Ying Wa College
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Ying Wa College ( 英華書院 ) |
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| Motto | Steadfast faith, beneficent deeds |
| Established | 1818-11-11 |
| Type | Boys |
| Principal | Mr. LEE Chee-wah, Roger |
| Students | 2100 (Primary:900, Secondary:1200) |
| Location | 1 Ying Wa Street, Shamshuipo, Hong Kong |
| Campus | Kowloon |
| Colours | Green |
| Website | http://www.yingwa.edu.hk |
Ying Wa College, formerly known as Anglo-Chinese College, is the world's first Anglo-Chinese school. It has thrived on the vision of its founding fathers and the good work of generations of devoted principals and teachers, whose educational approach is particularly apt for Hong Kong, a place where East meets West, and where a healthy synergy between the two brings out the best of both worlds. Indeed, thousands of local youths have passed through its gates and benefited from its excellent care and nurture in over 185 years. Among them many are outstanding leaders in Hong Kong today.
The current school building is located at 1 Ying Wa Street in Shamshuipo of Kowloon in Hong Kong. It was formerly a school of London Missionary Society and later became a member school of The Hong Kong Council of the Church of Christ in China.
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[edit] History
The first institution with the name of Ying Wa College was founded in Malacca in 1818 by Robert Morrison of the London Missionary Society, the first Protestant missionary to China. The Rev. Dr. William Milne (missionary) was then appointed Headmaster. The fundamental deed declared the object of the College to be The reciprocal cultivation of Chinese and European literature; and the diffusion of Christianity. Apart from its work of a school, the Anglo-Chinese College (as it was then called) also trained evangelists and pastors. Leung Faat and the Rev. Hoh Fuk Tong were among the first Chinese to heed the call to preach the Gospel.
In 1843 when Hong Kong was ceded by China to Britain, the College was moved to Hong Kong Island by the Rev. James Legge, famous translator of the Chinese Classics. The school building was situated at the junction of Hollywood Road and Staunton Street. At a time when the Christian church had yet to be officially established, the College was used as a religious centre where Christians assembled to worship the Lord. An important activity of the school was printing the Old and the New Testaments with its own printing press. Rev. James Legge continued to be Principal until he was appointed by the Government in 1864 to help prepare for the opening of Queen's College. For lack of a successor, the Anglo-Chinese College ceased to operate.
In 1911 the elders of the To Tsai Church and the Revs. Cheung Chuk Ling, W. T. Pearce, and H. R. Wells revived the college so that the training of the sons of church members might be carried on. In 1913 the London Missionary Society responded to the appeal of the To Tsai Church to provide a Headmaster for the project, sending Arnold Hughes to Hong Kong, and the college was re-opened as a middle school in 1914 in rented premises, first at 9 Caine Road, later at 45 Caine Road, and finally at 80 Bonham Road (a former German Rhenish Mission property).
The school grappled with many financial problems and it was at this time that help was received from the China Congregational Church and the School Committee was enlarged to accept representatives from its new friend. Financial assistance was also received from the Government.
In 1917 Hughes was called up for service in the First World War and the Rev. W. T. Pearce became Acting Headmaster until Hughes returned at the end of the war. The school suffered a great loss in 1922 when Hughes became ill, and died in Japan while on his way back to England on sick leave. In that year the London Missionary Society transferred the Rev. L. G. Phillips from Xia-men to Hong Kong and he served as Headmaster for over two years.
With Phillips's departure in 1924, and troubles in connection with the premises at 80 Bonham Road, the school entered another difficult period. The premises were rented from the government who now wanted to auction them off. The school committee asked to be allowed to buy the property and there arose a dispute with the Rhenish Mission even though the rental had originally been undertaken with a view to protecting the property and preserving it for the German mission. The committee contemplated closing the school, but eventually the dispute was resolve and the school continued under the guidance of Shum Wai Cheung.
[edit] Expansion period
In 1927, the school decided to build its own premises. Shum succeeded in raising over six thousand dollars from the staff and students. Together with fourteen thousand dollars from the Provident Fund and a government subvention of twenty thousand dollars, the school committee decided to construct the new school building on the site of Mongkok Church at Bute Street in Mongkok with the understanding that the school was to share its new hall with Mongkok Church. The government withdrew its financial aid when construction work was underway and the school was completed in September, 1928 with the aid of some loans.
In 1930 Shum resigned and the London Missionary Society agreed to urgent appeals from the school committee that the Rev. Frank Short should be allowed to serve the school as Headmaster. Short administrated and developed the school so well that it was restored to the Grant List and the extra funds thus gained made improvement installing possible. The Rev. Frank Short continued in office until 1938 when he had to devote more time to administrative work for the London Missionary Society. Herbert Noble who joined the school in 1933, succeeded Short.
The school building, commandeered by the Japanese authorities during the Occupation of Hong Kong in World War II, was used as a P. W. D. depot. The Headmaster, a member of the naval volunteers, was taken prisoner of war and the staff became scattered. At the close of the war the building was restored to the school committee and re-opened in November, 1945. Noble convalesced in London and was substituted by the senior master K. Y. Yung. When Noble resumed duty in 1946 the enrolment had increased to such an extent that almost 600 students were crowded into a building originally designed for 350. The College premises in Bute Street, Mongkok proved to be too small to operate an ideal school. A project for building a new school was therefore contemplated and negotiations resulted in the selling of the existing land and building to the friends of the Mongkok Church.
With a plot of land granted by the Government as the college site, the school authority started to erect a new building at Oxford Road in Kowloon Tong. The construction work suffered repeated setbacks concerning its location, foundation and plan. It was only through the zealous efforts of Noble, who exhausted himself, and the magnanimity of the public, who made generous donations, that the project became a reality in June 1962. In the same year Daniel P. K. Au officiated at the foundation ceremony. The new school was opened by the Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Robert Black, in October 1963.
[edit] Development period
After serving the College for 30 years, Noble retired in 1964 on account of his poor health. He was remembered for his dedicated service and remarkable contributions which helped enhance the prestige of the school. He returned to England soon after retirement and died in December 1964. Terence Iles who succeeded Herbert Noble as Headmaster was most active in organising various extracurricular activities with a view to developing students' all-roundedness.
After 8 years of service, Iles resigned in 1972 and was succeeded by Rex King who devoted his life and energy to the good of the school. In addition to improving the school facilities, he also attended to pupils' application, which resulted in marked progress in academic work.
In 1978, King resigned and was replaced by H. B. Mui (梅浩濱). After 12 years of service, Mui resigned in 1990 and was succeeded by P. K. Yeung. The college continued to expand, with classes extended to 31, the school curriculum constantly revised to tailor for students' needs and various innovations made. Being inheritor of a long and glorious tradition, the school will continue to follow the footsteps of its predecessors in carrying out its weighty mission.
[edit] School Song
Home of Our Youth , by Rupert Baldwin, 1938
Home of our Youth,
To Thee we bring the homage of lives at the spring,
Training thy sons for the game of life,
Sending them forth to the age-long strife,
Ready thy name ever bright to uphold,
Ready 'gainst evil to fight and be bold.
May those who left thee in years that are past.
Guard well thy honour, to truth holding fast.
Home of our Youth to thee will we sing,
Long may thy name on our lips proudly ring.
[edit] School Hymn
1.We build our school on Thee, O Lord,
To Thee we bring our common need;
The loving heart, the helpful word,
The tender thought, the kindly deed:
With these we pray
Thy Spirit may enrich and bless our School always.
2.We work together in Thy sight,
We live together in Thy love;
Guide Thou our faltering steps aright,
And lift our thought to heaven above:
Dear Lord we pray
Thy Spirit may be present in our school always.
3.Hold Thou each hand to keep it just,
Touch Thou our lips and make them pure;
If Thou art with us, Lord we must,
Be faithful friends and comrades sure:
Dear Lord, we pray
Thy Spirit may be present in our School always.
4.We change, but Thou art still the same,
The same good Master, Teacher, Friend;
We change, but Lord, we bear Thy name.
To journey with it to the end:
And so we pray
Thy Spirit may be present in our School always.
- There was once an argument on either "always" or "alway".
This hymn is also the School hymn of Edgehill College, Bideford, Devon, England.
[edit] Ying Wa Cry
Two, Four, Six, Eight,
What do we appreciate?
YINGWA YINGWA WA WA WA!!!
[edit] Notable alumni
- Leung Faat
- Mr Antony LEUNG Kam-chung, GBS, JP
- Sam Hui
- The Hon Andrew LIAO Cheung-sing, SBS, SC, JP
[edit] See also
- Education in Hong Kong
- Wa Ying College, a methodist secondary school with similar name in Hong Kong
- Anglo-Chinese School, another school in Singapore with a similar name.
- 19th Century Protestant Missions in China
[edit] External links
[edit] Reference
- Siu-Lun LAU, Sanctuary of Excellence - The History of Ying Wa College, Ying Wa College Old Boys' Association Limited 2001, ISBN 962-86125-1-4
