A New Era Begins 1975-78

Introduction This Report, covering the years 1975-1978 ， together wi th the two previously published Reports, The First Six Years, 1963-1969 and The Emerging University, 1970-1974, constitute a continuous and complete record of the establishment and development of The Chinese University of Hong Kong under the administration of its first Vice-Chancellor. During these fifteen years, three Governors have been its Chancellor; the dynamic community of Hong Kong has continued to flourish in commerce and industry; and the University itself has become a modern, comprehensive-type university, international in character, w i th a distinctive educational mission. The pattern of the University's growth, however, has not been simple and linear. Out of the historic circumstances and official assumptions involved in its establishment, the University has developed dynamically, responding to the special needs of the Hong Kong community, to economic pressures, and, most importantly, to the motivating power o f its own objectives and aspirations. The phases of this development are described in the three Reports of the Vice-Chancellor, their titles suggesting the developmental significance o f each phase. The present Report is entitled, A New Era Begins, obviously implying that long- standing issues have been resolved, that an historic turn has been made, and that a new foundation has been laid for future development. The formative phase is described in detail in The First Six Years ， 1963-1969. It records the Government's decision to establish a new university in which Chinese would be the principal language of instruction, and the Report of Lord Fulton's Commission, proposing that three existing private liberal arts colleges, geographically separated—— Chung Chi College, New Asia College, and United College——become constituent parts of a "federal-type" Chinese University of Hong Kong. Further, The First Six Years records the early establishment of organizational units at the university level——graduate and professional schools, research institutes and centres, extra-mural studies——exemplifying major institutional objectives which would increasingly shape the future development of the University. Finally, this first Report records the opportune acquisition of a magnificent 273 acre campus site adjacent to Chung Chi College, an eventuality totally unforeseen when the "federal-type" plan was adopted, but fated to play a crucial role in the ultimate determination of the scope and character of The Chinese University of Hong Kong. The second Report, The Emerging University, 1970-1974, covers a critical period of institutional development, when for the first time the 3