Pioneer of international schools in Bengaluru

anne Warrior headed a few schools from 1967 onwards before she joined the American School in Bengaluru

At a time when the term “International School” was hardly known in Bengaluru, a humble beginning aimed at imparting traditional, yet world class school education was made on June 20, 1984, with the setting up of the Mallya Aditi International School (MAIS).

The school set the stage for the emergence of many more such schools in the coming years. A pioneer figure in the starting of the school, that has over the years ranked amongst the best in the country, was Anne Warrior. Born and educated in England, Anne came to India soon after marriage to an officer in the Indian bureaucracy.

Although she started her teaching career in her home country, she quickly got immersed in trying to impart best teaching practices to school students in India. Mrs Warrior headed a few schools from 1967 onwards before she joined the American School, Bengaluru, later known as the Bangalore International School in 1972. It catered to expatriate students only. This was where the spark for setting up MAIS was ignited.

Writing on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the school in 2009, Mrs Warrior, said: “In 1982, Bangalore had a number of schools. One of them was the Bangalore International School.

I was principal of the school at the time and had been fortunate enough to recruit some of the most amazing teachers (These were the teachers who would later on become the first faculty at MAIS.) It seemed unfair that our Bangalore children were denied the sort of education that was being delivered in the school and so the idea of setting up a school open to all was born.”

The growth

Soon the Ujwal Trust was formed, comprising like-minded educators to start the school. Taking one back to the beginnings of this endeavor in the 80s, Dr Geetha Narayanan, co-founder, MAIS and director, Srishti College of Art and Design and Technology that was also started in 1996 under the trust, said: “During the early 80s, there was a heavy presence of convent schools and there was a need to do something contemporary, something that was Indian and which was international at the same time.

There were a number of challenges that we faced as we did not come from affluent families. We were basically teachers who had to fight and finally set up world class institutions.”

The journey from a building at Palace Cross Road to the lush campus in Yelehanka, has been a story of many twists, turns and triumphs against all odds.

The lifelong educationist that she was, Anne continued to visit the school long after her retirement. Yvonne Edwards, administrative assistant at MAIS, who once worked with Anne in Bangalore International School recalls: “She would visit the school even after her retirement and sometimes read poetry to students, besides getting involved in other activities.”

The cherry tree became symbolic to MAIS and in a way it signifies the journey that was undertaken by a group of people with nothing but will.

“When the school shifted to Bellary road, classes ran under cherry trees in thatched huts. It is symbolical of the fact that one does not need a lot, either infrastructure and money, as long as there are good teachers,” added Dr Geetha.

 “Anne was very young when she came to India. However, she grew to love its culture while keeping her English roots at the same time. She was a global citizen long before the term came into existence,” said Tara Chandavarkar, another co-founder of the school and long time associate of Mrs Warrior.

Mrs Anne Warrior passed away at the age of 82 on January 30, 2015. She is survived by three sons.