Campion School, Mumbai

Campion School is a Christian public school for boys located at 13, Cooperage Road, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. Established in 1943 by Jesuit Fr. Joseph Savall, the school is named after St. Edmund Campion, a 16th-century English Roman Catholic martyr.

Campion School
Address
13, Cooperage Road

Fort

Mumbai
400001

India
Information
TypePrivate
MottoGaudium in Veritate
"Joy in Truth"
Established1943 (1943)
PrincipalMs.Bhavna Mehrotra
Staff35
Faculty50
GradesPrep-10th
Enrollment800
HousesBritto, Loyola, Xavier, Berchmans
SportsSoccer, basketball, athletics, cricket
PublicationThe Campion Review
AffiliationICSE
AlumniOld Campionites Association
AnthemCampion Calls
Websitecampionschool.in

The school is housed in Wellesley House on Cooperage Road in the Fort neighbourhood of South west Mumbai. The school is across the street from Cooperage Ground, which is a major soccer stadium in Mumbai, as well as Oval Maidan a city landmark. The school has over 800 students and offers classes at elementary and secondary levels, ranging from preparatory to grade 10. It is affiliated with the ICSE school syllabus and has English as its primary language of instruction.[1]

Campion school ex students are Praful Patel, Rajdeep Sardesai and Shashi Tharoor

Campion school has been taking part in most of the interschool events organized by the Government, and often has prevailed.[2] In a 2009 pan-India survey of day boys schools, conducted by Education World magazine, Campion was ranked first in the country, and in 2013 it garnered the penultimate place

.[3]

History

Foundation and early years (1943 to 1956)

Campion School was founded on 20 January 1943 by Father Joseph Savall, S.J. He had been the principal of St. Mary's High School, Mazgaon, for many years. In 1942, the Society of Jesus purchased Wellesely House on 13 Cooperage Road to house Campion School. But opposition from tenants delayed occupancy for 5 years, during which time the school was run from a ground floor rented at 45 New Marine Lines. It moved to Cooperage Road on 19 January. Within nine months the Department of Education recognised and registered Campion School under the Code of European Schools. It was authorised to teach up to Standard IV and to add one standard every year until the highest form was reached.

The school grew steadily in the late 1940s, but lacked a full-time principal, and Fr. Savall retired and returned to Europe in June 1949. Fr. Conesa, the director of the Technical Institute at St. Xavier's College, Mumbai, served as principal until December 1950. Jesuit authorities appointed Fr. E.F. More first full-time principal. More oversaw major renovations to Wellesely House including the acquisition of the second floor in 1954 and the addition of a fourth floor.

In 1956, Campion School attained the stature of a full-fledged high school with an enrollment of 382. It was recognised by the University of Cambridge as an A-certificate school and by the S.S.C. Board, Pune.[4] In the same year, the first batch of students appeared for the Senior Cambridge Overseas Examination and all eight of them passed, five secured Grade I, one secured Grade II, and two secured Grade III. According to a rating in the Hindustan Times, the school's highest ratings are in "attitude towards learning, sports, social engagement, governance."[5]

Academics

The school year consists of two terms from May to April, with October as mid-year. The course of school studies extends from the Preparatory Class to Class 10. It is designed to prepare students for the ICSE Examination, conducted by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations.[6]

In addition to English which is the primary language of instruction, Hindi is taught from Class 1 and Marathi, the regional language of the state of Maharashtra, is compulsory from Class 1 to Class 8.

In 2016, Campion emerged first in both the junior (78 teams) and senior (82 teams) divisions of the 16th Hindu Young World Quiz.[7] Also, a student from Campion won the gold medal in a mental abacus contest sponsored by UMCAS.[8]

School badge

The school badge is in the form of a medieval shield. The shield has three major divisions, each with a different colour background, and a scroll containing the school motto "Joy in Truth". This motto is symbolically expressed by each of the three main divisions on the shield.

On the left side, against a red background is a rope shaped like a noose. It stands for the death of St. Edmund Campion, professedly for the love of Truth. On the right side, against a white background are three birds that stand for Joy while the star stands for Truth. Finally, at the base of the shield is to be found the logo of the Jesuits. It consists of the first three letters of Jesus' name in Greek. Contrary to the popular belief, the divisions and their background colours do not represent the colour of the four school "houses".

Principals

Fifteen people have held the position of principal at the school.

  • Father J. Savall S.J., 1943–1949
  • Father R. Conesa S.J., 1949–1951
  • Father E.F. More S.J., you 1951–1964
  • Father F. Ribot S.J., 1965–1969
  • Father H. Miranda S.J., 1969–1972
  • Father D. Donnelly S.J., 1973–1974
  • Father A. D'Mello S.J., 1974–1983
  • Father H. Miranda S.J., 1983–1986
  • Mr. K. Dyer, 1986–1989
  • Mrs. M. D'Mello, 1989–1990
  • Mr. J.S. Lewis, 1990–1998
  • Father John Rodrigues, 1998–2001
  • Father P. Falcao, 2001–2003
  • Mr. Paul Machado, 2003-2020
  • Ms. Bhavna Mehrotra, 2020-Now

School organisations

All students are assigned to a house. There were three houses until the 1990s when Berchmans was added:

Since 2016, the junior school (standards 1 to 5) has different names and colors for the houses. The names are Gandhi, Raman, Nehru and Tagore and the respective colors are orange, purple, green, and white.[9]

The School Council is a body established to put into practice the aims and objectives of the house system. The Council is made up of the School Captain and his Assistant, the House Prefects and their Assistants, the Leaders, the Class Monitor of the upper classes, and representatives of activities and organisations. It serves as an advisory body to the administration.[10]

School organisations include:[11][12]

  • 43rd East Bombay Cub Packs: selection of recruits for five Cub Packs is made from the Primary section.
  • 43rd East Bombay Scout Troop: the selection of recruits for the Scout Troop is made in the Secondary section. As a rule, students who have been cubs are given preference. The Scout motto is "Be prepared".
  • The 19th Mah. Junior NCC Air Wing and the 21st Troop Junior NCC Naval Unit 1st Mah. Bn. Wing: the NCC provides training for students with a view to developing in them officer-like qualities, thus enabling them to obtain commissions in the Armed Forces.
  • The Road Safety Patrol (RSP), motto "We live to serve", provides service training to young men and women so as to stimulate interest in the safety from accidents for the people and to build up officers to enable the Police Force to expand in a time of emergency.
  • The Junior Red Cross trains its members to care for their own health and that of others, and to help the sick and suffering, especially children.
  • The Interact Club is a Junior branch of the Rotary movement and aims at fostering a sense of social concern and international understanding among young students. It undertakes relief projects on behalf of the underprivileged.
  • Sanskar provides an opportunity to the students to follow and understand the cultural values of the ancient Indian Civilisation.
  • The Nature Club of India represents the Youth Wing of the World Wildlife Fund. Its aim is to make India's children aware of the economic, cultural, and aesthetic value of national resources by spreading interest and knowledge about its wildlife, rivers, forests, and other natural resources.
  • Elocution, Debating, and Dramatics: trains higher-class students in public speaking and drama. Prizes are awarded to the best individual speakers both in English and in Hindi and to the best Class and House in Inter-Class, Inter-House Elocution, Dramatic, and General Knowledge competitions.
  • The Campion Review issued twice yearly fosters the literary talent of students. It is managed by an Editorial Board and includes news reports.
  • The School Band, instituted by Fr. E.F. More, S.J, was revived in 1996. It plays at school functions such as the Republic Day parade, Independence Day, and the Annual Athletics Meet.
  • The Audio-Visual Instruction Room screens educational films, documentaries, and video cassettes.
  • Games and Sports: the school has a gymnasium where all boys of the Senior School have a programme of physical education.[13] The wide range of co-curricular activities includes soccer,[14] cricket, athletics, gymnastics, swimming, basketball, music, drama, debates and elocution, along with badminton, table-tennis, and lawn tennis. There are annual meets for athletics, aquatics, and a Junior Sports Festival.[15] In 2015 Campion won the Under-16 Mumbai School Sports Association (MSSA) Division 1 title.[16] Education Today magazine ranked Campion number one in sports education in 2016.[17][2]
  • Main building in 1987
  • Backgarden, view from school terrace
  • Backgarden's oldest tree

Notable alumni
Shashi Tharoor: former UN Under-Secretary General for Communications & Public Information

Business and Industry

Politics

Rishi Kapoor: film actor

Film and Fashion

Rajdeep Sardesai: prominent Indian journalist

Literature, theatre and journalism

Science

Sport

  • Adrian Ezra - squash player - 7 times Indian national squash champion
  • Hirji Nagarwalla - Indian athlete (represented India at the 1986 Asian Games held in Seoul)

Military

Police

The school is mentioned in Salman Rushdie's book The Moor's Last Sigh as a school for boys from "good homes".[28]

Other schools mentioned in a similar context are Cathedral and John Connon School and Walsingham House School.[28]

References
  1. "Campion School, Ward A, Mumbai Ii - Maharashtra". iCBSE. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  2. "Champions | Campion School". campionschool.in. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  3. "CommunitySpeak » Campion School is Numero Uno!!". www.yokibu.com. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  4. "About Us | Campion School". campionschool.in. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  5. "4. CAMPION SCHOOL". 19 September 2016. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  6. "ICSE Affiliated School in Mumbai | Campion School". www.enrolmentdesk.com. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  7. "Campion School students emerge quiz champions". The Hindu. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  8. "Campion's Ashwin bags UCMAS gold medal - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  9. "The House System | Campion School". campionschool.in. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  10. "The Student's Council | Campion School". campionschool.in. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  11. "Co-Curricular | Campion School". campionschool.in. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  12. "Clubs | Campion School". campionschool.in. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  13. "Annual Sports Day, Campion School. From the balcony. - Picture of YWCA International Guest House, Mumbai (Bombay) - TripAdvisor". www.tripadvisor.com. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  14. "Search - Gothia Cup 2013 Results". results.gothiacup.se. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  15. Today, Education. "Campion School". Educationtoday.co. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  16. "Campion School Clinch U16 Mumbai Title – Grassroots Football India". Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  17. EducationToday.co. "Campion School". Educationtoday.co. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  18. "Bacardi names Mahesh Madhavan as CEO". thespiritsbusiness.com. Retrieved 7 January 2019.
  19. "Leadership Profiles - Microsoft India".
  20. "I never want to be a former writer". Times of India. 9 July 2006. Archived from the original on 24 October 2012. Retrieved 21 June 2009.
  21. "How Patel changed Indian skies". Rediff.com. 29 January 2005. Retrieved 21 June 2009.
  22. "The evolution of Jyotiraditya Scindia". Times of India. 2 June 2002. Retrieved 21 June 2009.
  23. "Randhir Kapoor Class of: 1964". Archived from the original on 10 July 2011. Retrieved 21 June 2009.
  24. "Rishi Kapoor Class of: 1969". Archived from the original on 10 July 2011. Retrieved 21 June 2009.
  25. "Personal Agenda: Atul Kasbekar, photographer". Hindustan Times. 4 January 2013. Retrieved 4 January 2013.
  26. "The haute couturier". Times of India. 3 July 2002. Retrieved 21 June 2009.
  27. "Ardeshir (Adi) Bulsara Class of: 1966". Archived from the original on 10 February 2009.
  28. Rushdie, Salman (16 February 2011). "The Moor's Last Sigh". ISBN 9780307787507. Retrieved 25 December 2011.
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