Chapter 05
An HKMU education is not just about absorbing knowledge for personal enhancement, but also about giving of oneself for the greater good of the community. This can be seen in the University's promotion of service-learning and volunteering, its hosting of public talks and television series, and its recognition of those who have been role models in giving to society. This chapter looks at various giving initiatives promoted or organised by HKMU in the year, as well as some of the benefits it has itself received through funding and partnership activities.
Service-learning — experiential learning that integrates community service with academic study to enrich students' learning experience — is an area of the University's work that has taken off significantly in recent years. Driven by the Student Affairs Office, HKMU's service-learning provides students with opportunities to engage in a diverse range of community services while they pursue their studies. In addition to a series of project-based community-focused programmes, these now include a Service Alliance, a Service Leader Training programme, and summer placements at NGOs.
This year the University established a new service-learning partnership with Time Auction, a Hong Kong-based platform where students can volunteer their time to charities or NGOs of their choice. In return, Time Auction enables them to redeem valuable self-help opportunities such as meetings with CEOs, mentorship sessions and cultural workshops. The increasing engagement of HKMU students in this and similar volunteer activities saw HKMU awarded the Gold Award for Volunteer Service (Groups) by the Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups' 'Easy Volunteer' scheme 2021, which recognises students' active involvement in community service.
HKMU service-learning
When COVID-19 broke out in Hong Kong on a large scale in early 2022, staff and students from HKMU's School of Nursing and Health Studies stepped up to lead the University's community relief efforts. Many worked near the frontline of the pandemic, supporting frontline workers by carrying out N95 fit tests at locations around Hong Kong, while others assisted with the vaccination of children and the elderly. The University also set up a telephone hotline manned by 130 staff and student volunteers to dispense general healthcare information and advice on behalf of the Hospital Authority. Meanwhile, with schools closed due to the outbreak and students taking early 'summer holidays', the Student Affairs Office organised a Kids@HKMU Summer Camp for which 112 student-tutors led online interactive activities with children stuck at home. Around 1,000 primary school students took part in the camp, while hundreds of secondary school students also benefitted from the Lee Shau Kee School of Business and Administration Junior Summer Programmes being moved to mid-April.
HKMU has continued to forge links with external partners in order to give students even more opportunities to gain valuable real-world experience or specialist training. This year, for example, HKMU signed an MOU with Kowloon Motor Bus Co. (1933) Ltd (KMB) that gave students from across all disciplines access to internship opportunities at the company throughout the summer. Elsewhere, agreements with the Hong Kong Sports Institute and the Hong Kong Institute of Construction saw some of HKMU's top athletes and engineering students gain access to specialised training and advanced study options from these institutions. These were only three of a raft of agreements that are opening new doors to HKMU students across the board.
Highlights of external partnerships
Under the Government's Research Matching Grant Scheme, cash or in-kind donations made to HKMU by individuals or organisations can be matched by cash from the Government. Ever since its launch, HKMU has benefitted significantly from this scheme. With generous gifts from private donors in cash and in kind in the past year, HKMU's cumulative research donation funding soared well past the HK$100 million mark once the Research Matching Grant kicked in. These vital resources are being used to drive research that is bringing benefits for numerous industries, from building and construction to elderly care, from housing welfare to driver education.
Highlights of research donations received
Over the year, HKMU engaged in a range of anti-pandemic efforts on behalf of the community for which specialist supplies such as rapid antigen test kits, face masks and surgical gloves were essential. The University is deeply grateful to the organisations that generously donated these vital materials to support its work:
In mid-2022 HKMU set up a new Donor Wall on the first floor of the Jockey Club Institute of Healthcare. The list of names inscribed on the wall memorialises both individuals and organisations who have contributed significantly to the development of the campus and of the University in general. Further tribute has been paid to some of the University's most generous donors by naming key facilities in their honour:
Every year, HKMU confers a small number of honorary degrees and fellowships on individuals whose achievements are worthy of special note. In November 2021 it bestowed Honorary Fellowships on three well-known Hong Kong personalities — local philanthropist Mr Chan Cheuk-ming (also known as 'Sham Shui Po Ming Gor'), singer, author and professor Dr Agnes Miling Chan, and hotel industry executive the late Mr Michael Li Hon-shing (pictured, top row, from left). All have been important figureheads and inspirations in their very different fields. Then, in December, three distinguished academics were awarded Honorary Degrees by the University. One was Secretary of the Party Committee and President of The Open University of China Dr Jing Degang (Doctor of Education, honoris causa), another HKMU's Emeritus President and current Chairman of the Research Grants Council Prof. Yuk-Shan Wong (Doctor of Social Sciences, honoris causa), and the third Emeritus Professor and Senior Advisor of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University's School of Optometry Prof. George Woo (Doctor of Social Sciences, honoris causa) (pictured, bottom row, from left).
As a university situated at the heart of a diverse and thriving city of some 7.5 million people, HKMU is committed to maintaining and building its community presence and levels of social engagement. This year it launched a new Talk of the Metropolis lecture series on campus and online, where topical issues relating to Hong Kong are discussed by experts in a public forum. Meanwhile, its ongoing TV series Knowledge for All continued to run through the year, bringing stimulating ideas and informed opinions into the homes of anyone who enjoys intelligent discussion on the complex world we live in.
