St. Sebastian's College (, ) is a Catholic educational institution in

Moratuwa Moratuwa () is a large municipality on the southwestern coast of Sri Lanka, near Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia. It is situated on the Galle–Colombo (Galle road) main highway, south of the centre of Colombo. Moratuwa is surrounded on three sides ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

, established in 1854. The college enrolls over 4,000 students served by a staff of over 200. The college motto is "Exspecta Dominum Viriliter Age", meaning "Expect the Lord and act manfully" in

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

History

St. Sebastian's College opened in 1854 on the porch of St. Sebastian's Church, Moratuwa,Chevalier Jusey de Silva, Knight of St. Gregory
- Dr. K.N.M.D.Fernando Cooray

Sunday Times (Sri Lanka) ''The Sunday Times'' is a weekly Sri Lankan broadsheet initially published by the now defunct Times Group, until 1991, when it was taken over by Wijeya Newspapers. The paper features articles of journalists such as defence columnist Iqbal Ath ...

Retrieved 22 December 2014 with 11 pupils, administrated by parish priest Friar Bondani, with the help of a headmaster and his assistant. In 1863, it received endowments from

Chevalier Chevalier may refer to: Honours Belgium * a rank in the Belgian Order of the Crown * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold II * a title in the Belgian nobility France * a rank in the French Legion d'h ...

Jusey de Silva Deva Aditya, founding president of the church. The language of instruction was English.The De Soyas of Alfred House by Rupa de Soysa, p.74-5 (Karunaratne & Sons) At the request of the Catholics of Moratuwa and the church authorities, the administration of the school was handed over to the

De La Salle Brothers The De La Salle Brothers, officially named the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools (; ; ) abbreviated FSC, is a Catholic lay religious congregation of pontifical right for men founded in France by Jean-Baptiste de La Salle ( ...

on 3 January 1926. The last headmaster of the school was Lawrence Perera, and the first Brother Director was Irishman Brother Bonaventure Idus. The other two pioneers were a Frenchman, Brother Athanasius Charles and a Sri Lankan, Brother Glaster Oliver. The Rev. Brothers were provided accommodation at Chevalier Walauwa, the Moratuwa police station. Within a few months secondary classes began on the ground floor of the residence. The main school was situated at Uswatte Circular Road, opposite the engine shed of the Moratuwa Railway Station.

Senior Cambridge The Senior Cambridge examinations were General Certificate of Education examinations held in India, Jamaica, Malaysia, Pakistan, and Singapore. They were preceded by the Junior Cambridge and Preliminary Cambridge examinations. History India The ...

and Junior school certificate classes were organised and the school was registered as a secondary school in 1927. In 1930 Evelyn de Mel and Daisy Fernando, the daughters of H. Bastian Fernando, gifted 75,000

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s to the school. Realising the necessity of rapid development, a block of land at Uyana, Moratuwa was purchased for 30,000 rupees by obtaining a loan of 15,000 rupees from the

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

and a donation of 15,000 rupees from Bastian Fernando. The college commenced operations on the near site on 23 December 2004. With the takeover of denominational schools by the government in 1960, St. Sebastian's College decided to continue as a no-fee private school. This was one of the most difficult periods in the history of the college and Rt. Rev. Bishop Edmund Fernando, then the parish priest of Moratuwa, organised the collection of funds for the maintenance of St. Sebastian's College and Our Lady of Victories convent, Moratuwa. Reverend Brother Modustus, an old boy of the college, was the college director in that turbulent period. Benildus was the Principal of the college from 1964 to 1973. He managed fundraising projects and set up a welfare office to collect funds directly from parents. In 1974 the college faced another financial crisis and the president's counsel Eardley Perera formed the welfare society. They were responsible for maintaining St. Sebastian's College as a private school. The financial situation improved when in 1979 the government decided to give a grant to the non-fee levying private schools. In 1989 principal, Brother Granville Perera started a large building project for the school and in two years sixteen primary classrooms were built. In March 1991 Brother Emmanuel Nicholas the Provincial Visitor introduced a

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as an advisory body to assist the administration of the college. President's counsel Eardley Perera was appointed as the

Chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

of the Board of Governors. In June 1991 the Board of Governors established the School Development Society, to be in charge of financial management. With the cooperation of the Rev. Brothers and the Board of Governors the teachers, parents and the alumnae gathered round the college to build a three-storied classroom building and a main hall. St. Sebastian's College entered a new era in 2003, when Brother Henry Dissanayake, the Provincial Visitor of the De La Salle Brothers, handed over the college management to the

Archbishop of Colombo The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Colombo () is a Latin metropolitan archdiocese of the Roman Catholic Church, whose ecclesiastical province covers all Sri Lanka plus the Maldives (which are within the archbishopric). It depends on th ...

from April 2003. The college is administrated by Fr. Bonnie Fernandupulle, Principal, Fr. Sylvester Ranasinghe, Deputy Principal, and Fr. Pradeep Fonseka, Principal Primary department. Fernandupulle took over the Rectorship in 2003. The school functions as an 'assisted school" with substantial state funding. The school prepares students for Local Ordinary and Advanced Level examinations in Sinhalese and English.

College crest

* Top Left – Sword, arrows and the centurion's helmet The sword and arrows were used * Top Right – National Flag and Lion * Bottom Left – signifies carpentry * Bottom Right – the Torch of Learning moral and physical education of children

Houses

*Alban: Colour: green, white *Bonaventure: Colour: gold, white *De LaSalle: Colour: red, white *Luke: Colour: blue, white

Sports

Cricket

The Battle of the Golds is the annual cricket contest

Big Match In Sri Lankan cricket, a Big Match is an annual school cricket match typically played between two rival schools in Sri Lanka. These schools often have a long history of competition, some rivalries lasting over a century. Big matches have bec ...

between St. Sebastian's College, Moratuwa and

Prince of Wales' College, Moratuwa Prince of Wales' College ( Sinhala: වේල්ස් කුමර විද්‍යාලය ''Wales Kumara Vidyalaya'', Tamil: பிரின்ஸ் ஆஃப் வேல்ஸ் கல்லூரி) is a selective-entry boys' scho ...

. In 2011 St. Sebastian's won the Battle of The Gold against Prince of Wales' College after 44 years.

Notable alumni

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of the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Colombo The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Colombo () is a Latin metropolitan archdiocese of the Roman Catholic Church, whose ecclesiastical province covers all Sri Lanka plus the Maldives (which are within the archbishopric). It depends on th ...

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, Sri Lanka (2022–Present) Apostolic Administrator of

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(2006-2015/2021-2022) → Senior Advisor to the Prime Minister on Economic Affairs → Alternate Governor of the International Monetary Fund → Chairman of the

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Beruwala Beruwala ( Sinhala:බේරුවල Tamil: பேருவளை) is a large town in Kalutara District, Western Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. The town covers a total area of approximately and is located on the south-west ...

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References

External links

St. Sebastian's College websiteSt. Sebastian's College, Old Boys Association, Sri Lanka Official WebsiteBoard Of Prefects
1854 establishments in Ceylon Educational institutions established in 1854 Catholic schools in Sri Lanka Schools in Moratuwa Boys' schools in Sri Lanka