Sannas Mudiyanselage Kshanika Kumari Hirimburegama (known as Kshanika Hirimburegama) (born 1 January 1958) is a

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...

. She was the 17th

Vice-Chancellor A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and former Commonwealth n ...

of the

University of Colombo (Buddhih Sarvatra Bhrajate) , mottoeng = ''Wisdom Enlightens'' , established = , endowment = Sri Lankan rupee, LKR 1.461 1,000,000,000 (number), billion

. Prior to the appointment she was Head of the Department of Plant Sciences and a member of the

University Grants Commission of Sri Lanka University Grants Commission is the body responsible for funding most of the State Universities in Sri Lanka, and operates within the frame work of the Universities Act No. 16 of 1978. A public organisation, established under the Parliament Act ...

. She vacated the position of Vice Chancellor when she assumed duties as the Chairperson of the University Grants Commission in 2013. She is the first lady Chairperson of the University Grants Commission in Sri Lanka. She is the current Sri Lankan Ambassador designate to France.

Early life and education

Hirimburegama was born and raised in

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

, her parents were Professor P. B. Sannasgala, noted

oriental scholar Oriental studies is the academic field that studies Near Eastern and Far Eastern societies and cultures, languages, peoples, history and archaeology. In recent years, the subject has often been turned into the newer terms of Middle Eastern studie ...

and Nalini Ratnayaka, daughter of

Abeyratne Ratnayaka Ratnayake Wasala Mudiyanselage Abeyratne Ratnayaka (7 January 1900 - 1977) was a Sri Lankan politician. He was the first Cabinet Minister of Food, Co-operatives; Minister of Home Affairs in independent Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and the last Presi ...

, first Cabinet Minister of Food, Co-operatives and later Minister of Home Affairs. She is the fourth out of five daughters born to the Sannasgala family. Her early education was at

Visakha Vidyalaya Visakha Vidyalaya () is a girls' school in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is a National School managed by the central government providing primary and secondary education. History The school was established in 1917 by Celestina Dias as the Buddhist ...

, Colombo. She entered

University of Colombo (Buddhih Sarvatra Bhrajate) , mottoeng = ''Wisdom Enlightens'' , established = , endowment = Sri Lankan rupee, LKR 1.461 1,000,000,000 (number), billion

in 1977 and specialised in Botany. She then entered the Post Graduate Institute of Agriculture (PGIA), Peradeniya and passed out in 1985 with her Masters in Agricultural Sciences. In the same year she left for Belgium to join the

Catholic University of Leuven University of Leuven or University of Louvain (french: Université de Louvain, link=no; nl, Universiteit Leuven, link=no) may refer to: * Old University of Leuven (1425–1797) * State University of Leuven (1817–1835) * Catholic University of ...

for her PhD. Kshanika married Wijaya Hiriburegama in 1986 whom she met at

University of Peradeniya The University of Peradeniya ( si, පේරාදෙණිය විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය, ta, பேராதனைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம்) is a Public research university, public university in Sri Lanka ...

Academic career

She and her husband returned to Sri Lanka in 1989 and joined the Botany Department in Colombo University as a Senior Lecturer in January, 1990. She was later made the Head of the Plant Sciences Department before she was appointed as Vice-chancellor in January, 2008.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hirimburegama, Kshanika Sri Lankan women academics Sri Lankan academic administrators Sinhalese academics Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to France Vice-Chancellors of the University of Colombo Academic staff of the University of Colombo Alumni of the University of Colombo Alumni of the University of Peradeniya Alumni of Visakha Vidyalaya Université catholique de Louvain alumni Living people 1958 births

Early life and education

Academic career

See also

External links