President calls for review of education funding arrangement

In his address at the congregation, OUHK President Prof. Tam Sheung-wai pointed out that the reform proposals put forth by the Education Commission for higher and continuing education were exactly what the OUHK had been practising in the last decade. He found it regrettable that the University's role in the system of higher and continuing education had not earned due regard.

'Although the OUHK is not funded by the University Grants Committee, it has managed to provide opportunities for further studies for more than 100,000 learners with very limited resources. The University operates on a self-financing model and achieves the highest cost-effectiveness almost without any public money. While we fully support the establishment of community colleges, we believe that, through an intensive review of the current funding arrangement and the re-allocation of educational resources, this can be achieved in a more cost-effective manner by taking the form of attachments to existing institutions like the Open University,' he said.

Literary master: reading is important

Speaking on behalf of the honorary doctorate recipients, Prof. Louis Cha said that the founding of the former Open Learning Institute had helped many learners realize their dreams, and that its gaining of university status in 1997 had further expanded the provision of open education. 'One common thing about the five of us who received honorary doctorates today is that after we left university, we continued to learn and this learning drive has continued to this day. I myself spend at least four hours a day reading, a habit I have never dropped,' he said.

To encourage OUHK students and all learners to vigorously pursue lifelong learning, Prof. Cha quoted some words from the great Chinese scholar Confucius: '...in a county of ten families, there must be someone who matches me in loyalty and integrity. But there may not be any who can match me in my pursuit of knowledge.'

Raymond Kwok supports lifelong learning

Mr Raymond Kwok, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director of Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited, said he was deeply influenced by his father's passion for learning. The late Mr Kwok Tak-seng only had a primary education, but managed to build up his business through hard work and perseverance. Mr Kwok said humbly that the doctoral degree should belong to his company as it has always encouraged lifelong learning and staff development. Not only does the company organize a variety of courses for staff, it also sends them overseas to study at well-known universities. Moreover, staff can borrow learning materials from the company's inhouse library and make use of the OUHK's Electronic Library. An avid reader of books on Chinese history and Western economics, Mr Kwok is now studying Chinese classics with a personal tutor.