A Celebration of Community: Honours Academy’s Inaugural Graduation Celebration

(refer to the photo album here for more highlights)

Date: 6 December 2023

Time: 7:00pm

Venue: The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong

In an evening suffused with the spirit of leadership excellence and communal pride, the Honours Academy (HA) witnessed the fruition of one key mission: the graduation of our first cohort. The celebration was a symphony of shared memories, a commemoration of milestones, and a testament to the Academy’s nurturing of future leaders. This event also bore an additional layer of significance, having been meticulously engineered by HA’s 2nd cohort and the HA Secretariat Team. The students and staff, with a keen sense of camaraderie and respect, took it upon themselves to orchestrate an event that would fittingly honor their seniors’ accomplishments. From the initial conception to the final execution, the second cohort undertook the vast array of logistical challenges, with a spirit of enthusiasm and attention to detail, fully embodied in the personalised touches that made the event memorable and meaningful.

The celebration commenced with heartfelt encouragements and blessings from President Simon Ho, and our University’s Council Chairperson, Dr the Honourable Moses Cheng, while both underscored HA’s dedication to nurturing global citizens and future leaders. This joyous occasion also brought together HA’s esteemed Professional and Academic Fellows, and an ensemble of our University’s senior management, faculty, administrators, HA students, friends and families.

The evening was also a pinnacle of recognition, with the presentations of the inaugural HA Graduate Award to three exceptional 1st cohort students, namely Fanny Cheung, Lauren Lin and Tom Tang, in acknowledgement of their outstanding academic achievement, experiential learning, leadership, and community service.

A series of traditions was unveiled, first starting with the presentations of the HA Graduation Certificate, conducted by President Ho, Prof YV Hui (Provost and Vice-President, Academic and Research; Chairperson of the HA Board), and Dr Tom Fong (Vice-President, Organisational Development; Member of the HA Board). With the HA’s customised stole draped elegantly over their shoulders, each graduate was bestowed with their very own bespoke HA Graduation Bear, emblematic of the HA’s spirit of mentorship and fellowship. As HA’s Founding Head, Professor Jeanne Fu, Acting Vice-President (Learning and Student Experience) drew the event to a conclusion by her heartwarming speech where every single word conveyed deep-seated earnestness that shall linger in each graduate’s mind.

The celebration’s festivities ebbed with a celebratory toast to all. The graduates, now the newest group of distinguished alumni, are poised to inscribe their legacy in their respective fields, and the broader community. The strong foundation they have built throughout their HA journey and the bright futures they are having are an inspiration to the whole HA family, and a beacon of what HA aspires to cultivate: scholars and citizens par excellence.

In orchestrating this convocation, HA’s 2nd cohort has set a precedent for future classes—a tradition of honouring achievement and fostering a legacy of mutual respect and support that transcends the individual and uplifts the collective. It is a tradition that undoubtedly will continue to echo through the future successes of the HA family.

Congratulations on your graduation, Honours Academy Graduates! Cheers!

President Simon Ho welcomed esteemed Professional and Academic Fellows, and an ensemble of our University’s senior management, faculty, administrators, HA students, friends and families to the Honours Academy’s Inaugural Graduation Celebration.

Awardees of the HA Graduate Award received the award from Dr the Honourable Moses Cheng, Council Chairperson.

Professor Jeanne Fu, Acting Vice-President (Learning and Student Experience) and Honours Academy Founding Head presented the unique Honours Academy Graduation Bear to the graduates, symbolising the spirit of unity within the Honours Academy.