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EDUCATION
Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fund
The Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fund was brought into being on April 1, 1987, to centralise the management of public donations received in memory of the late Governor Sir Edward Youde who passed away in service in December 1986.
The assets of the fund stood at over $87 million on March 31, 1989. The fund is managed by the Board of Trustees consisting of Lady Youde, three prominent members of community appointed by the Governor and the Secretary for Home Affairs.
In accordance with Lady Youde's wishes, it has been provided in the Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fund Ordinance that the income of the fund is to be used for promoting the education and learning of the people of Hong Kong and encouraging research activities.
The uses of the income of the fund are determined by a Council comprising Lady Youde, five prominent members of the community and the Secretary for Education and Man- power. For the 1989-90 academic year, the council awarded fellowships and scholarships to nine students to finance their postgraduate or undergraduate studies overseas. Four of these students pursue studies in the United Kingdom, four in the United States and one in China. For local studies, 38 fellowships were awarded to postgraduate research students and 70 scholarships to undergraduate, diploma and certificate students. These awards were made on the nominations of the heads of the institutions followed by interviews by the council. During the year, five students who excelled in local public examinations, six disabled students in tertiary institutions, and 560 senior secondary students nominated -by the heads of the schools also received awards from the fund.
The value of all awards made for the 1989-90 academic year was about $3.4 million.
Technical Education
Eight technical institutes are operated by the Vocational Training Council and they provide a total of 338 courses at craft and technician levels with full-time, block-release, part-time day-release and part-time evening attendance. A large number of short courses are also offered and these are mainly designed to update the knowledge and skills of people in employment.
The main disciplines covered by the institutes include: applied science, environmental studies, chemical technology, food technology, clothing, commercial studies, accountancy, computing studies, construction, design, electrical engineering, electronic engineering, general studies, child care, hairdressing, hotel-keeping and tourism studies, industrial technology, marine engineering and fabrication, mechanical engineering, motor vehicle engineering, printing and textiles. Most technician-level courses have been validated by the United Kingdom Business and Technician Education Council (BTEC) and students attending these courses are able to register for the BTEC awards.
The demand for places on most courses remained high. Enrolments for the 1989-90 academic year totalled 11 900 full-time, 14 800 part-time day and 28 800 part-time even- ing students. A number of new courses were offered including: Diploma in Marketing, Diploma in Purchasing and Stores Supervision, Diploma in Mechanical Engineering (Computer Aided Engineering), Diploma in Computing Studies (Technical Applications), Certificate in Retail Supervision, Introduction to Metal Works Craft Studies for Cons- truction Industry, and Introduction to Clothing Manufacture. In September 1989, the number of full-time teaching staff in the technical institutes was about 850 and there were some 750 supporting staff and 2 200 part-time lecturers.
Each technical institute has on average 75 computer work-stations comprising terminals linked to medium-scale computers and microcomputers. In addition, computer-aided