Dear alumni and friends,
Greetings from Rishi Valley!
The school has many alumni who have strong bonds with the school and would like to be involved in as many ways as they can. While there are a few alumni groups and funding initiatives already in certain regions, the school has played mostly a peripheral role till now.
The batch of ICSE 1991/ISC 1993, in their recent 25th year school reunion, spoke to the school suggesting that a formal Alumni Association Office (AAO) for the school would be a key strategic initiative. They felt it will help to formalise the interactions of the school with its alumni as well as catalyse engagement between alumni and senior students towards career guidance and mentoring.
On its part, the School has discussed this issue internally, agrees with the principle and has agreed to establish the AAO. Importantly, the school would want this initiative to sustain itself for the years to come. Therefore, clarifying the objectives early and laying the right foundation would be critical for the effective functioning of this initiative.
The 3 objectives of the AAO are the following:
1. MENTORSHIP for Students – Drive and coordinate work/career counselling / mentorship initiatives which will help the school’s secondary students get a better understanding of the opportunities and options in the world (and align with their interests and passions)
2. BRIDGE between the school and alumni – Connect with all alumni on an ongoing basis and be the bridge between the school and alumni for information and coordination, and create an updated and accurate alumni database
3. SUPPORT school – Drive strategic initiatives and communication that can help to raise endowments/funds on an ongoing basis; respond back to alumni on the impact of the funds regularly.
It will be critical to find the right person to be the Alumni Association Officer. The person will have to understand the school’s philosophy, be attuned to its working modes and be adept at forging connections and building relationships between alumni, school, teachers and students. The school has begun the process of recruiting this person, and will seek your help in this respect over the next few weeks.
In the meanwhile, we have decided to begin the foundational work by appointing Chatura Padaki, alumnus of ISC 1988, as the interim Alumni Association Officer. Chatura has been volunteering in many school initiatives already and is familiar with the school’s philosophy. As the interim officer, we feel she is the right person to drive the launch of this initiative. As the AAO, she has been entrusted to set the right systems and processes for the long term. She will engage with alumni as well as with senior school students at appropriate times. She will also work with the school and alumni to build consensus around our present and future plans.
Please join me in congratulating Chatura for this role and giving her all your support as and when she reaches out to you. You can also connect with her at aaoffice@rishivalley.org for any suggestions or comments.
Finally, we are thankful to the Batch of ICSE ’91 / ISC ‘93 for seeing this initiative. The efforts of the AAO will go a long way in helping the school and forging a deeper bond between the school, its students and the alumni community.
With warm wishes,
Dr A. Kumaraswamy