Girls infront of computer

Shaping future generations of developers through the Umbraco Education Program

Our very own Technical Director, Emmanuel Tissera, flew over 8000km to teach students where he grew up in Colombo, Sri Lanka, the power of using Umbraco for software development to inspire their future careers.

Clarice Greening

19 January 2025

3 minute read

When we share our knowledge, we’re not just teaching. We’re empowering the next generation to dream bigger and aim higher.

Twenty-seven years ago, at St Benedicts College in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Emmanuel Tissera, now our Technical Director and Umbraco MVP wrote an essay as a teenager: ‘My Future Ambition - Software Engineer’.

Taking my developer community involvement in Melbourne and elsewhere in the world to the country of my birth was an amazing experience. Getting Sri Lankan youngsters excited about Umbraco and software development pathways was the perfect outcome for me.
– Emmanuel Tissera

Little did he know that more than a quarter century later, he’d not only be living that dream, but in a ‘circle of life’ style way he’d be returning back to his home town and inspiring future generations to do the same in the very classrooms that he sat in.

Twenty-two high-school students and four teachers from Good Shepherd Convent and St Benedicts College took the intensive software development course, to become Certified Umbraco Professionals, helping the students become job-ready when they leave school.

It has not only equipped me with valuable skills, but has also ignited a passion for web development that may influence my future career choices.

Valuable lessons from the course

Catering to various learning styles, Adi and Emmanuel ensured all participants could grasp the functionalities of Umbraco effectively. Blending hands-on activities and theoretical discussions provided a comprehensive learning experience, while interactive presentations further enhanced understanding. 

The goal of the training was to build a completely functional website, exposing participants to the common features of Umbraco CMS, and the best practices to build content and features. The training included the introduction to the basic building blocks of an Umbraco website – Document Types, Content, Templates and Razor. 

The students were introduced to Umbraco Cloud and worked with pages, media and refactored code and templates in the process. The last exercise was translating the site into multiple languages and the students had both Sinhala and Tamil versions working on their own Umbraco Cloud instances.

Students at school infront of computers, learning from a presentation screen

During breaks, a spread of food encouraged a social atmosphere, allowing students from different schools to connect, share ideas, and build a community of web developers.

"Our partner’s dedication to fostering digital literacy and empowering the next generation of developers is truly inspiring. We are confident that this program will have a lasting positive impact on the lives of these students and contribute to the continued growth of the Sri Lankan tech industry." - Gabriel Ionut Brumea, Umbraco Vice President of Support & Service

At the end of the course, participants completed an online exam to assess their understanding. A certification ceremony followed, where each student received a certificate of completion, recognising their hard work and providing a valuable achievement for both academic and professional pursuits. 

All the participants received a course workbook, Luminary t-shirts, pens and Umbraco stickers. Some lucky participants were rewarded with a few Umbraco t-shirts by answering spot questions posed by the instructors.  Adi and Emmanuel were recognised by the staff and alumni of both schools for their hard work and given a plaque to commemorate their involvement.

Helping making it happen

Emmanuel couldn’t have run this program without the support of St Benedict’s College Old Boys Union (OBU) Victoria; who printed the course workbooks, Good Shepherd Convent Past Pupils Association (PPA), Victoria; who provided an amazing buffet lunch for the participants , St Benedict’s College OBU, Colombo; who provided tea and refreshments as well as Good Shepherd Convent PPA, Colombo who helped with overall logistics..

Luminary was proud to cover Emmanuel’s travel costs (Adi was already in Sri Lanka on holidays), and both Adi and Emmanuel decided to use their paid volunteer training days to deliver the course.

The Umbraco Fundamentals training course and certification exam costs almost 2500 AUD or 0.5 Million LKR per participant. Thanks to Umbraco HQ in Denmark, these schools got this package worth over 6 Million LKR free of charge.

And a final special thanks to the principal of Good Shepherd Convent, Rev. Sr. Dilani Jayamanne, the director of St Benedict’s College, Rev. Bro. Dr. Pubudu Rajapaksha, for believing in the Umbraco Education Program and its commitment to the education of its students.

Through their time and expertise, [Emmanuel and Adi] provided us not only with technical skills but with the confidence to imagine a future where we could shape the digital world ourselves. It’s the kind of impact that echoes far beyond the classroom, planting the seeds for future careers and opening doors to limitless opportunities


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