ABOUT US

St. Ephrem's Higher Secondary School, Mannanam is owned by St. Joseph's Monastery. This monastery belongs to St. Joseph's Province,Thiruvanthapuram, of the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate (CMI) religious congregation.

This school is the first ever venture of the CMIs in the field of education. Setting a model for and enlarging the educational activities initiated by the establishment of Sanskrit school by Blessed Kuriaskose Elias Chavara in 1846 and the informal Anglo-Vernacular school started in 1874 by Rev. Fr. Kuriakose Eliseus Porukara, the Carmelite fathers started in 1885 an Enlish School at Mannanam, the first Catholic School of Kerala, under the leadership of Fr. Gerard T.O.C.D. On September 13, 1890 this school was recognized by the Madras Government as the Mannanam Convent Middle School. In 1892, the Mannanam school was named St. Ephrem's Middle School and in 1903 it became St. Ephrem's High School. In the year 1998 this school became St. Ephrem's Higher Secondary School. It is a co-education school.

The school was christened as St. Ephrem's High School. St. Ephrem was an Eastern Syriac Poet and a genious in Christian Spirituality. The meaning of the word 'ephrem' is fruitful or growing. The founding fathers proposed this name with the thought that this school should become the abode of good fruits.

Location: The school is situated on Mannanam hills 10 k.m. north-west of Kottayam and 150 feet above the sea level. This is ajacent to the famous church where the tomb of Blessed Kuriakose Elias Chavara is venerated. It is also the birth place of the first indigenous religious congregation for men of the Catholic
Church known as CMI.