St. Xavier's High School, Vile Parle

St. Xavier's High School and Junior College
Address
Church Road, Vile Parle West Mumbai, Maharashtra, 400056 India
Coordinates	19.099377, 72.842586
Information
Religious affiliation(s)	Christianity
Denomination	Roman Catholic
School board	Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education
Principal	Mrs. Vera Fernandes
Affiliation	Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education

St. Xavier's High School & Junior College, formerly called St. Xavier's High School, is a Catholic school located in the Mumbai Suburban district in Vile Parle West.

The school & Junior College caters to pupils from kindergarten up to class 12 and the medium of instruction is the English language. The school is affiliated to the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education, Pune, which conducts the annual Board Exams namely the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examinations and the Higher Secondary School Certificate (HSC) examinations at the close of class 10 and class 12 respectively.

History

It is generally believed that the school started functioning in the early 1890s, some claim it started in 1837 under a banyan tree that still stands inside the educational institution’s campus. Near the level crossing on the western side, St Xaviers church was established in 1868 which saw the commencement of the school. The opening of this school was done by St Vincent de Paul societies Parish Conference.

School life

School flag and shield

The emblem of St. Xavier High School is a shield with a torch in the centre, olive branches on either side and the words "For God and Country" listed on the top of the shield. A banner at the bottom emblazons the motto of the school - "Truth Duty Charity" at the bottom. The school flag is the aforementioned emblem in white, on a cobalt blue background.

Motto, school song and school hymn

The Motto of the school is "Truth Duty Charity".

House system

The objective of the house system is to foster a sense of collective responsibility and solidarity amongst students. The house system also serves as the centre of school life, with students from different houses often competing at sports and other co-curricular activities.

There are four school houses, viz. – Blue, Green, Red, Yellow.

Culture

SXHS is a cosmopolitan school. The school imparts Christian values to the children. The Christmas Concert is celebrated every December and is a three-day event. A sports meet and a farewell party for students who are passing out of the institution are also held annually. Inter-house competitions are held in elocution, drama, debating etc.

Governance

The school employs the prefect system for governance. A different set of prefect are selected for the primary and secondary section.

Student office-bearers - Secondary Section

A Chief-Prefect and a Deputy Chief-Prefect are selected from amongst the students of class 10 by the Principal upon recommendation by the faculty. Additionally, General House Commanders (GHC) and Sports House Commanders (SHC),one for each house, are also selected. A team of prefects is also selected from the students of class 9. These prefects wear the same uniform, with passants, but the uniform colour is white. Additionally to identify the prefects they are provided with Epaulettes which indicates their position. The Chief-Prefects lose their house and their tie bears colours from all four houses. The ten office bearers wear a sash on special school occasions. A formal investiture ceremony is conducted where the outgoing student office-bearers hand over their charge to the new office-bearers.

Student office-bearers - Primary Section

A team of prefects are selected from amongst the students of class 4 by the Principal upon recommendation by the faculty. The prefects are identified by their white uniforms and their epaulets.