The St. Joseph’s Boys High School, in partnership with the Joy Thomas Foundation (JTF) and Learn for Life Foundation (LFL) have come together to fund and launch the Loyola Technology Center (LTC).  LTC is an innovative lab run by a stellar team of school faculty and global alumni mentors to inspire students to explore STEM topics outside of the traditional classroom environment. The lab has a fully defined curriculum and is equipped with kits like oscilloscopes, soldering stations, desktops, Arduino sensors, and small easy to build cardboard models.



The Joy Thomas Foundation was created in 2020 to honor the life and legacy of the late Dr. Joy Thomas, a distinguished alumnus of St. Joseph’s Boys’ High School and an Indian-American STEM genius. JTF’s mission is to uplift underserved students and their families through impactful STEM careers. JTF, LFL  and the newly launched LTC at SJBHS  are collaborating to level the playing field for underprivileged students at both urban and rural schools across Karnataka, by providing them with access to a world-class STEM learning environment.

Global network of alumni mentors help level the playing field across urban and rural students in Karnataka

The various programs and workshops introduce students to a wide variety of complex concepts in sciences and math like Newton’s laws, fractions, geometry, pythagoras theorems, electrical circuits and more. Students learn these concepts through teachings built upon an underlying theme such as aquaponics, Indian forts, rescue operations, or the environment, to name a few.

Since June 2022, over 3000 students from multiple schools have visited the lab. Students have already spent over 10,000 minutes on the lab’s Math IXL program.

With a focus on executive functioning skills that encourages independent thinking, and self-directed projects, students are invited to assume responsibility for their own learning, irrespective of their grades at the school. They are encouraged to question, conduct their own experiments, and build their own knowledge, rather than be passive rote learners. Students have opportunities to hang out and tinker in the Lab during lunch, after school, and during the holidays. A student-driven independent daily practice math program serves 150 students from St. Joseph’s and sister schools. 20 students from grades 7 through 10 have already joined in-school club programs.

“LTC provides a level playing field for students from underprivileged backgrounds. With opportunities to develop a deeper sense of self, and explore potential STEM career paths, students are nurtured and exposed to the needs and demands of fast growing STEM industries and careers in technology”, said Asha Sundarrajan,  High School STEM program Lead at JTF. 

Another unique aspect of the program is JTF’s global network of top-tier talent in math, engineering, technology and sciences, who are dedicated to inspiring the next generation of STEM students, researchers and entrepreneurs. Recent workshops at the LTC were led by leading faculty including Thomas Phillips, a retired professor of finance at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering, Shashi Lewis and Dr. Sujatha Ramadorai, an eminent Indian Mathematician.

“The Learn for Life Foundation is honored to partner with SJBHS and the Joy Thomas Foundation. The LTC is the first of its kind across the country, and we look forward to growing and building on this partnership with JTF, to reach and serve more students, especially in rural districts and communities across Karnataka”, said Thomas Thekkethala, Founder, LFL.

“The SJBHS faculty, staff and students are excited and deeply appreciative of our partnership with the Joy Thomas Foundation and Learn for Life Foundation to realize this vision of an innovative STEM Lab at our school. We commend them on the focus on serving those less fortunate, a core tenet of everything we do at SJBHS. The Lab is already making an impact, and we cannot wait to experience new innovations and discoveries from our students in the coming years. At the LTC, students are encouraged to research and innovate; to let their curiosity flower into ideas which bring value to society.” said Father Sunil Fernandes, Principal, SJBHS.

The Joy Thomas Foundation and Learn For Life Foundation invite STEM educators, donors and mentors to learn more about this unique program. We also welcome corporate sponsors, non-profits, and alumni to partner with us and launch additional LTC STEM Labs at urban and rural schools across Karnataka and India. 

The Loyola Technology Center  at St Joseph' s Boys' High School was inaugurated by the Hon  Governor of Karnataka Shri Thawarchand Gehlot in December 2022.