Prologue — Pradip Kumar Bhuyan
I wanted to write a book about Faculty (Faculty Higher Secondary School) for quite sometime now, but somehow never sat down to do so. In my nineties I told myself that I cannot procrastinate any more.
The story of Faculty started on 2nd January, 1982, when the Faculty High School was inaugurated in hired premises in front of the Rabindra Bhawan with 20 teachers — some of them inexperienced. Banti (Banti Bhuyan) helped and guided them and built an inspired team to propel the new school forward. The spirit of the school was palpable. The fledgling school in hired premises with tarza walls and basic facilities aimed high — excellent academic pursuit within the tarza walls, cultural functions in Rabindra Bhawan, sports and games in New Field (presently SAI facilities). The school treated the Rabindra Bhawan and the New Field as its extension! The school was open to ideas, yet rooted to its own culture and values.
We wanted to develop our students as per their potentialities. We aimed at academic excellence. We wanted our students to be rounded personalities who will become positive cogs of societies.
Today, Facultians are all over the world and have carved a niche for themselves. Our first batch students of 1982 responded to my request for writing about their memoirs about their school and quite a few of them have responded. Their writings are incorporated in the book. I however cannot but quote a para from these writings by an ex-student:
"The school's philosophy opened my eyes to something I hadn't fully recognised before — my own worth. For the first time, I felt truly seen and valued. The atmosphere there was more than just academic, it was warm, nurturing and full of encouragement. I felt like part of a family. Slowly but surely my confidence began to grow. I started to believe in myself, to take responsibility for my actions, and to understand what it meant to be credible and accountable."
In my book, I have recorded about the first 20 respected teachers with whom the school started its glorious journey. Also, I have recorded the names of the other teachers who joined after 1982 and within 1985. I have tried through group photos to record as many teachers as I could up to 2007 and have written their names below the pictures.
In my book about Faculty, I have recorded mostly the events of the school for the first 25 years, i.e., up to the Silver Jubilee Year of 2007. However, this cut-off date is arbitrary and has no special significance in the history of the school.
I have written about the joining of Basana Nag after her retirement from Lady Irwin H.S. School, Delhi, about the purchase of 60 bighas of school land in North Gauhati for its permanent complex, about cultural functions in Rabindra Bhawan, sports in New Field, pickle project to help the riot victims of 1983, excursions and picnics, about the shift from SEBA to CBSE Board, about the ever present financial crisis etc. Shifting of the school in 1992 to North Gauhati was an existential crisis as most guardians opposed this shifting, citing safety issues etc., and took their wards from the school. Most did not even take a Transfer Certificate. The guardians petitioned in the Court to stop the school from shifting to its permanent campus in North Gauhati. But in spite of everything, after many delays and worries, we managed to shift the school as the court gave judgment in our favour, with only 90 students in the new campus.
We dreamed of a modern school with great infrastructure. We dreamed of a green healthy school where children will inhale lots of 'oxygen' when they run about. We dreamed of great cultural functions in our open air stages. It took time but we achieved our dreams by sheer perseverance, faith and blessings from the Almighty.
Faculty was a progressive school from day one. We realized as early as 2001 that Counselling and Total Personality Development Programmes are an essential part for all round development of the students. We appointed a competent person to undertake such classes in 2001. In 2004 this responsibility was entrusted to a young professionally qualified lady — Loya Agarwala — but with no experience. Loya Agarwala gave her heart and soul and grew with her classes and today she is an acknowledged authority in her line of expertise and her UCAN touches many hearts. Students loved her from day one, over decades and immensely benefitted from her counselling and TPD classes.
We also incorporated health care issues as an integral part of education and entrusted Dr. Santonu Das with this assignment as early as 2004. Since then health examinations and teachings are an ongoing part of Faculty's education. Dr. Santonu has also grown over the years and today looks after many schools in Assam under operation Project Child.
Counselling and TPD programmes, health check-ups and teachings were new concepts in early 2002 to be incorporated in the school curriculum. The school was way ahead of time in many contemporary issues.
The visit of Dr. Bhupen Hazarika to the school in 2007 to inaugurate the Bhupen Hazarika House was an unforgettable event in the school's history. It was a day of great pride for every Facultian. I have recorded this visit in great detail in the book, pictorially.
Today, in the era of technology, in the era of instant communication, the school faces different social and psychological challenges and the school is handling these issues for quite sometime now and is geared up to meet these challenges. Under the leadership of Loya Sinha, Director, Jugal Chandra Borah, Principal, other in-charges and 114 teachers, the school has geared up to meet these challenges. The vision of the school flows uninterrupted from day one to present times through the arteries and veins of the school. The Almighty blesses us in our mission to teach our students in a holistic way. The spirit which Banti Bhuyan infused in the classrooms on day one of the school is still guiding our teachers and will do so for years to come.