In 1996, Holy Mary Group established the first MCA college in South India at Jubilee Hills which was later moved to SR Nagar.

Hyderabad :

Holy Mary Group of Institutions Secretary Dr Arimanda Vijaya Sarada Reddy speaks on her journey thus far in the field of education, the laurels won, and her message for youthIt takes a long hard road to make it to the top. Through ups and downs, Arimanda Vijaya Sarada Reddy, the Secretary of Holy Mary Group of Institutions, shines bright. “Along with my husband Arimanda Vara Prasad Reddy, I had set up Nalanda Vidyalaya High School way back in 1985, after a lot of struggle,” she says. The school went on to achieve successive state ranks, Pratibha Awards and many other recognitions.

Her interest in teaching began from her schooling days. Her educational qualifications look impressive – PhD in management studies from JNTU Hyderabad, BA, MA from Osmania University, BEd from Andhra University, MEd from Sri Venkateswara University (SVU), MS (Psychology) from University of Madras, MS (Counselling and Psychotherapy) from Kuvempu University, MPhil (Psychology) from SVU, MBA from IIM Bangalore, certifications from Dale Carnegie.

Training – the list goes on. 
What was the reason behind her obtaining so many degrees? “I am passionate about teaching and learning. And I am a hands-on person who believes in mingling with students to know them better. In order to know what is being taught to MBA students, I enrolled for the course. Similarly, to interact with students and understand their feelings, I did Psychology courses,” she says matter-of-factly. She also adds, “I always update myself  with new ideas and technology.  The basic nature of mine is continuous learning and as a result I am updated.  I try to introduce the same to my students.”

In 1996, Holy Mary Group established the first MCA college in South India at Jubilee Hills which was later moved to SR Nagar. They now offering MBA courses too. The group established engineering colleges in Hyderabad and Guntur in the year 2000. In 2011, Dr Arimanda Vijaya Sarada Reddy took part in a ‘Women in Leadership’ in-house programme at IIM Bangalore. She was one among 26 aspirants across the country and the only one from the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh.

“It was a wonderful experience interacting with industry leaders like ICICI MD Chanda Kochhar, politicians such as former Delhi CM Sheila Dixit, MP Daggubati Purandeswari, Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu and others. The course focussed on the nitty-gritty of politics. As part of the coursework, we went to Singapore to study how their leaders function, how Parliament proceedings happen, etc. It was a hectic but rewarding experience, during which I had learned a lot,” she reminisces. 

She is the only woman from India to take part in a UN conference on ‘Global Problems and Local Solutions’ organised by Geneva Institute for Leadership and Public Policy in 2013. And she represented India at the ‘WEConnect International Day’, a business-oriented meet held in Philadelphia, US in 2014.

“I joined Confederation of Women Entrepreneurs (COWE) as a member, and was elected unanimously as its Chairperson in 2014. I helped organise various empowerment sessions to women and contributed to their growth,” she adds.

How about the support given by her family? “My husband supported me a lot. In the late 90s, he left his Central government job at MIDHANI to assist me. He gave constructive criticism, which helped me grow. Without his feedback, I would not be here today,” she says humbly.

A Dale Carnegie certified Train the Trainer, Dr Arimanda Vijaya Sarada Reddy takes sessions on soft skills such as goal setting, time management, positive attitude, among others. Over her decades-long career, she has  helped thousands of students achieve their potential. As part of official engagements, she has toured many countries in Asia, Europe, Middle East, etc.

Within the country, she organised skill development and entrepreneurship programmes for women, distributed uniforms and notebooks to schoolchildren, held stress management workshops for Police personnel and many other sessionsAny words of wisdom for youth? “Keep a goal for each year and try to achieve it in the same year. If I face problems in this process I will try to sort things out but will never turn back. So I say only two things – be goal-oriented and try to be a continuous learner,” she says with a smile.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by Express News Service / March 08th, 2019