COLLEGE HISTORY
Ladies’ College Colombo was founded as a self-supporting institution in 1900 by Ms. Lilian Nixon from Ireland and Ms. Elizabeth Whitney from Canada at the behest of the Church Missionary Society.
The history of the school is woven round the seven principals of the College who were responsible for its founding, expansion and ethos. There is no doubt it was due to their Christian faith and commitment that Ladies’ College grew from a rented bungalow in Slave Island with two students to what it is today… Quoting Ladies’ College a centennial narrative 1900-2000
Several Issues Facinates Us
How did a Christian Missionary school like Ladies’ College, established in 1900 within a colonial ethos, adapt itself to the social, cultural and economic changes that were ushered in with independence in 1948.
How did the school come to terms with the subsequent shifts in educational policy by successive governments, especially during the second half of the last century?
How did the school cope with such dramatic changes while still remaining geared to the national system of education?
How did Ladies’ College not only survive for a period of a hundred years, but grow from strength to strength?
Excerpts from Ladies' College – a centennial narrative 1900-2000
Past Principals of Ladies' College
Lilian Nixon
Founder / Principal -
Gwen Opie
Principal - 1917 - 1944
Mabel Simon
Principal - 1946 - 1963
Olive Hitchcock
Principal - 1966 - 1968
Sirancee Gunawardana
Principal - 1968 - 1998
Dr. Sriyani Miththapala
Principal 1998 - 2003
Nirmali Wickremesinghe
Principal 2003 - 2013
Mrs. Eesha Speldewinde
Principal 2014 – 2021
