Wesley College, Colombo

Wesley College, Colombo වෙස්ලි විද්‍යාලය உவெசுலி கல்லூரி
Location
Borella, Colombo Sri Lanka
Coordinates	6°55′16″N 79°52′34″E / 6.9210°N 79.8761°E / 6.9210; 79.8761
Information
School type	Government-assisted private school
Motto	Ora et Labora (Pray and Labour)
Established	2 March 1874; 150 years ago (1874-03-02)
Founder	Daniel Henry Pereira
Educational authority	Sri Lanka Education Department
Principal	Avanka Fernando
Chaplain	Dinuka Silva
Staff	300+
Grades	1–14
Gender	Male
Age	6 to 19
Enrollment	3,000+
Education system	National Education System Pearson Edexcel
Language	English, Sinhala and Tamil
Colour(s)	Cambridge blue and Oxford blue
Song	Wesley to the Fore
Publication	The Double Blue (est. 1898)
Affiliation	Methodist Sri Lanka
Alumni	Wesleyites
Website	wesleycollegecolombo.info

Wesley College, Colombo, popularly known as "Wesley" or "The Double Blues", is a Methodist school providing primary and secondary education in Sri Lanka since 1874.

In 1858, Rev. Joseph Rippon wanted to establish a superior educational institution for the Wesleyan Methodist Mission in South Ceylon.^{[citation needed][1]} On 2 March 1874 (the death anniversary of Rev. John Wesley) Wesley College was founded in the City Mission buildings at Dam Street, Pettah. The school's first principal was Rev. Samuel R. Wilkin and the first vice-principal was Rev. Daniel Henry Pereira.

Many years later, under the guiding hand of Rev. Henry Highfield, Wesley was moved from Dam Street, Pettah to its current residence at Karlsruhe Gardens, Borella in 1907.

The Methodist institution was envisaged to be a distinctly Christian college, but it currently provides secondary education for over 3,000 Sri Lankan students from diverse religious and ethnic backgrounds.^{[citation needed][2]}

Wesley College has established two branches to accommodate its growing number of students. One branch is situated in Havelock Town, Colombo, while the other is in Thampola, Katunayake.

Wesley College is named after John Wesley (1703–1791), the founder of the Methodist Church.

The song was the first-ever school anthem to be written in the country.^{[citation needed]} The lyrics were composed by H. J. V. I. Ekanayake in 1898, and set to the music of "Scots Wha Hae" by Robert Burns. This music is adapted from the traditional Scottish patriotic tune "Hey Tuttie Tatie", which was composed in 1314.

The house system was suggested by Rev. Henry Highfield and introduced by Rev Albert Hutchinson. Wesley College has four main houses, which were further divided by C. J. Oorloff as senior houses and junior houses. The houses are named after former principals and teachers, as follows:^[3]

•   Senior house - Wilkin / Junior house - Dias
•   Senior house - Moscrop / Junior house - Lemphers
•   Senior house - Hillard / Junior house - Mack
•   Senior house - Passmore / Junior house - Honter

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