＊Dear students, staff, alumni and friends,
Working Together to Take HKU Forward
I am truly honoured and delighted to be joining you today as the 15th President and Vice-Chancellor of The University of Hong Kong and I am grateful to the University Council for overwhelming support. I am determined to repay the confidence shown in me by working tirelessly to build on the legacy of my predecessors and lead the university to new heights. I am aware that there are some that doubt the wisdom of the decision to appoint me: I will strive to convince them that I am worthy of the position. Since my appointment I have been inundated with hundreds of messages of support and encouragement from staff, students, alumni and other citizens: their positivity illustrates the immense warmth that is felt for HKU.
My vision for HKU is to strengthen its place on the world academic stage, to build on its self-confidence and to ensure that by optimising the University's structure and function, together we can achieve our collective potential. HKU remains undisputedly the leading university in many fields in Asia and is enormously respected in the wider world. Illustrative of its global reputation, I have been approached by senior figures in several top universities in the UK, US and elsewhere seeking new or expanded links with HKU, and also by major industrial companies. The global standing that characterises HKU is precious and must be cherished and developed carefully to extend our impact even further. Working in partnership with universities in the mainland and further afield is already central to the work of HKU. I wish to build on this and explore the opportunities we already have and those that we can newly create with other world leading institutions: the world wants to work with us and we must demonstrate the value of them doing so. Together we can stride confidently into the future and take HKU on to ever greater contributions to education, research, leadership and public engagement locally and globally. As with all universities, HKU's greatest assets are its staff, students, alumni and friends: all these communities must be nurtured, supported and encouraged. The finances of the university must be responsibly stewarded, investments being made in strategic directions whilst not risking the long-term stability of the institution; the sanctity of academic freedom must be protected and the quality of the university's track record valued and further enhanced. The central principle must be that excellence in teaching and research will underpin all aspects of the university's aspirations.
I wish to pay tribute to Professor Lap-Chee Tsui: he has been gracious and professional in handing over the reins of the University to me. I am particularly pleased that he has accepted my invitation to stay on as a senior adviser to the Vice-Chancellor so that I can continue to benefit from his experience and wisdom. I am also delighted that Professors SP Chow and Paul Tam have agreed to extend their tenure as Pro-Vice-Chancellors for University Relations and Research respectively until later in the year so that we will have additional continuity in the senior team. Professor Amy Tsui is unable to extend her term and I would like to take this opportunity to add my thanks to her for her long service to HKU as Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Teaching and Learning. There will be two new Pro-Vice-Chancellor positions appointed in the near future so that by the end of the year my new senior team should be taking shape. Together with Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Provost Professor Roland Chin and Executive Vice-President Dr Steven Cannon, we will set about refreshing the University's Strategy and tackling the next stages of our development.
A major priority for the first few months of my tenure will be to learn more about the University from the inside. I will spend time with students, staff and alumni, visiting Faculties, departments and services and aiming to be in listening mode so that I can understand the University's strengths and weaknesses from those that know it best. I will also engage with long-term friends and supporters of the university and with others in the Hong Kong community to ensure that I hear multiple perspectives. Informed by these interactions, I will work with all our stakeholders to seize opportunities, understand and mitigate risks, uphold the University's core values and ensure that the University continues its second century with all the distinction that characterised its first.
This is a time of great opportunity for higher education, and in Europe there is a widely held view that Asia is where the brightest future lies. HKU is ideally placed to take a leading role in maximising the impact of higher education locally and globally. I reiterate the sense of honour and opportunity that I feel as I become the 15th HKU President & Vice-Chancellor and I look forward to working together with everyone else that loves, respects and values HKU to take the University onward and upward.
President and Vice-Chancellor