Interview with the President
Living the CityU Spirit - Professional • Creative • For the World
President Professor Way Kuo hails University innovation and development, propelled by CityU's dynamic spirit, creativity, and relentless drive to improve people's lives.
Few journeys in life proceed smoothly, and we have been faced with our fair share of challenges. But the CityU spirit has lit the way forward over the past year and continues to raise CityU's profile locally and internationally and shape a fresh institutional identity, according to President Professor Way Kuo.
The CityU spirit pervades campus and all our operations, bringing together non-local and local students, faculty and students, researchers and teachers, staff and stakeholders, donors and friends, he says.
“A great example of the CityU spirit is the way the campus community, our friends, the government and the public have come together to support our college of veterinary medicine,” says Professor Kuo. “Our efforts to set up the school began in 2008 when I took up the CityU presidency. It's been a 10-year marathon.”
As a regular competitor in long-distance running events, Professor Kuo knows a thing or two about marathons!
The CityU spirit pervades campus and all our operations, bringing together non-local and local students, faculty and students, researchers and teachers, staff and stakeholders, donors and friends, he says.
“A great example of the CityU spirit is the way the campus community, our friends, the government and the public have come together to support our college of veterinary medicine,” says Professor Kuo. “Our efforts to set up the school began in 2008 when I took up the CityU presidency. It's been a 10-year marathon.”
As a regular competitor in long-distance running events, Professor Kuo knows a thing or two about marathons!
Winning over the naysayers
Persuading the government, funding agencies, stakeholders including alumni, the media and the public over the years was never going to be an easy task. The idea was so radical when first floated that not everyone was convinced. Some critical voices pointed out that Hong Kong had little farmland or animals unlike other countries and questioned the utility of such a plan.“But key people believed in the idea of setting up Hong Kong's first-ever vet school, and we have had tremendous backing from Cornell University, one of the world's leading institutions for veterinary medicine, and The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust,” he adds. “Our supporters could see that a vet school would spotlight transformational research into a better understanding of animal and human health.”
A major boost was seen when the University Grants Committee recommended in August 2018 that the government support CityU's 6-year Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine programme as a publicly funded programme, commencing at the start of the 2019 triennium, and then The Honourable Mrs Carrie Lam, Chief Executive of HKSAR, stated that CityU's veterinary medicine programme was a worthy endeavour.
Mrs Carrie Lam (second left) views an exhibition during the naming ceremony for the Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences.
A matter of data
In addition to pioneering veterinary medicine education, CityU established Hong Kong's first School of Data Science (SDSC) in July 2018, another clear sign of our vision for CityU, Hong Kong and further afield. SDSC is Hong Kong's first free-standing unit dedicated to this burgeoning field.
“CityU is a forward-thinking institution. Data science is going to become a major area for development within the data-driven economy,” Professor Kuo says, explaining that SDSC and the Hong Kong Institute for Data Science (HKIDS) directly respond to the increased demand for data scientists and engineers who can support future societal and economic development.
“Through SDSC, we can create a campus-wide educational resource in data science, foster collaboration and train high-calibre students for data science-related industries. Meanwhile, HKIDS will serve as a hub for joint research, tackling challenging issues in the field, building on the University's strengths, and bringing together interdisciplinary faculty and students who possess similar research interests,” he says.
“Through SDSC, we can create a campus-wide educational resource in data science, foster collaboration and train high-calibre students for data science-related industries. Meanwhile, HKIDS will serve as a hub for joint research, tackling challenging issues in the field, building on the University's strengths, and bringing together interdisciplinary faculty and students who possess similar research interests,” he says.
Unique, creative and for the world
Essentially, our commitment to these high levels of innovation and creativity within higher education will improve people's lives. That, according to the President, is the motivation behind our pioneering endeavours.“Over the last few years, we have positioned ourselves as a dynamic institution dedicated to excellence and committed to giving back to society. We have achieved this by focusing strongly on knowledge creation, original discoveries, innovative thinking, and integrating teaching and research at all levels,” he says.
This drive to incorporate innovation and embed creativity across campus, and this desire to spotlight the interdisciplinary nature of our teaching and research, is exemplified in the works showcased at our new art space, the CityU Exhibition Gallery.
“Our treasured Exhibition Gallery creates an ambience of creativity and promotes how we can create new forms of cultural expression by merging the arts and sciences,” he says.
Recent exhibitions such as “ANiMAL: Art Science Nature Society” wowed audiences by bringing together Chinese painting and sculpture collections from the National Palace Museum (NPM) in Taiwan with the latest artistic media techniques developed at CityU's School of Creative Media.
“This exhibition, the third collaboration with NPM, revealed the incredible ways that the arts and the sciences can come together to create stunning, educational and unique visuals. Such pioneering work truly represents the CityU spirit!” says Professor Kuo.
Recent displays at the CityU Exhibition Gallery: (left) ANiMAL: Art Science Nature Society, combining animal artworks from different eras and the latest creative media techniques, and (right) Art Deco. The France-China Connection, exploring the links between the art deco movement and Chinese arts and lifestyles. The Art Deco exhibition runs until the end of June 2019.
