The Emmaus Swiss Hospital School at Palamaner was founded by Mrs. Kathleen Jacob in June 1986 with an aim to build a brighter future through education for the children of the underprivileged and to foster a degree of independence in them. In the beginning, Mrs. Kathleen Jacob started with only 25 children who were 3 years of age including the children of Emmaus Hospital staff, the leprosy patients, the elite of Palmaner town and a few children from the surrounding farming community.

The Emmaus Swiss Hospital School has long recognized that its knowledge and resources must be made available to the community at large and dedicated to improving the lives of disadvantaged people. The first class room was in the Emmaus Swiss Hospital auditorium and it was only after the acquisition of a land 3 years later, a successful extension was constructed for the school with a student-centered environment committed to appreciating and utilizing the students strengths and individuality through collaborative teamwork to achieve academic excellence and to promote a foundation for life-long learning. The cornerstone of the School's success is a rigorous academic program and a focus on excellent education and unbounded opportunities in sporting arenas. The School makes a point of employing the finest available staff providing the children with the best teaching resources available.

The Emmaus Swiss Hospital School provided children not only good education but also provided knowledge in spiritual, moral and material values. The ultimate purpose of the Emmaus School’s work is to contribute to the creation of a more just and equitable world, both for this and for future generations, where all can enjoy the "full and abundant life" envisioned by Mrs. Kathleen Jacob.


The First Day of School – 15th June 1986

Mrs. Kathleen Jacob - The Founder, Mr. Walter Rosenfeld (The General Secretary of Emmaus - 1986) & The Director of the Palmaner Project- Dr. Auburn J W Jacob believed that the best way to improve the health of the children in surrounding areas suffering from leprosy was only through education and awareness. This helped the children and their parents to improve their communication skills, eating habits, hygiene and adapt to a healthier lifestyle.
The First Batch of Students	The First group of Teachers – 1988
The First Class Room
At Emmaus, learning was made easy and fun using the play-way method advocated by the educationist Fredrich Froebel (Friedrich Fröb’l 1782-1852).
The Play-way method	The Play-way method
In the beginning, the medium of instruction adapted by Emmaus School was English, a language most children were not familiar to. Hence, Mrs. Jacob used visual actions and media as a mode of communication to educate the children. Amazingly by the end of first year, all the children were able to communicate in English and teaching the next batch of students was less stressful and a lot easier. One of the special features of our school is its family nature. With its wide age range, concentration on smaller classes and individual teaching, students are given every encouragement to reach their potential in a warm and caring environment. Poverty and stigmatic diseases are the main causes for low school enrolment, low school performance and low education levels. Thus, Emmaus Swiss Hospital School took the initiative to encourage school projects and educational programmes to promote the development of the children and the society. The school strives to provide accessible quality education for the underprivileged in the growing communities. The vision is to prepare children to reach their full potential to play a responsible role in protecting the global environment and fostering peace and harmony with natural processes and the community’s interests.