Championed by serial entrepreneur and technology aficionado Mukesh Sharma, Prometheus School, Noida (estb.2019) has rapidly emerged as one of Delhi NCR’s premier K-12 educational institutions. The school has garnered widespread acclaim for its progressive teaching methods and state-of-the-art resources, allowing its 500+ students to excel in academic and non-academic pursuits. Therefore, it is no surprise that Prometheus School has been ranked Noida’s #2 international day school and among the top 10 in Delhi NCR in the latest EducationWorld India School Rankings 2022-23. Recent accolades won by the school include the “Exceptional Schools of India” award of ScooNews and the prestigious “School of the Year” title presented by BW Business World in January 2023.
As the sole IB Continuum School in the country to offer Cambridge IGCSE and A-Levels, Prometheus School has set out on a mission to transform education and empower students to reach their full potential and pursue their passions. The school’s over 6-acre campus in the picturesque Jaypee Greens Wish Town in Noida boasts cutting-edge facilities that facilitate an inquiry-based educational experience, fostering the development of future successful entrepreneurs and empowering the next generation of changemakers.
According to Mukesh Sharma, chairperson and director of Prometheus School, “One can never find purpose in one’s career or life if one doesn’t have a genuine interest in what they’re doing. It is extremely disheartening to see how many young people have aspirations they don’t pursue as they have not been taught at a young age to follow their dreams. Moreover, as one becomes older, one might not have the appropriate appetite for risk, and their entrepreneurial goals can seem more elusive. Therefore, instilling an entrepreneurial mindset in children from an early age is crucial. The world needs more problem solvers, and students must seek meaningful solutions to problems of the world in a way that is beneficial for society at large. Entrepreneurship is also about taking risks and building resilience, which is a vital skill in a rapidly changing world.”
Mukesh Sharma, chairperson & director, Prometheus School, Noida
An alumnus of BITS-Pilani and the University of Colorado, Boulder, in the United States, Sharma began his career at DCM Data Systems, followed by stints with Quark Inc, Gale Group, and Adobe Systems. In 2006, he took the helm of QA Infotech Pvt. Ltd and has since bootstrapped several companies, including Perseverance IT Solutions, Affidabile Solutions (ItsCredible.com), and AITestBanks. In 2019, he founded Prometheus School, drawing upon his extensive digital expertise and passion for reimagining education. In 2021, Sharma joined like-minded technology entrepreneurs as a founder and trustee of Plaksha University, a technology and research-focused institution dedicated to transforming engineering education, entrepreneurship, and innovation.
As one of a few institutions dedicated to fostering entrepreneurial skills in its students, Prometheus School strongly emphasises problem-solving and cultivating an entrepreneurial mindset. This is achieved by integrating entrepreneurial development into the curriculum and offering a student-led club, EntrepreNow, open to all secondary school students. The club regularly invites successful entrepreneurs to share their experiences and engage in interactive sessions with motivational speakers and entrepreneurs. The school integrates entrepreneurship into its curriculum from the Early Years programme, teaching students financial literacy and the basics of mathematics, followed by a focus on social entrepreneurship in the Primary years. Students delve deep into what it means to be an entrepreneur, the organization skills required, consumer choices’ impact on entrepreneurship, etc. In furtherance of its mission, Prometheus School established its incubation centre in the 2021-2022 academic year with a grant of Rs 1 crore from the chairperson Mukesh Sharma to provide seed funds to students with business ideas and the potential to make an impact on the community at large.
To further its objective of developing a spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation in students, Prometheus School leverages its close ties with premier higher education institutions, including Plaksha University and BITS Pilani (Rajasthan). The school offers students access to programmes like the Young Technology Scholars (YTS) program by Plaksha University, where students are introduced to real-world engineering and problem-solving, and PIEDS (Pilani Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Society) by BITS Pilani, providing students with mentorship opportunities aimed at developing entrepreneurial skills.
Apart from these programmes, the school supports student participation in national and international entrepreneurial events. It also plans to launch a mentorship programme for aspiring kidpreneurs, where they will receive guidance from industry experts and their teachers and a speaker series featuring successful parent entrepreneurs who will share their experiences and lessons learned with the students.
Says Anagh Mandal, a Grade 10 student of Prometheus School, who is presently building the Prometheus Kindness App, “Prometheus has provided me with all the necessary resources and encouragement to start as an entrepreneur, and has supported me throughout my journey of projects. Entrepreneurship is a frequent topic of discussion in school and has helped me in many ways. With the Prometheus Kindness App, we aim to allow people to promote acts of kindness performed by themselves and their peers and to be rewarded for such acts. We also hope to create a kindness bank where people in need can request help from others, and those who complete the service will be compensated with hours or minutes of their time rather than money. This will create a global chain of kind acts, spreading kindness throughout the world and making it a better place.”
Another budding entrepreneur of Prometheus School, Srishti Agrawal (Grade 11), says, “Prometheus School has fueled my interest in entrepreneurship and equipped me with the tools and support needed to pursue my aspirations. I am grateful for the opportunities provided and feel confident in my ability to succeed as a young entrepreneur.”
Srishti is the Head of Sponsorships in the student council and leads the EntrepreNow Club. She works with potential sponsors for school events and facilitates student interaction sessions with entrepreneurs with the objective of fostering an entrepreneurial culture within the school.
Sharma believes that a change in India’s education system, which has traditionally relied heavily on rote learning, is long overdue and the recent National Education Policy (NEP 2020), which prioritises project-based learning, hands-on experience, service-oriented learning, and vocational training, offers great promise towards promoting entrepreneurship in the country.
According to Sharma, “The traditional education system in India has focused on memorizing existing knowledge rather than fostering ingenuity and creativity. NEP 2020 represents a significant step forward in transforming the education curriculum and making it more industry-oriented and entrepreneurial. The policy emphasizes integrating vocational education into the mainstream curricula at all schools. In addition, it provides opportunities for research-oriented specialization through internships, providing students with practical, hands-on learning experiences.”
While Sharma applauds NEP 2020 in principle, he expresses concern about its implementation, hoping it will be carried out with the same level of dedication and commitment that went into its formulation.
Prometheus Entrepreneurship Laurels
- Juwairiyah Khurram of Grade 11 AS Level won the Bond Entreprenow Challenge 2022 organised by Gradstar Global in collaboration with Bond University, Australia.
- Aditya Prasad of Grade 12 A level has designed a board game titled “War Of Civilizations’. WOC is a strategy board game set in earth 2050. It combines strategic warfare and science fiction in the backdrop of climate change. The game is slated to be launched on Kickstarter, the largest international crowdfunding platform for creative projects.
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Prometheus School, Noida: Committed to nurturing future Olympians