St.Patrick’s College, a leading Catholic school in the Island, was established in 1850 as the “Jaffna Catholic English School” by Monsignor Orazio Bettacchini. Later, with the reception of a grant from the Government in 1851, it came to be called as the “Jaffna Boys’ Seminary”. Its first Principal was Mr. Patrick Foy, an Irishman. St.Patrick’s, from its very inception, pioneered many educational reforms and developments. With the steady increase of students the curriculum was expanded and steps were taken to maintain high standards. In 1881 the school was registered as a complete High School and was formally christened as St.Patrick’s College on the 10th of January 1881. In 1889 vocational subjects were introduced and technical subjects in 1901. New classrooms and a student hostel was built in 1887. The Old Boys’ Association was formed and it played a vital role in the development of the school under the guidance of Revd.Fr.Matthews. The efforts of the Rectors and staff bore rich harvest from the very beginning. London Matriculation Examination results for the years 1932 to 1935 and 1937 were the best results of all the schools in the entire British Empire.With the government’s ‘Take over of schools” in 1961, St.Patrick’s opted to be a Private non-fee levying school.
