221
MetratoA LEGGE DAN K
# A Brief History of Technical Education in Hong Kong
As the first member of staff of a technical institute, I was officially appointed as founding Principal of MHTI in July 1968, more than one year before it opened in borrowed premises. This was the planning period. The initial cost of building the Morrison Hill Technical Institute was around $4.0 million plus $3.0 million for equipment, all donated by the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club, although there were other, much smaller, donations.
Looking at these and other figures one can see how costs have shot up over the past 30 to 40 years, although technical education has also, agreed, become far more sophisticated. For various reasons the completion of the MHTI building was delayed and, as mentioned at the start of this paper, the Institute did not start classes in its new building until 1970. Earlier on, consideration was given to calling it the 'Wan Chai Technical Institute' but some officials in the Government Education Department Headquarters felt, in those days, this would have given it a 'Suzie Wong' image. Consequently, it was named the Morrison Hill Technical Institute. As you know it was officially opened 30 years ago today, on 12 October 1970, by the then Governor the late Sir David Trench.
I was pleased it was a hot day. After the ceremony Sir John Cowperthwaite, who has gone down in history as a capable Financial Secretary and a law unto himself, came up to me mopping his brow. 'Principal', he said, 'I'll see you get this hall air-conditioned!'. In spite of his promise it was many years and countless memoranda later before it actually was. I am talking of an institute where, in 1970, one of the few air-conditioned rooms was the Principal's office and this was because an overseas advisor had been persuaded to write it into his report. Administrative Officers talked dismally at the time of creating ‘a dangerous precedent with other institutions jumping on the bandwagon'.
Looking around in the vicinity of MHTI: quarry men started blasting away in 1926 at the solid granite hill on which the Morrison Hill Mission Society building originally stood. The Hill was not totally levelled until around 1970
221
MetratoA LEGGE DAN K
A Brief History of Technical Education in Hong Kong
As the first member of staff of a technical institute, I was officially appointed as founding Principal of MHTI in July 1968, more than one year before it opened in borrowed premises. This was the planning period. The initial
cost of building the Morrison Hill Technical Institute was around $4.0 million plus $3.0 million for equipment, all donated by the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club, although there were other, much smaller, donations.
Looking at these and other figures one can see how costs have shot up over the past 30 to 40 years, although technical education has also, agreed, become far more sophisticated. For various reasons the completion of the MHTI building was delayed and, as mentioned at the start of this paper, the Institute did
not start classes in its new building until 1970. Earlier on, consideration was
given to calling it the 'Wan Chai Technical Institute' but some officials in the
Government Education Department Headquarters felt, in those days, this would
have had given it a 'Suzie Wong' image. Consequently, it was named the Morrison Hill Technical Institute. As you know it was officially opened 30 years ago today,
on 12 October 1970, by the then Governor the late Sir David Trench.
I was pleased it was a hot day. After the ceremony Sir John Cowperthwaite, who has gone down in history as a capable Financial Secretary and a law unto himself, came up to me mopping his brow. 'Principal', he said, 'I'll see you get this hall air-conditioned!'. In spite of his promise it was many years and
countless memoranda later before it actually was. I am talking of an institute
where, in 1970, one of the few air-conditioned rooms was the Principal's office
and this was because an overseas advisor had been persuaded to write it into his
report. Administrative Officers talked dismally at the time of creating ‘a dangerous precedent with other institutions jumping on the bandwagon'.
Looking around in the vicinity of MHTI: quarry men started blasting away in 1926 at the solid granite hill on which the Morrison Hill Mission Society building originally stood. The Hill was not totally levelled until around 1970
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