Expressing the deepest gratitude for the immense service rendered by Emeritus Prof. S.B. Hettiaratchi, the Former Vice-Chancellor, Former Dean of the FHSS and a Former Staff Member of the Department of History and Archaeology, the renovated ‘S1 Hall’ of the department was named as ’Prof. S.B. Hettiaratchi Hall’, in parallel to the 61st Anniversary Celebration Program series of the Archaeology Museum, USJ, on the 10th of October 2023.
Accordingly, the renovated lecture hall was opened by Emeritus Prof. S.B. Hettiaratchi and the session was graced by the current Vice Chancellor of the USJ, Senior Prof. Pathmalal M. Manage, the Dean of the FHSS, Prof. Shirantha Heenkenda, and other dignitaries.
Emeritus Prof. S.B. Hettiaratchi’s profile in brief:
Emeritus Prof. S.B. Hettiaratchi pursued his Bachelors and Masters degrees from Vidyodaya University and his PhD from the University of London. Starting his career as a Temporary Assistant Lecturer in 1965, he gradually elevated to all academic lecturing posts, and finally to the Professorship on Merit in 1997, which he served until his retirement in 2005. As one of the erudite scholars in Sri Lanka, Prof. Hettiaratchi’s publications are numerous and multi-faceted, which have been published in Sri Lanka as well as overseas. His publications range in the fields of History, Archaeology, Buddhist Culture, Social Anthropology, and issues of national interest. ‘Social and Cultural History of Ancient Sri Lanka (1988)’, and its Sinhala translation ‘ලංකාවේ සමාජ හා සංස්කෘතික ඉතිහාසය’ are his research masterpieces.
In addition to lecturing, he engaged in social activities and administration. Accordingly, he was unanimously elected as the President of the University Teachers’ Association of Vidyodaya thrice, where he launched a movement that finally forced the government to introduce reforms to the existing education system. While backing these reforms, all the universities elected him as the Interim Chairman of the Inter-University Federation of Teachers. Furthermore, Prof. Hettiaratchi became the Archaeological Director of the Abhayagiriya Project of the Central Cultural Fund, in 1987.
In 1988, he was appointed as the Head of the Department of History and the Dean of the Faculty of Arts in 1989. Having considered his achievements in all aspects, Prof. S.B. Hettiaratchi was appointed as the 17th Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura in 1990. Setting another record in the history of the university, he became the first graduate of the USJ to hold the prestigious Vice-Chancellor’s post at the same university.
Prof. Hettiaratchi’s career as the Vice-Chancellor was exceptional. He was instrumental in establishing the Faculty of Medical Sciences and was one of the prominent architects of the concept of Affiliated University Colleges in Sri Lanka. Establishing the University Development Fund, infrastructural developments for minimizing accommodation problems of the faculties and hostels, and establishing a permanent solution to the long-lasting water supply crisis are a few of his contributions to the University during his tenure. In 1992, the Government of Sri Lanka appointed him as the Sri Lankan Ambassador to France, Spain, and UNESCO.
Even after retiring from the university in 2005 ending 40 years of university service in Sri Lanka and overseas, his service is still being sought by many organizations both local and foreign, including as a Consultant Professor in South Korea. Overall, Prof. S.B. Hettiartchi has been a remarkable character in the history of the USJ and was a person who never waited until fortune struck him, but challenged his destiny and eradicated every obstacle he met on his way to success.
