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(Hong Kong, September 8, 2005) St. Paul's
Co-educational College ("SPCC" or the "School") is happy to receive
an HK$80 million donation from the Li Ka Shing Foundation to support
the needed expansion of its campus after its conversion to Direct
Subsidy Scheme ("DSS") as well as to establish a financial aid
programme designated for very needy students. This gift will enable
SPCC to proceed with deliberate speed to transform itself from
a Good local school to a Great world-class school and fulfill its
educational mission to cultivate a new generation of altruistic
leaders in the spirit of excellence.
The Supervisor of the School, Dr. Michael H.H. Mak, said, "Mr.
Li has always wholeheartedly supported the community. I believe
that a donation of this size is unprecedented among donations to
secondary and primary schools in Hong Kong and therefore this gift
has a special meaning to us. We feel honoured that through this
donation, Mr. Li has endorsed our contribution to education and
has shown he is 100% confident in our School. We are very grateful
to Mr. Li for his tremendous support. Mr. Li has always focused
on educational development, not only advanced studies and research,
but also basic education. He understands that if children gain
high-quality education at an early age, this will serve them well
over their lifetime."
Mr. Li made a special effort this morning to visit SPCC personally
to attend Morning Assembly and in front of 1,200 students conveyed
his aspirations for the upcoming generation.
Mr. Li's speech was entitled "The Dreamer and his Reach". He posed
an intriguing question to the students: "Everyone says that we
are a nation of capable, smart and industrious people, then why
are we still lagging behind most countries in the West?"
Mr. Li said he did not have an answer to his own question, but
he believed that we must encourage and support our children to
dream large and to reach out for their dreams, because it was the
catalyst for our dynamic future.
"In this fast-evolving world, the pursuit of knowledge is after
all only one factor to human fulfillment. Today, we must extend
the frontiers of our children's minds, we must let them weave their
dreams not merely around life's quantifiable achievements but to
be true champions of the modern mind who are not slaves to the
thinking of the past. Competition in the future will be harsh;
the pursuit of knowledge, the dignity of labour are essential fundamentals
for survival; to excel you must nurture your own independent mind
and your spirit of discovery."
Mr. Li again urged the Government to make more strategic investments
in education and provide more matching funds for private donations
to lay the groundwork for future generations.
After the Morning Assembly, Mr. Li toured the School accompanied
by Council members and the Principal, Dr. Anissa Chan, to have
a look at the physical environment, observe classes in session
and meet with some 40 senior students to exchange ideas and views
on a multitude of topics.
Dr. Chan said, "Mr. Li's generosity and concern for St. Paul's
Co-ed and his visit to the School to share with and inspire our
students to work towards their dreams is indeed a great gift in
our 90th Anniversary Year of the School. We are most grateful for
Mr. Li's encouragement and expectation of us. Indeed we encourage
our students to dream. In pursuing such dreams, we realise we must
work hard and explore and develop our critical thinking skills
in order to constantly seek better answers. It is through this
that we enrich our lives and through enriching ourselves, we better
society and improve humankind. The Council members and teachers
of SPCC are all dreamers. Our dreams revolve around one issue:
how to make improvements so that our students can receive the best
education possible. Only in this way, can we be sure they enrich
their own lives and make meaningful contributions to society."
Mr. Li's donation of HK$80 million will be used towards the two
different projects, one of which is the construction of a new 6,800-square-metre
building to expand the SPCC campus to improve its extra-curricular
and academic facilities. This newly constructed building will be
named "Li Chong Yuet Ming Building", in memory of Mr. Li's late
beloved wife's enthusiasm and involvement in support of educational
and other philanthropic causes. In addition, SPCC will establish
the "Li Chong Yuet Ming Care Fund".
Dr. Mak said, "Mr. Li believes that knowledge can reshape destiny
and this is in line with what we believe to be our educational
purpose. The reason our School has converted to a DSS school is
so that it can provide the best quality education to our next generation
and that such quality education should be for talented children
from every social stratum. We particularly hope that children from
lower income families will have access to such an education so
that they can have a chance to break the difficult circumstances
of trans-generational poverty. Therefore, we absolutely support
such needy families, even to the extent of charging them zero tuition."
SPCC has been serving the community since its establishment, whether
before or after its conversion to DSS. The School is determined
to uphold its tradition of serving the community by educating talented
students from a wide social spectrum to become altruistic leaders.
In this connection, SPCC has put into place a quota-free "Fee Remission
Scheme" to provide up to 100% fee remission to needy students.
Although students can also apply for subsidies from the Government
toward transportation and textbook expenses, Mr. Li Ka Shing is
aware that the aforementioned subsidies may not be sufficient to
cover all the expenses of a student for those in great financial
need. Therefore, he has decided to establish the "Li Chong Yuet
Ming Care Fund" to ensure that such needy students attending the
School can receive additional living allowances so they can concentrate
on their studies without being subject to any unnecessary financial
burden.
Currently, SPCC's campus is very cramped as it is under-provisioned
by 40% in terms of space when compared to the minimum standard
premises provided by the Government for schools of similar enrolment.
As such, it is planned that upon the merging and relocation of
the two affiliated primary schools to the New Primary School premises
at Wong Chuk Hang in 2008, an HK$130 million project will be undertaken
to refurbish the existing Secondary School premises and to demolish
the adjacent MacDonnell Road Primary School building and in its
place construct a new building which will contain needed facilities
and extend the Secondary School campus.
The Li Ka Shing Foundation was established in 1980 to nurture a
culture of giving. Mr. Li believes that this can be accomplished
by focusing on capacity empowerment through education and the building
of a caring society through medical and healthcare projects. The
Li Ka Shing Foundation and other private charitable foundations
established by Mr. Li have supported numerous philanthropic activities
with grants, sponsorships, and commitments of approximately HK$7.6
billion.
Apart from thanking Mr. Li for his financial support and endorsement,
the Council of SPCC have committed to working even harder to nurture
its students so that they will become knowledgeable altruistic
leaders with a global perspective and a strong sense of social
responsibility.
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