A gala dinner was jointly hosted by the Council of City University of Hong Kong (CityU) and Times Higher Education (THE) on 8 May in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in honour of Professor Way Kuo, who is stepping down as CityU president after 15-years of distinguished service.

Under President Kuo’s dynamic leadership, CityU has developed into a leading global university and one of the most progressive universities in the world in the past 10 years, launching a series of innovative initiatives, including the creation of HK Tech 300 to boost Hong Kong’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, the launching of the comprehensive capital campaign, “United, We Soar”, that has already raised HK$3 billion over the past 15 years, exceeding the original target of HK$2.5 billion, the creation of School of Energy and Environment, School of Data Science, Hong Kong Institute for Advanced Study and the pioneering Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences which has introduced the first 6-year Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine programme in Asia designed to meet strenuous international accreditation standards. 

Around 120 guests attended the dinner, including CityU Council and Court members, distinguished alumni, senior management, eminent academics, representatives from academic partners in Taiwan, Malaysia, Thailand, and Brunei, representatives from HK Tech 300 funded start-ups and high school representatives from Malaysia.

In his welcoming speech, President Kuo thanked Mr Lester Garson Huang, Council Chairman, for arranging “the second chapter of his farewell.” He also said that “CityU doesn’t win because of its youth, nor does it flaunt the size of its campus. Instead, it focuses on academic teaching and research and outstanding innovation. That is how we have won global recognition. Unity is the key to our glorious history.”  

Ms Simone Dilena, President of APAC, THE, who attended the dinner together with other THE representatives, praised CityU for the President’s Beyond Boundaries series published on THE’s media platform which recently broke THE’s record in generating over 1.2 million impressions and attracting 135,000 global academics and administrators to view the series at the time of writing. “This campaign is undoubtedly one of the most memorable and impactful branding initiatives that we have accomplished together, propelling CityU’s brand to new heights on the global stage,” Ms Dilena said.

The Digital Universities forums are a series of focused forums organised by THE to bring together senior leaders from across higher education, research, industry and policy-making to share data, best practice and innovative ideas about the future of universities. President Kuo was invited to deliver a keynote speech on 9 May, titled “Beyond Boundaries: What are the new rules of learning?”, sharing his insights on the future direction of learning and education in the everchanging world. 

“Digital technology, like everything else, has its advantages and its limits,” President Kuo said. “Though on-line classes during COVID provided an alternative to in-person teaching and will change the way classes are conducted, true education, which is supposed to encourage students to go beyond boundaries instead of confining themselves, will not change.”

Moderated by Mr Dene Mullen, THE Campus content editor, the session drew an audience of over 200 people, who are primarily based in the Asia region, working across IT functions, academic innovation and student success along with corporate partner representatives from Ed Tech-focused companies.

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