Diocesan Boys' School's retiring headmaster enjoyed making changes
As he embarks on a new career in the corporate world, Diocesan Boys' School's former principal speaks candidly on what he sees as the city's most pressing education issues, writesElaine Yau
Terence Chang Cheuk-cheung is exploring new territory now that he has retired as principal of the elite Diocesan Boys' School (DBS). After 40 years as an educator, 28 of them as a school principal, he has gone into business.
"I didn't want to put my feet up after leaving the school sector," says the 63-year-old. "I see my retired friends just living off their pensions, but it's a drag [to have so much free time on your hands.] Playing golf every day is also another kind of slog."
Now a director at a multinational trading firm, Chang will focus on promotion, conducting surveys and helping to build brand recognition for the company's products and services. It's a bit of a leap into the unknown for the former academic, but he says he did some preliminary investigation before taking the plunge. Then again, he has a knack for carving out new ground.
Before taking the reins at DBS in 2000, Chang headed three secondary schools - Po Leung Kuk 83 Directors' College, Po Leung Kuk Tang Yuk Tien College and Jockey Club Ti-I College - all of which he set up. And for Chang, there's never been a greater challenge than starting a school from scratch.
"You are involved in everything from buying furniture to hiring teaching staff," he says. "It was a trailblazing move 22 years ago to set up the Jockey Club Ti-I College. The college specialises in training arts and sports students, and there were no specialist schools nurturing specific talents then."
A literature graduate from the University of Hong Kong, Chang joined the Labour Department after finishing his degree, but lasted just one month. The bureaucracy proved too frustrating. Teaching (his subjects were English and economics) was more to his taste. "Teaching provides more freedom," he says.