KIS History and Traditions
Picture, if you will, the setting. Rolling hills and grasslands. Deep, dark sholas hug the curves and contours of the slopes. Verdant and quiet, they hide the secrets of plant and animal life they have sheltered for centuries. Vistas all around: hills and plains, streams and waterfalls. Vibrant colors and unusual configurations of fauna and flora provide interruptions of delightful surprise. A natural basin, lush with grass and a flowing stream, provides a grazing area for bison, tiger, panther, sambar, thar and wild boar to roam at will. Pristine and unspoiled, a place reminiscent of the dawn of time.
So reads the beautiful and unequalled introduction to KIS and Kodaikanal from "In Celebration", the 2001 KIS Centennial publication written by Jane Cummings, prominent KIS Alumna, Class of 1957 and first recipient of the Margaret Eddy Distinguished Alumni Award, 2006.
The Origins and Evolution of Kodaikanal International School
A need to establish a school in Kodaikanal in the 1820's grew out of the early life of the mission community established in South India. Such a school would allow the missionary children to escape diseases which were claiming the lives of many in the region.
In June 1, 1900 the Committee established by the Kodaikanal Conference gave a favorable report for the establishment of such a school and Kodai School was opened on July 1, 1901 under the leadership of Mrs. Margaret Eddy who was visiting her son, Sherman, a missionary in Madras, at the time.
It was an extraordinarily providential move for the fledgling school. Mrs Eddy was a woman of remarkable ability and her deep commitment to the school continued long after she left Kodai. The Highclerc Hotel was commissioned as the premises for the new school and on July 1, 1901 13 little "tykes", boys in their knickers, girls in their pinafores, appeared at the Highclerc Hotel to start school.
By 1902 the rent had been significantly increased, so the school shifted to Rock Cottage and Central House. Mrs. Eddy, however, on her return from America, was able to buy Highclerc Hotel from its new owner for the princely sum of Rs29,000 along with 3.5 acres of land. The school moved back into its present location in 1905 and has remained there ever since.
By 1926, the school program went up to Grade 10 and in 1930, the full four years of the High School program was finally established. Tracy Manley was the first proud student to receive a High School Diploma from Kodai School in that year.
Development of the school began in 1911 when Airlee was purchased. This was followed by significant acquisitions during the 1920s to provide dormitory accommodation and facilities for the growing school population. Dayavau Dhanapal was the first Indian woman staff member to join the school in 1944. Her daughter, Priscilla was later also a staff member and grand-daughter, Dana, graduated in 2000.
The refining of governance issues, the pattern of financial support, raising money to cover costs, staff recruitment and retention were difficult issues in these early days. In 1930, Miss Grace Fulton, who had been a popular and effective teacher at Kodai School for 10 years, submitted her resignation explaining:
"the inadequacy of present salary and pension arrangements, which make it impossible for any teacher not financially independent to serve the school for a protracted period.... the difficult of keeping up in one's profession through long periods of service removed from the stimulation of continued contact with professional leaders... the impossibility of growth and dread of stagnation under a system which fixes each teacher in a permanent groove without challenge of progress of advancement in her profession, which adds to a heavy teaching program, an overload of relentless, repetitive demands which crowd out the comparative enrichment of correlative lines of interest, the satisfaction of original enterprise and leisure for personal growth."
Still, despite comments, she left with these words on her lips "I shall always regard my years in the school as an enriching experience. The wealth of friendships, the generous spirit of committees, the congenial association with staff, the love of the children have been rich compensative gifts." Little has changed in this regard.
Although our present dorm parents probably don't kiss their charges good night and get their "faces so slobbered up they always have to wash before eating dinner" as mentioned by Miss Isie Weygandt in 1922, they are still challenged by the continual demands that boarding schools make.
Although today, Professional Development and internet facilities provide staff with interconnectivity undreamed of in the days of Miss Fulton, staff is still expected to pitch in during the evenings and weekends still require supervisors or chaperones. Such is boarding school life. Names like Papa Phelps and Auntie Powell are reminiscent of this commitment and are still remembered fondly today. When Papa retired in 1958 after 26 years as Principal, his departure marked the end of an era at Kodai School, now KIS.
The 1960s marked the beginning of a period of turmoil and change that would impact the school and its future by the end of that decade. Herb Krause, whose grand daughter is a KIS graduate and a former teacher at the school, took the helm after 10 years as a teacher. The Krauses' goal was to provide a supportive environment with clear boundaries and limits - a start with bright hopes for the school's future.
In 1966, enrollment reached an all time high of 446 and several important developments were initiated.
- A committee was established to improve the curriculum, staff and instructional materials
- Kodai School was the accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools, Philadelphia, in 1968 as a result of the committee's findings
- Heated debates continued as to the advantages and disadvantages of the merit/demerit system introduced as a "supplementary system of discipline and guide to staff members."
There were more significant changes underway. The sixties was a world in revolution. Nationalism, already firmly established in India, was sweeping the world. The missionary exodus from India began where they had lived for 20, 30 and sometimes 50 years. India had been their spiritual and emotional home in a way that Buffalo or Chicago could never be, but leave they must and leave they did.
The nature of Kodai School student body changed in order to meet enrollment needs and budget realities. Herb Krause took to visiting Delhi, Bangkok and Beirut, something Papa Phelps never saw a need to do. A few companies gave lump sum grants to the school in return for guaranteed places and students began to arrive from more diverse and cosmopolitan backgrounds.
The stated mission and goals of Kodai School were no longer accepted without question. Why could students not make up their own minds about which religious activities they had to participate in? But the debate went far beyond social behavior and chapel attendance. It had to do with the fundamental mission and purpose of the school. A deep schism emerged on the interpretation of what it meant to be a Christian school. The terms "liberal" and "conservative" replaced "dialogue" and "common ground" in everybody's vocabulary. People were divided in their respective camps and the common ground seemed to disappear.
With Robert Dewey's arrival as school chaplain in 1965 the issue came to a head. Dewey was committed to the idea of a Christian school but he also believed in dialogue. "Creative dialogue is absolutely essential if the school is going to be what it wants to be. It is the only word that I know that suggests educationally and experientially what the school can be and is at its best" he stated.
By the end of the decade Kodai School had survived a controversial debate on whether it would open itself to an inclusive interpretation of Christian education or confine its mission to providing the familiar atmosphere of an exclusive American Christian community. It faced a rapidly changing political and social world order that would also have a significant impact on its future mission and purpose.
Robert Carman a Kodai alumnus from the Class of 1948 bridged the gap from the old to the new and worked with Frank Jayasinghe, the new Director of Development. Their legacy was planning and then implementing the Project Design for the new school and leading it through its first decade as a multi-cultural, autonomous, Christian school. It was a monumental task.
Jayasinghe was the author and architect of the Project Design but it was the collective work of the Steering Committee which was ultimately instrumental in its success. When Jayasinghe took over as Principal in 1973, he had been responsible for changes in nearly every aspect of the school. Slowly but surely enrollment increased from 279 in 1975 to 475 in 1985.
"Kodaikanal International School" was born in 1972 as the first international school in India. To meet the needs of a more diverse student body, an international curriculum, with a special emphasis on Indian Studies, was designed and implemented. The Kodai High School Diploma continued, as did accreditation by the American Middle States Association.
In 1975 KIS became the first school in India to adopt the International Baccalaureate Diploma program. In 1977 the first KIS students sat for the first IB examinations in India. Over the years the number of students taking the IB Diploma has increased significantly from approximately 10% of a graduating class in the early years to 60% in 2006.
Another significant development was the recognition of the KIS High School Diploma by the All India University Board in 1981 and by a number of individual universities in India.
But it is the distinct KIS Culture which seems to overshadow all others. It changes, of course, but more to reflect what is "cool" or "in" at the moment rather than what is culturally defined. Bedi blankets in the 70s, hippie clothes of the 80s, chic styles or jeans of the 90s. Attempts at fusing modern international trends with more traditional classical Indian culture continue. Paul Wiebe, former KIS Principal from the 1980's and 90's, says:
"Finally, we are a school and education is what we are about. Our commitment is to educate youngsters within the ever-changing and complex worlds of Kodaikanal, within Tamil Nadu, in consideration at the same time, of the complex worlds into which they will have to step in the future. All the while we work with youngsters who are at times lonely in their dormitories, often easily persuaded by the latest influences to which they are subjected, youngsters who are always in need of care and support and appreciation. This challenge of ours is an ongoing challenge. It is neither more nor less difficult than it was in the past. I'm impressed as much by the continuities in what we have been about as with the changes that have occurred."
Picture if you will the setting..... the natural basin is no more. Instead, a lake with boatloads of people, an image of the constant struggle between abuse and use of the fragile environment. At the edge of the lake, a school, a colorful, vital community where people of many diverse cultures, religions and nationalities mix and mingle and learn together. Kodaikanal is no longer pristine and unspoiled yet, still, a promise for the future.
Margaret L Norton Eddy 1848 - 1935
Margaret L Norton was born in Ohio. She moved at age 8 with her family to Kansas. At the age of 24 she married George Eddy and had three sons - Sherwood, Dana and David.
In 1900 Mrs Eddy came to India to visit her son Sherwood who was then working as a missionary in Batlagundu. A natural teacher and organizer, not long after she arrived in India she took up the opportunity to plunge into organizing a much needed school for the children of the missionaries.
Kodai School opened on 1 July 1901 named popularly after the hotel in which it was first housed, Highclerc Hotel.
Mrs Eddy had seen the need for an English medium preparatory school for the children of the missionaries. Kodai School was established so that these children could continue their studies in India near their parents, not having to return to Europe or the United States for their studies.
Mrs Eddy served as Principal of Kodai School without salary until an affliction compelled her return to America. Her standards of honesty & integrity were among the most vivid of all her "children's" memories of her.
To the end of her life Mrs Eddy was in spirit "Principal Emeritus" of Kodai School. She planned its development, wrote about its needs, helped select teachers and helped publicize its purpose.
Mrs Eddy's son Sherwood once wrote:
"To my mother I owe almost every thing that is mine by inheritance & training". Much the same can be said for Kodai School's early days which she stamped in every way with her vibrant personality." |
