Soka Ikeda College for Women Opens in India

On August 13, the Soka Ikeda College of Arts and Science for Women opened in the city of Chennai (formerly Madras) in southern India. Established through the efforts of the Indian poet and educator Dr. Sethu Kumanan, the college is presently housed at the Sethu Bhaskara Matriculation Higher Secondary School, where Dr. Kumanan is the managing trustee. 

A new campus is under construction and will be completed in 2001. At the request of Dr. Kumanan, who is the college chairman, Mr. and Mrs. Ikeda were respectively named the college’s honorary founder and honorary principal. Officially accredited by Tamil Nadu State, the Soka Ikeda College of Arts and Science for Women is attached to the University of Madras, one of India’s most prestigious centers of higher education. The Indian university, which was founded in 1857, has more than 120 colleges and a student body of some 110,000. Its newest college, the Soka Ikeda College, has five departments—computer science, mathematics, biochemistry, commercial science, and business administration; and graduates will receive diplomas from Madras University.

Addressing members of the first matriculating class, Dr. Kumanan announced the college’s three guidelines: “Be a person of compassion and wisdom who serves humanity,” “Be a person of courage and justice who contributes to society,” and “Be a person of principle and commitment who works for peace.” The educator also explained that he had named the school after Mr. Ikeda because it was the SGI leader who had inspired him to undertake this project. 

In 1998, Dr. Kumanan also constructed a new classroom building named the Dr. Ikeda Block at the Sethu Bhaskara Secondary School, and in 1999, he established the Dr. Ikeda School to provide free board and tuition for children without guardians. 

Following greetings by Soka Ikeda College Principal Padmasani Kannan, Sethu Bhaskaran, the college president and founder of the Sethu Valliammal Educational Trust, pledged his support to ensure that the school can provide the best possible education to its students. He also gave a progress report on the new campus that is being built in the suburbs of Chennai. 

Dr. S. Mohan, a former Indian Supreme Court justice and the vice president of the World Poetry Society, declared the school open. And the kuthuvilakku lamp-lighting ceremony, an Indian tradition, was officiated by Dr. S. Lakshmi, former vice-chancellor of Mother Teresa Women’s University. 

Next, Bharat (India) Soka Gakkai Vice Secretary Akashi Ouchi read a message from SGI President Ikeda, in which the SGI leader talked about the key role that women play in the construction of spiritual civilization, and expressed his hopes for the school’s development. Mr. Ikeda also presented the college with a statue of Mahatma Gandhi and a bronze plaque inscribed with the school emblem. 

Congratulatory remarks were delivered by Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti Director Dr. N. Radhakrishnan, World Poetry Society President Dr. Krishna Srinivas and others. The event, which included performances of classical music and dance, was also attended by officials representing many local high schools and colleges.

Updated on: 19th April 2008