Thirty delegates from 13 Jesuit colleges and two universities across north and northeast and from Nepal congregated at the Matigara campus of North Bengal St Xavier’s College for the national conference of the Jesuit Higher Education Association of South Asia (JHEASA), North Zone.
The two-and-a-half-day conference, held from 14 to 16 November, focused on ‘Educational Leadership in the Light of Reimagining and Restructuring of the Society of Jesus in South Asia’. Sub-themes included ‘Challenges and Trends in Higher Education in India and the Jesuit Responses’ and ‘Updates on the New NAAC Valuation Methodology and an Overview of the NIRF Ranking Process and Preparation’, said sources.
The conference opened with an inaugural address by Fr Shajumon C.K., SJ, the provincial superior of the Darjeeling–Nepal Jesuit Province, followed by the keynote speech delivered by Fr Dominic Savio, SJ, the principal of St Xavier’s College (autonomous), Calcutta, and the national secretary of JHEASA.
The event was coordinated by Fr Augustine Thomas, SJ, the principal of St Xavier’s College (Kathmandu, Nepal) and the coordinator for all north zone Jesuit colleges, along with Fr Lalit P. Tirkey, SJ, the principal of North Bengal St. Xavier’s College.
The vice-chancellors, principals, and deans from several institutions, including St Xavier’s College (Calcutta), St Xavier’s College (Jaipur), St Joseph’s College (Darjeeling), St Xavier’s University (Calcutta), and St Xavier’s University (Patna), were present.
Fr Praveen Martis, the vice-chancellor of St Aloysius (deemed to be a university) in Karnataka, provided insights on ‘The Methodology and Format for the Audit of the Jesuit Higher Education Ministry in South Asia’.
“It was an important event where senior academicians discussed various perspectives of higher education, while considering new developments in evaluation and rankings of Jesuit institutions,” said a source.