Awards for students' community service and leadership
Four CityU students have been granted Outstanding Service Awards in recognition of their outstanding leadership and devotion to serving fellow students, the University and community.
The awards were established in 1991 and are jointly administered by the Hong Kong Student Services Association and the Hong Kong Outstanding Tertiary Students’ Services Association. The awards encourage students to develop leadership skills and a life-long commitment to the provision of community service. This year, the award attracted 129 applications, of which only 20 were selected.
The four award-winning CityU students are Louis Mok Wai-yin, Year 2 student at the Department of Applied Social Studies; Katy Li Yik-ting, Year 2 student at the Department of Accountancy; Jessica Tse Yuen-yan, Year 3 student at the Department of English and Communication; and Isaac Yeung Chi-hin, Year 2 student at the Department of Marketing.
The awards represent another demonstration of CityU’s commitment to nurturing students’ whole-person development.
Mok Wai-yin formed a band, The Alpha, in 2002 and has so far given voluntary performances and participated in activities for more than 70 organisations and government departments. The band now gives an average of three musical performances per month for the community’s benefit. Appropriately, The Alpha performed live at the award presentation ceremony.
Since Form 2, Mok Wai-yin has thrived on playing music and live performance. “Serving the community through music is one of the objectives of setting up The Alpha. It has enhanced my leadership acumen and improved my communication skills,” he said, vowing to continue performing voluntarily.
Li Yik-ting is the External Vice-president of Faculty of Business Leadership Club and a student mentor for the Department of Accountancy. She is also External Vice-president of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Outstanding Students’ Union, as well as Co-founder and Permanent Vice-president of the Hong Kong Young Leaders Development Association. In 2007, she was named a Hong Kong Outstanding Youth Volunteer by the Social Welfare Department.
“I am very grateful to CityU and my professors for their support and encouragement of my voluntary work. CityU not only focuses on professional knowledge but also provides many opportunities for us to achieve a balanced development,” said Li Yik-ting. “I wish to promote voluntary work in different parts of the world to spread the spirit of voluntary service and extend helping hands to others.”
Tse Yuen-yan is External Vice Chairperson for the Hong Kong Youth and Tertiary Student Association Model United Nations Club. Actively participating in various CityU extra-curricular activities, she is also an elected class representative.
“I think there are three important elements in serving the community: compassion, communication and commitment. Having a compassionate heart is vital in serving, while we also need to effectively communicate and understand the needs of the served community. Commitment should be the result of enjoying the contribution we make,” said Tse Yuen-yan.
Yeung Chi-hin started performing voluntary work in Form 3. He is President of Rotaract Club of CityU and Vice Chairman of Youngwave, a social service group operating under the auspices of the Social Welfare Department. The gradual change from front-line worker to leader of voluntary projects has helped him reflect upon his own qualities and become more mature.
“Serving as President of Rotaract allows me to learn about leadership skills. But most importantly, I can serve the community and help the needy, which gives me a sense of satisfaction that drives me to participate in voluntary service,” said Yeung Chi-hin.
The Outstanding Service Awards presentation ceremony was held on 5 April. Mr Joseph Lee Chung-tak, JP, Chairman of the Commission on Youth and External Council Member of CityU, was the officiating guest.