2013 a Bench Mark year for SLF
The SLF is known to be the foremost and pioneering Adult Education Centre in Sri Lanka incorporated by Act of Parliament, the SLF Law No.31 of 1973 and has now consolidated its position as the nat i o n a l c e n t re for Leadership, Education and Training. SLF functions autonomously under the purview of the Presidential secretariat and is managed by a Board.
SLF has entered into many strategic partnerships with both local and international Institutions to add more value and recognition to its study programmes. The SLF has made its mark as an emerging educational centre and has transformed itself into a fullyfledged academic institution endowed with facilities and situated in the heart of Colombo in a salubrious and enriching environment overlooking the independence Square in Colombo. As it is blessed with ample space and adequate facilities,it has the capacity to cater to multiple demands which will eventually enable participants to gain a wonderful learning experience. The SLF at present, offers more than 40 certificate, 25 diploma, 15 higher national diploma courses and several workshops. All study pro- grammes of the SLF are monitored and regulated by two Boards the Board of Study and the Board of Examiners and handled by dedicated officials, the registrar and the allied team.
The SLF has also the advantage of being an institution accredited by the Tertiary and Vocational Education Commission of Sri Lankaas a certificate awarding body.
Theunparalleled and unmatchable learning opportunities available at SLF makesit a unique centre for education and training in Sri Lanka. Having a widemandate to serve the masses, the SLF is geared to provide opportunities to different clusters and segments in society opening up avenues to enable them to climb the ladder of qualifications gradually. SignificantlySLF is making its mark as a centre of leadership, education, and training offering a wide range of academic programs under the dynamic units namely, Social and Institutional Development unit, Psychology and Counselling unit, Digital Film Academy, Business and Enterprise Development unit, Language and ICT unit, and Tourism & Hospitality Management unit, and the centre for Wellbeing.
The key highlights of the year2013 - the successful functioning of the first ever Digital Film Academy in the country;the strategic partnership with the Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management for programmes at craft level related to the Hospitality and Tourism Industry; theintroduction of programmes for “Trainers of Fitness training”in collaboration with the Ministry of Sports and Carlton Sports Network; introducing corporate wellness programmes channelled through the centre for wellbeing and also psychological and counselling services offered on a scheduled basis; establishing the SLF- ATC ( Advanced Technology Centre) state of the art computer lab facility at SLF; refurbishing the newly established SLF Resource Centre; undertaking corporate planning for a large number of state sector institutions; and conducting a series of Corporate Social Responsibility programmes at SLF and throughout the country.
SLF is currently planning to spread its wings further and to spear ahead introducing a series of top up degrees and a number of post graduate courses which will be introduced in the near future. The Public sector leadership award will be a significant milestone among other programmes in the line up for the coming year. The most unique attribute of the SLF is that its doors are open to all communities irrespective of their mode of communicationwhether it be Sinhala, Tamil or English. On a performance record, unaudited figures indicate that the SLF has gone beyond its educational programme budgets during the year 2013 well before the end of the year.
In addition to its regular study programmes, a number of special projects were undertaken to cater to national level demands such as child protection training for officers in the North and East; a community leadership programme; cultural fluency training for multiple stakeholders; film appreciation with the participation of number of industry personnel; training to an international delegation of officers from Bhutan National Legal Institute to name a few.