Outreach

General English (I and II) and AO List

Tamil dept General Tamil and NME students - Shift II

ADMISSIONS (2025-2026)

Application Portal for UG courses will be opened two days prior to the release of TN State Board Plus Two results.

From the Desk of the Dean...

One of the most important objectives of Jesuit Education is to form men-and-women-for-others; men and women who will live not for themselves alone and men and women who are completely convinced that love which does not issue justice for others is a farce. It means that those who enter through its portals will have to come out with a seasoned heart that is sensitive to the needs of the underprivileged and the disadvantaged. Mahatma Gandhiji said, "The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others" is realized through the formation in Loyola College through School of Service Learning.

Jesuit education insists on having hands-on learning in the world of the poor. On the one hand, it affirms the learning within the classrooms and on the other hand, it allows the learning to happen outside the campus - on the streets, in the substandard settlements, in the villages, among the poor and with the marginalized. Loyola, therefore, takes the students to these substandard settlements for intervention in Chennai. This immersive learning will help students towards self-discovery, inter personal relationships, team spirit and social responsibility to the disadvantaged sections in the community.

The UG students are provided an exposure to the slums to understand the stark realities of life in the slums and to reflect on the possible ways of development. The UG students are involved in 90 hours of community service work in the urban informal settlements and the PG students are engaged in the task of intervention in the rural and urban informal settlements for 90 hours. The service done by the students may not be enough to bring about a drastic change in the lives of the people in the community, but it will definitely have a profound effect on the students’ outlook and will transform their hearts and lives. Every student in Loyola learns to question the system after being with the people in the slums. This questioning is the first step towards realizing justice.

PG students are taken to the villages to learn and understand about the socio-economic conditions and the political landscape of the villages. The students are made to understand the issues related to agriculture, poverty, unemployment, migration, alcoholism, bonded-labour system, caste-discrimination and other issues pertaining to a particular village. The wrinkles on the face of a rural woman, the guileless smile of a rural child and the ruptured feet of the rural men, and all that they observe in the villages make indelible imprints in the lives of the students. Most of the students happily undergo this enriching experience and some of them, we are aware, feel coerced to undergo this training. In any case, Loyola, all the more feels that it is needed and therefore, it is responsible response made mandatory.

They are our people, our nation and our origin. We are happy here and there is someone slogging throughout day and night to ensure our happiness. We are in higher education and there is someone paying for the subsidy. As adults, we need to be aware of the reality - ‘that someone’ is giving and it pinches ‘that someone’. Therefore, service learning in Loyola is not an appendage but it is a part and parcel of our holistic education and integral formation. “Helping one person might not change the whole world, but it could change the world for one person. It’s not how much you do but how much love you put into what you do, that counts.” said Mother Teresa. Let your Light Shine!!

Introduction

The School of Service Learning (Outreach) was introduced in Loyola College during the academic year 2001-2002, with a view to make the students experience and realize the struggles and difficulties of marginalized section of our society. The idea of this extension programme is to make Loyola College students to commit themselves to create a better nation by getting involved in the neighbourhood community. With this spirit, the Service Learning department works in 43 slums (urban villages or sub-standard settlements) around the college campus.
The department has been collaborating with Chennai Corporation, Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board, the Chennai Corporation schools and like-minded NGOs and institutions in the neighbourhood ever since its inception. To make this initiative a reality, the second-year undergraduate students from all departments of both shift-I and Shift-II numbering to about 2500 students are involved in various activities. Each one has to complete 90 hours of community service. Loyola College has made this course mandatory and hence it is part of the academic curriculum

Vision, Mission and Values of the Department

Vision - To make the students Socially Responsible Citizens who are sensitive to the needs of disadvantaged sections.

Mission - To create a society with committed youth to promote Education, Health and Environment for the Less Privileged towards Holistic Empowerment.

Values - With love and concern for others, students should dedicate themselves to community service, thereby making them men and women for others.

Media

Magazines

SYLLABUS

Objectives

1. To enable the students to learn their Social Responsibility through Outreach.
2. To provide an exposure to substandard settlements and create an ambience to reflect on the possible ways of developments.
3. To learn from the people’s living experience and try to create facilities that would empower them.
4. To initiate Team processes and build Student leaders for Societal Change.
5. To make our institutions and individuals to realize our duty towards serving the neighbourhood communities.

Adopted Areas

The neighbourhood areas coverd under outreach program are the revised zones of 5, 6, 8, 9, 10 and 13 in the Corporation of Chennai. This includes urban habitants in and around Choolaimadu, Kilpauk, Chetpet, Saidapet, Chindathiripet and Koyembedu. Altogether we are rendering community services in 43 slums.

Five Areas of Priorities

1. Environment and Health
 Cleanliness
 Hygiene
 Save water
 Solid waste management

2. Child Protection and Development
 School teaching
 Evening tuitions
 Child fest

3. Youth Development
 Training on youth programmes and schemes
 Job opportunities
 Non formal education

4. Women Empowerment
 Promotion of Self Help Groups
 Revolving Fund
 Skill training for enhancing livelihood opportunities

5. Elders and Differently Abled
 Welfare activities
 Medical facilities
 Assistance in availing government schemes

This programme aims at forming men and women for others and for creating a better society. Outreach is the third dimension of higher education in Loyola College and endeavors to train the college students for bringing attitudinal changes within them.
It is a novel step in the Jesuit higher education for promoting a value-based, fraternity, equality, justice and a violence free society.
Every student is made to critically understand the society and develop critical consciousness which motivates them to serve mankind. Seasoning of the heart, Spiritual blending of the mind, pro-poor are the key areas of invisible changes to be created among the student
community.

Team Activities

Team 1: Remedial Classes in Corporation Schools
Team 2: Early Childhood Development
Team 3: Health, Sanitation and Clean Environment
Team4: Women Empowerment
Team 5: Youth Welfare
Team 6: Welfare of the Aged and Differently Abled
Team 7: Evening Tuition

Assessment: Students of UG and PG are assessed based on Regular Attendance, Special programmes/activities conducted effectively in communities, schools and college, Innovativeness/creativity, team work, leadership qualities and assignments and reports.
Evaluation: Community Based Evaluation is done with community people, local leaders, ward councillors, women SHG members and youth members. Evaluation with the staffs-in charge from the respective departments and Evaluation with Outreach professors.

Our Collaborators in Change

 Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board
 Department of School Education
 Department of Health
 Commissionarate of ICDS
 Chennai Corporation
 State Resource Centre
 Jansakthi Abiyan (Makkal Kalvi Niruvanam)
 NGOs working in Urban Community Development

Impact of the Programme

 Development of positive attitude among student community and exhibit proactive role in nation building.
 Skill development in the areas of leadership, communication, relationship, social analysis, community organisation, planning, execution, reporting, evaluation, documentation, public speaking and so on.
 Value formation in terms of transparency, accountability, answerability, identifying with the poor, marginalized and other vulnerable sections of the society.  Becoming a role model as men and women for others with Jesuit charisma.

Outreach for Post Graduates

Outreach for Post Graduates is known as LEAP which was initiated in the year 1993. Every year first year postgraduates are taken for Outreach activity to various rural areas in the districts of Kanchipuram and Thiruvallur. The main objective of taking the students is to have a feel of the outside campus reality and to strengthen the positive forces present in the area for social and cultural transformation. Every year about 400 postgraduate students representing from all the 16 PG departments visit the rural areas as part of the academic requirement.
The students are given class room orientation and then they are taken to a village where they stay in the village for five days and interact with the community, understand the dynamics of the community and present their observation of the field exposure and also plan programs for their second year outreach program. The students are given orientation on Leadership; rural dynamics at the campsite and finally social analysis is done with the students about their experience during their community visit.

Objective of Outreach Programme for PG students (LEAP):

1. To enable students to develop people oriented attitudes, and to imbibe the spirit of compassion for others.
2. To initiate team process within the students groups as well as with the public.

Outreach Programme Framework for the II year PG Students

Departing from the previous welfare activities in the past, we have introduced Rights Approach to the students. This will involve in actively supporting campaigns of urgent importance. The Right to Information Act, the Domestic Violence Prevention Act, Anti-alcoholism and drug addiction, rights of transgenders and child rights are the chosen campaigns for field testing. Hence the Outreach program mandates the students to partake in these campaigns to educate and spread the message to pursue social change.

Dynamics: In each department, if they are more than 20, Students will be divided into two teams and each team will choose a particular campaign/awareness programme and engage in it. Each team is responsible for the following actions
1. Preparation: collecting materials, knowledge generation and making things available for the program on time.
2. Establishing contact: contacting the community, schools or colleges and interacting with the leaders concerned.
3. Organizing: deciding the venue, mobilizing and financial management.
4. Input: creating awareness through rally, campaign, exhibition and also through lectures and PowerPoint presentation
5. Plan of Evaluation: It is the last step to analyze and evaluate the program.

After choosing the issue, the students will be asked to work in small groups as follows:

1. The students will be trained on a given social issue by an expert
2. Students should plan in clusters and implement the activities. The activities could be in
the form of awareness programs, theatre, games and other creative forms of spreading the message.
3. The work area will be determined by the Outreach coordinators.
4. Outreach hours will be given based on their performance