Newsletter No. 208

CUHK Newsletter No. 208 4th October 2002 3 Lend Him Your Ears Prof. Ambrose King on His New Appointment as VC, Plans for the Coming Year, University Mergers, and a Lot More students i n the entire student population has to be reviewed. The University's hands w i l l be tied if mechanisms governing the recruitment of research students remain unchanged. But in the last inning, it is teaching, he says, that should be a university's primary mission. T he most valuable fruits of our labour,' he remarks, 'are our students and what they make of what they have learnt at this university. Research is important but 20 years down the line, a university that is only good at research has a very limited future. We must therefore train our students well, and to do that, we need good teachers. A n d a teacher is good only when he is good at both research and teaching.' The recruitment of the best possible teachers is thus one of his foremost concerns. There are four other issues that weigh heavily on Prof. King's mind. The first is the establishment of a law school at CUHK. Prof. King intends to submit the proposal in the University's Academic Development Plans for the triennium 2004-7. 'I think it was a big mistake of the UGC to turn down our proposal more than a decade ago. No comprehensive university can do without a law school. Modern society cannot function without legal expertise, and Hong Kong has to rely on its own universities to nurture quality legal expertise,' he says. He also po i n ts out that all of the Un i v e r s i t y 's professional schools — business administration, medicine, and engineering — have fared extremely well. There is no reason why its law school should not be another success. A second matter in which Prof. King wou ld like to engage the thoughts of members of the University is the extension of the undergraduate curriculum from three to four years. Now that the wo r th of the system is recognized by the government, its implementation is put on hold only because of the lack of resources. Under such circumstances, how eagerly do we want it and i n what form? W i l l its imp l emen t a t i on be across-the-board or limited? Both the curriculum and the way it is delivered and assessed need careful rethinking. Prof. K i ng believes it is time for the University to devise more concrete plans to turn the four-year system into a reality by phases. I n anticipation of the government's new policy objectives and funding strategies in relation to higher education, the University also needs to overhaul its governance system to cope w i th challenges in the new context. The matter can't wait un t il the arrival of the next vice-chancellor, says Prof. King. As the University has begun its review early, even before the f o rmal release of the Sutherland Report, ideas are already taking shape and solid plans are expected to emerge within a year's time. Implementing them, however, w i ll take some time. Then there is the talk i n the press about the possibility of a merger between CUHK and HKUST. About it Prof. King has this to say: 'Let's not forget that integration has been a unique feature of the University's f o u n d i ng and development. We are always open- m i n d ed about it. W i t h the forces of globalization operating on us in almost every aspect of life, we may we l l start t h i n k i ng about i n t eg r a t i ng w i t h other institutions to acquire the size and the critical mass to become a truly world-class university.' According to him, this is one way for local universities to revitalize themselves to achieve world-class status. 'Of course, it involves issues of quantity and quality and w i l l only be possible if the integration benefits both parties, resulting in a w i n - w in situation. But I don't see why we should refrain from considering the possibility. The Chinese University w i ll certainly not go for it passively. I w o u l d like to i n v o l ve parties concerned i n the University to actively think about the pros and cons, to consider the feasibility i n both the near and distant future,' he says. Be i ng a soc i o l og i st w h o has been w i t h the University for over three decades, Prof. King believes that the right man to head this academic institution in the new century should be someone w i th deep respect for learning and knowledge, someone who believes not only i n the value of the sciences and technology but equally i n that of the arts and humanities. Among the educators he admires are Mr. Cai Yuan-pei, China's leading liberal educator of the early 20th century and former president of Peking University, and Dr. Clark Kerr, a sociologist and former chancellor of U.C. Berkeley wh o, i n Prof. K i ng 's wo r ds, has t u r n ed Berkeley into the Ha r v a rd of the West Coast. 'The University should aspire not just after a world-class status but also to be a "great university". To be one, it shou ld never forget the importance of the humanities,' says Prof. King. 'Many universities such as Peking University have had great impact on the cultural and intellectual life of the Chinese s o c i e ty m a i n l y b e c a u se of t h e i r contribution to the humanities. Science is more important now than ever of course, s imp ly because it cou l dn 't have been otherwise.' The ideal candidate must also have both international perspective as well as local commitment. ' Any university worth its name must be international in nature,' says Prof. King,' as a university is always situated in a global academic community. But globalization also makes hav i ng a local identity all the more important.' As the u n i v e r s i ty is a c omp l ex organization, the person running it should h a ve a h i g h 1eve1 of m a n a g e r i al c omp e t e n c e, a l t h o u gh P r o f. K i n g concedes that certain practices i n the c omme r c i al sector may have g i v en 'management' negative connotations. He explains that by good management, he is not referring to what he calls a 'cheap authoritarian style' or a 'cheap democratic style', but a thorough understanding of how the organization operates and the ability to lead it. Although many heads of significant universities are famous academicians or respected authorities in their own field, fame and profile as qualities of a vice- chancellor are sweet but not necessarily of first importance. Prof. King believes. 'We are not looking for a superman, just a good individual who possesses the kinds of qualities I have mentioned. A job can make a person great too, not only the other way round,' he says. Similarly a great university should be able to b r i n g out the best qua l i t i es i n its students — intellectually and morally. Perhaps that is w h y despite his v i ew that such acts were 'extremely tasteless' interpretations of prank culture, Prof. King is not intent on pun i sh i ng the new entrants who shouted vulgar slogans at the recent orientation camp. Punishment is easy, he says, but the large issue is how to cultivate taste. He points out that the cultural paradigm of scientific knowledge in modem society has led to the marginalization of ethical or moral education in the tertiary education sector. Given this and the indulgence in sensationalism of Hong Kong's media culture, there is an impending need to cultivate taste and a new set of cultural values in university students. In this respect, he particularly appreciates Mr. Cai Yuan-pei who believed that a good deed is something pleasant and of good taste, and that aesthetic education can encourage development of more sublime emotions and elimination of baser ones. 'People may hold different ideas on what is moral or immoral; issues such as relativism come into the argument. But judgment of beauty or the lack of it falls into the realm of aesthetics. I do think aesthetic education can help t u rn what is ugly and tasteless into something decent and beautiful,' he concludes. Prof. K i ng is confident that the University w i l l find an excellent new vice-chancellor in time. But i n the coming year, he has much on his plate and he hopes members of the University w i ll work as a team to support him. A nd for the time being, playing w i th his grandson and musing on passing clouds may just have to take a backseat.