“Emphasis on discipline”

After a gap of 13 years, the J. N. Tata Parsi Girls High School of Nagpur has a Parsi principal: Shanoor Mirza. The School was founded in 1920 by prominent local denizens of the community, and with financial assistance from Sir Dorab Tata. "I believe that book knowledge and exam results are not everything. Students must be encouraged to read, write and think about ‘situations’ (never use the word ‘problems’) and their solutions…A greater emphasis on discipline, on inculcating respect for elders and teachers, needs to be made,” stated Mirza in an interview with Parsiana on June 28, 2018, two days after being appointed to head the School. Earlier Parsi principals were Peroja Banaji, from 1958 to 1977 and Khursheed Masani for a year in 2005.
Armed with a bachelors degree in science from Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya, Indore, a masters in English from the same university, a diploma in homeopathy and bio chemistry, a degree in ayurveda and a masters in business administration from the Institute of Management Studies, Indore, Mirza knew little of Nagpur before she came to the city in 2002 as general manager of Automotive Manufacturers Private Limited. When she considered a change of jobs, "a friend recommended my name to Wahbeez Pithawalla, then headmistress of the primary section of the School… I was called for an interview and got selected,” noted the 53-year-old.

J. N. Tata Parsi Girls High School, inset: principal Shanoor Mirza

She started her academic career as a substitute teacher for a few classes while completing her BEd. In 2013, the School started its junior college, of which Mirza was appointed principal. "Five students appeared for the first batch of 2014,” she said. "This year 65 students appeared for their 12th class examination. New students come by word-of-mouth recommendations. Our ex-students are our best ambassadors,” she smiled.
After her years in various cities, Mirza says, "Nagpur has given me a platform for my creative abilities. I wrote for Happening Nagpur and continue to write for the English language newspapers. I was encouraged by the School to attend conferences and workshops. I got married to a fine Nagpur man, Khushru Mirza and joined a warm and welcoming family.”
The young Shanoor and her sister Khushnum Rao were boarders at Sophia Higher Secondary School in Ajmer as her father had a transferrable job in Merind, a pharmaceutical company. This led to her residing in Bombay, Poona and Indore. "My father was a strong and positive influence on me in my growing years,” she recalled. "He stressed that girls were no less that boys… That we must empower ourselves and never feel inferior to the next person.”