Rajni Kumar (born Nancie Joyce Margaret Jones; 5 March 1923 – 11 November 2022) was a British-born Indian

educationist Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Var ...

and the founder of Springdales Group of Schools. She was the recipient of the

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is confe ...

, the

Government of India The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

's fourth highest civilian award, in 2011.

Biography

Kumar was born Nancie Joyce Margaret Jones on 5 March 1923 in London, United Kingdom. She graduated from the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 mill ...

in 1941, married a fellow student, Yudhishter Kumar, at the age of 23, moved to India and took up the Indian name Rajni. In 1950, she joined a local school, Salwan Girls School, as its Principal and worked there until 1955. During this period, she joined the

National Federation of Indian Women The National Federation of Indian Women is a women's organisation in India, the women's wing of the Communist Party of India. It was established in 1954 June 4 by several leaders from Mahila Atma Raksha Samiti including Aruna Asaf Ali.Overstre ...

in 1953 as one of its founder members. In 1955, Kumar started her own school, Springdales School, as a kindergarten in the living room of her house. The institution has, over the years, grown to four schools in India and one in Dubai and is reported to have over 6000 students in its rolls. Kumar was the chairperson of the

Lady Irwin College Lady Irwin College is a constituent college of the University of Delhi. Established in 1932, it is a women's college located in New Delhi, India, and offers graduate courses in Food Technology as well as graduate and post-graduate courses in H ...

and vice president of National Bal Bhavan. She took part in the Global Peace Conferences in Geneva and the World Congress for the Rights of Children in Moscow. After her retirement in 1988, Kumar was involved with the Springdales Education Society as its chairperson. She was also associated with the Delhi Schools Literacy Project, an initiative under the

National Literacy Mission National Education Mission (Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan) was launched in 2018. It was allocated a budget of in 2019 Interim Union Budget of India. Samagra Shiksha is an overarching programme for the school education sector extending from pre-school ...

. Kumar was felicitated by the Government of South Africa on the

International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is a global holiday list of minor secular observances#March, celebrated annually on March 8 as a focal point in the women's rights, women's rights movement, bringing attention to issues such as gender equality, ...

in 2005. A recipient of the ''Gr8! Women Award'', Kumar was honoured by the

in 2011 with the fourth highest Indian civilian award of

. In 2012, she was awarded the Order of the Companions of O. R. Tambo (Silver) by the Government of South Africa. Kumar died on 10 November 2022, at the age of 99.

Published works

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kumar, Rajni 1923 births 2022 deaths 20th-century Indian educational theorists 20th-century Indian women scientists 20th-century women educators Alumni of the London School of Economics British emigrants to India Founders of Indian schools and colleges Heads of schools in India Indian philanthropists Indian women educational theorists Indian women philanthropists Recipients of the Order of the Companions of O. R. Tambo Recipients of the Padma Shri in literature & education People from London

Biography

Published works

See also

References