- COVID Relief Fund – (Total Cost $160,153.88)
CUFSAA-NA, in consultation with several Faculty members of the Faculty of Science at the University of Colombo, have initiated and implemented an urgent COVID support for Sri Lanka. Please visit the
COVID Relief Fund page for complete information on this project.
- Microscopes for Zoology and Environmental Sciences Department – (Total Cost $11,791.81)
We are pleased to announce that CUFSAA was able to complete the microscopes project for the department of Zoology and Environmental Sciences of the Faculty of Science, University of Colombo very successfully. This was possible due to the generosity of a number of alumni, who helped to raise the required amount to purchase the microscopes within a couple of weeks. Accordingly, ten (10) bright field light microscopes (Olympus CX23) and one (1) dissection microscope (Olympus SZX7) were handed over to the department of Zoology and Environmental Science on April 20th, 2021.
Your donation will help the education and training of undergraduate and postgraduate students in the of the Department of Zoology & Environmental Sciences, faculty of science for years to come.
- High Performance Computers for Plant Sciences Department – (Total Cost $4529.07)
After reviewing the proposal submitted to the executive committee of CUFSAA by the plant science department, CUFSAA was able to raise funds to purchase the requested two high performance computers to the plant science department at University of Colombo.
- Telescope Project – (Total Cost $8362.80)
This project consisted of the donation of the 11-inch Celestron Telescope, Hydrogen-Alpha Solar Telescope, and the associated accessories including multiple CMOS cameras for imaging celestial objects.
Prof. Chandana Jayaratne of the Department of Physics made the request for the telescopes. The total funds raised by CUFSAA-NA amounted to $10,147.28. We are happy to announce that the donations were completed and, now Science Faculty has tools to conduct successful astronomical outreach events and to carry out undergraduate research projects. The 11-inch Celestron Telescope and accessories were officially handed over to the Faculty in August 2018 while the Hydrogen-Alpha Solar Telescope and accessories were handed over in November 2019 in time for observing the annular solar eclipse of December 26, 2019, which was visible from the northern Sri Lanka.
CUFSAA-NA wishes to thank the membership for their generous contributions to this Project.
- MultispeQ instrument Donation – (Total Cost $914.94)
CUFSAA-NA Joined with PhotosynQ to complete the donation of MultispeQ instruments to the Department of Plant Sciences of the University of Colombo for the benefit of the faculty and the students. Thanks to CUFSAA-NA members, Drs. Priyankara & Kumari Hennayake and Chandrasiri Jayakody, we were able to purchase one MultispeQ instrument. The CEO and Co-founder of the PhotosynQ, the company that manufactures MultispeQ instrument, Mr. Prabode Weebadde and Professor Cholani Weebadde of the Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences of the Michigan State University also donated another unit at the handover ceremony held at the Deans Office of the University of Colombo on Friday, December 21st, 2018.
- FOS Media Camera Project – (Total Cost $749.00)
We received a request from University of Colombo, Faculty of Science, Media unit (FOS Media) for a media camera for the use of science faculty. FOS media request was for a still camera to cover the events and train new students who don’t have personal cameras. CUFSAA donated a Canon t6i camera with a 18-135mm lens (at a cost of $800) to FOS media.
- A drinking water system for students – (at ~ $ 3,000 cost)
- Gold Medal for Special Degree Program in Computational Chemistry
The Department of Chemistry (U of C) is of the view that the award of a gold medal for Special Degree in Computational Chemistry would not only motivate these students but would also assist them in securing positions for postgraduate studies. The Colombo University Faculty of Science Alumni Association of North America (CUFSAA-NA), in consultation with the Faculty of Science, has decided to fill this void by sponsoring a gold medal in computational chemistry. The award shall be named the ‘CUFSAA Gold Medal for Computational Chemistry’ and shall be awarded annually from the academic year 2019/2020 for the best performance with either a First or Second Class (Upper Division) in the Honours degree examination in Computational Chemistry.
- Professor Valentine Joseph Memorial Scholarship and Gold medals project – In 2018, CUFSAA-NA launched a fundraiser to immortalize late Professor Valentine Joseph’s name through a project consisting of scholarships and gold medal presentations to outstanding students. In the last two years, CUFSAA raised an amount of US$ 12,432.67 for this project.
- Student Flood assistance – We have given scholarships and financial assistance to students effected by the wide-spread floods that affected many science faculty students.