Ferguson High School, Ratnapura

Ferguson High School (Sinhala: ෆර්ගසන් උසස් විද්‍යාලය) is a National School in Sri Lanka affiliated with the Sri Lanka Baptist Sangamaya located in Ratnapura District.[1] School has two sections - the Primary section, which serves students from Grade 1 to Grade 5, and the Secondary section, which serves students from Grade 6 to Grade 13.

Ferguson High School - Ratnapura
ෆර්ගසන් උසස් විද්‍යාලය - රත්නපුර
Location
Ratnapura
70000

Sri Lanka
Coordinates6.6827135°N 80.3986365°E / 6.6827135; 80.3986365
Information
TypeNational School
MottoLive Pure : Speak True : Right Wrong
Established1917 March 17 (17-03-1917)
PrincipalMercy Galagama
Teaching staff180
Grades1–13
GenderGirls (Grade 1-13)
Boys (Grade 1-5)
Number of students4,700
LanguageSinhala , English , Tamil
Color(s)Dark green and silver
   
AlumniFergusonites
Websitewww.fergusonhighschool.net

History

1917 : Founded as a "Baptist Missionary English School" by the Baptist Missionary Society of British Ceylon. It was started with only three girls, in the premises of Baptist Church in Ratnapura.

1919 : The classroom was moved to the thatched-roofed spacious hall at the hilltop to accommodate the increasing number of 36 students.

1921 : The school was registered as a 'Grant-in-aid English School'[2]

1924 : The school hostel was started.

1925 : Girl Guide Association was pioneered by C. Balasooriya.[3]

1928 : The school known as Baptist Missionary English School was renamed as Ferguson High School in memory Mr. John Ferguson who helped the Baptist Missionary Society in Ceylon.[4]

1932 : The system of school houses was introduced by the acting principal W. F. Gadge.

1933 : The Old Girls Association was initiated by Miss. Allsop.

1958 : School prize giving was held by the Chief guest Madam Sirimavo Bandaranayaka who was a former student of the school.

1960 : Became a Director Managed Government School and no longer a Christian assisted school[5]

1993 : The school was recognized as a National school and 75th Birthday was celebrated with the participation of President Ranasinghe Premadasa

2010 : “Wisdom 2010” educational and Trade exhibition was held.[3]

2017 : 100th anniversary of the school was celebrated with the participation President Maithripala Sirisena. A souvenir stamp was issued[6]

School Crest

Symbolic Representations

  • Motto - Taken from "Idylls of the King" by Lord Tennyson
  • Hills - 3 peaks seen from the school (Sri Padha and two attendant peaks)
  • Double headed Eagle - High soaring free bird looking back with Thankfulness and looking forward with Hope
  • CBC - Ceylon Baptist Council (Founders of School)
  • Gems - School houses.
  • Lamp - Intelligence
  • Book - Knowledge

Drawn by Nalini Gunasekara, the art teacher of the school in 1953 and adopted unanimously[5]

School song

Written by Venetia Stemba, with music by Consy Jayasekara[5]

Houses

Students are divided into four houses.[5]

Amethyst   Sincerity
Garnet   Fraternity
Ruby   Serenity
Sapphire   Purity

Sports

Clubs and extracurricular activities
  • Girl Guide Association[3]
  • Science Association[9]
  • Drama club
  • Media club
  • Photography club
  • Announcing club
  • Chess club
  • Astronomical Association [10]

Principals
Period Name
1917-1922 J.D. Radley
1922 - 1949 Evelyn A. Allsop
1949 - 1960 F. Aurora Brook
1956 - 1971 Pearl Bright Perera
1972 - 1974 Malini Wijenayake
1974 - 1975 Mallika Thambiah
1976 - 1980 Pearl Bright Perera
1981 - 1982 Buddhi Bamunusinghe
1983 - 1986 S. Subasinghe
1987 - 1995 Buddhi Bamunusinghe
1995 - 1999 Malani Kothalawala
2000 - 2003 B. Rani Dariju
2003 U. V. Leelakanthi Nissanka
2004 - 2012 B. V. R. C. Bandarawatta
2012 to present Mercy Galagama

[5]

Notable alumni

Past pupils of Ferguson High School Ratnapura are called Fergusonites.[5] Following is a list of some notable alumni:

Name Notability
Sirimavo Bandaranayaka[11] Prime Minister of Sri Lanka (1960 - 1965, 1970 - 1977, 1994 - 2000) - world's first non-hereditary female head of government in modern history
Thalatha Atukorale[12] Politician, Member of Parliament of Sri Lanka
Rosy Senanayake Politician, Mayor of Colombo, Mrs. World 1984

References
  1. "Educational Data and Information" (PDF). Ministry of Education. Sri Lanka. 2017.
  2. "100 years of outstanding performance". Sunday Observer. 26 March 2017.
  3. "The History of Ferguson High school". FERGUSON HIGH SCHOOL-1992 GROUP.
  4. "History". Ferguson High School. Retrieved 2020-03-26.
  5. Memoirs of a Century ෆර්ගසන් සුභාවිතය. ISBN 9789557353005.
  6. "Schoolchildren have responsibility to win the next century – President". Daily News. Retrieved 2020-03-31.
  7. "Chess winner". Sunday Times. 7 August 2016.
  8. "Home". www.fergusonhighschool.net. Retrieved 2020-03-30.
  9. Vidu Liya. Science Association of Ferguson High School. 2004.
  10. Twitter page @Ferguson_Astro. Astronomical Association of Ferguson High school.
  11. "World's 1st Female Prime Minister | 17 April 1916 - Birth of Sirimavo Ratwatte". Sirimavo Bandaranaike | The World's First Female Prime Minister. 1916-04-17. Retrieved 2020-03-31.
  12. "The Island". www.island.lk. Retrieved 2020-03-31.
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