“Do not go where the path may lead; instead, go where there is no path and leave a trail.”

St. Joseph’s Sr. Sec. School, Chandigarh, has always been a school, teaching its children to be a part of the change and leave a trail for people to follow. In yet another unique endeavour, the school, being the only school out of the Tricity, successfully completed the six-month-long programme named Personality Development Centre (PDC) for the desired personality of an entrepreneur for schools, designed by ERDC in collaboration with IIT Ropar, NITTTR, PEC, PU Chandigarh, and CBSE.

The programme, led by Mr. Chetan Sahore, was conducted to promote entrepreneurship and enlighten the entrepreneurial spirit amongst school students in collaboration with the esteemed educational institutions that concluded today at Panjab University, Chandigarh.

The 7 participating schools, along with their 115 students, stood witness to the PDC’s Shark Tank, where the budding entrepreneurs pitched their out-of-the-box ideas to win the competition. Team St. Joseph’s presented their product, Dr. Shine, and won accolades for its eco-friendly, pocket-friendly, and effective utility.

The competition between 14 teams was adjudged by a team of two esteemed judges, including Mr. Gurmukh Singh Thakur, Director at Giaplus Medical Private Limited, and Mr. Parvesh Chandel, an eminent author, speaker, and poet. Mr. Parminder Singh Goldy, Chairman, Punjab Youth Development Board, was the guest of honour.

The school principal, Mrs. Monica Chawla, was honoured with a special award for her wholehearted involvement not only in the six-month programme but also in the 5-day residential bootcamp held at NITTTR, Chandigarh. She was the only principal out of the seven participating schools in North India to be acknowledged and awarded for her immense contribution to the bootcamp as a resource person and as an organiser.

Mr. Chetan and his team were full of praise for the two mentor teachers, Ms. Rubyna Sharma and Ms. Davinder Kaur, for their tireless efforts in contributing their time and ideas, and they honoured both of them with trophies and certificates. Harsimrat Singh and Ranveer Singh, the two participants out of a team of 28 school students, won cash prizes of Rs. 2000 each on the closing day, along with a participation certificate for each participant.

The PDC concept included six topics, starting with the basics of entrepreneurship, idea generation, business plans, funding and revenue models, legalities involved in entrepreneurship, and pitching the idea.

All the above-mentioned topics were covered with three activities for each topic, the first being a lecture at school, followed by a workshop at the partner institute, and various rounds of competition both online and offline. Students of the school have proved their mettle in every competition with their diligence, perseverance, and single-minded approach.

Students got a golden opportunity to meet and interact with various dignitaries such as Director IIT-Ropar, Prof. (Dr.) Rajeev Ahuja; Prof. (Dr.) Devinder Singh, Chairperson Department of Laws, Panjab University; and Adv. Suvir Sidhu, Chairman Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana; Mr. Vineet Joshi, Chairman, Joshi Foundation; Ex State Secretary, BJP, Pb; Ex Media Advisor; and Mr. Arun Singh Thakur, Assistant Professor, University Institute of Hotel and Tourism Management, in addition to other enlightened speakers along with the visit to their esteemed institutions where students got a chance to explore the infrastructure of the institutes and interact with budding entrepreneurs at various incubation centres .

The school principal, Ms. Monica Chawla, remained a guiding light for the chosen team. Quoting couplets from Robert Frost’s renowned poem “I took the one less travelled by, and that has made all the difference.” She said that students must be provided with wings to explore and minds to think beyond the conventional to ensure their lives are exemplary ones for people to seek learning from.

She thanked the members of the school management for their endeavours to empower the young learners of today by providing them with such learning opportunities.

She thanked Mr. Chetan Sahore for his special idea to bring about a positive change in society by ensuring a task force of job creators rather than just job seekers.

The management members, Mr. Sukhdeep Singh and Mr. Paramdeep Singh, who inspired the team, said that the school has always laid the foundation for a better society and took NEP 2020 principles with the utmost dedication and sincerity, ensuring their complete adaptability. The schools’ involvement with naive programmes like PDC is proof of the same. They thanked parents for trusting the school programmes and strengthening the bond with trust and support. They also assured them that the school will continue to partner with many such organisations to ensure holistic development for every student at the school.

If you’re walking down the right path and you’re willing to keep walking, eventually you’ll make progress. Barack Obama.