EdUHK to Confer Honorary Doctorates on Distinguished Individuals
The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) will confer honorary doctorates on three distinguished individuals in recognition of their significant contributions in advancing education and inspiring the next generation in their respective fields. They are (in alphabetical order by surname):
• Professor Kawata Teiichi
• Professor Stephen W. Raudenbush
• Mr Carlson Tong Ka-shing, GBS, JP
Professor Kawata Teiichi
Doctor of Education, honoris causa
Professor Kawata Teiichi, the former President of Kansai University and director of the organisation which manages Japanese university assets, is one of the most significant figures in East Asian studies and has studied in depth the history of modern Chinese thought for over half a century.
Born into a family of scholars, Professor Kawata has a strong interest in Chinese academic culture. When he studied in the Chinese department of Osaka University of Foreign Studies, he dedicated his time to learning Chinese, so that he may communicate directly with Chinese scholars. During his tenure as an associate professor at Wakayama University, Professor Kawata was given the opportunity by the Ministry of Education (now the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology) to conduct research overseas.
Consequently, in 1980, he became a senior researcher at Yale University in the United States. There, he met with the prominent historian Professor Yu Ying-shih, thereby laying solid foundations for his future academic path.
In 1986, Professor Kawata joined the Faculty of Letters at Kansai University as a professor. Five years later, he returned to the United States as a visiting scholar at Princeton University. Between 2003 and 2009, he became the President of Kansai University, during which he actively promoted academic exchanges and friendly relations between mainland China and Japan. He signed an exchange agreement for Kansai University and Central China Normal University to become sister universities and create an international academic network for East Asian cultural studies.
While he engages in historical research through learning, questioning and critical thinking, his findings are highly responsive to the needs of modern society. Having established his own school of thought, Professor Kawata contributes to the wider world through a wealth of publications, including 75 academic papers, and over 35 books and journals, such as Recent Chinese Modern Thought, Focus on China, and Fixed-point Observations: Trends in Chinese Philosophical Thought. His contributions to scholarship are highly respected in academic circles.
For many years, Professor Kawata served as the president of a corporation which aims to improve the quality of private school education to encourage locals to further their studies, thus nurturing a new generation of high-level talent with a global outlook. In recognition of his long-standing dedication to public service, the Japanese government awarded him the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold and Silver Star, in 2021.
Professor Stephen W. Raudenbush
Doctor of Education, honoris causa
Professor Stephen Raudenbush is a leading authority on statistical models for child and youth development within social settings such as classrooms, schools, and city neighbourhoods. He is the Lewis-Sebring Distinguished Service Professor at the Department of Sociology and Chair of the Committee on Education at the University of Chicago, and has dedicated his career to research and analysis of education systems in order to light the path towards equality in education.
Professor Raudenbush was graduated from Harvard College in 1968, with an interdisciplinary major with concentration on social theory concerning the problems arising in industrial societies.
Having worked in public service that helped young people coming out of treatment for drug addiction to find employment, Professor Raudenbush was inspired to use education as a means to make a positive difference in society. After becoming a qualified teacher, he ran a teacher education programme at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Later, he returned to Harvard to study for a Master of Education degree, as well as completed a Doctorate in Education, specialising in Policy Analysis and Evaluation Concentration in statistics and research design.
In 1984, Professor Raudenbush joined the Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology and Special Education at Michigan State University, where he rose to the rank of professor. After 14 years, he moved to the University of Michigan to become a professor in the School of Education.
Since 2005, Professor Raudenbush has been at the University of Chicago, where he has continued to work tirelessly in investigating mathematics education pedagogy, language development, and variation and cognitive psychology. His pioneering work has bridged the gaps between these diverse disciplines and established a new relationship between them, thus developing ways to improve student learning and reduce inequalities in education. He has published over 170 articles and chapters and has sat on 18 national committees and 17 editorial boards.
His unique expertise led him to receive the American Educational Research Association award for distinguished contributions in both 2006 and 2008, and being conferred a Doctor Honoris Causa, by the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium, the following year. In 2012, he was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in the United States, which is widely regarded as one of the highest honours bestowed upon a scientist.
Mr Carlson Tong Ka-shing, GBS, JP
Doctor of Social Sciences, honoris causa
Mr Carlson Tong is an esteemed and iconic figure in the finance and accounting sector, who has dedicated himself to public service and philanthropy. He has spared no effort in consolidating Hong Kong’s role as an international financial centre and in promoting its higher education development.
After graduating from St. Paul’s Co-educational College in 1971, Mr Tong pursued further studies in the United Kingdom, where he qualified as a chartered accountant. He then began a remarkable career in accountancy, spanning over three decades at KPMG, where he became the firm’s Asia-Pacific chairman in 2009.
He has been entrusted with important roles in public service. After his retirement, he was appointed Chairman of the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC). Committed to upholding Hong Kong’s role as a connector for mainland China, he steered the SFC towards the opening-up of the ‘Mainland-Hong Kong Stock Connect’ and the completion of key reform to listing rules.
In 2012, he was appointed Chairman of the Hong Kong Sports Institute (HKSI) and helped secure over HK$100 million from the Hong Kong Jockey Club to build a barrier-free multi-purpose sports complex for Paralympic athletes. To promote dual-track development of elite athletes, he spearheaded the signing of the first Memorandum of Understanding between the HKSI and the predecessor of EdUHK in 2014 to establish a special admissions mechanism for athletes. These efforts led to the University Grants Committee (UGC)’s launch of the ‘Student-Athlete Learning Support and Admission Scheme’ in 2022 under his chairmanship, with up to HK$100 million funding to further support elite athletes.
In his capacity as UGC Chairman, he led two rounds of triennium planning, introduced the concept of ‘whole-person education’, and placed emphasis on values education, national security awareness and the importance of abiding by the law. He also threw his wholehearted support to increasing the quota for SEN students, when serving as English Schools Foundation Chairman.
In 2019, Mr Tong was selected as a Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of Finance, and presented with the ‘Outstanding Achievement Award’ in 2022 by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, making him the first person from Hong Kong to receive this prestigious accolade. In recognition of Mr Tong’s contributions to society and education, he was awarded the Gold Bauhinia Star by the Hong Kong SAR Government in 2019, and was also presented with an Honorary Fellowship by Lingnan University in 2010 and EdUHK in 2015.
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EdUHK to Confer Honorary Doctorates on Distinguished Individuals
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