St Claret College, Ziro
 | |
| Motto | Truth, Light, Life |
|---|---|
| Type | Private, Co-educational |
| Established | 2003 |
| Principal | Rev. Fr. Paulson Veliyannoor, CMF, PhD |
| Location | |
| Campus | Rural, Tribal |
Saint Claret College, Ziro (SCCZ) is a premier Catholic undergraduate college nestled in the Himalayan foothills at Ziro, Arunachal Pradesh, India. Founded in 2003, SCCZ is served by Claretian Missionaries, a Roman Catholic Order founded by St. Anthony Mary Claret and that serves in 64 countries. Saint Claret College at Ziro is permanently affiliated to Rajiv Gandhi Central University, Itanagar. SCC is recognized by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and is accredited by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), Bangalore. SCCZ offers Bachelor of Arts (seven general disciplines), B. A. (Mass Communication), and B. Com, besides several certificate courses.
Origins
Saint Claret College was established in 2003 in response to the urgent need for institutes of higher education in the state of Arunachal Pradesh. As of 2001, there were only seven government colleges for the whole state.[1] In response to the expressed desire of the people of Ziro Valley, Claretian Missionaries set up the college under the registered society, Claretian Formation Association of North East India, at the 20-acre land donated by the Apatani tribe at Salaya, 3.5 km from Old Ziro. The first batch consisted of 13 students.
Growth
The College currently offers B. Com, B. A. in Mass Communication, and B. A. (in the semestral mode) in seven general disciplines, viz., Anthropology, Economics, Education, English, Geography, History, and Political Science. Majors are offered in all disciplines. SCCZ has consistently logged high pass percentages,[2] including 100% pass and state topper awards on several occasions.[3] Currently, the college has a strength of 750 students and 30 faculty. The college has a four-storeyed academic block, two resident halls for women that house 210 students, a chapel,and a sports ground.
Vision, Mission, Motto, and Core Values
The Vision of SCCZ is to become a premier institute of higher education in North East India, committed to providing value-based, soulful higher education for people, especially the tribal youth, in order to help them be honest seekers of truth and earnest agents of transformation within and around them. The Mission Statement of Saint Claret College reads thus: "Saint Claret College moulds intellectually competent, professionally skilled, spiritually evolved, morally upright, socially responsive, and culturally tolerant citizens, through holistic Claretine education, for advancing a civilization of love." The Motto of the College is "Truth, Light, and Life." The hierarchy of core values includes: Faith in God, Integrity, Peace, Cooperation, & Personal Competence.[4]
Scholarships
The College has signed an MoU with the Single Step Foundation, USA for 50 annual academic scholarships for deserving female students, as part of its commitment for the educational empowerment of women. An MoU with Grace EduCare, USA, ensures 100% financial support for maximum 5 students for the entire duration of their undergraduate studies. Besides the scholarship, SCCZ offers endowment prizes for academic excellence in various categories. The tribal students of the College are eligible for the APST (Arunachal Pradesh Scheduled Tribe) Stipend, offered by the State Government.[5] Twenty three Claretines receive the SJVN Silver Jubilee Merit Scholarships for the duration of their undergraduate studies by SJVN Ltd., a mini-ratna and Schedule 'A' central public sector undertaking of the Ministry of Power.[6] Twenty Four students receive the Ishan Uday Scholarship of UGC.
Certificate Courses
Besides the regular academic program, the college also offers ten certificate programs, including a six-month-long Diploma in Computer Applications and a year-long SAP Enterprise Resource Planning. The other certificate courses offered are: Communicative English, Personality Development, Short Film Production, Tourism Management, Basics of Research Methodology, Organic Farming, Creative Writing & Theatre, Archaeology, Panchayati Raj Institution, Personal Financial Planning, and Skills for Conflict Transformation. The college has a fully functional Language Lab for teaching English.
Associations
SCCZ has several associations that are aimed at providing a holistic educational experience for the students: St Claret Art & Literary Endeavor (SCALE), Claretine Association for Social Action (CASA), Sports & Games Association (SAGA), Claretine Youth for Christ (CYC), and Departmental Associations. The College also has an actively functioning NSS unit which has won awards at the State and the National levels.[7] The College has repeatedly won the "Most Disciplined Team" award at the Inter-College Youth Festival of Rajiv Gandhi University, Itanagar.
PESEC
In 2003, SCCZ established People Education and Social Empowerment Center (PESEC) with the motto, "Excellence of the Masses." Through PESEC, SCCZ offers diverse training workshops for schools and colleges, computer literacy, social awareness campaigns and seminars.
IGNOU Center
St Claret College also serves as an active Center for select courses offered by the Indira Gandhi National Open University.[8]
InterViews: An Interdisciplinary Journal in Social Sciences
In 2004, Saint Claret College, Ziro became the first undergraduate school in the state of Arunachal Pradesh to publish a peer-reviewed, international journal: The first issue of "InterViews: An Interdisciplinary Journal in Social Sciences" was released in October 2014, with the ISSN number: 2349-400X. The journal is currently supported through a partial grant from Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), Delhi.
Claretine Honesty Shop
One of the unique features at SCCZ is the "Claretine Honesty Shop": a student-centered creative ethical innovation of Saint Claret College, aimed at affirming the honesty and integrity of the Claretines.The Claretine Honesty Shop works on honesty and trust capital. The Shop, with various types of stationery goods for purchase, remains open on all working days, with no shopkeeper to man it and with no security cameras rolling. Anyone who wants to buy any item available at the shop can simply walk in, look at the price chart, deposit the required amount in the cash box, and take the material, with no one watching except one’s own ethical self. The concept was first implemented successfully in 2004 at St. Claret School, Karumathur (Tamil Nadu) and SCCZ has adapted the practice for its Claretines.
Collaborations
SCCZ has signed MoUs with several other institutes of higher education for providing additional skilling for Claretines and to offer innovative programs.
- MoU with the National Institute of Social Communications, Research and Training (NISCORT)[9] for skilling in Mass Communication.
- MoU with St. Claret College, Bangalore (SCCB) [10] for staff and student exchange programs.
Recognitions
On the 66th Republic Day, the State of Arunachal Pradesh announced a "Commendation Certificate" for Saint Claret College, Ziro, for its services to higher education in the State.[11]
On February 17, 2015, at the XV Annual Conference of Higher & Technical Education, Government of Arunachal Pradesh, Saint Claret College, Ziro was conferred the Best NSS Unit of 2014 Award. This is the second time SCCZ has achieved this feat, first being in 2010.
Vision 2020
On entering the second decade of its life, SCCZ has released a strategic plan, "Vision 2020: Innovate to Transform." The Vision 2020 adopts Five Pillars of Excellence (Learner Centricity, Innovative Teaching-Learning, Educational Empowerment of Women, Community Service, Claretine Holistic Education Program) and Five Phrased Priorities (Professional Expansion, Infrastructural Development, Research, Publication, & Extension, Autonomy, and International Collaboration.[12]
References
- ^ Begi, J. (2007).Education in Arunachal Pradesh since 1947. Delhi, Mittal. ISBN 81-8324-211-1
- ^ St Claret College Shines at RGU Exams. July 7, 2010. http://www.arunachaltimes.com/jul%207%20.html
- ^ Governor Stresses on Quality Higher and Technical Education. Press Release February 18, 2010. http://arunachalgovernor.gov.in/pr/pr170210.htm .
- ^ SCCZ Handbook 2010-2011.
- ^ Directorate of Higher & Technical Education, AP. http://apdhte.nic.in/Stipend.htm
- ^ SJVN. http://sjvn.nic.in/
- ^ NSS Awards, February 24, 2011. http://www.arunachalfront.info/home.aspx
- ^ http://www.ignou.ac.in/
- ^ National Institute of Social Communications, Research and Training (NISCORT) http://niscort.com/
- ^ St. Claret College, Bangalore (SCCB) http://www.claretcollege.edu.in/
- ^ http://www.arunachaltimes.in/wordpress/2015/01/28/arunachal-celebrates-republic-day-2/
- ^ http://sccz.edu.in/pdf/SCCZiro_Vison2020_Final.pdf