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Founder’s Day at Lucknow’s IT College: Alumnae feted for commitment to education
Isabella Thoburn College, the first Christian College for women in South Asia, celebrated Founder's Day by felicitating noted alumnae for their commitment to education and women's empowerment. Its founder, Isabella Thoburn, was the first American woman Methodist missionary to sail to India in 1869.
Isabella Thoburn College, Lucknow–the first Christian College for women in South Asia–celebrated its Founder’s Day in the college auditorium on Friday. The programme commenced with the college choir singing the favourite hymns of the founder, Isabella Thoburn.
The gathering included the president of the college, ES Charles, the principal, Vinita Prakash, members of the faculty, guests, renowned alumni and students. Thereafter, 12 noted alumnae were felicitated for their commitment to excellence of education.
These included Prof Nishi Pandey of Lucknow University, Y Cabral, Prof Kavita Pathak, director, Jaipuria Institute of Management, Lucknow, Aashrita Dass, principal of La Martiniere Girls College, Mala Mehra, principal of Hoerner College, Debra Bunny, principal of St Agnes Loreto Day School, Anupriya Dayal, Shivani Singh, Shifalika Monisha Misra, Ashita Nath, Aparna Lal, Deepali E Rukeyser, all renowned academicians contributing to education and women’s empowerment.
The alumnae accepted the awards and shared their experiences of the college, praising the college for the shaping influence it has had on their growth. They exhorted present students to live up to the motto of the college ‘We receive to give’, asking them to give back to society what they have received abundantly from the college, said principal of IT College, V Prakash.
Its founder, Isabella Thoburn, was the first American woman Methodist missionary to sail to India in 1869, after the Women’s Foreign Missionary Society (WFMS), of the Methodist Episcopal Church was founded in Boston to champion the cause of women in India.
The origin of the college was in a school for girls opened by Isabella Thoburn on April 18, 1870, in one room in the city bazaar of Aminabad. There were then just six girls. By 1871, the school had expanded and moved to occupy a house named Lal Bagh, the house of the treasurer of the last Nawab of Awadh. On July 12, 1886, Thoburn’s school was renamed as the Lucknow Women’s College and began to teach Fine Arts classes under the supervision of the University of Calcutta. In 1894, this connection was abandoned in favour of a new one with Allahabad University. The College is now affiliated to Lucknow University.