Our Chief Guest this evening is Mrs. Sunita Aron, Resident Editor of Hindustan Times. We welcome her, not just as the, Resident Editor but as a role model because I am convinced that what our students need today is to meet the kind of woman  we would like them to emerge – confident women who lead exemplary lives, and can squarely face the challenges of a society which is facing an erosion of values.

ANNUAL REPORT  2011- 2012

STUDENTS ENROLMENT:  There were approximately 2350 students on the rolls in the School and College Sections and 400 in the Preparatory Section – a total of about 2750 students. This year, 2012, we have 142 supervising Staff members – 121 teachers and 21 non teaching staff. This makes our teacher student ratio an excellent  one of 1:19.

ACADEMICS:   La Martiniere Girls’ College has since September 2011, joined hands with Educomp to provide modules for all subjects to give the students of the school a new and modern learning technique thus enhancing the experience of learning. We introduced FOUR Smart Classes last year and hope to introduce one more for each class, that is, another 14, during the course of the present academic year.

.The students and teachers of La Martiniere Girls' College once again reached the target that I had set a few years ago, namely to secure an average mark of at least 85%  in both the I.S.C. and I.C.S.E. examinations.
The highest aggregate mark for ISC of 98.75% was secured by Eti Agarwal who did us proud as she was the All India topper for the ISC Examination, securing 100% in both Mathematics and Commerce.

The highest aggregate mark for ICSE of 96.2 % was secured by Aishwarya Agarwal who scored a perfect 100 in Environmental Education.

PLACEMENTS IN THE YEAR, 2011
Rishika Sinha made history of a kind as she is the first student of the College to gain admission into an IIT immediately after class 12. At least five other students are studying in top engineering colleges of the country such as JIIT Noida, SRM Chennai and BITS Hyderabad.
Among the Art students, more than ten have done us proud by getting into premier Art Colleges like the Delhi College of Art, NIFT, MIT Pune, Pearl Academy of Fashion and the Footwear Design and Development Institute.
Many others are pursuing honours courses in various fields from Delhi University, including Physics, Mathematics, Political Science, English, Mass Communication and Commerce, Anshika Singh topped the all India entrance test for the Bachelor’s degree in  English Honours. at Lady Shri Ram College, Delhi.   
Other students have been selected in the “Common Law Admission Test - 2011” and are studying at National Law Colleges in different cities.

A Special Prize for Diligence will be awarded to Hannah Khan  of Class 2. Despite a hearing disability, she has worked very hard and done exceedingly well in academics, securing the first prize for General Proficiency, as well as the English, Hindi and General Science prizes.

COMPUTERS AND TECHNOLOGY:    This year the college also acquired two large printers and 8 LED TFT 18.5” monitors for the office. Two 24 port switches for networking in the laboratories were also bought.

LIBRARY:. A new library for the Junior Section has start functioning with Mrs. F. Khan in charge. Soon, we will be providing the library with new colorful work tables. We are grateful to Diksha Advertising for the meaningful flexes with beautiful quotations that grace the walls of both the Senior and Junior School Libraries.
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COUNSELLING
The Institute of Career Studies organized a Career Counselling week for the students of classes 9 to12 in the month of November to help them decide their subjects and to apprise them of various career options.
Career Launcher organized a seminar for the students of classes 11and 12 in the month of April enlightening them about studying Law as a career option. A Mock CLAT was organized by them in the same month for the students of Class 12.

ADHAAR
In July 2011, La Martiniere Girls’ College became the first educational institution in Lucknow to support the Unique Identification Authority of India’s Adhaar movement with an overwhelming response from the staff, parents and students of the school.
The ANNUAL CONFERENCE for HEADS OF ANGLO INDIAN SCHOOLS in INDIA
was held at the College in the month of January. 122 Principals from all over the country attended the Conference which was spread over four days.

SPIC MACAY: As firm believers of inculcating a sense of India’s rich culture and heritage in the students, La Martiniere Girls' College has a tie up with SPIC MACAY, the Society for the Preservation of Indian Classical Music, Art and Culture Among Youth which works for this purpose. The events organized by them have generated a lot of interest and created awareness among the students.

INTER SCHOOL EVENTS: La Martiniere Girls’ College was selected as one of the top 25 institutes in the country for Wipro’s Earthian 2011 Programme which is meant to pave the way for a new progressive way of acting and thinking among school children.
A workshop on ‘Safe Surfing’ was organized for the students, their parents and the staff of the College at the end of November. Also hosted by us, were a PALS Eco workshop to promote environment awareness,
Ataraxis an inter school competition organized by the Health Club for de stressing students, the Limca Quiz: City Level Round conducted by Derek O’Brien, and the TERI eco quiz
Senior School: Groups of senior school students participated in the Model, United Nations Programmes held in Mumbai and Dehradun where they actively participated in simulated versions of the United Nations sessions. Aishwarya Agarwal of Class 11,and now our College Captain, participated in the Global Young Leaders’ Conference held in Washington D.C. and New York city from the 12th to 23rd June 2011.
At the local level, our girls participated in the INFO BAZAAR 2011, an inter school Computer Science event, the Inter School Youth Camp organized by the Catholic Diocese of Lucknow, the Study Hall 25th Anniversary Inter School Competitions, the Literary Festival at St Agnes’ Loreto Day School, ‘MIC Fest’ at Montfort College, ‘Expressions’ at St Fidelis College, Lucknow and the First International Convention on Commerce and Economics held in CMS LDA branch.
Middle School: The students of the Middle School began the year by taking part in a drawing competition organized by Amar Ujala for the students of the city.
A number of events are organized by NIE for students of over seventy schools in the city including a workshop on Journalism, a ‘News Maker’s Meet’, and a film show. Their ‘Student of the Year Award’ was won by Sandra Nair of Class 8 Mugdha Runade of IX D stood first in the city final round of Spell Bee. 
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Junior School
The children of the Junior School went to Study Hall for various competitions like Art, Hindi and English Elocution and Western and Indian vocal music. They also went to Cathedral School to participate in the Info Bazaar. A few girls participated and won at in the English Elocution Competition held at La Martiniere College
Preparatory Department This year the children of the Upper Prep represented their school at the Kids’ Carnival held at St Teresa’s College, Ashiana and came back with prizes for the Quiz, Hindi Dance, Western Dance, Art and Action song.

THE INTER MARTINIERE MEET: This year it was held at Kolkata. With competitive events spread over a week, the Meet not only provides the students of the four schools an opportunity to display their skills in their respective fields, but also to bond with each other.  Although we lost the Basket Ball Match and the Swimming Cup we retained the Diving Trophy. The Debate ended in a Tie.

DEBATING:
This year, at the National level, we participated in the Miss Saroj Srivastava Inter-School Debate in English, and the Miss Linnell Debate in Hindi, both hosted by Welham Girls’ School at Dehradun. The College team also took part in the Reverend Samuel Slater Memorial Debate organized by Bishop Cotton School in Shimla and in the prestigious Chukkerbutty Debate, held at Doon SchoolOur girls also took part in the Assam Valley Debate, and made their presence and prowess felt in the Frank Anthony Debates, especially at the junior level, where we reached the Final Round, held in Bengaluru.

ART
While Aditi Agarwal's and Venuka Sangal's paintings were chosen for the ICS
International Calendar, other students took part in and won accolades in various competitions organised in the city. Gopika Yadav painted the beautiful back drop for the decoration of the stage for the Christmas Cantata.

Basket Ball: In the month of May, six members of the senior basketball team were selected to represent the Lucknow District team for the Youth State Basketball Championship held in Agra. Pragya Gulatee was selected to participate in the National Basketball Camp held in Kanpur. Two girls from our Junior Basketball team were selected to play in the Sub-Junior State Championship held at Bulandshahar in June. Two of our Junior Team players were also selected to participate in the National Championships held in Lucknow. The team also participated in Basketball matches held at Study Hall and Spring Dale Colleges in Lucknow.

Judo: The Judokas participated in the District Judo Championship in the month of May and won 2 gold, 5 silver and 12 bronze medals. The Sub Junior State Championship was held in Hardoi in August and our girls won 2 gold, 4 silver and 5 bronze medals. At the District State Championship we were the proud recipients of  4 gold, 5 silver and 8 bronze medals. Saania Munawar and Himashree Malla participated in the national Judo Championship held in September in Kerala
Badminton
Inter House Badminton matches were held in May and June and Cornwallis House emerged as the winner. The Inter Class Badminton Championships were won by Classes VII and XI for the Junior and Senior sections respectively.

Tennis:   In the school, Lyons House won the Inter House Tennis Championship. Eeshita Pande represented India at the 14th World Soft Tennis Championship held at South Korea in October. She also won the Team Event Bronze, Individual Singles Bronze and Individual Doubles Bronze medals in the 6th Sub Junior Nations held at Ahmedabad earlier in the same month.

SUMMER VACATION CAMPS: We once again organised Summer Vacation Camps for our students. They offer a host of activities such as swimming, basket ball, art, glass painting, flower arrangement, tie and dye, fabric painting and cooking. Kick boxing and aerobics classes were conducted by Health Zone. During the vacation, the library and Computer laboratory remained open so that students could use them at will. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the Staff who came in during their vacation to run these camps.

SOCIAL WORK. Gandhi Corner activities for the year 2011-12:   During the year, the Gandhi Corner members helped in organizing the Newspaper drive, running  the college canteen and selling the craft items made by the middle and senior school children to raise funds  for various social welfare programmes.
Utensils, soaps, ration, stationery items and old clothes were collected and distributed in the slums, orphanages, schools run by various NGO’s, old homes and Mother Teresa’s home for the destitute throughout the year.
Students of classes 9 – 12 sent posters with messages of peace for an exhibition on 6th August, Hiroshima Day to the Indian Medical Association.
Gandhi Corner and the Health Club organised an Inter-School Quiz / Exhibition / Awareness Programme on ‘Skin-Facts and Myths’ in August. Dr. Garima Malhotra conducted an interactive session on ‘Common Skin Problems Faced by Teens’ for the students of Classes 9-12.
The members also organized the annual events of ‘Spare and Share a Meal’ for the inmates of Prem Niwas during the entire month of September, Girl Child Day for the under privileged girls of nearby slums and orphanages in October, the ‘Meena Bazaar’ in November which had the theme ‘ Rustic Beauties’, the Class 4 Employees’ Day in December, a free Medical Camp in February. and an overnight trip to Rasoolpur, Sandila, in March to organize a medical camp and distribute stationery and other items among the students of S.F.A. College.

PALS, Protectors of Animal Life & Surroundings,
PALS celebrated Van Mahotsava in collaboration with LMGAA..
As a Wild Life Week activity PALS undertook a signature campaign for which messages on ‘Going Green’ were written on flex banners provided by LMGAA. The babies made handprints to show their solidarity to the cause. The special activity to celebrate our 15th year was an eco – workshop for students from different schools in Lucknow. Its aim was to empower young people to take initiatives to protect the environment.
We are grateful to CIMAP which helps us with the Manav Herbal garden and our efforts in vermi composting.
The Cats Camps are now so much in demand that for the last two years we have had a rush of juniors from Classes 3 – 5 and have not been able to accommodate the middle and senior school students.
The PALS excursions are becoming increasingly popular. This year the students went for a rafting trip to Shivpuri and visited the Nature Village at Corbett, Sikkim, Uttaranchal and Madhya Pradesh.
   
MAGAZINE:  
The College Magazine, 'The Blue and Gold', mirrors the thoughts, emotions and creativity of the students. It not only reflects their efforts and achievements, but also appreciates the very broad range of experiences that enrich their learning. 'The Martinian Verve' is a special feature in the magazine this year which captures the Martinian spirit and presence that permeates all the activities and events held in the College. This year’s calendar is a pictorial representation of how the college magazine has grown over the years

BEES:
The Better English Expression Society continued to promote correct usage of the English language in the school campus. It encourages students to improve their language skills by maintaining vocabulary registers and organizing interesting book reading sessions in the Junior School. For the first time, a Scrabble contest was conducted for our boarders, who enjoyed the activity immensely. The IVth  BEE Jewel, an inter-school literary and cultural competition was held on 24th October..

THE COLLEGE WEBSITE:
The college website is regularly updated and provides details of the school, its infrastructure and the facilities provided. Results of the co-curricular activities are also available on the website. We take great pride in the fact that the website is run completely by the students and not by any professionals.

THE HEALTH CLUB La Martiniere Girls’ College, Hope Initiative, and La Martiniere Girls’ Alumni Association joined hands in 2009 to become India’s very first health promoting school. The club aims to spread awareness about health problems, their prevention and cure among students, teachers, parents and society at large.
In 2011, apart from the Interschool Health Awareness Quiz that it conducts with the Gandhi Corner, the Health Club also held awareness programmes for the children of the College on International Health Day.
This year, a very different Inter School Competition aimed at reducing stress among students of Lucknow called ‘Ataraxis’ was organised. Twelve schools from across the city participated.
The Health Club also held a free blood sugar testing camp for all the staff and fourth class employees of the College.

GOONJ- Goonj is an NGO initiated by Dr. Anshu Gupta to cater to primarily one basic need which is a scarcity throughout the country – CLOTHING. La Martiniere Girls’ College is Lucknow’s largest collection centre for Goonj..
We support the following campaigns of Goonj.
VASTRA-SAMMAN: A nationwide movement highlighting the importance of cloth as a basic need of the poor. RAHAT: Is Goonj’s initiative for reaching relief during natural and human made disasters.. 
PRATIBIMB: Every year GOONJ organizes a one to one interaction event between urban and rural children to further cement the relationship between them. This year we hope to make LMGC a collection centre through the year by opening the college to collection every second Saturday from 8am to 11am.
LA MARTINIERE GIRLS’ ALUMNI ASSOCIATION: The members of the Association have tried their utmost to work for the benefit of their school and society
Founders Day was celebrated with a reunion dinner held at Hotel Sagar International. In December, the Association, along with La Martiniere Association, held the  Annual Reunion Dinner at La Martiniere Girls’ College.
The Association has donated generously to both the Colleges in Lucknow to support their infrastructure and development.

OLD MARTINIANS AND VISITORS: Many of the college alumni visited their alma mater during the year. Visitors from abroad included David & Pam Sealey from Australia who visited us in October and Linda Danne nee' Stafford who studied here from 1964-68, in November. Among other visitors was Malcolm Spiers from England who is authoring a book on the Wazifedars  of Lucknow  during the British Rule In December, Ms. Lynn McGuinness. from Melbourne, Australia was with us for a few days. In February, after months of planning a team of 6 visitors from La Martiniere Colleges in Lyons, France were with us for a few days. They were taken around the city and given a glimpse of Indian culture, watching our little children perform for them.
Alumni:  
We have reason to be proud of some of our alumni. Aditi Chaturvedi (batch 2006) secured first position in the post graduation medical entrance examination, all over India.
Capt. Neha Patel who passed out in1999, is working in the Indian Amy as an Ordinance Officer and is presently posted in Kashmir.
Shruti Rawat has just completed her training at Officer's Training Academy, Chennai and now holds the rank of lieutenant.
Rachna Pant nee Joshi is the first student from La Martiniere Girls’ College who joined the Indian Air Force and holds the rank of Squadron leader. She is presently posted as Adjutant, Regional Examining Board, IAF, at Chandigarh.
Kritika Tandon received the Reshma Sareen Memorial Medal at the convocation ceremony held at the IIM, Lucknow, on 17th March, 2012.
Tullika Dhawan, will be receiving a national Award from the Government of India on 31st March for the work she does for street children in Agra.

THE CAMPUS AND BUILDINGS:  This year saw the Inauguration of the Junior Computer Lab in the Junior school and the Junior School Library. The old Art room was converted into a play room for the preparatory department students. Their play park was also renovated and given a new look with more swings for the children. The old library was simultaneously converted into a new Art Room. This year we hope to be able to do some restoration work on Khursheed Manzil and renovate the school kitchen

HEALTH.
Sr. P. Michael our fully trained registered nurse, takes good care of all our Staff and students. Dr. Chandravathi, of the Krishna Medical Centre, is always available and I am grateful for all the medical assistance she renders. I would like to especially thank Dr. Srivatsan who conducted the Dental Camp for our students of Classes Lower Preparatory to 8 and his wife, Dr. Garima Malhotra, for the workshop she conducted for our senior students on skin care. Dr Neeraj Kumar Singh requires to be thanked for conducting the Eye camp for the students of the same classes. Dr. Vikram Mehta and his wife Dr. Manjula Mehta continue to help and advise us.

STAFF: Retirements:  Mrs. S. Verma of the Preparatory Department and Mrs. B Kashyap of the Senior School retired on 29th February 2012.
Appointments:   Miss Janet D’Souza, Miss Tanya Lily Jones, Mrs. Sharmila Mehra,  and Mrs. Kakoli Roy were appointed as teachers; Mrs. Farrah Khan as Junior School Librarian and Mr. Ritesh Sharma and Mr. David Vivek Dayal as office staff.
Helpers:  Mrs. C. Khan and Miss P. Pandey were appointed in various leave vacancies and worked with us throughout the year. .
Births: Mrs. F. Healy, Mrs. R. Meshak, and Mrs. D. Chandra were blessed with baby boys while Mrs. N. Lal and Mrs. D. Srivastava had baby girls during the year.
Bereavements: Sr. V.N Peters, who had retired as Nurse of the College passed away in October, and Mr. R. Mendonca, our Estate Manager left us in November.
In Service training: The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations conducted training programmes in various subjects at the ICSE and ISC level in 2011.  Many teachers attended training programmes at Kolkata for English, Chemistry, Psychology Literature in English and Political Science.  Mrs. Shalini Tandon attended the training programme  for English at Noida while Mrs. Ranju Kapoor attended the training programme for Middle School Mathematics at Kolkata. In October, Mrs. A. Ravishankar, our Special Educationist, attended a two day course on Dyslexia and Specific Learning Difficulties organized by Times of India and Calrx Prerna. During the course of the year, Miss. S. Mason and Miss J. D’Souza completed their graduation and Miss S. Sinha completed her B.Ed.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: I especially thank all members of the Local Managing Committee, for their continued support to the College. I needs must thank Mr. Jaideep Mathur who acts as legal advisor to the college, Mr. R.N. Singh who helps us with all legal matters concerning the Provident Fund, Mr. S. Gupta who advises us regarding investments, Mr.Surendra Nath Kohli, who deals with all our Income Tax problems, Mr. Joyantu Mukherjee who ensures that our rail journeys are as comfortable as can be. I am also grateful to the members of the Hex band who come to help us out whenever needed. Today.
I thank  the four heads of department, the Bursar, my personal secretary and the Hostel Superintendent who do not just carry out their duties but work together to ensure that the college runs smoothly.!
This year Miss B. Kalra who joined our staff on 10th March 1992 completes 20 years of dedicated service. Ms Kalra is a much loved teacher as much for her problem solving prowess as her good sense of humor and down-to-earth approach. Intelligent, efficient, proficient and a ready worker, she is indeed an asset to the College.
Two of our Class IV support staff also complete 20 years of service to the College. They are Munni II and Hira Singh.     
La Martiniere Girls’ College also gives an award to an ex member of the Staff for dedicated service. This year Mrs. Shobha Mategaonkar will receive the award.
The La Martiniere Girls’ Alumni Association has instituted two lifetime achievement awards to be presented to ex members of staff from both La Martiniere Colleges in Lucknow. This year they have chosen to honour Mr. E. de Souza  and Mr. Z. Ahmed respectively.

I must also thank all our Class IV employees, without whom the school could not function. I wish to extend my thanks to all the parents and well wishers of the college. Finally, may I thank ALL the students of La Martiniere Girls' If it were not for these children we would not be here. Thank you, children, for all that you are, and all that you do, to make us proud to be associated with the name  Martiniere.
Thank you.