To honour a handsome donation to CityU by Dr Tin Ka Ping, the University has today named Lecture Theatre One (LT-1) after the distinguished industrialist and philanthropist today. A plaque engraved with Dr Tin’s motto was unveiled at the ceremony. The motto, “To help others, you are helping yourself. To help develop others, you must first develop yourself” (利人必能利己，己立才能立人）, lies behind Dr Tin’s ongoing support for the University.

 

The ceremony was officiated by Dr Tin Ka Ping, Chairman of K P Tin Foundation; Sir Gordon Wu, CityU’s Council Chairman; and Professor H K Chang, CityU’s President. The Tin Ka Ping Lecture Theatre is a multi-purpose lecture theatre equipped with a comprehensive multimedia video and audio system for teaching and learning purposes. It has a maximum capacity of 300 seats and is used daily by a flow of over 1,000 people.

 

“With a short history of 20 years, CityU has exemplified its strength by maintaining a favourable position among thousands of long-standing mainland universities,” Dr Tin said. Dr Tin was impressed that CityU was ranked seventh among the top 10 universities in Greater China, according to a survey conducted by the Shanghai Jiao Tong University in July last year. “With its teaching strength, the University will continue to strive to nurture both the virtue and the academic excellence of our young generation,” he remarked. Dr Tin strongly believes that with the leadership of Sir Gordon Wu, the University will continue to flourish.

 

In addressing the Ceremony, Sir Gordon Wu expressed his gratitude towards the benevolence and tremendous support of Dr Tin and his Foundation for the University’s quality education and academic development. “With funding cuts in the higher education sector, CityU has to work very hard to sustain its long-term development. I firmly believe that strenuous effort and commitment by the CityU community, as well as the generosity of philanthropists like Dr Tin, will be a catalyst for the University to scale new heights and grooming high-calibre talent,” Sir Gordon Wu said.

 

“With the urgency of the University Grants Committee’s Matching Grant Scheme, the University was gratified to receive Dr Tin’s timely donation. His robust support has given us enormous motivation and injected us with pride,” said Professor Chang. Professor Chang recalled Dr Tin’s acknowledgement of the University’s academic development and its strategic development plan during his visit to CityU last December. “Although the amount of funds we raised is not comparable to that of those universities with a longer history, we are very much encouraged by the high participation rate of our staff, alumni and students,” he said. The President firmly believes that under the guidance of Sir Gordon Wu and the University community, CityU can look to the future with confidence, standing at the forefront of the region.

 

At the Ceremony, the University also showed the audience a video featuring Dr Tin’s selfless support of education and community work. The script for the video was written by Miss Cherie Tang, a third-year School of Creative Media student. “Through the video, I hoped to deliver a message of learning to love—loving yourself, your family, and your community. This is what Dr Tin and his community work teaches us,” Cherie explained. The video was produced as a CD-ROM and was presented to Dr Tin in commemoration of the re-naming of LT-1.

 

Dr Tin is the founder of Tins Chemical Corporation Ltd. In the 1960s, he started plastics and artificial leather businesses in Hong Kong and rapidly established himself as an industry leader. At the same time, Dr Tin sees as his social responsibility to promote education, helping the needy and building a stronger nation by making financial endowments. Over the past 20 years, Dr Tin has made more than 1,000 benefactions to worthy causes such as education, hospitals, transport, culture and community charities in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and more than 30 provinces and cities in mainland China.

 

In 1982, Dr Tin set up the K P Tin Foundation, and he has given away a sizeable portion of his wealth to help the aged, the young, and the needy. Among his contributions, Dr Tin’s commitment to education has been the most pronounced. More than 200 kindergartens, primary schools, secondary schools, and other education facilities in universities and higher education institutions have been supported by Dr Tin. Among the graduates of the Tin Ka Ping Secondary School, Miss Teresa Lau, now a third-year student in Linguistics and Language Technology, at CityU, says, “No matter how busy he was, Dr Tin made time to participate in the Chinese Culture Award Scheme ceremony every year. His insights into Chinese culture and moral education inspired me deeply. I will remember his encouraging words well.” Graduating this year, Teresa is delighted to have witnessed a CityU venue named after Dr Tin.