St. Mary’s was established in 1867 adjacent to St. Mary’s Church as an English language school and came under the direction of Benedictine missionaries. It was Rev. Fr. Domenico Pingulani who initiated the school which was in the hands of religious missionaries between 1864 and 1880. St. Mary’s College, Kegalle was the fifth Catholic boys’ school established in Sri Lanka after the schools in Colombo, Jaffna, Kandy and Galle.
In 1893, Jesuit Missionaries from Belgium took over the management of school and was in charge of the college from 1893 for 76 years. This period could be called the “Golden Age” of St. Mary’s College and it is during this period that the school took its initial steps in the direction of the “Pathway to the Heights”.
In the late 1950s, St. Mary’s College had its own observatory with a powerful telescope. And from this very early point in time, St. Mary’s College was honoured as the pioneer school in astronomical studies.
St. Mary’s College was transformed to a government school in 1960. At the time there were 688 students and 36 staff members. After its transformation to a government school, St. Mary’s College acquired a primary section in Meepitiya in 2001.
At present the school provides high quality education to 3,600 students and with 164 dedicated staff members with the present Principal Mrs. Hema Wickramarathne guiding them to attain the highest performance.
From the beginning, the school was famous for the best results at the Cambridge Junior and Senior examinations. The school maintained a very high standard. This was best illustrated by the fact that it admitted overseas students (especially Indians) as early as in the 1990’s. Even today they enjoy the highest results in all the public school examinations. Annually a large number of students enter universities to all the state and international institutions.
Since its early days, St. Mary’s has been famous for scouting. The scouts of yesteryear have participated in many activities both in Sri Lanka and overseas. The school has also been famous for its sports and extracurricular activities. St. Mary’s has an unparalleled record in sports and many alumni who excelled in them and have taken part at national level and some have even represented Sri Lanka at several international events. For example, in the 1950’s John Perera and Mr. Farook from St. Mary’s College were members of the National Youth Football Team and took part in a foreign tour as well. The other sports students and alumni excelled in are: cricket, volleyball, table tennis, carrom and boxing. Under the guidance of the Master-in-Charge of the Cadet Platoon, a shooting club was also formed in the school..
At present St. Mary’s students have emerge winners of many awards in local and international competitions. The college chess team has participated in the Asian Schools Chess Tournament, World Chess Tournament and the World Youth Chess Tournament.
R.A.D. Vidushanka was placed fourth in the 400m hurdles at the World Youth Olympic Games. He got the opportunity to take part in the Asian Junior Athletic Championship as well.
The swimming team was placed second in the National Sports Festival, while the weight lifting team bagged second place at the same festival.
St.Mary’s College is a school which walks in a path which was shown by their founder Rev. Fr. Domenico Pingulani, with the sole dedication of the administration of the school, teachers, students and parents are toiling together to attain a common goal. St. Mary’s College stands as a high-flying and striking school in the province.
Written By : - Sujitha Miranda | Source : Education Times (Sunday Times)
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