For information on making a gift to NUS, please contact 1800-DEVELOP (1800-338-3567) or email askdvo@nus.edu.sg
ALUMNI SCENE GIVING
F O R M E R M P H O N O U R S M A G N A N I M O U S FAT H E R
T H R OUGH BU RS ARY “SOME OF MY HAPPIEST YEARS AS A STUDENT WERE SPENT IN NUS.
THE SIN JEOK TONG BURSARY The Bursary was established at NUS to honour the late father of Mr Sin Boon Ann, a lawyer and former Member of Parliament (MP).
Mr Sin Boon Ann and his wife, Lee Meng
Law alumnus Mr Sin Boon Ann (Law ’82) considers his university education a privilege and wants more young people to enjoy the same benefits.
28
BORN IN PAHANG in 1929, Mr Sin Jeok Tong came to Singapore as a young boy to receive his education. He became a teacher in the early 1950s and continued teaching until his retirement from the education service in the late 1980s. “When he was alive, he generously gave his time and money to help students complete and succeed in their studies. He always believed that education is a great social leveller and that no matter what your station in life is, with hard work, success and a good life will always follow you,” shares Mr Sin Boon Ann on his father’s views.
We are investing in young people who are academically strong and who will yield not just good results, but also make meaningful contributions to society.
The former MP also relates a story of how he had a university classmate who was struggling financially and could not afford the school fees. Upon hearing about it, his father passed him a sum of money and claimed it was from a community service foundation. Mr Sin only found out, many years later, that his father had provided for his friend from his own pocket. The magnanimous gesture left a deep impression on him and his classmate, who remains a friend today. The deputy managing director of Drew & Napier LLC describes how pursuing a career and raising a
I met my wife, Lee Meng (Arts and Social Sciences ’84), when I was a final year arts student. We dated on campus and spent many hours studying together in the library, and going for long walks to the canteens. I must say that the view of the harbour at sunset from the Engineering canteen is absolutely stunning. It served as a perfect dinner setting for Lee Meng and I. I enjoyed the musical concerts organised by the Students’ Union and the debates and discussions on national issues with my fellow students. For a period of time, I was staying either in Raffles Hall, Sheares Hall or Kent Ridge Hall. I had a great time there. I can remember the evening runs to prepare for the marathon and the triathlon, and the late night suppers. Those were the halcyon and carefree days of a student’s life,” reminisces Mr Sin, who had the privilege of pursuing two Bachelors’ degrees — in Arts and Social Sciences, and Law. family in the early days did not leave him and his wife time to connect with friends from the University. Now, two of their three children have graduated and gone on to practise law while the youngest is in secondary school. “My wife and I gave because we benefitted from a university education at NUS. Just as we have benefitted, we want others to benefit as well. It gives us great satisfaction to know that giving to our alma mater will allow students with financial needs to have a fair chance of going to university and doing well in life,” Mr Sin explains.
THE EMILY CHIN & EUGENE WONG SCHOLARSHIP Mr Wong and Mdm Chin made a joint decision to invest in the Scholarship at their alma mater, which is where they first met.
BUSINESS COUPLE INVEST IN
TOMOR R OW ’S L E A DE R S
Mr Eugene Wong (Business ’92) and Madam Emily Chin (Business ’92) apply the same sound judgement to work and philanthropy. “BUY LOW, SELL HIGH. This is my mantra,” remarks Mr Eugene Wong, the founder and managing director of Sirius Venture Capital Pte Ltd, and proud alumnus of NUS Business School. Also working in a fast-paced industry that requires strong commercial acumen is Mr Wong’s wife, Mdm Emily Chin, an oil trader with an international oil company. “The quality of students going to the NUS Business School is critical to its success. We are investing in young people who are academically strong and who will yield not just good results, but also make meaningful contributions to society,” Mr Wong says. To do his part for the University, he served as adjunct professor teaching venture capital and new venture finance at the School for three years. Mdm Chin was also called upon to serve as a judge for students’ case studies. “When we joined the Business School, it was not as highly regarded then. Now it is a globally recognised institution. We have made a good investment by choosing to study Business and we are proud to be BBA alumni,” Mr Wong shares.
Mdm Chin signed up for a recent donor event for the family, where they had the opportunity to go on a tour of the Advanced Robotics Center at the NUS Faculty of Engineering. They were given a glimpse of how research in robotics impacts productivity and innovation in improving the quality of lives. “I want my sons to be exposed to the latest technology and also to the idea of philanthropy. We are all impressed by how NUS can push the frontiers of research and I feel it is a potential avenue we want to contribute to,” says Mdm Chin. She is leading by example by inculcating in her children the values of giving back to society. Coming from a humble background and also a former scholarship recipient himself, Mr Wong is clearly aware that a scholarship is a valued form of recognition of one’s hard work, and a great motivating factor. With this gift, he hopes that he and his wife can offer the same kind of help and encouragement to business students today. His advice for students is that “the years in NUS may seem like hardship, but it’s a wonderful journey”, adding that he even met his life partner there. “Do not just focus on grades as that is not the essence of the NUS experience. Take the opportunity to extend your network beyond your faculty. Enjoy different projects and overseas programmes that build character and life experience,” he says. JAN-MAR 2017
29