Did you know that the Good Shepherd Convent began with just three students? The year was 1924. Six nuns arrived in Madras. Their mission? To start the school we know today.
Now, stand with me here on College Road. Look at the signboard that reads Good Shepherd Higher Secondary School. Can you feel the years melting away? Suddenly, we are transported back in time. We see the silver grille enclosure. It’s where girls lounged after school. A man sold purple hyacinths from a basket. The junior school is helmed in by a barbed wire fence and oleander bushes. Opposite, we see the ruins of an old tiled building flanking the auditorium.
At the end of the drive, a silver statue gleams. It’s the Good Shepherd. Christ is depicted as a shepherd with a staff. He carries a lamb on his shoulder. Magenta table roses bloom at its base. Further on, the sports fields beckon. Many students were taught here that she who sweats wins. The school band keeps the beat. Students fondly called girlies practice for the upcoming sports day. Some girls lie star-fished and exhausted under the copper-pod trees.
The high-pillared portico of the Good Shepherd Convent stands tall. The Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd runs the school. Saint Mary Euphrasia Pelletier founded it in France around 1829. Her goal was to provide shelter to marginalised women. By the late 19th century, the nuns travelled across continents. They established schools and houses for girls. In India, they first landed in Pondicherry. They travelled by bullock cart to Bangalore. There, they established the Sacred Heart School in 1854. Later, a hospital was added.
The Good Shepherd Convent first began in Luz. It was in a nondescript building. In 1925, it shifted to The Cloisters in Teynampet. Later, it moved to Somerford in Adyar. This was a large property overlooking the river. It had ample accommodation for students and boarders. The school supported itself by opening a small laundry. Every Monday, a cart would bring 150 labelled bundles of boys’ clothes from St Bede’s. Clean, mended clothes were sent back on Saturday. Private lessons in languages and music were given.
In October 1929, the sisters occupied the present campus. It was part of Moorat’s Gardens. There was no compound wall. Only a large house dating from East India Company days. This became the Good Shepherd Convent. When the Second World War broke out, the convent shifted to Bears Cave in Yercaud. They returned to a new convent and chapel. By 1952, they set up Marian Home for skill training. They also purchased Eccleston house. It is now among the oldest buildings on campus. Till 1973, boys were part of the junior classes. After a gap of 50 years they are back in the ICSE school.
Over the years, the Good Shepherd Convent saw a cosmopolitan mix of students. They excelled in academia, sport, medicine, law and civil service.
Today, the Good Shepherd Convent stands as a testament to dedication. It shows the enduring power of education and service. The school motto is emblazoned in red and white. It reads Age Quod Agis. Do Well All That You Do. It is a solid survival from the best years of our lives.