The Sankara Schools, and indeed the world of school education, suffered a grievous loss on 7 July 2012 when its Managing Trustee VS Dhandapani, a lawyer by qualification, a businessman by profession, and an educationist with compassion and commitment, passed away.
Born on 27 June 1932 at Coimbatore, Dhandapani was a successful entrepreneur known for his integrity and ethical practices.
One of the founder directors of Durametallic India Ltd, the first joint venture of Sanmar Engineering, he played a key role in The Sanmar Group, especially during its early years.
Dhandapani took over as Managing Trustee of the Sri Sankara Schools in 1978 and provided them with exemplary leadership, devoting himself to the development of both the schools. While he was a true mentor to the principals and staff of the schools, students and parents loved and respected him too, for his compassionate ways, ready wit, and his ability to resolve complex issues with a pragmatic approach.
As an ardent educationist, he cherished the dream that the Sankara Schools should be model institutions with outstanding infrastructure and educational facilities.
The tributes the Principals of the Sankara Schools have paid their mentor follow.
I was most privileged to have interacted with Mr VS Dhandapani ever since my promotion as Principal of Sri Sankara Vidyashramam in the year 2000. A constant source of inspiration and motivation, he always encouraged me to take up new initiatives which would enhance the image of Sri Sankara Vidyashramam and improve the overall efficiency of the staff. I found him to be an intensely passionate, intellectually curious person. For him no detail was small in its significance and he would delve into the most intricate aspects of any knotty issue with the aim to offer befitting solutions. He was a picture of confidence and composure and ever ready to extend a helping hand with a genial smile. His sincerity of purpose and tenacity of commitment will always remain unparalleled. I saw his focus and determination firsthand; his passionate commitment was matched by practical understanding of what needed to be done to achieve set objectives. Mr Dhandapani was an icon and visionary with exemplary farsightedness. Under his guidance, Sri Sankara Vidyashramam has made rapid progress and emerged as one of the most preferred schools in Chennai. We owe it to him in full measure for what we are today. His cherished dream was that Sri Sankara Vidyashramam should always be the “The School” for best in class infrastructure and education. Though he is not in our midst today, his dream will never die. His legacy will live on….. We will leave no stone unturned in our effort to make his dream come true! Kalpalatha Mohan, |
Sri VS Dhandapani had been my mentor since I assumed office as Principal of Sri Sankara in 2004, a rare privilege I enjoyed. He had an aura about him at once overwhelming and benevolent. He had encyclopaedic knowledge and we greatly benefitted by it. He had a vision for the school. He wanted every child walking into the school to be happy and stress-free. He believed in an egalitarian academic atmosphere and strongly felt that the school had to be a realistic part of society. The safety and security of children in the campus were his utmost concern, and he appreciated teachers for their sincerity of purpose in nurturing a child. No issue in the school was insignificant to him. He set exacting standards of work and was constantly raising the bar which is evident from the fact the Sri Sankara is reckoned as one of the best schools in the city. He encouraged extracurricular activities along with sound academics, which he felt were essential for the overall development of the student. Sri Dhandapani firmly believed that ‘brevity is the soul of wit' and lived by what he felt. Behind his reserved and serious appearance was a very compassionate human being. He was and will continue to be the guiding spirit of the institution. Subala Ananthanarayanan, |