St. Servatius' College
St. Servatius College | |
---|---|
Location | |
St Servatius' Road, Kotuwegoda Sri Lanka | |
Coordinates | 5°56′38″N 80°33′07″E / 5.943903°N 80.551987°ECoordinates: 5°56′38″N 80°33′07″E / 5.943903°N 80.551987°E |
Information | |
Type | National |
Motto | Be a Man |
Religious affiliation(s) | Roman Catholic |
Established | 1897 |
Principal | H. K. L. B. Virajith |
Grades | 1–13 |
Number of students | 2,500+ |
Color(s) | Green and white |
St. Servatius' College is a boys' school located in Matara, Sri Lanka. Initially founded by a group of Jesuit fathers in 1897, the high school was nationalised in the 1960s, and is now run as a state school.
History[]
This section needs additional citations for verification. (February 2017) |
St. Servatius' College was founded when the Bishop of Galle, Joseph Van Reeth(in French), wanted to create an educational infrastructure in the newly established diocese, and called on the Belgian Jesuits for help.[1] Father Augustus Standaert, among others, arrived in Galle in 1896, and on 2 November 1897, the priests opened an English medium school on a small plot of land on the banks of the River Nilwala in Pallimulla, Matara. The school opened with five students in 1896, and within two years it had grown to accommodate 54 students.[citation needed]
In August 1898, a new structure was erected for the school. As the construction funds came from the St. Servatius Jesuit school of Liège, Belgium, the Matara school adopted the name of this patron saint: St. Servatius, a 4th-century Belgian missionary, and one of the first bishops in the area around Tongeren, Maastricht, and Liège.
After some years the school was moved to its present location in Kotuwegoda, Matara.[citation needed] In 1961, as part of a government program to take over private schools, the school was adopted by the Ministry of Education, although it remained administered by Roman Catholic fathers until 1965.
Currently, over 2,500 students are enrolled at St. Servatius' College. The school employs over one hundred staff, led by Principal M. Rathnasekara. It was made a Sri Lankan national school in 1993.[2]
Principals[]
Ordinal | Officeholder | Period |
---|---|---|
1 | Rev. Fr. Augustus Standaert | 1897–1901 |
2 | Rev. Fr. Adolph Closset | 1901–1905 |
3 | Rev. Fr. Anthony Weapon | 1905 |
4 | Rev. Fr. W. Wickramasinghe | 1905–1910 |
5 | Rev. Fr. A. Beernaert | 1910 |
6 | Samson Costa | unknown |
7 | Rev. Fr. E. Frutsaert | 1922 |
8 | Rev. Fr. Olivier Feron | 1922–1930 |
9 | Rev. Fr. S. G. Perera | unknown |
10 | Rev. Fr. S. Crubg | unknown |
11 | Rev. Fr. E. Bastineer | unknown |
12 | Rev. Fr. Terrence de Silva | 1930–1933 |
13 | Rev. Fr. Mark Anthony Fernando | unknown |
14 | Rev. Fr. P. M. Baguet | 1942–1945 |
15 | Rev. Fr. Angia | 1945 |
16 | Rev. Fr. Alles | 1945 |
17 | Rev. Fr. C. Guida | 1945–1947 |
18 | Rev. Fr. Rajapakse | 1947–1966 |
19 | S. E. Munaweera | 1967–1968 |
20 | J. Shelton De Silva | 1968–1970 |
21 | S. K. H. Jayawardena | 1970–1971 |
22 | G. L. Galappaththi | 1971–1985 |
23 | K. A. Dharmadasa | 1985–1986 |
24 | M. J. Gunasekera | 1987–1997 |
25 | A. H. N. Jayaweera | 1997 |
26 | M. G. R. M. Wijesinghe | 1997–1998 |
27 | D. Jayaweera | 1998–2000 |
28 | W. Somawantha | 2000–2001 |
29 | Kodippili | 2001–2002 |
30 | D. Vidanapathirana | 2002–2008 |
31 | Nimalsiri Wanigabadhu | 2008–2012 |
32 | Ashoka Kumara | 2012 – April 2013 |
33 | K. Ranasinha | April 2013 – October 2014 |
34 | M. Rathnasekara | October 2014 – 2018 |
35 | K. H. L. M. Kawshalya | 2018 – 2019 |
36 | H. K. L. B. Virajith | 2019 – present |
College houses[]
College house names are listed in alphabetical order.
- Adolfast: green
- Bearnard: yellow
- Standart: red
- Walter: blue
St. Thomas'–St. Servatius Cricket Encounter[]
The St. Thomas'–St. Servatius Cricket Encounter, known as the Battle of the Blues, is the annual cricket match played between St. Servatius' College and St. Thomas' College, Matara. The match has been played since 1900, and is the second-oldest school cricket series in Sri Lanka.
Notable alumni[]
- Sanath Jayasuriya – international cricket player (1991–2007), Member of Parliament for Matara (2010–2015)[3]
- Ruchira Palliyaguruge – first-class cricket [player (1989–2008), International cricket umpire (2011–2018)[4]
- Kasun Rajitha – international cricket player (2016–present)[5]
See also[]
- List of Jesuit schools
References[]
- ^ "The history of St. Servatius College".
- ^ "The College History and the Present". Wordpress. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
- ^ "St. Servatius Matara is in the process of team building". The Sunday Times.
- ^ "St. Thomas' have the edge over St. Servatius". The Sunday Times.
- ^ "Kasun Rajitha profile in ESPNcricinfo". Cricinfo. ESPN.
External links[]
- 1897 establishments in Ceylon
- Boys' schools in Sri Lanka
- Educational institutions established in 1897
- Jesuit schools in Asia
- National schools in Sri Lanka
- Schools in Matara, Sri Lanka