St. Xavier's High School Loyola Hall

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St. Xavier's High School, Loyola Hall is an English-Gujarati medium primary and secondary school located at Navrangpura in Ahmedabad, India.[1] The school is spread over a site of about 4 acres (16,000 m²).

St. Xavier's is a High School only for boys managed by the Society of Jesus and recognised by the Department of Education, Gujarat State. Though a Catholic Institution, it welcomes pupils from all sections of society and prepares them for the Secondary School Certificate(traditionally called 10th standard exams) and the Higher Secondary School Certificate (traditionally called 12th standard exams) Examinations.

It comprises the K. G. and Std. 1 to 10 with parallel divisions having Gujarati and English medium of instruction. The school also runs standards 11 and 12 (Science and Commerce streams, the latter only in English medium) to which girls are also admitted.Since the academic year 2006-07 it has started admitting girls starting from K.G. St. Xavier's School, Loyola Hall was initially only for standards 8th, 9th, 10th and 11th and the primary section was initiated in the year 1968.

The school is also known for its sporting achievements in the region with quite a few sporting greats having studied here. e.g Geet Sethi, former World Billiards Champion is an alumnus of the school. Other great alumni include Mr. Bharat Desai, founder and owner of Syntel and Bimal Patel and Chintan C Bhatt and Mr. Mervin D'Souza ,well known Geologist who lead the 20th Indian Antarctica Expedition and a recipient of the coveted National Mineral Award.

Contents 1 School emblem 2 Principals 3 Facilities 4 School activities 5 Website

[edit] School emblem

A Teneris Impende Laborem (school motto) : A Latin Phrase, which means : Apply yourself to hardwork from an early age.

Three White Bees:

Symbols of Continuous hard work and being busy always. The fruit of such labour is sweet.

IHS written in the center of the Sun:

I : Iesu (Jesus) H : Hominem (Mankind) S : Salvatorous (Saviour)

JESUS Saviour of Mankind

This is the symbol of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) established by St. Ignatius of Loyola

Moon : Another Symbol of the Society of Jesus

[edit] Principals

The current principal is Fr. F. Durai S. J. (1998- )

Past Principal's of the School:

1. Fr. E. Zurbitu S.J. (1935-37)
2. Fr. V. Gimenez S.J. (1937-42)
3. Fr. J. Sallas S.J. (1942-50; 1953-54)
4. Fr. J. Myers S.J. (1950-53)
5. Fr. C. Gomes S.J. (1954-58)
6. Fr. J. More S.J. (1958-63)
7. Fr. M. Herero S.J. (1963-64)
8. Fr. J. M. Ortega S.J. (1964-71)
9. Fr. C. Fonseca (1971-72)
10. Fr. E. Condillac S.J. (1972-83)
11. Fr. O. Coutinho S.J. (1983-88)
12. Fr. J. Sequiera S.J. (1988-98)

[edit] Facilities

Facilities

• Big and spacious class-rooms.
• Talented and Experienced Teachers (Among them Father Morondo, Kalpak Kothari, D.K. Shah who are notable teachers of Ahmedabad)
• Library (containing books regarding academics, fiction, humour, science fiction etc.)
• Extra Ordinary Laboratory of Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Computer Science.
• Extensive range of academic and extra curriculur activities.

Sports facilities

• Cricket ground
• Football ground
• Hockey ground
• Tennis courts
• Basketball courts
• Gymnasium
• Skating rinks
• Brother Bou Pavilion
• Swimming pool
• Paleta Courts
• Table tennis facilities.

Others

• Book-store
• Canteen
• Audio-visual Rooms
• Diamond Jubilee Auditorium

[edit] School activities

• The Odyssey: The Odyssey is an interschool cultural festival that has been part of the school's tradition for the past 20 years. The festival spans to 3 days with more than 15 events. Prominent 5 schools of Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar take part in this festival. The festival is one of the most vibrant school level festivals in the state. The festival is wholly organised by students of the 11th and 12th grade of the school. Various participating schools have been: St. Xavier's High School, Loyola Hall, St. Xavier's Gandhinagar, Mt. Carmel Ahmedabad, Rachana Ahmedabad (These schools have been participating regularly over the span of the festival), the other schools have been(over various points of time): St. Xavier's High School, Mirzapur , Little Flower School, Mahatma Gandhi International School, Tulip school and others.

After a long and successful run Father Morondo (the founder of The Odyssey) called off the Odyssey in the year 2006. It has since been replaced by The Chronos again an initiative by Father Morondo.

• Sports Day: The Sports Day has been a legacy of the school since its culmination. It is held in the month of December every year and has been responsible for bringing out talent that has gone on to represent the school, the city, the state and the country. The students are divided to 4 dens: Lions, Panthers, Bears and Tigers. There is an intense battle every year to see which den makes it to the top. The Den captains and the symbolic torch bearer (and accompanying flag bearers) are chosen from the best sportspersons of the school.

• Chronos: The Chronos is as explained above only instead of 3 days the festival is limited to 2 days, 9 events and 4 schools.

• Annual play: The play is usually staged by the students of the 11th under the direction of Father Morondo. Plays usually are of famous playwrights such as Oscar Wilde, Neil Simon and Agatha Christie. Recent plays include "The Matchmaker", "Lady Windermere's Fan", "The Apollo and Bellac" and "Red Carnations".

Every now and then an additional play is put up by play enthusiasts of the 9th standard and also alumni. "The Odd Couple" by Neil Simon was put up recently in April 2007 by past students.

• Annual Day: The Annual Day is a highlight of the school's academic year with various performances including singing, dance, humour, skits performed by all years.

• Intra school events: Every alternate Saturday interclass events are held. These include: Debate, Elocution, Extempore, Solo Signing, Group Singing etc.

• Mini-sports day: A refresher held in the middle of the academic year it has various fun events like slow cycling, teacher's events etc.

• Teacher's Day: It is a day when the school in handed over to the students of 12th grade. A Principal and Vice Principal are selected by the staff every year. The best teacher's award is handed out at the end of the day as well.

• Leadership Camps: These camps are held for the students of the 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th. The camps are usually for 3-4 days. The students camp out either at school or at farmhouses and are given various tasks to enlighten and empower them with tools to be future leaders.

• Mathematics & Science Exhibition: This is held by standards 7 and 11 to develop the creativity and research skills.

[edit] Website

http://www.loyolahallahd.com/

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