Lyceum: Beyond Boundaries

“The one fact about the future of which we can be certain is that it will be utterly fantastic.” —Arthur C. Clarke.

Setting a landmark milestone in a thirty-year-long legacy of providing quality education to Sri Lanka, the renowned institution network, Lyceum International Schools, announced the launch of the Lyceum Campus, a tertiary education provider partnered with Deakin University, Australia, aiming to enter a new landscape of higher education. The Lyceum Campus appears on the local education radar, establishing the concept of ‘Education 4.0’, unfamiliar yet to the local public, but with a deep impact on modern education.

Education 4.0 – or blended learning – is the revolutionary leap in the field of education in par with the 4th industrial revolution where our physical, biological and digital worlds merge to create a re-skilled, abled generation of modern intellectuals. New technological components of Education 4.0 such as Advanced Robotics, Big Data, Cybersecurity, Blockchain Technology, Cloud Computing and Machine Learning are introduced and embedded in the discipline and practice of education to reshape and optimize it, since everyday life challenges push us to the edge; to think differently.

To commemorate this new venture, a Grand Launch was held at the “Monarch Imperial” in Sri Jayawardenepura on Wednesday, the 23rd of March 2022. This event was graced by the presence of many eminent personalities in the education sector and other fields; namely, the Chief Guest of the event, His Excellency David Holly, the Australian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Guest of Honor, Mr. John Molony, Pro Vice Chancellor and Vice President of the Deakin International Office, Emeritus Professor Mohan De Silva, the President of Lyceum Campus, Prof. Colin Higgins, The Associate Dean, International & Partnerships, Faculty of Business and Law, the Board of Directors of the Lyceum Group, Dr. Mohan Lal Grero (Founder), Dr. (Mrs.) Kumari Grero, and Mr. Nikitha Grero, the council members of the Lyceum Campus, and multiple other Deakin University representatives.

The most significant moment of the event was the launch of the partnership between Lyceum Campus and its Flagship Partner Deakin University, Australia which is an internationally recognized university with over 45 years of higher educational expertise and within the top 1% of universities worldwide. Deakin University excels in multidisciplinary study options and research catering to thousands of students from all over the world. Addressing the gathering, Mr. Nikitha Grero, the Director of Lyceum Group, pointed out the fact that, since its establishment, Lyceum has operated as a not-for-profit organization, and it is how it will always be run, into the foreseeable future.

In addition, he stated that education has never been viewed as a business by any of the Lyceum family, but is considered as a sincere service which should be available to everybody. In his speech, Chief Guest of the event, His Excellency David Holly, the Australian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, mentioned the 75 years of bilateral partnership of Sri Lanka and Australia and its foundations that have resulted in the trans-national education culture of the present day. He also stated that he is looking forward to the future when Lyceumers look forward to entering the universities of Australia as job-ready graduates.

In his address, Guest of Honor, Mr. John Molony, Pro Vice Chancellor and Vice President of the Deakin International Office pointed out the gravity of forming long-lasting relationships, and the university’s engagement with Sri Lanka for the past 20 years, being the largest home for Sri Lankan students in Australia. He also pointed out that the pride of Deakin is how they care for their students and its importance in building a mature citizen. Mr. Molony expressed his pleasure to be present at this event, and added his wishes to a mutually beneficial relationship.

Prof. Colin Higgins, The Associate Dean, International & Partnerships, Faculty of Business and Law, during his brief speech reminisced the story of the Deakin relationship with Sri Lanka. He also stated that Deakin has been the catalyst for positive change across the globe, with advancement of education for research enterprise. Professor Higgins expressed his pride that the students at Lyceum International Schools had the necessary global exposure that is essential for international education and respectfully praised the scholarly work of Dr. (Mrs.) Kumari Grero and her contributions to this field.

Emeritus Professor Mohan De Silva, the President of Lyceum Campus, addressed the gathering as he praised the educational legacy of Lyceum that has led to this prestigious amalgamation of Lyceum and Deakin. He expressed his confidence in this new journey ahead. Dr. Mohan Lal Grero, the Founder of Lyceum International Schools, Sri Lanka and Vice President of Lyceum Campus, expressed his invaluable wisdom in his address. He stated that Lyceum is turning a new chapter in the journey of providing quality education to the people of this country and enlightening the gathering on the dominant intelligences that are bestowed upon an individual. It was Dr Grero’s opinion that the responsibility of an education process should be to find and understand this dominant skill set of a child and gradually develop them, giving more emphasis to those gifted skills through a selected stream of subjects and curricula. Mr Nilanka Imbuldeniya, the General Manager of Lyceum Campus elaborated the core concepts the Lyceum Campus reflects: Aptitude, Attitude, Continuance and Universality. He also emphasized the matter of “what it truly means to be educated”, and “to possess new skills”. He made his Vote of Thanks to reiterate that concept: Lyceum 4.0; the new era of educating the nation in par with Education 4.0. Lyceum Campus has taken the initiative to upgrade the teaching techniques, incorporating state-of-the-art technology and hiring the best expertise to guide the students through the learning and teaching process to showcase greater accountability and teaching with true transparency.

Students will be led towards a ‘student-centric environment’, where they will be guided to understand ways of learning and self-study while being able to apply knowledge in a hands-on environment. Students and staff alike will experience the uniqueness that Lyceum Campus brings and adapt into innovative ways of cooperating and engaging within the process of teaching and learning. As an initial step in what is to be a long-lasting relationship, Lyceum Campus in partnership with Deakin University shall offer the following Diploma programs leading to a Degree under the 1 + 2 model where the students can complete the 1st year at Lyceum Campus, Sri Lanka and transfer to Deakin University, Australia to complete the 2nd and 3rd years and obtain their undergraduate degree:

1. Diploma of Business (Business Analytics) leading to Bachelor of Business Analytics

2. Diploma of Business (Management) leading to Bachelor of Business

3. Diploma of Business (Sport Management) leading to Bachelor of Business (Sports Management)

4. Diploma of Business (Commerce) leading to Bachelor of Commerce

Moving forward with the objective of being the center of excellence within the higher education sector, Lyceum Campus will focus not only on disseminating knowledge but developing the required skills and attitudes to create a holistic individual who can face the future with utmost confidence in life. The Lyceum Campus will be committed to creating sustainable quality internationally recognized education while embracing the core values such as Accountability, Integrity, Freedom of Expression, Lifelong Learning, Social Responsibility, Inclusiveness, Innovation and Sustainability.

Higher education is increasingly seen by the government as a major contributor towards national wealth and economic development. Creating more opportunities for students to pursue higher education while being in the country is well identified to be a timely requirement. With plans underway to commence the first intake in September this year, interested students are welcome to enroll in their course of choice from April 2022 onwards. Like every successful venture the Lyceum Group has had in the past, this is the beginning of a revolutionary move within the industry. The plans that the Lyceum Campus has in terms of what is to be offered within the higher education industry are bound to create much interest and excitement within the market, and it is surely something one would want to be a part of.

Janitha C. Dissanayake Media Secretary - Lyceum International Schools