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All these programs are monitored by the mentors and reports are submitted in the
prescribed outreach diary to the director of the Centre. In the case of the postgraduate
students, a member of the faculty from the department accompanies them.
Thus the program organized by the Outreach Centre goes beyond the classroom and
strengthens experiential learning.

Evidence of Success - Provide evidence of success such as performance against
targets and benchmarks, review results. What do these results indicate? Describe
in about 200 words.

The target was that all students who join the College must engage with social realities
and to temporarily share the lives of the underprivileged. It was envisaged that such
an engagement would be transformative and create a resolve in the students to combat
the inequities of the prevailing social order. Feedback from students and the
accompanying teachers has been overwhelmingly positive, indicating significant
success in reaching the target. The assessment showed that work was done as
planned.
The positive outcome of the program strengthens the hope that students thus
transformed would become potent agents of positive social change in their lives as
citizens. If such efforts are adopted on a pan-India scale, the prognosis for a robust
civil society will truly look bright.

Problems Encountered and Resources Required Please identify the problems
encountered and resources required to implement the practice (in about 150
words).

The Outreach Program did encounter a few challenges at its inception. Many students
and parents expressed apprehension and so did the faculty members. After detailed
explanations and clarifications on the safety and nature of work, the program began
running smoothly without any major setbacks. However, those helping the traffic
police in directing traffic have occasionally been questioned by motorists about their
authority for such a role. Mobilizing the entire College is a challenge, and being
sensitive to students‘ perceptions and problems during these activities requires more
training. Providing adequate transportation for all students has been a challenge as
more than 100 students at a time are sent for field work. Finding time out of regular
classes has taken effort and has been challenging. Nevertheless, the resources required
are available with the College and hence the hurdles could be overcome.

B. Title of the Practice: The Josephite Research Forum

What are the objectives/intended outcomes of this “best practice” and what are
the underlying principles or concepts of this practice (in about 100 words)?

The Josephite Research Forum was set up with the objective of promoting research
among faculty and students by providing seed funding and by framing policies
conducive to the pursuit of research. Its primary objective is to engage undergraduate
students in discussions pertaining to questions in science and humanities and to
conceptualize short-term research projects that are interdisciplinary in nature. The
forum calls for, and funds, student research proposals under the mentorship of faculty
from all disciplines relevant to the project. It also aims at generating

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