Professor Way Kuo assumed the presidency of CityU on 14 May, an appointment he described as a great honour. As the new leader of CityU, he sent an email to all staff, students and alumni, inviting the University community to work with him to contend with future challenges and drive CityU to an even higher level.

To prepare himself for the challenges ahead, he has asked for and received valuable advice from many staff, students and alumni on the many aspects of the CityU operation. In the months and years to come, this dialogue will continue. He believes by doing so he will be able to understand the aspirations and challenges of CityU in particular and local higher education in general

He has visions of excellence for CityU’s future. He would like to see this university become synonymous with outstanding quality in teaching, and make a high impact in research. He shares the belief that student learning can be enhanced by exposure to research activities. He fully realises that meeting these challenges and our targets will take collective will and effort and so he looks forward to working with the CityU community. (Full text of the EBS message)

Professor Kuo met with reporters in the morning to outline his major work plans. Many important challenges await his leadership. High on his agenda is the enhancement of quality in both teaching and research. The University has embarked on an ambitious programme of physical expansion to accommodate the expected surge in undergraduate enrolment under the new 334 academic structure slated for 2012. An increase in size, he believes, must be accompanied by an improvement in quality, with clear benchmarks for validation.

Determined to take CityU to the next level, Professor Kuo plans to do so by extensive internal consultation and intensive external consultancy. To facilitate his dialogue with staff and students, Professor Kuo now keeps a teach-yourself-Cantonese book at his elbow. As for external consultancy, he has already assembled a star-studded team of international experts to advise him, even before setting foot in Hong Kong. He is anxious to usher CityU in a new era of innovation, quality and harmony.

In coming to CityU, Prof Kuo relinquished his position as University Distinguished Professor and Dean of Engineering at the University of Tennessee. He was previously the Wisenbaker Chair of Engineering in Innovation and Executive Associate Dean of Engineering at Texas A&M University. For seven long years he was head of its Department of Industrial Engineering, which under his leadership was rated among the best in the US by US News & World Report. (Please visit the website of the Office of the President for Professor Kuo’s biography.)

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