Page 166 - EW November 2023

Pictorial Essay

Lifetime Achievement in Education Leadership Award 2022-23

Smt. Meena S. Divatia

edicated educator, women's empowerment
champion and perennially eager-to-learn scholar for
Dover six decades, Mumbai-based Meena Sunandan
Divatia is the incumbent President and Managing Trustee
of the Bhagini Seva Mandir Kumarika Stree Mandal
(estb.1929). A pioneer women's empowerment institution
managed by women for the past 94 years, the mandal/
trust manages the state board-affiliated K-10 M.P. Shah
English High School (MPSEHS) inaugurated by Mahatma
Gandhi in 1930, and the Kalyan Deep School for mentally
challenged children which admitted its first batch in 1960.
Currently, MPSEHS has 1,200 children mentored by 40
teachers on its muster rolls and Kalyan Deep has 50 special
needs children mentored by eight teachers.
A Gujarati literature and psychology graduate of Gujarat
University, Ms. Divatia began her career in the insurance
industry and worked in the administrative cadre of the Life
Insurance Corporation of India prior to being inducted by
the Bhagini Stree Mandal as secretary of the trust in 1972.
After serving in this capacity for almost three decades, she Meena Divatia receives award and citation from Dr. Larry Arnn
was appointed President of the mandal in 2010. “Long be- (right), President, Hillsdale College & Sheila Bauer, CEO, Access-
fore middle class women began to establish a presence in
industry and business workplaces, the all-women Bhagini MCA — A Better Way to College & EW's Dilip Thakore (left)
Seva Stree Mandal run entirely by women, demonstrated with head, heart and hands. Unfortunately, that hasn't hap-
that if given opportunity and responsibility, the so-called pened and the education that India's 260 million in-school
weaker sex can manage large trusts and run schools ef- children – especially in government schools with very poor
ficiently. Over the past 93 years since it opened its doors learning outcomes -- would have disappointed him. More-
for boys and girls, MPSEHS has acquired a good reputation over, the multiplicity of examination boards across the
for providing children excellent academic learning supple- country has prevented establishment of national standards
mented with high quality vocational, life skills and sports and created class divisions in Indian society,” rues Divatia.
education. In 2022, MPSEHS was included in Education- Nevertheless this indefatigable champion of holistic,
World's national league table of Super 30 Budget Private quality K-12 education is determined to do her best to
Schools and among the Top 5 budget private schools of provide high quality English-medium education for the
Mumbai,” says Divatia. lower middle class and marginalised children. “Because of
In accordance with Gandhian practices and precepts, prudent management and successful fund-raising, we have
tuition fees levied by MPSEHS are rock-bottom and vary been able to accumulate a corpus of Rs.10 crore. This is in
between Rs.36,000-38,000 per year, and Kalyan Deep the process of being utilized for adding a higher second-
provides free-of-charge education to mentally, and oth- ary section – classes XI-XII -- to MPSEHS, equipping the
erwise challenged children. “Long before the demand for classrooms of both our schools with latest digital technolo-
quotas for women in Parliament and government services gies and increasing the number of scholarships for chil-
was articulated, the Bhagini Seva Mandal, administered dren of poor households in our neighbourhood. We believe
and managed entirely by women, demonstrated that we if we succeed in providing high quality holistic education to
can manage trusts and education institutions efficiently socio-economically disadvantaged and marginalised chil-
and competently. Therefore, I am surprised it has taken dren, it will inspire others to follow our example,” says this
so many decades for the Women's Reservation Bill to be never-say-die educationist, who has recently enrolled for
passed by Parliament,” says Divatia. block-printing classes.
Looking back on her illustrions career in education In acknowledgement of her long and sustained commit-
management, Divatia is “somewhat disappointed” with ment to primary-secondary and special needs education,
post-independence India's track record in primary-sec- the Board of Directors and Editors of EducationWorld are
ondary education. “Gandhiji believed that primary educa- privileged to confer the EducationWorld Lifetime Achieve-
tion should be given utmost importance and school cur- ment in Education Leadership Award 2023-24 upon Smt.
riculums should be built around teaching children to learn Meena Sunandan Divatia.

166 EDUCATIONWORLD NOVEMBER 2023