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Dr. Choi Koon Shum motivates family foundation to donate MOP 30 million to UM

 

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Dr. Tse Chi Wai, accompanied by Rector Wei Zhao, receives a donation of MOP 30 million from Dr. Choi Koon Shum on behalf of Choi Kai Yau Foundation
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Choi Kai Yau Foundation made a generous donation to UMDF3.JPG

The University of Macau Development Foundation (UMDF) received a donation of MOP 30 million from Dr. Jonathan Choi Koon Shum, Chairman of Sun Wah Group and member of the University Council of the University of Macau (UM) on behalf of the Choi Kai Yau Foundation. The donation will be used to fund a residential college on the new campus and will bring UM one step closer towards implementing whole-person education and nurturing innovative future leaders for Macao and China.

UM held a cheque presentation ceremony in which Dr. Tse Chi Wai, Chair of the Executive Committee of UMDF and Chair of the University Council of UM, received the donation from the Choi Kai Yau Foundation on behalf of UMDF.

“Dr. Choi Koon Shum, like his late father Mr. Choi Kai Yau used to be, is a successful businessman who is devoted to the support of education, science and technology, charitable causes, and public welfare,” remarked Dr. Tse Chi Wai. “Dr. Choi’s father advocated by example the support of higher education in Macao and China. On the 25th anniversary of UM he donated MOP one million to UM, which resulted in a substantial improvement of the teaching conditions at the university. Dr. Choi Koon Shum has inherited his father’s commitment to contributing to the country’s prosperity through industrial development. Dr. Choi is a long-time supporter of the educational cause in Macao and China. As a member of the University Council, he has been actively contributing ideas about how to improve the university. Dr. Choi’s remarkable contribution to education has earned him recognition from people from all walks of life, just like his father did. Today Dr. Choi, on behalf of the Choi Kai Yau Foundation, made a generous donation of MOP 30 million to UMDF, which will allow students to study and grow in a better environment. To express thanks to Dr. Choi and his father, UM will name one of the to-be-built residential colleges ‘Choi Kai Yau College’. In the future UM will continue to work towards fostering a culture of donation in the community and will strive to become a universally acknowledged world-class university by enlisting support from society.”

Dr. Choi Koon Shum is the Chairman of Sun Wah Group which was founded by his late father Mr. Choi Kai Yau who was known as the “King of Seafood”. A staunch believer in “reinvigorating China through the development of science and technology”, Mr. Choi Kai Yau founded a succession of not-for-profit schools and education funds and sponsored educational and scientific research activities of various kinds in the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Macao—all in an attempt to provide the best possible education for the next generation. “Residential colleges will create the conditions that will allow UM to carry out whole-person education, because students living in residential colleges will be able to learn from one another, make more friends, expand their networks and gain experience through a variety of activities,” said Dr. Choi Koon Shum. “It is my hope that our donation to UM will have some positive impact on the long-term development of education in Macao and will help UM nurture some innovative future leaders for the country. I also hope that students can avail themselves of the wonderful learning and living environment offered by the residential colleges to study diligently and constantly seek self-improvement so that one day they can become movers and shakers of society. ”

UM will implement on the new campus the residential college system adopted by many top universities worldwide. The residential college system, which aims at “cultivating people”, and the faculty-based system, which focuses on “imparting knowledge”, will perfectly complement each other. There will be approximately ten residential colleges, and each one will be able to accommodate 300 to 500 undergraduate students. Every student will simultaneously belong to a residential college and a faculty. Students of different majors and years of study will have the opportunity to take part in various competitions and recreational activities and thereby learn from one another and improve interpersonal skills. Moreover, residential colleges will create an atmosphere conducive to learning beyond classroom settings. Through four years of living and dining together and participating in various activities organized by the residential colleges, students will be able to interact with teachers on a regular basis, meet friends of different academic backgrounds, develop a sense of social responsibility, innovative thinking ability and leadership skills, expand their networks, and grow into future pillars of society with a tolerance towards different cultures.

So far six to-be-built residential colleges of UM, namely Choi Kai Yau College, Cheng Yu Tung College, Stanley Ho College, Lui Che Woo College, Henry Fok College, and Cao Guang Biao College, have each received a donation of MOP 30 million.
 


11/10/2010