Student of the Year Awards honour 37 Hong Kong secondary school pupils over academic achievements, community work
- Peony Sham, 17, scores top prize for volunteering and spearheading mental health initiative at annual event organised by Post and sponsored by Jockey Club
- Chief Secretary Eric Chan says awardees are ‘leaders of tomorrow’, encourages young people to broaden horizons
Thirty-seven Hong Kong secondary school pupils have won accolades at the Student of the Year Awards, with a 17-year-old from Harrow International School taking home the top prize for her all-around achievements and contributions to society.
The 42nd award ceremony was held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai on Saturday under a “take action to drive positive change” theme.
The annual event, organised by the South China Morning Post and sponsored by the Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC) with support from the Education Bureau, recognises senior secondary school students’ academic achievements and community contributions.
Hundreds of Form Four to Six pupils competed for 11 awards across nine categories, including languages, science, sports and visual and performing arts. Prizes were also awarded for best improvement, best devotion to the school and community contribution, as well as the grand prize given to a student who displayed remarkable talent and outstanding achievements in a specific field.
At the awards ceremony, Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki, the city’s No 2 official, described the winners as the “leaders of tomorrow”, adding the government valued youth development, which had undergone “good progress”.
Last December, authorities published the first Youth Development Blueprint to introduce more than 160 measures offering support to young people, including internships and exchange programmes in mainland China and overseas.
“I encourage [young people] to grasp these opportunities … to broaden your horizons and achieve self-enhancement. Such exposure will surely help you contribute to building a better Hong Kong, as a stronger super-connector between the mainland and the international world,” Chan said.