General Cariappa Higher Secondary School 

 Established 1956

Gen. Cariappa School is one of the earliest educational initiatives of the Guild of Service. It was declared open by the then President of India, late Dr. Rajendra Prasad in 1956.  It was initially started to cater to the educational needs of the institutionalised children from the Seva Samajam Boys Home. The school upgraded to a High School in 1972 and attained the status of a Higher Secondary School in 1989.

Most of the students at the Gen Cariappa Hr Sec School are first generation school goers from Below Poverty Line (BPL) families. Many students work part time to supplement their family income along with their studies.

Gen. Cariappa Hr. Sec School is the only school in Tamil Nadu offering six different vocational subjects at the Higher Secondary level. This facilitates the students in getting immediate employment after completing school. These courses are

• Basic automobile engineering
• Basic Mechanical engineering
• Basic Civil engineering
• Basic Electronics engineering
• Basic Electrical engineering
• Management and Secretaryship.

These courses were introduced in 1989 and over 4700 students have taken these subjects till date. Despite personal and financial challenges, many students have pursued higher education 24% of the students have graduated as engineers and 33% as diploma holders.

The school is well recognised for meritorious students from poor financial backgrounds topping the State in the Higher Secondary examinations.

Most alumni are well placed in the industry or are self employed and have managed to break the cycle of poverty. Many of them return to the school and give back by way of mentoring students or through donations in kind or paying fees of needy students.

Extra-curricular activities

Apart from academics, the school offers a host of co-curricular and extra-curricular activities for the students to develop a well-rounded personality.

• The school has a very active NCC NSS, NGC (National Green Corps), Road Safety Patrol, Student Police Cadet, Junior Red Cross and NSS Scouts wings.
• A R Foundation (Founded by A R Rahman) conducts music classes for selected students
• Life skills classes are regularly conducted so that the students are ready to step into the world
• Environment education is conducted through partner NGOs and students are taught to make seed balls which are given to them to plant near their homes
• Robotics sessions are conducted for the students by volunteers.
• Training is provided by volunteers for the National Science Olympiad and this has helped many students develop interest in STEM courses.
• Sports - Special coaching is conducted for students in specific sports. This has helped the students win medals at State, District and Zonal level competitions.
  • Athletics
  • Kabaddi
  • Kho-Kho
  • Throwball

Yoga is practised during the school assembly every morning.

Counselling and Guidance

Group and individual counselling are conducted on a regular basis for the students as well as some parents, by qualified counsellors.

Sivamanikandan S, an alumnus of General Cariappa Hr. Sec. School, passed out in 2018. He joined the school in Class 9 and believes the school played a very crucial role in shaping his life by teaching him not only academic lessons but life lessons too. The teachers’ encouragement to excel and their guidance made him select Meenakshi Sundararajan Engineering College from where he completed Bachelor of Engineering in Computer Science and Engineering.

He is presently working with ZOHO Corporation as a Software Developer and is well settled.

Janani S. was the youngest of 3 siblings and life was hard for her and her family. Her father worked as a security guard and her mother worked at an export company.

She joined GOS Gen Cariappa HR Sec School in Class 8 and was a diligent student. She topped the School in HSC. She was however clueless about what to do with her life. In her words, “my school helped me during the most important stage of my life when I had no idea how to proceed further for my higher studies. Considering my family background my school gave me an opportunity to study my undergraduate degree at Agni College of Technology with full scholarship.”

Janani adds, “now I am a B.E. Civil Engineering graduate, and I am working as a mapping engineer in EDR Private Limited. The discipline and value learnt from my school, is the foundation of my success. My experience in school made me what I am today. I will never forget where I am from. It’s essential to remain humble to keep evolving. I thank all my teachers and my school for lifting me up in my life.”

1. Velmani did not let his circumstances hold him back. His father is a daily wage earner and his mother works in an export company.

Velmani knew that education was the way out of his circumstances. He was a hardworking student and stood 3^rd in school in SSLC and topped the school in HSC. SRM University’s  Ramapuram Campus felicitated him for his achievements and gave him "AWARD FOR ACHIEVERS".

His oratorical skills in Tamil are excellent. The school identified him and helped to explore his talents. Independence Day & Republic Day celebrations would not be complete without his speeches. He won many prizes at the district and state level. He is an excellent villupattu singer and the song he sang against drug abuse is still talked about till date.

Velmani is pursuing B.A. in Political Science from Presidency College and is preparing for the UPSC examination. His aim is to become an IAS officer.

B.A. Nithya along with her siblings passed out of GOS Gen Cariappa Hr Secondary School. Their father is a carpenter and mother is a housewife. Nithya received the IGNITE Scholarship which helped her complete her B.Sc. in Mathematics from St. Joseph's College of Arts and Science, Chennai. She went on to pursue her M.Sc in Mathematics from Madras University. Today, she is working in Chennai Central Co-operative Bank Ltd.