About

About Yasith Weerasuriya

Yasith Weerasuriya of Irvine, CA, is currently a member of the Celiac Disease Foundation’s board of directors. He has over thirty years of experience as a higher-education Executive Administrator, leading Stanbridge University of Southern California to become a nationally recognized academic institution for its innovation, technology, academic rigor, and civic engagement. The university is renowned for its high-quality curriculum, which trains nurses and allied healthcare providers in next-generation practices and the application of digital technologies to support life sciences.

A graduate of Wichita University, a school recognized as a model for applied learning and research, Weerasuriya began his journey as a visionary in the field of education when he recognized the tremendous benefits and learning possibilities that budding internet technology could deliver. Yasith was the primary motivator that forged critical partnerships with emerging Silicon Valley tech giants to bring digital technology into the classroom.

Weerasuriya co-founded Executive 2000 Inc., which would later be renamed Stanbridge University. He quickly grew the institution to become an industry leader in Information Technology, Security, and Optical Fiber training. Yasith is distinguished for coordinating a critical partnership between Stanbridge University and Microsoft Corp., which brought cutting-edge computer technology to hundreds of California community colleges nationwide during the early rollout of internet services.

Executive Leadership in Education

Under Yasith Weerasuriya’s leadership, Stanbridge University successfully achieved institutional accreditation and began offering a broader curriculum to support its enrollment. He spearheaded the process that included multiple healthcare programs at Executive 2000 Inc., laying the foundation for what would later become Stanbridge University.

Weerasuriya accomplished this by bringing the school to accreditation standards in its mission, curriculum, admissions, finances, and administration. He also ensured that all staff members were fully qualified and that the university offered a suite of student services that provided the resources needed to complete their academic journey.

In Yasith’s tireless pursuit of providing the highest quality healthcare education, Stanbridge University became home to the West Coast’s first SynDaver synthetic cadaver lab. He also started the zSpace Virtual Reality Lab, which immerses students in a multisensory learning experience. Weerasuriya is credited with Stanbridge’s longstanding history of using innovative technology, including opening a Robotics and Intelligent Sciences Lab that features robotic rehabilitation technologies that were not yet widely available in the United States.

ED Tech Innovator

Weerasuriya is a pioneer in bringing educational technology to widespread use in higher education. Initially, ED Tech included the use of hardware, software, educational learning modules, and other tools like interconnected webcams and video conferencing platforms to support long-distance learning. What started decades ago has today expanded to include virtual reality, where students are immersed in a foreign country to support learning.

The implications of Yasith’s early success in bringing digital technology into the classroom have grown tremendously to help healthcare students learn practical therapies. The Robotics and Intelligent Sciences Lab launched under President Weerasuriya’s term included the first Italian Gloreha Sinfonia hand rehabilitation device on the West Coast and the first Israeli MediTouch ArmTutor in California.

The lab additionally featured three social robots, QTrobot, Moxie, and Milo, to help train students in AI-enabled robotic therapies for children on the spectrum. Mr. Weerasuriya’s vision includes expanding the use of these social robots across the human lifespan, from early childhood developmental therapies to cognitive decline in older adults with Alzheimer’s.

A Leader in Governance

Yasith Weerasuriya has always been committed to civic and corporate governance. He currently sits on the Board Of Directors of the Celiac Disease Foundation, an organization dedicated to promoting accurate diagnosis, optimum treatment, and ongoing research for celiac disease. He is also on the Board of Directors of Discovery Cube Orange County and is a current Trustee and past Chair of the World Affairs Council of Orange County.

During his tenure at Stanbridge University, Weerasuriya instigated the school’s commitment to civic engagement through the outREACH Program, which sought to expose students to many service opportunities to build them into compassionate leaders and advocates of change. Weerasuriya has spoken several times on the need to integrate service to our nation with higher education. He was the primary instrument in launching the Root for Change initiative, which aimed to assist areas devastated by wildfires by planting 10,000 trees in Southern California by the end of 2025.

Mr. Weerasuriya’s profound impact on higher education cannot be understated, taking an entire institution into the next generation. He is an educational thought leader committed to academic excellence and has made decades of contributions to the community and student support services. He has always remained unwaveringly committed to California communities and school systems, holding positions on the Board of Directors for Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County and as President of the Board of Directors for California Association of Private Post-Secondary Schools.