Jockey Club rewards students for outstanding academic achievements and passion to shape Hong Konga£á?s future

05/26/2016

Since 1998, more than 400 outstanding local and Mainland students have been able to further their education with support from the Hong Kong Jockey Club Scholarships.  At the 2014/15 Presentation Ceremony & 15th Graduation Celebration Dinner held on 24 May, the Club granted new scholarships to 36 students and congratulated 17 recently graduated Scholars as they embark on their careers.  Club Chairman Dr Simon S O Ip was joined at the event by guest speaker The Hon Lam Woon-kwong, Convenor of the Non-Official members of the Executive Council, as well as Deputy Chairman Anthony W K Chow, Club Stewards Dr Eric Li Ka Cheung and Silas Yang, Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges and representatives from the nine participating tertiary institutions.

Dr Ip told guests that the Club was committed to helping Scholars on their journeys.  “Apart from the financial support of our scholarships, our Scholarship Secretariat provides a series of programmes that are open to all Scholars,” he said, noting that these included monthly high-table dinners, which provided opportunities to learn from community leaders and, starting from this year, leadership programmes at the University of Oxford.  “Through all these programmes and scholarships, we hope that talented young people will share the Club’s ethos of giving back to society and help us improve the welfare of our citizens,” Dr Ip added.

In his keynote speech, the Hon Lam Woon-kwong observed that the expansion in scope and scale of the Jockey Club Scholarships now offered young people multiple platforms for development, which would help nurture them into all-round future leaders for Hong Kong. He encouraged Scholars to pursue their dreams and to treasure the opportunities society had given them, while also making good use of their talents to give back to the community.

The 36 new Scholars are studying at the eight UGC-funded tertiary institutions or The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA). Among them is John Ho, who is pursuing a Fine Arts degree at the HKAPA. He has been practising the flute since he was very young. He had planned to focus his studies on Chinese Music but was offered a place at the Academy in the School of Chinese Opera, which uses different kinds of flutes in its musical accompaniments. Since then, he has developed strong interest in the culture of Chinese Opera. Coming from a grass-roots family, additional expenses such as for the provision of musical instruments put extra financial burden on them. With the help of a Hong Kong Jockey Club Scholarship, John is now able to further develop his potential and inject new creativity into Chinese Opera and promote this traditional Guangdong art form.

Kenny Lam, a management consulting analyst and a graduate from the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology with Bachelor degrees in Logistics Management & Engineering and General Business Management, recalls that earning a Jockey Club Scholarship not only eased his family's financial burden by supporting his tuition fees and living expenses, but also gave him the freedom to broaden his horizons through participating in an overseas exchange programme. In addition he discovered an interest in singing on his regular visits to an elderly home, where he helped give the seniors peace of mind through his performances. 

To date, the Club has contributed a total of HK$400 million to the Scholarship Scheme through its Charities Trust, including a further HK$170 million committed over a five-year period in 2015 to fund an expansion of the Scheme that will help nurture more community leaders and provide new development pathways for the city’s most talented young people. Commencing in academic year 2016/17, the expanded scheme will each year benefit nine undergraduate students with special educational needs from nine institutions, as well as 16 sub-degree students in vocational education programmes. A total of six graduates each year will also join postgraduate programmes at the University of Oxford and Harvard University, two of the world’s top universities.

A Scholarship Secretariat has also been established to support the expanded scheme and help groom  Scholars to become community leaders.

Attachment: HKJC Scholarships factsheet

The Hong Kong Jockey Club
Founded in 1884, The Hong Kong Jockey Club is a world-class horse racing operator and Hong Kong’s largest community benefactor, as well as one of Asia’s most prestigious membership clubs. Operating as a not-for-profit organisation, the Club allocates its surplus funds for charitable and community projects. In 2014/15, its donations reached a record HK$3.87 billion, and in the last decade alone it supported over 1,300 projects. The Club is also Hong Kong’s largest single taxpayer, contributing a record HK$20.05 billion in 2014/15. With about 70% of its revenue given back to society every year through donations and tax contributions, The Hong Kong Jockey Club delivers a significantly higher return to the community than any other racing and/or sports betting organisation in the world. As a socially responsible organisation, the Club helps Government combat illegal betting and advocates responsible gambling. The Club is also one of Hong Kong’s largest employers with over 24,000 full-time and part-time staff. Committed to global excellence and giving back to society, the Club is always “riding high together for a better future” with the people of Hong Kong.