The role of principals in inculcating high morals and values in learners is of utmost importance. Principals are seen as moral agents and leaders within the school community. They are expected to be informed, ethical, and capable of leading the school. The current timeline demands the need for exemplary moral-based principal leadership practices to meet today’s and future challenges, as well as the importance of living morally as a basis for behavior, both inside and outside of work.
Dr. Neelima Kamrah, the Principal of KIIT World School, dedicated her life to this cause, which she believes is the greatest service. She started her journey with KIIT World School, Pitampura, Delhi, with the motto “I am a Promise, I am a Possibility,” trusting in the innate potential of every child.
Dr. Neelima served as the Vice Principal for twenty-three years, consistently working to inculcate high morals and values in learners. She received the State Award for Best Teacher, along with many national and international awards. In 2018, the KIIT group decided to bring affordable global education to Gurgaon, and she undertook the responsibility as the school principal. She has created a team where everyone together follows green practices, and as a result, the school was awarded a Gold Award for being the Green Campus with over two thousand trees, shrubs, and herbs adorning the campus.
Laying Stronger Foundations
Dr. Neelima believes that to run a successful school, there are four pillars: teachers, students, parents, and community. She has ensured that the school has a strong foundation with these pillars. Dr. Neelima is a firm believer in the power of self-improvement and has actively participated in various training and workshops in different domains, such as curriculum development, emotional safety of children, nutritional needs, anger management, gaming in learning, and POCSO training, among others.
Dr. Neelima’s extensive travel to foreign schools, colleges, and universities has given her an edge and a better understanding of the Global Curriculum. She has consciously designed the curriculum to cater to students’ specific needs, with a strong emphasis on FLN, vocational training through expert sessions and regular clubs, learner support programs, and remedial classes. Dr. Neelima’s dedication to updating herself with the latest trends in education and her commitment to the school’s success have played a significant role in its growth and development.
Dr. Neelima believes that inculcation of the right attitude and behavior has to start from a very young age. She has taken care to create spaces in school buildings that promote peace, connect students with history, develop nationalistic feelings, and make them appreciate the Vedic culture. The school has fourteen busts of Indian leaders from history who shaped the nation, a serene Yagyashala for five hundred people, gardens, and silent corners.
Creating Individual Learning Plans
Dr. Neelima believes that each student is important, and their lifecycle, including academic records, attendance, achievements, interests, and anecdotes, is maintained and studied personally by her to help teachers create an individual learning plan. Her dedication to the cause of education for more than 25 years and her commitment to creating a nurturing environment for students have played a significant role in the school’s success.
Dr. Neelima Kamrah, the principal of KIIT World School, has accomplished the massive task of bringing change in society by partnering with parents and the neighborhood community and using them as resources to take care of various needs.
She has organized a Health Camp with Medanta Hospital, ensured digital learning, and taught about financial literacy to all parents, extending this learning beyond the school’s boundaries. Dr. Neelima has fostered a collaborative environment where teachers, students, and parents work together for Swacchta Abhiyan to spread the message of cleanliness in the community.
A Staunch Leader
Dr. Neelima’s strong moral values and passion for projects in peace, harmony, and cleanliness are visible throughout the campus. Her initiatives have led the school to receive recognition at the national level, as the school became a proud recipient of the state award in four categories and the national award for Swachh School. Her dedication to the cause of education for more than 25 years, her association with various organizations, and her commitment to instilling strong moral values have significantly contributed to the school’s success.
A few other campaigns for the community were the No Cracker rally, moving towards Zero Plastic community, Rain-water harvesting in homes and schools, etc. Dr. Neelima regularly meets the Sarpanch of villages and RWA members of neighborhood societies as together, the school can work for society’s betterment. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the school program ‘Each One Feed One’ helped KIITians reach out to slums and poor neighborhood areas where people are struggling to survive, and each KIITian took the responsibility of feeding a family by offering cooked meals like Rajma Chawal along with raw food items like bags of rice, sugar, flour, jaggery, etc.
KIIT as an Integral Part of the Society
The positive changes led by the school in the community are already visible, and now more people are joining the cause. In the short stint at Gurgaon, KIIT has become an integral part of the community, and ample awards received are a testimony to all the hard work done by the team.
Dr. Neelima has been a stout Gandhian and has followed Gandhi’s principles her entire life, which have also been the guiding force behind all her initiatives.
KIIT is on a mission to achieve the following objectives:
- Maintaining high-quality academic standards by adopting the latest teaching/learning process.
- Providing students-centered academic and personal enrichment opportunities to enhance lifelong learning.
- Instilling moral and ethical approaches among students to face challenges.
- Providing the technology, infrastructure, and facilities to support teaching and learning of the highest standards.
- Following progressive and prudent development policies and practices.
- Supporting continuous professional development for faculty and staff. Create educational, business, and community partnerships.
KIIT has a vision of creating a community of connected, confident Indian global citizens. Its goal is to motivate children to learn and educate them on ‘how to learn’ with passion and curiosity. The institute wants students to gain an impetus for lifelong learning and become educated and informed leaders of the future who will collaborate, work, and create to improve the quality of life.
Maintaining Rigorous Standards
In embarking on the journey of establishing a new school, the primary challenge was to elevate it to the standards set by the best schools in the country. This involved meticulous planning, from curriculum design to infrastructure development, ensuring that KIIT not only met but exceeded the benchmarks of excellence.
KIIT navigated the difficulties of catering to diverse learners, focusing on skill set upgrades for both teachers and students. Engaging parents in their child’s educational journey became a priority, fostering a collaborative environment. Each challenge was met with strategic planning and firm dedication, ensuring the school not only met but exceeded expectations. Today, KIIT takes pride in overcoming challenges and establishing an educational institution that thrives in both academic prowess and comprehensive development.
To overcome challenges, the institute focused on two key pillars: providing world-class infrastructure and resources and delivering quality teaching through an intensive curriculum. It invested in state-of-the-art facilities, ensuring students had access to a conducive learning environment equipped with modern technology and resources.
Catering the Diverse Needs
Students have diverse learning needs, and appropriate pedagogical approaches acknowledge and address these differences. Differentiation allows educators to tailor instruction to individual students’ abilities and learning styles. For foundational language skills, the school has an expression club that provides opportunities for students to develop their oral language abilities.
They can engage in discussions, debates, hands-on experiments, music lessons, group projects, visual aids, outdoor activities, talent shows, class exhibitions, and presentations related to various topics, including numeracy concepts. This club helps students improve their vocabulary, speaking skills, and overall communication abilities. Embracing multiple intelligences ensures inclusive and personalized education, empowering students to succeed academically and beyond.
In the context of FLN, the school uses formative assessments to identify student’s specific areas of strength and weakness. Based on these assessments, the school provides targeted interventions and learning opportunities, such as small-group instruction or individualized learning plans, and remedial classes for students who cannot catch up with the pace of the classes. Counseling sessions are offered that help students resolve personal or interpersonal problems.
Group counseling helps students enhance listening and social skills, empathize with others, and find social support through healthy peer relationships. SWOT analysis is often used in the sessions that help students introspect and become more aware of their strengths and weaknesses. Students are encouraged to explore solutions, ask questions, and collaborate with peers to develop their understanding.
Strive for the Welfare of the Society
The success story of KIIT’s Yoshita Mehta- Class XI(Commerce) is truly inspiring. Last year, officials from Artemis Hospital conducted a session with KIIT students on the topic “Second Life,” explaining the need for organ donation to combat organ trafficking. This workshop deeply inspired student Yoshita Mehta to the extent that she began participating in a public awareness campaign, ‘Angdan Mahadan,’ to encourage people about organ donation.
She actively participated in an organ donation awareness event organized by Artemis Hospital. Her passion and dedication caught the attention of the National Human Welfare Council, leading to her appointment as the National Brand Ambassador for their Organ Donation Campaign. In 2023, on the occasion of National Organ Donation Day, she was elected as the brand ambassador for Orangondan by the National Human Welfare Council on December 10, 2023. Yoshita’s role as a National Brand Ambassador is a source of pride for the entire school community, showcasing the potential of young individuals to drive positive change on a national scale.
Under Dr. Neelima Kamrah’s visionary leadership, KIIT works leaps and bounds to serve society and the rural segment. Accounted with the necessity of technology in education, the institute has started a computation empowering the rural segment. It is a skill development program focused on the needs of today’s environment; rural students are assigned basic computer skills. It’s initiative to grow wheatgrass, potentially beneficial for cancer and anemia patients, is kind and appreciable.
The institute’s dedication to education extends to local schools by improving facilities and academics. In Bhondsi, they donated two lakhs for a new toilet building to a government girls’ school. This year, KIIT’s generosity reached GwalPahari in Gurgaon, where 10 Green Boards, 30 Fans, 40 Lights, and 100 Dual Desks transformed classrooms and brightened futures. They’re working together to create a brighter future, one school at a time.
Advocating for the Utilization of Technology
Dr. Neelima Kamrah envisions a future where education at the school embraces innovation, personalized learning, and technology integration. Her vision is based on current trends and discussions within the field of education. She believes that the future of education may be personalized to each student’s unique needs, interests, and aptitudes. Dr. Neelima advocates for the utilization of technology to provide personalized instruction, adaptive assessments, and personalized learning plans.
She emphasizes the importance of preparing students for a rapidly changing world by focusing on the development of critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, communication, and problem-solving skills.
Furthermore, Dr. Neelima’s vision includes a focus on equality and inclusion, which involves addressing achievement gaps, promoting diversity and inclusion, and providing targeted support to marginalized groups.
She envisions a system that promotes continuous professional development for teachers and encourages students to become self-directed learners who are adaptable and resilient. Her dedication to the cause of education for more than 25 years, her involvement in professional development programs, and her commitment to creating an inclusive and innovative learning environment have significantly contributed to the school’s success.
