Submitted by YCIS Shanghai
Dr. Betty Chan Po-king, Director and School Supervisor of Yew Chung International School (YCIS), one of the leading international school networks in China and Hong Kong, has been awarded honorary degrees on three continents – North America, Asia, and now Europe. Dr. Chan, a highly inspirational and innovative Hong Kong educator, collected her third continental award this month – an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws at the University of Bath, in England.
Honorary degrees are the most prestigious accolade granted by the University of Bath, reserved only for “individuals of conspicuous merit”. The university recently recognised Dr. Chan for her distinguished career focused on developing and promoting early childhood education, with equal emphasis on supporting greater understanding between East and West and between those of different cultural backgrounds. Links between Dr. Chan and the University of Bath arose from the shared interest in international education, and have existed for more than the past 15 years.
Previously, Dr. Chan was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters in 2010 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) in the US for her pioneering work in early childhood education and for her consistent advocacy for excellence in global education. She was the first Chinese woman honored by UIUC in the field of early childhood education, and for her founding concept of the blend of Eastern and Western cultures to culminate in a true international model of education. Dr. Chan received her second Honorary Degree in 2014 with an Honorary Fellowship from the Hong Kong Institute of Education in recognition of both her recent and long-standing contribution to education.
Since assuming leadership of the Yew Chung Education Foundation which was founded by her mother, Madam Tsang Chor-hang, more than 80 years ago, Dr. Chan has developed Yew Chung schools in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, Chongqing, Qingdao, and Silicon Valley in the US. She has also been acknowledged for her advocacy of and contribution to the best practices of both East and West in education through government positions she has held and international conferences she has organized. Dr. Chan’s vision of helping to build a generation of future leaders who understand both Eastern and Western cultures has truly earned her the global recognition she has received.
