Speakers

Keynote Speaker
Professor Edward CHEN CBE, GBS, JP
 Chairman, Board of Directors, School of Professional and Continuing Education, The University of Hong Kong

Professor Edward Chen, former President of Lingnan University, established Lingnan as a distinctive liberal arts institution.  He was the Director of the Centre of Asian Studies at The University of Hong Kong.  He is now a Distinguished Fellow of the Hong Kong Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences (incorporating the Centre of Asian Studies) at The University of Hong Kong, and an Honorary Professor of the Open University of Hong Kong.  Professor Chen is also Chairman of the Board of Directors of HKU SPACE (School of Professional and Continuing Education), and Chairman of the Council of Advisers of the Hong Kong Institute for Monetary Research of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority.

Keynote Speaker
Mrs Cherry TSE, JP
Permanent Secretary for Education, Education Bureau, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region

Mrs Cherry Tse was appointed the Permanent Secretary for Education on 21 December 2010. Mrs Tse joined the Hong Kong Government in 1984 and has worked in bureaux and departments spanning a diverse range of public policy areas including international trade, public finance, poverty alleviation and labour matters. Mrs Tse graduated from The University of Hong Kong with a Bachelor of Arts Degree. She continued studying while working and subsequently obtained two Master Degrees, in Public Administration and Education, respectively from Harvard University and The Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Panelist of Roundtable Discussion
Dr Richard ARMOUR, JP
Secretary-General, University Grants Committee

Dr Richard Armour has extensive experience in the higher education (HE) sector and served in faculty and leadership positions in universities including Hong Kong, United Kingdom and Australia. A MA graduate of the University of Glasgow he then took his PhD at the University of London. His research and publications have concentrated principally on HE policy and management particularly in relation to the student experience. Dr Armour began his career in Glasgow Caledonian University, the University of Strathclyde and the University of Edinburgh in the United Kingdom until 1992. In 1992, Dr Armour moved to Hong Kong as Director of Academic Planning at the City University of Hong Kong. He became the Registrar of The Open University of Hong Kong in 1996. In 2006, Dr Armour joined Griffith University as Academic Registrar in Australia. In 2009, he served as Senior Advisor to the President at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. From January 2012 until now, he is Secretary-General of the University Grants Committee (UGC), which is the main funding, policy and quality assurance body for Hong Kong’s publicly funded institutions.

Panelist of Roundtable Discussion
Mr IP Kin-yuen
Legislative Councillor, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region

Mr Ip Kin-yuen holds a Bachelor of Arts, a Postgraduate Certificate of Education and a Master of Education from The University of Hong Kong. He is currently Legislative Councillor for the education constituency, Vice-President and Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Professional Teachers’ Union, and adjunct lecturer at The University of Hong Kong. He has been a secondary school teacher, a principal as well as a lecturer at the Hong Kong Institute of Education. Mr Ip has long engaged in education policy research. He has been President of The Comparative Education Society of Hong Kong and steering committee member of the Eight-Nation Education Research Project. He has also held positions in the Education Department as well as the Central Policy Unit. Mr Ip is a strong advocate for small-class teaching and is currently Chairman of the Hong Kong Society of Small Class Teaching. He frequently comments in the media on education issues.

Panelist of Roundtable Discussion
Professor William LEE
Executive Director, Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications (HKCAAVQ)

Professor William Lee, is the Executive Director of Hong Kong Council forAccreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications (HKCAAVQ). The HKCAAVQ is an independent statutory body with a mission to safeguard the quality ofacademic and vocational qualifications in Hong Kong, to strengthen providers’ quality assurance capability, and to develop, promote and disseminate good practices on quality assurance. Professor Lee obtained his PhD in Sociology from the University of Toronto in 1992. Before joining the HKCAAVQ in August 2013, he was the Associate Vice-President (Academic Affairs) and Registrar overseeing the work of the Registry, academic developments development of the Core Curriculum / General Education, Internationalization and 334 academic reforms at Lingnan University. Professor Lee has substantial experience in tertiary administration and is actively involved in the quality assurance of higher education in Hong Kong. He has served on various university, University Grants Committee and public committees on quality assurance.

Panelist of Roundtable Discussion
Mr Brian LO, JP
Deputy Secretary for Education, Education Bureau, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region

Mr Brian Lo is the Deputy Secretary for Education in the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. As the Deputy Secretary of the Education Bureau, Mr Lo is responsible for policies on higher and further education, covering the publicly-funded and self-financing post-secondary education sectors, the vocational education sector, adult education, the Hong Kong Qualifications Framework and external relations. Before taking up the current post, Mr Lo has served in various government bureaux and departments, including the Trade and Industry Department, the Civil Service Bureau, the Development Bureau and the Innovation and Technology Commission. Mr Lo received his Bachelor of Social Science and Master of Philosophy degrees from The Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Panelist of Roundtable Discussion
Mr Tim LUI, BBS, JP
Chairman, Committee on Self-financing Post-secondary Education

Mr Tim Lui is a Senior Advisor of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in Hong Kong and a Past President of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Mr Lui is currently the Chairman of the Committee on Self-financing Post-secondary Education, Self-financing Post-secondary Education Fund Steering Committee and the Standing Committee on Directorate Salaries and Conditions of Service of the HKSAR Government. He is a member of the Committee on Professional Development of Teachers and Principals as well as the Committee on Free Kindergarten Education. He is also an ex-officio member of the Education Commission and the University Grants Committee. Previously, he has served as a Member of the Council and Treasurer of Hong Kong University of Science and Technologyas well as the Chairman of the Appeals Board Panel (Education) and the Joint Committee on Student Finance. Mr Lui is a Deputy of the National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China.

Panelist of Roundtable Discussion
Professor WONG Yuk-shan, BBS, JP
President, The Open University of Hong Kong

Professor Wong Yuk-shan is currently the President of The Open University of Hong Kong. He obtained his PhD in Plant Biochemistry from McGill University of Canada in 1979. Since the 1980s, Professor Wong has performed teaching, research and administration work at various local universities. He has published 8 books and over 160 international journal papers in the areas of environmental biotechnology, plant biochemistry and mangrove conservation. He is Fellows of the Society of Biology in the United Kingdom and the Hong Kong Institution of Science. Professor Wong is a Deputy to the National People’s Congress of China and a member of the Committee of the Hong Kong Basic Law, the PRC. He is also the Chairman of the Consumer Council, a member of the Hong Kong Basic Law Promotion Steering Committee. He has been appointed Justice of Peace in 2001 and received a Bronze Bauhinia Star medal in 2004.