•  Members of first board of Management of the school.

    They are remembered here with gratitude for the service rendered for the posterity.

Mr. M.J.C. Fernando (Chairman)
Mr. P.de.S. Kularatne (Manager)
Mudliyar G.W. De Fonseka
Mr. K.D. Perera
Mr. S. Jayasekara
Mr. M.A.L. Salgadoe
Mr. D.T.M. Seneviratne
Mr. G.H. Perera
Mr. O.W. Peiris
Mr. W.E. Fernando
Mr. W. Isacc De Mel (Secretary)
Mr. Q. C. Fernando
Mr. M.P. Fernando
Mr. B. D. Thomas

•  First prize giving ceremony of the college was held on 4^th April 1936 with participation of the Colonial Secretary Sir Grame Tyrrel and the
    Principal of the College Mr. A. Ediriweera.

•  The School was upgraded to the grade of senior secondary in the year 1935.

•  School playground was ceremonially opened in October 1934 by Dr. G.P.Malalasekara.

•  Given below is an excerpt from the Ceylon Daily News publishing on the day of opening Indicating the Importance of the opening of
    the school.

Buddhist Education.
College opened at Moratuwa.

Moratuwa, Jan. 19

The Moratu Vidyalaya, a Buddhist College was declared open to day at 8.05 a.m by Sir D.B. Jayathilaka in the presence of a large gathering.

The building was decorated for the occasion and Mr. M.J.C. Fernando, President of the Sri Lanka Bauddha Samithya, Moratuwa under whose auspices the school was Organized called upon Sir Baron to Perform the Ceremony.

Sir Baron after thinking Mr. Fernando and the members of the Samitiya for inviting him to perform that ceremony said that he had great pleasure in declaring the college open. Sir Baron then cut a ribbon tied across the entrance and entered the building. Sixty seven children were then admitted to the school. After Pansil was administered by Rev. Malalankara Anunayaka of Koralawella, Sir Baron and Mr. P. de S. Kularathna, Manager of the school, instructed the boys in Sinhalese and English respectively.

About thirty Priests then chanted “Pirith” after which the names of the Children were entered in the register. Sir Baron entering the Particulars regarding the first boy, who incidently happened to be Claude Fernando, son of Mr. and Mrs. M.J.C. Fernando.

•  Public Meeting

    A public meeting was held in the afternoon at the Buddhist Hall, Presided over by Sir D.B. Jayathilaka. Amongst those accommodated on the platform were Messrs. W.A. de Silva, Henry Amarasuriya, Dr.G. P. Malalasekara, Mr. P. de S Kularathna,
Dr. S.A. Wickramasinghe, Mudaliyar G.W. de Fonseka, Messrs. E. Ediriweera, D. G. Obeysekara, M. J. C. Fernando and Mudaliyar Isaac de Mel.

Rev. Walane Dhammananda Thero administred Pansil after which Mr. M. J. C. Fernando welcomed the gathering and invited Sir Baron to Preside.

Mudaliyar W. Isaac de Mel, Secretary of the Sri Lanka Bauddha Samithiya gave an account of the activities of the Samithiya and appealed to the Buddhists to send their children to the new school.

Mudaliyar de Mel then announced that an anonymous donor had Promised Rs. 50/- per month for one year. He wished to thank the Trustees of the Sri Chandrasekara Fund for the contribution of Rs. 20000/- which enabled them to put up that building.

Rev. Pelena Vajiranana Thero and Revd. Walana Dhammananda Thero, then addressed the gathering.

•  Need for religious Education

Mr. W.A. de Silva was the next speaker. He said there were 1000 Buddhist schools in the country with 90000 children attending them.

He was confident that the national progress of the country would be achieved thought Buddhist Education. It was often said that a large percentage of crime in Ceylon was committed by Buddhists. That was due to the fact that those people had not received a Buddhist Education.

Dr. G.P. Malalasekara, the next speaker, said that he hoped that there would soon be a girls' school also conducted by the samitiya. They should not only protect their children from being converted to other religions but should also see that those of other religions were converted to Buddhism.

Mr. P. de S. Kularatne was the next speaker.

Referring to the English schools in the Island , Mr. Kularatne said that there were 54,000 children attending them of whom 30,000 were Buddhists. He was sorry to say that only 7,000 attended Buddhist schools.

Of the balance 23,000 about 17,000 attended Christian schools. If those 17,000 children attended Buddhist schools, there was scope for 800 Buddhist to be employed as teachers and about 2,000 children could be educated free. He thanked Mr. Ediriweera, the Principal of the school for the generous self sacrifice he had made in accepting that post. Mr. Henry Amarasuriya also spoke.