Instilling values through Education

Victor spoke to CalicutNet.Com about his plans and vision on educational investment. Here we present this exclusive interview with Rajesh Kumar Edacheri by email:

SAC has had an MBA program over the last few years and have already received a good following.  In fact, the Top 3 rank holders in 2008 for the MBA Program of the Mangalore University were all from SAC – and as it happens, all were also female students.  As you may know, there is a great demand for well trained talent to support the growing business environment in India and especially in Karnataka including in and around Mangalore and Kerala, where substantial growth is in progress. With this new and heightened demand for MBA as well as the IT programs, which have been in effect for a few years as well, SAC has now felt the need for more space.  SAC which has a rich history of 128 years has completely run out of space at their existing main campus on

Lighthouse Hill.

As there is a need for additional capacity in every one of their programs at all levels – KG to Masters – they concluded that a new campus to house the MBA (Masters Business Administration) and MCA (Masters in Computer Applications) programs would be the best way to streamline their programs and leave the main campus for their traditional programs in other disciplines, with room to grow.
As for the Business School being for needy students, we need to clarify that this school is not only for needy students.  SAC has always had a very compassionate approach to students who enter their programs and do not turn away any students who do not have the means.  While in their current program they have students who pay their fees in full, SAC has met the needs of deserving yet disadvantaged students even for the Business programs, which are more expensive than the other programs, due to the high level of Faculty, equipment, IT and other resources.  While there are a few Business Schools with good record, often they are out of reach to many students in the Mangalore and surrounding community, who are academically qualified, but do not have the means. So our effort is not only to build a good Business School, but also provide an Endowment Fund to support these needy students.

Q. How can this institute serve the benefits of deserving students?

SAC has had a proven record of supporting deserving students throughout their rich history with scholarships.  They also have a consistent and secular approach to admission of all students irrespective of their religious persuasion or financial support. SAC also runs an Aloysian Boys home, which is an orphanage for boys and girls, who are provided with a home and education up to high school.  In addition, SAC supports certain outreach programs in under served areas like Bijapur.  So, looking after the less fortunate among their students has been a way of life for SAC and an integral part of their mission.

Q. What will be your special ‘mantra’ to attain the goal of a Top Business School?

You are right, there are Business Schools in India running into the hundreds, as just about every university has appended a Business program.  However, as conveyed to me by Mr. K. V. Kamath, CEO of the ICICI Bank, who recruits several thousand new graduates every year, they don’t look for talent from any B-schools below the top 15 to 20, as they simply do not have the strong curriculum and emphasis on modern management programs.

This is where the proven SAC ‘brand’ offers reason for hope. Though SAC has had a good start with their MBA program, it is certainly not in the top 10 or even top 25, as they wanted to get a program started. But, SAC has the credentials to take up a challenge and do whatever it takes to achieve the results.  In this case, due to the large investment in the new Business School, we as the alumni have strongly suggested to SAC that from the start, this new Aloysian Business School will have to set a clear goal to be among the ‘Top 10’ Business Schools in India, within 5 to 10 years after they start.

Apart from their emphasis on curriculum, discipline and accountability, the special mantra will be the make up of the programs and the teaching methodology to include modern methods like the ‘Case method’ of teaching, that is used at the IIM Ahmedabad (the top business school in India, which I was fortunate to attend!), focus on special programs such as ‘Financial Management’ programs tailored to Banks and other financial institutions, due to the preponderance of numerous banks around Mangalore, a specialization in Entrepreneurship and Small Business management. Besides, we also plan to enlist a few US and Canadian Business schools to partner with SAC, to bring and transfer proven expertise and knowledge base to SAC. SAC has also accepted our suggestion to broaden their management approach to include a Board of Advisors, comprising of international professionals, who have been successful in careers in USA, Canada, Europe and elsewhere in India to seek their input and guidance. SAC truly aspires to be one of the Top Business Schools.

Q. The modern education system lacks values of humanity…Can SAC overcome this by applying traditional values to core subjects?

SAC is emblematic of the belief that a modern education system does not need to exclude great values of humanity.  Your observation is right – that such institutions are rare these days as many modern educational programs are run more as a business rather than as a purveyor of humanitarian causes as well.

SAC despite their long history, has changed with the times, being open to new ideas, while holding on to the traditional core values and beliefs. Having always been well anchored to a strong emphasis on spirituality, while being thoroughly secular in its approach to students,  SAC can better implement these twin goals than most others.

Q. What are the disciplines that offer Masters Degree programs…?

Complete scope of the disciplines being offered by the SAC’s MBA program is still being worked out. In addition to the traditional disciplines of Human Resource Management, Marketing and Production management, SAC seeks to specialize in programs that will be more conducive to banks and insurance companies, including actuarial sciences, using their strong applied mathematics program as well as special programs in Entrepreneurship and Small Business management.

Q. Notable differences between SAC and other business schools…

SAC will not be run strictly as a business.  Rather it will be a conduit for excellence in education with a profound appreciation of the need for compassion.  SAC has already proved that these two priorities can indeed be complementary and it is their record that can reassure potential supporters of the new business school of their commitment to both.

SAC also plans to be highly transparent and open minded to accept new ideas and community feedback, as it has evolved its methods, even as it has held steadfast in their core beliefs of service to the local community. The high level of loyalty, gratitude and support to SAC from the non-catholic alumni is a testimony to SAC’s stellar secular credentials.

Q. Could you explain your plan on the IT University?

St. Aloysius College (SAC) had already started a MCA (Master in Computer Applications) a few years back in their main campus and have been graduating IT students for the past few years. As Mangalore is turning out to be a growing provider of IT talent, with a large INFOSYS campus already active, with plans for a major expansion along with other companies like WIPRO and MPHASIS having started or planning to expand activity in the Mangalore area, we expect the IT programs at SAC will grow in demand and value.  Three years back SAC started an MBA program again at the old campus, working mostly from the IT building.

However, with the new campus planned at nearby Beeri, coming on stream from 2009 onwards in 2 or 3 phases, the plan is to restructure the programs of the main campus to move all MBA and MCA programs to the new campus.  In as much as IT is a big part of any Business program these days, the combination of MBA and MCA on one campus is certainly synergic and makes tactical sense.

Q. Did you get help from other Aloysians / volunteers for this project?

Yes, most certainly, a number of Aloysian alumni have been involved in this project, even before I stepped forward.  In fact, an organization called APNA (Aloysian Partners of North America) was already registered in 2004 and had processed and obtained tax exempt status for American donors.  However, the APNA team had not developed a significant strategic plan, nor had it expanded its presence and promotional effort beyond the NY/NJ area, though it does have a few members in other parts of USA and a few in Canada.

They were effective in raising modest amounts which had been all forwarded to SAC to fund their various current programs, including the Aloysian Boys Home, where over 130 orphaned and abandoned children are housed and educated up to high school.  However, with the current large project of a new campus to house the proposed MBA, the scope and the magnitude of the project grew substantially and during the visit of Fr. Denzil Lobo, the Director of the MBA/MCA programs in 2007, I came forward to provide a bigger dimension to the planning and implementation of the project and also to globalize this effort as Aloysians are represented in almost all parts of the world, especially in the Middle East and Australia and of course in India itself.  The current effort is to unite all the various programs together into one global effort in somewhat of a ‘think global…but act local’ paradigm.

Q. What is your target amount and what is the expense do you expect to make this program a reality?

Our target goal for resources to be raised is $20 million, out of which we have earmarked about $15 M for the capital expenditure of the new campus and $5 M, fro a modest start of the Endowment Fund, to support scholarships and the current budgetary needs.  As for expenses for making this project, we do not have a budget yet, as most of the expenses have been met either by the current volunteers at a personal capacity or from the small resources of APNA.  However, as we move forward to mobilize and structure API to be a global organization, with chapters in every continent and sections within the regional chapters, we will have to allocate a certain budget for just the out of pocket expenses that are expected, which are only inevitable to run any effort.  That said, a huge amount of time and even expenses will be met by individual members who are committed to this noble mission.