The HKUGAC Wellbeing Hub Grand Opening

To the delightful sounds of jazz music, guests were welcomed to The Wellbeing Hub – the newly designed HKUGA College library. Guests were then officially welcomed by Vice Principal Cynthia Lee, who invited all in attendance to relax and rejoice as they enjoyed the tango musical piece ‘Por Una Cabeza’, as interpreted by our string quartet members, under the direction of our Music teacher, Mr. Daniel Kuk.

Miss Lee then introduced our new librarian, Miss Jennifer Yu, thanking her for orchestrating the renovation process, and representatives of our 63 Class Librarians, who helped organize the Opening Ceremony and will serve the community as Hub Assistants. After that, she highlighted some of the wellbeing features of The Hub, including the College’s impressive collection of 27,280 books and 18 periodicals, a vast resource to share during our DEAR (Drop Everything and Read) Programme, which includes Librarian and Subject DEAR lessons and Wellbeing Time DEAR, all in The Hub, as well as Classroom DEAR, available all break times in the classrooms and throughout the campus. Beyond reading, The Hubs new features include the What Went Well Wall for community members to express what they are grateful for; art displays, including our new installation – the Chinese Soldier who welcomes guests as they enter The Hub foyer; the 24 character strengths that catch the light coming through our wall of windows and spread positive energy throughout our beautiful space; the flexible and comfortable seating options, in particular, the soon to be welcomed beanbag seating area made possible through the generous sponsorship of the PTA; the film and music facilities; and, last but not least, the vast array of wellbeing activities to take place in The Hub.

Following the introduction, Principal Corina Chen then shared her greeting and thoughts on The Hub. After thanking everyone who had contributed to the conceptual, planning and execution stages of the project, she shared her thoughts on The Hub elements that combine to create a space to nourish the mind, body and spirit, emphasizing how it would be a place for gathering and exchanging thoughts and ideas and experiencing a great variety of learning activities. With The Hub, she shared that we have entered a new era of student engagement. As we explore our new space, we will nourish the new wellbeing time at the College, which, in turn, will help our community flourish. Vice Principal Newman Chan then continued along the theme of gratitude and growth in celebration of our 2017-2018 VAIS (Academic Value-added Indicator for Secondary Schools), sharing a brief report on the performance and congratulating and thanking students, teachers, parents and all staff for their contributions throughout the past years.

The Hub Ceremony followed, with our Supervisor, PTA representatives, the School Librarian, the Teacher representative, Heads of Departments, Student Leaders, Class Librarians and School-based Management Team members circling a central hub to the vibrant sounds of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons – Spring, and coming together to reveal the official name of the new library – The HKUGAC Wellbeing Hub. During the group photo with all attendees, the magnificent celebration cake from the College and celebratory roast pig from the PTA were cut. Finally, the jazz music resumed, this time signaling it was time for the physical nourishment part of the festivities to begin, during which those treats, along with many other delights, were shared, along with the good conversation.

Needless to say, the attendees left with a full belly and full experience of our new Wellbeing Hub.

We look forward to welcoming you all soon.