Evelyn Norris

Noel Evelyn Norris (December 25, 1918 - February 15, 2014) was a Singaporean educator best known for her association with Raffles Girls' School. She was also the first principal of Crescent Girls' School. Norris was a volunteer in the Royal Air Force during World War II and later became a Major in the People's Defence Force in charge of Singapore Women Auxiliary Corps.

Biography

Norris was born Noel Evelyn Norris on December 25, 1918.[1] She started primary school at Raffles Girls' Primary School in 1925.[1] She attended Raffles Girls' Schools until 1933, when she studied for a year at St. George's Girls School.[2] She studied history at Raffles College and earned a degree in Education.[2]

Norris started teaching at Bukit Panjang Primary School in 1939, but when World War II broke out, she went to India and Ceylon as a volunteer in the Royal Air Force (RAF).[2][1] In the RAF, she worked as a librarian in the Royal Air Force Library.[1] When the war ended, she came back to Singapore and taught history at the Raffles Girls' School (RGS) from 1946 to 1955.[1] In 1956 she became the principal of the new Crescent Girls' School.[2] Norris came back to RGS to work as principal there until she retired in 1976.[1]

During her leadership at RGS, Norris developed extracurricular activities, including various sports and music programs.[2] She also encouraged students to learn and understand various "mother tongue" languages in Singapore by conducting weekly assemblies in different languages each week.[2] These assemblies rotated through English, Malay and Tamil and other classes included Mandarin.[2] Norris also worked on Ministry of Education committees and helped revise the history syllabus.[2] Norris also stayed active in the People's Defence Force, eventually becoming a Major of the Singapore Women Auxiliary Corps, and later took over the National Cadet Corps girls' section.[2]

After retiring, Norris dedicated her life to community service and worked as a volunteer at the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA).[2] She also taught at the School for Retarded Children.[3]

In November of 2011, Norris had a stroke and spent around six months in Tan Tock Seng Hospital.[4] After her discharge, a group made up of former students and faculty of Raffles Girls' School took care of her at her home in Brighton Crescent.[4] Norris died on February 15, 2014.[4]

Norris was awarded the Public Service Administration Medal (Silver) in 1964.[1] In 1977, she was awarded the Long Service Medal.[1] Norris was inducted into the Singapore Women's Hall of Fame in 2019.[2]

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References
  1. "Miss Noel Evelyn Norris". Old Rafflesians' Association. Retrieved 2019-11-29.
  2. "EVELYN NORRIS". Singapore Women's Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2019-11-29.
  3. Tan, Guan Heng. 100 Inspiring Rafflesians, 1823-2003. Singapore: World Scientific. p. 153. ISBN 978-981-277-892-5.
  4. "Former RGS principal dies at 95". AsiaOne. 2014-02-16. Retrieved 2019-11-29.
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