The first full implementation of the Departmental Outcome-Oriented Key Performance Indicators (DoKPIs) for academic units has recently been completed, and the results for the 2020/21 academic year were announced and released to academic units in February 2022. The results cover a total of 20 indicators (both quantitative and qualitative) under the “Education” Domain (40%), “Research and Knowledge Transfer” Domain (40%), and “Strategic Development” Domain (20%). During the implementation process, the Institutional Planning and Analytics Office attended a series of meetings with various academic units to explain the assessment criteria and to exchange views.

The Caroline Hill Road Pop-up Community Vaccination Centre operated by PolyU commenced operation on 29 March 2022 to provide vaccination services for the community. A team of 300 final-year students, teaching staff and alumni from our School of Nursing (SN) operates the Centre in a non-profit-making manner. The final-year SN students are assisting in the administration of vaccines under the supervision of experienced registered nurses. It is estimated that the Centre can serve 800 to 1,000 people each day, and its daily capacity may go up to 3,000 people should the need arise. I wish to express my appreciation to SN colleagues, students and alumni who have rendered their strong support to this meaningful initiative to contribute to the fight against the pandemic.

The Campus Development and Space Allocation Committee and its sub-committee, the Works Funding Committee, will be restructured as the Campus Space and Works Funding Committee (CSWFC) on 1 May 2022. Chaired by DP and co-chaired by VP (Campus Development and Facilities), CSWFC will ensure the efficient usage of space, and consider and approve space allocations, including the additional or extended use of laboratory space and facilities requested by academic units, as per the directions set out by the Resources Advancement and Management Committee (RAMC). CSWFC will also consider and approve Alternations and Additions (A&A) works and related funding requests as well as contract variations and additional budget requests for works projects approved by RAMC as per its defined authority.

PolyU has so far admitted 13 elite student-athletes under the Student-Athlete Learning Support and Admission Scheme (SALSA) this year. They have excelled in athletics, swimming, badminton, fencing, table tennis, gymnastics, squash, triathlons and sailing etc., making Hong Kong proud of their outstanding performance in regional and global competitions. We look forward to welcoming them into the PolyU community in the 2022/23 academic year. The newly admitted student-athletes will be enrolled in a wide range of undergraduate programmes.

PolyU also embraces students with special talents in sports, arts and culture, community service and leadership, and STEM through the newly launched “Special Talents Admission Scheme”. The scheme recognises the exceptional achievements of these students and provides learning opportunities for them to pursue future-ready professional education at PolyU.

Furthermore, the University actively supports the School Nominations Direct Admission Scheme (SNDAS), spearheaded by the Education Bureau, to recognise the exceptional talent of students in specific disciplines/areas that may not be fully assessed by the HKDSE. These students will be offered direct admission to the UGC-funded universities before the release of HKDSE results in June. PolyU will offer, via the SNDAS, direct admission of 26 JUPAS applicants to 14 of our undergraduate programmes in the 2022/23 admission exercise.

The Outstanding PolyU Alumni Award (OPAA) 2022 under an enhanced structure is being organised at the Department, Faculty/School/Graduate School and University levels with four achievement categories, namely Professional Achievement, Entrepreneurial Achievement, Scholarly Achievement and Community Service Achievement. For each of the achievement categories, young alumni at/under the age of 40 and more senior alumni are separately considered and recognised as two sub-categories.

The Departments and most of the Faculties/Schools/Graduate School have completed the awardee selection for the Department Award and Faculty/School/Graduate School Award. My warmest congratulations to all these award recipients. Meanwhile, the call for nominations for the University Award has been made, with results to be announced in Q3 of the year.

Please visit the OPAA 2022 webpage for the latest information.