. Vijayalakshmi’s story typifies the philosophy of the school.
“My parents could not support my education beyond class 8,” she said. The school stepped in, made sure she completed tenth (no higher secondary in 2012), helped her complete Plus II in a local college, found scholarship with NGO Pudumai Penn for a B.Com degree. “I would have been married off by now,” she said. “But thanks to OMHS, I am preparing for bank exams and hope to be a banker.”
Children of domestic/municipal workers, labourers, hawkers, flowers sellers and fishermen, many have gone on to be mechanics, tech-assistants, printers and medical transcriptionists.
“As most teachers are alumni, this can be seen as a placement programme."
What this school (and the children) lack is parental awareness and support, says the HM. Opportunities for excelling are aplenty, but they have to learn everything they need to graduate, in the school itself. But teachers are happy that social skills like team work and finer communication, awareness of civic/world issues and performing arts have all become a part of OMHS culture.
“We would like to have more kids joining us.”
