The Hanwella Rajasinghe Central College located in the historic Seethawaka Kingdom in the valley of the Kelani River has bestowed many dutiful and gifted citizens to the country.
It was the thirteenth central college to be established in line with C. W. W. Kannangara’s vision to provide free education to the children of Sri Lanka.
The school at its inception was named by Philip Gunawardena who was a parliamentarian at that time. Its first principal was Evan Ediriweera.
Prestigious post
Today the prestigious post, responsible for shaping the future of the students is held by Jagath Priyashantha Surasena.
The students who have displayed their talents in the field of education, sports and extracurricular activities recently marked a significant and remarkable milestone in the school’s history.
The Hanwella Rajasinghe Central College surpassed all other schools in the island to score a 99.34 percent pass rate at the GCE Ordinary Level Examination of 2022. The students have also maintained similar extraordinary pass rates in the past years. In 2019 and 2020 the pass rate at the Ordinary Level Examination was a remarkable 100 percent. The students managed to secure 47 A 9 passes and 38 A 8 passes.
The Hanwella Rajasinghe College which once used sand boards and then blackboards to impart knowledge today educates its students in smart classrooms with the latest technology providing them with better educational facilities.
 Principal Priyashantha Surasena
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Starting with just a handful of students, the school today has 2,900 students from Grades 6 - 13 and 165 academic staff.
The school accepts students through the Grade 5 Scholarship Exam and then focuses on equipping its students to face their next hurdle. While the school consists of seven Ordinary-Level classes, 305 students faced the recent examination amid many obstacles and difficulties, especially due to the school closures caused by the Covid-19 pandemic forcing them to follow their studies online.
Untiring efforts
The principal and its teachers had to make many sacrifices and put in extra time and effort to support the students to keep up with their lessons. Their untiring efforts are truly commendable. Despite the difficulties, they made sure no student was left behind in the process. This is evidenced by the fact that 303 out of 305 students qualified to move on to advanced-level classes.
The teachers of Hanwella Rajasinghe Central College led by its principal had held special revision lessons for the students and spent extra time in the mornings to hold mock examinations. The school even held residential camps for the students during that time. The program initiated by the school and implemented with the support of the school’s principal Jagath Priyashantha Surasena, Deputy Principal M.G Thanju Priyanthi, the school administration staff and teachers was unique to the Hanwella Rajasinghe Central College.
Attempting their best to ensure there was nothing lacking in the online teaching process during the Covid-19 pandemic, the school held its term examinations and assessments to maintain the students anticiptated achievement levels. Students with difficulties and facing setbacks were identified and supported through special revision lessons.
The academic staff spent out-of-school hours conducting these programs and sacrificed their time for the benefit of the students. Additional seminars were also held aimed at the Ordinary Level Exam.
However, not focusing on studies alone, the school also held aesthetic programs to ensure the mental well-being of students while also offering them counselling programs. These programs also helped the school’s teachers and students to exchange their ideas and identify the aims they must achieve. This is the secret behind the success of the Hanwella Rajasinghe Central College.
 The Principal of the Rajasinghe Central College and its management board
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However, the school does not solely focus on academics and also seeks to always provide practical knowledge to its students. The school grounds have been beautified by landscaping projects carried out by the students themselves. Home gardens also dot the school grounds and were initiated by the school to inculcate in students a love for the environment. Organic fertiliser has been used for the home gardens to educate children about health and the crops are sold at a fair held at the school itself.
Sports
The school has 25 societies and clubs while it also offers ten sports to its students. Students with special sporting talents are also accepted to the school and efforts are also made to ensure their studies are up to standard in order to excel at their academics. The school has mandated that all students must be involved in extracurricular activities.
The students won the Western Province senior violin playing, securing 1st place, senior classical singing - 1st place, senior guitar playing - 2nd place and senior violin playing - 2nd place at all-island competitions while excelling at sports, coming in third in the all-island under 17 Badminton championship as well as Lakshima Dulangali was adjudged the best player and also won second place in the under 18 discus throwing competition.
Meanwhile, Praveen Manisha was named the best player of 2021 and 2022 and the best bowler of 2022 in School Cricket Association and Dialog Cricket Competition. In addition to this Hanwella Rajasinghe College was able to win many victories in school cricket and all island cricket tournaments as well.
The teachers and administration staff led by the principal are the force behind the success of the students. Therefore, the dedication and sacrifices made by Principal Jagath Priyashantha Surasena, Deputy Principal MG Tanuja Priyanthi, Deputy Principal Rohana Wijetunga, Deputy Principal Ananda Peiris, Deputy Principal Keerthi Karunaratne, Grade 11 Section head Neela Ranjani and 8-11 Section Head Assistant Principal Lilanthi Bulathsinhala along with other teachers must be commended.
GCE O/L high achievers of the school with the staff
The academic staff for GCE O/L students
Students going for extracuricular activities
Students engaged in agricultural activities