Sacred Heart Girls' PU College

Education was the motto of Mother Thattipatri Gnanamma who lived in 1870s.The orgin of St. Anne’s congregation is traced back to 19th Century in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It was founded by Thatipatri Gnanamma, an ordinary lay woman who hailed from Phirangipuram, a small village in Guntur District, Andhra Pradesh. She was given in marriage to Innaiah, and this pious couple was blessed with five sons. Unfortunately, she became a widow at the age of 37. Four of her sons joined the religious life and one son settled down in family life. Freed at last from all family commitments, Gnanamma moved to a village called Kilacheri, 40 kms from Chennai and lived there till her death. During her time, the education of young girls was an impossible dream. Gnanamma kept constantly in touch with the illiterate girls in the locality and identified education as a principal means of empowering them. Fr. Arokianathar, the parish priest of Kilacheri, helped her to reflect concretely and go ahead with founding a school for girls in Kilacheri in 1863. Inspired by the committed service to the cause of women, two young girls requested Mother Gnanamma to let them help her in her an awe inspiring work and even expressed their desire to do as nuns. She gladly agreed and sent them to Bellary for formation. After their initial formation, these two became nuns on 04.10.1874 and thus a religious congregation known as “Society of Sisters of St. Anne-Madras” (SSAM) was born with a specific vision to empower women through education. Sacred Heart Girls’ PU College is one of the branches of SSAM.