In the southern port city of Chennai (pop. 4.2 million), the flag of the Federal Republic of Germany — mainland Europe’s (excluding Russia) largest and most populous (pop. 83 million) country — flew only in the Goethe Institut (aka Max Mueller Bhavan) and the manufacturing plant of the automobile giant BMW on the outskirts of the city. Now it will also fly in Deutsche Schule, the first German international school in Chennai, which is all set to admit its first batch in January next year.
Promoted by business developers Thomas A. Pallushek and Melanie A. Rolf, and sited in Nilangarai in suburban south Chennai, the Deutsche Schule is receiving its finishing touches in a leased 7,500 sq.ft colonial style building with a landscaped garden, swimming pool and play area. The school, to be developed in three phases, will initially admit 60 pre-school and nursery children in January, and gradually add primary and secondary sections.
“We came to Chennai with the idea of starting a franchised chain of retail stores, but changed our plans when we became aware that foreign international schools are mainly for the children of expatriates. Since we wanted about 70 percent of our pupils to be from local Indian households, we decided to start a new type of international school. It is also our intent to reserve 10 percent of our annual intake for pupils of Little Angels Children’s Home which houses disabled and orphaned children,” says Pallushek, a highly qualified lawyer with degrees from Leibniz Universität Hannover, Albert Ludwigs Universität, Freiburg and Georg August Universität, Göttingen. An entrepreneur with over 16 years experience in business, sales management and consulting, he is currently chief executive officer of TBT Enterprise India Pvt. Ltd, the holding company of Deutsche Schule, Chennai.
A unique feature of the school is the battery of scientific tests which admitted children have to undergo. These tests evaluate the capabilities, personality traits and special talents of every child, to enable the school’s management to develop their aptitudes accordingly. “Our objective is to identify their talents and potential and help them attain the highest standards of intellectual and personal development,” says Rolf.
Another selling point of the Deutsche Schule is that it offers students the choice of German or English as the medium of instruction. The German section will follow the curriculum of the state of Bavaria, which is reputed to offer the best school education in Germany. Students who complete class XII in the German medium will be awarded the International Abitur certificate while those who choose English medium will receive the school leaving certificate of the International Baccalaureate Organisation, Geneva.
Once the pre-school and nursery sections commence classes in January, Pallushek’s energies will be directed towards starting the primary section and eventually the secondary school. “We plan to commence construction of our own campus in 2011, and also build residential facilities for students. As the school grows we will offer student/teacher exchange programmes with partner schools and universities in Germany, and facilitate internships for our students with world-renowned German companies,” says Pallushek.
Willkommen!
Hemalatha Raghupathi (Chennai)