The then king Maharaja Narendra Narayan had an interest in education and arranged for a modern education system in Cooch Behar. He established Jenkins School to teach English and other studies. After setting up the school, students of Cooch Behar and the rest of the North of Bengal had access to education. Starting from 3rd standard, students can study up to 12th standard. After the independence of India in 1947, the princely state of Cooch Behar was merged with India as Cooch Behar district within West Bengal and Jenkins School was declared as one of the state government schools. During that period many renowned teachers joined the school under the patronage of the then king of Cooch Behar, Maharaja Jagat Dwipendra Narayan and the government of West Bengal. Between late 1940s and early 1960s, the school flourished under the leadership of Head Master, Kalipada Mukherjee. The Maharaja also deployed Sailen Datta, a veteran cricketer of the Bengal cricket team for the upliftment of sports education in the school. These developments resulted in the school soon being counted among the premier educational institutes of West Bengal. Awarding of the National Award for Teachers to Prabodh Chandra Goswami, a popular mathematics teacher in Jenkins School, in 1958, the very first year that this award was instituted, also brought the school to limelight and fame. Over the years, Jenkins School has produced a number of illustrious graduates, who have gone on to be highly successful in various wakes of life.
100 years of existence of Jenkins School was marked in January 1961 through a jubilant centenary celebration. January 2011 will see the celebration of 150 years of this remarkable institution.
