Education Briefs

A research study conducted by ICICI Bank reveals there is an urgent need for financial assistance to rural educational institutions in terms of investment in infrastructure to increase their enrollment and provide better academic facilities. The study indicates there are 80,000 privately promoted educational institutions running primary, secondary and higher secondary schools and colleges in India (10 percent of the total market size of 8 lakh institutions countrywide) with a total fee collection of Rs.83 crore.

Against this backdrop, ICICI Bank has promoted its Rural Educational Institution (REI) Finance division to cater to the needs of privately run educational institutions/ trusts/ societies. REI Finance will fund the expansion of new classrooms, lab facilities, residential hostels, transportation and promotion of new schools and colleges. "REI Finance aims to improve the quality of rural education which is necessary to transform India into a hub of high quality manpower," says an ICICI Bank spokesperson.

The Bangalore-based Academy of Business Management, Tourism & Research (ABMTR — promoted last year by the Bethel Educational Trust) recently signed an MoU with the National Academy of Management and Entrepreneurship (NAME) to offer the latter’s three study programmes in ABMTR. These programmes prepare students for managerial positions in SMEs (small and medium enterprises) or for self employment.

"ABMTR is a new generation B-school which believes in and practices a differential knowledge culture. We are committed to releasing the creative potential and capabilities of our students by leveraging their aptitudes and capabilities to succeed in the marketplace," says Dr. Shaji Thomas, director of ABMTR.

Currently this B-school offers Masters degree (Bangalore University) programmes in business management, tourism administration; diploma courses in international business (12 months full time) and certificate and diploma programmes in airport management (six months). These study programmes are supported by experienced faculty drawn from academia and industry.

Graduates with at least 50 percent average and a good MAT score are eligible for admission into ABMTR.

Campus Connect — a first-of-its-kind industry-academia relationship programme launched in 2004 by the Bangalore-based IT major Infosys Technologies Ltd — is gathering momentum. Currently over 250 engineering colleges and 12,000 students across the country are covered by this programme.

"Engineering colleges are the natural supply streams for IT talent in the new knowledge economy. As India moves towards becoming a global leader in the IT industry, engineering college managements and the IT industry are awakening to the need to prepare industry-ready students to meet the growing demands of the IT industry. The main objective of the Campus Connect programme is to build a framework through which Infosys and academia can partner to deepen the pool of talent for IT industry growth and to enhance the quality of IT education," says Dr. M.P. Ravindra, vice president and head of education and research at Infosys.

Takshaa-the Academy for the Artist, Bangalore an affiliated enterprise of the Ittina Group — a well-known name in the real estate and construction industry in the garden city — invites admission applications for its February 2007 batch. Promoted in early 2006, the academy is housed in a sprawling 18,000 sq. ft building and offers state-of-the-art facilities for animation and digital film production training.

"At Takshaa our objective is to develop the imagination of our students. Takshaa is the only school in India to offer specialisation in animation education. Our flexible, modular programme enables students to specialise in character animation, modelling, light and shade, game asset creation and visual effects. Simultaneously our students are offered electives such as art history, drawing and sculpting," says Dr. Vidya Shetty, principal of Takshaa.

The academy’s management takes particular pride in its faculty which includes renowned artists such as Manu Ittina, Bill Miller, Aaraty Mehta and Ruturaj Arolkar who played important roles in the production of blockbuster animation movies such as Shrek 2, Madagascar, Hercules among others. "Students at Takshaa not only have access to the best faculty but are given hands-on experience in each module," adds Shetty.

The national Horlicks Wiz Kids 2006 contest, now in its third year, will commence on November 8 and close with a grand finale in Bangalore on November 11. Entries have been received from 200,000 students in 25 cities across India. During the period November 8-11, finalists will receive training in a host of skill-sets including public speaking, project presentation, quizzing etc.

"During the past three years this contest has provided students with an enjoyable and enriching platform to develop participation and team spirit through a variety of competitions on diverse subjects such as literature, art, singing, dramatics and others. The Horlicks Wiz Kids inter-school festival has helped students develop the ability and confidence to express their views and extra-curricular talents and not restrict themselves only to academics," says Sultan Ahmed managing director of The Activity, Bangalore which manages this national contest for GlaxoSmith Kline & Beecham Ltd, the manufacturer of Horlicks billed as the "only health drink in India that has been proven to make kids taller, stronger, and sharper".

Two winners from each of the 25 cities will participate in the grand finale of Horlicks Wizkids 2006 at Ambedkar Bhavan, Bangalore. Moreover for the first time winners of the grand finale will represent India in a Wiz Kids contest in the Philippines next January.