St. Thomas' College is a government primary and secondary school for boys in Matara, Sri Lanka. The college was initially founded in 1844 as a private Anglican school by Rev. Fr. N. J. Ondatjee, a missionary of the Christian Missionary Society of England,^[2] in Wellamadama, Dondra. It presently has over 3,600+ enrolled students studying primary to secondary education.

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Quick Facts Location, Coordinates ...

St. Thomas' College
Location
Matara Sri Lanka
Coordinates	5°56′54″N 80°32′38″E
Information
Type	Government public school
Motto	Perseverando Vinces (Perseverance conquers all)
Religious affiliation(s)	Christian
Established	10 March 1844; 180 years ago (1844-03-10)
Founder	N. J. Ondatjee
Principal	P. A. Weerakkody
Staff	144
Grades	Primary to GCE A/L
Gender	boys
Age	6 to 19
Enrollment	3600+
Colour(s)	Chocolate brown and light blue
Song	"Saint Thomas' forever"[1]
Rival	St. Servatius College, Matara, Rahula College, Matara Richmond College, Galle
Affiliation	Anglican Church of Ceylon (one of the first Anglican Missionaries in Sri Lanka)
Website	stcmatara.lk

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St. Thomas' College was founded by the Christian Missionary Society of England in 1844. The main concern of the various missionary bodies in Sri Lanka during the early period of British rule in Ceylon was providing English education. As a result of this, St. Thomas' School later became a secondary school in 1914, as St. Thomas' college commenced in a bungalow in the village of Wellamadama, the current location of the University of Ruhuna. ^{[citation needed]}

The school was founded by one of the first Anglican missionaries, Rev. Fr. N. J. Ondatjee, in 1844 with a few students and three teachers. Odantjee was later succeeded by others, including Kumaratunga Munidasa, who promoted Sinhala language and literature. In 1960 St. Thomas' College was vested in the Government after a long period of missionary control. K. B. Jayasuriya became the first principal under Government administration. J. E. M. Fernando, K. B. Jayasuriya and E. A. de L. W. Samarasinghe reactivated the college's old boys association, which was defunct after its inauguration by S. J. Gunasekeram in 1934. B. D. Jayasekera designed the college flag and the crest in the early 20th century.^[2]

The Buddhist shrine room constructed at the college premises by the Old Boys Association in 1999 was inaugurated by Madihe Pannaseeha Thero, a Buddhist priest and also a past student of the college.^{[citation needed]}

The school is one of the oldest cricket-playing schools in the island and plays St. Thomas'–St. Servatius Cricket Encounter with St. Servatius' College. This is the second oldest cricket encounter in the island, also known as the Southern Battle of the Blues or Battle of the Ruhunu. ^{[citation needed]}

Government Principals

• K. B. Jayasuriya (1960–1975)
• E. A. De L. W. Samarasinghe (1975–1985)
• B. G. Sisira (1985–1999)
• Ratnasiri Suraweera (1999–2011)
• W. B. Piyathissa (2011–2021)
• T. L. Dayashantha (2021–2022 )
• P. A. Weerakkodi (2022–)

The school song was composed by Leonard Archibald Arndt (1889–1955), the school's principal between 1931 and 1933.^{[citation needed]}

There are four student houses in the college, named after four past principals. They are:

• Bultjens : Red  
• Dias  : Blue  
• Ondatjee : Yellow  
• Edirisinhe : Green  

This article's list of alumni may not follow Wikipedia's verifiability policy. (October 2022)

List of alumni of St. Thomas' College, Matara;

• List of the oldest schools in Sri Lanka
• Lists of schools in Sri Lanka