ENG-1989 — Page 164

EDUCATION

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The founding director, Dr David Johns, left at the end of July to become Vice- Chancellor of the University of Bradford in the United Kingdom. Professor Cheng Yiu-chung, former Professor of Electronic Engineering and Dean of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Hong Kong, took up the directorship of the polytechnic in August.

In a major move towards forging closer and mutually-beneficial links with industry, commerce and the professions, the polytechnic launched an Institute for Research and Consultancy in July. The institute will promote consultancy links between the polytechnic staff and local industries and foster departmental and inter-departmental research through self-finance and sponsorship. It will provide encouragement and recognition for such efforts by forming research units, groups and centres in collaboration with particular firms.

A Centre for Environmental Technology for Industry was also formally established. The centre, the first of its kind in Hong Kong, is operated jointly with the Hong Kong Pro- ductivity Council, providing advice on ways to control pollutants emitted from factories and demonstrating treatment and recovery systems for industrial waste.

During the year, the polytechnic received a total allocation of $5.29 million from the earmarked research grants administered by the University and Polytechnic Grants Committee, to support a variety of research activities.

In November, the polytechnic conferred academic awards on its fourth group of gra- duates. The 1 353 graduates included 126 postgraduate diplomates, 370 bachelors, 215 professional diplomates, 486 higher diplomates, 26 higher certificate awardees and 130 diplomates. By the year's end, the vast majority of the graduates had found employment.

After two years of planning, an alumni association was incorporated as a limited company under the Companies Ordinance, in the name of the 'The City Polytechnic of Hong Kong Alumni Association'.

Hong Kong Baptist College

Founded in 1956 and fully funded by the government since 1983, the Hong Kong Baptist College succeeded in 1989 in upgrading all its former Honours Diploma programmes to Honours Degree courses, and at the same time started a postgraduate programme in the Science Faculty leading to the award of Master of Philosophy (MPhil) through research work. Beginning in 1989-90, the college admitted students only to degree and higher degree courses, as the phasing out of the remaining Honours Diploma programmes continued to move towards its scheduled completion by 1991.

The year 1989 also saw the first batch of graduates from the two courses of BSc(Hons) in Combined Sciences and BSW in Social Work, which were the first courses successfully accredited by the UK Council for National Academic Awards (CNAA) in 1986. Includ- ing these two courses, the college currently offers a total of eight degree courses, of which the remaining six are: BBA(Hons) in Business Administration, BSocSc(Hons) in Communication, BA(Hons) with majors in Chinese, English, Geography, History, Religious Studies, and Sociology; BSocSc(Hons) in China Studies; BA(Hons) in Music, and BSc(Hons) in Computing Studies. The last three were the newest additions accredited by the CNAA and offered for the first time in September 1989.

The college is a fully-autonomous institution and is governed by its own ordinance. Its statutory governing bodies, the Board of Governors and the Council, are composed predominantly of members independently appointed by the Governor from sectors of commerce, industry and education, together with members nominated by the Baptist Convention of Hong Kong.