Heep Yunn School
Encyclopedia
Ma Tau Wai
Ma Tau Wai is an area in Kowloon City District, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It was originally a walled village between present-day Argyle Street and Prince Edward Road West, east of St Teresa's Hospital....
, Kowloon
Kowloon
Kowloon is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait in the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen and Stonecutter's Island in the west, Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock in the north, and Victoria Harbour in the south. It had a population of...
, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
.
Heep Yunn is notable for its students' high academic achievement. The school participates actively in other areas such as music and sports with many successes, such as the Bauhinia Bowl
Bauhinia Bowl
The Bank of China Bauhinia Bowl Award is the annual award to member secondary schools of the Hong Kong Island and Kowloon Secondary Schools Regional Committee, Hong Kong Schools Sports Federation who qualify under the rules set out below...
, the overall sports championship among schools in Hong Kong.
History
Miletones
- May 18, 1851 - Birth of Ms Johnsione—the founder
- 1886 - The Church Missionary Society took over the school for Ms. Johnstone and named it Fairlea Girls' School
- 1936 - The foundation stone was laid at our Farm Road campus. Mrs. Cheung Chinn Yee Ching was appointed the first Headmistress of Heep Yunn School.
- 1941 - Forced closure of the school due to Japanese Occupation.
- 1946 - School building restored to Heep Yunn School by the British Army in January. The school re-opened in February with 309 girls and boys.
- 1948 - The opening of the gymnasium.
- 1957 - Dedication of the Chapel of St. Clare of Assisi
- 1958 - Mrs. Cheung Chinn Yee Ching retired from her post after 22 years of heading Heep Yunn School. Mrs. Cheung Lo Pok Hing became the second Headmistress.
- 1963 - Arts & science classes in form six opened.
- 1965 - The expansion of the school grounds was completed.
- 1966 - Heep Yunn sent her first three students directly into the University of Hong Kong
- 1971 - Rt. Rev. Bishop Gilbert Baker officially opened the junior assembly hall and the library.
- 1972 - The closing of the dormitory.
- 1974 - The first group of upper six students (social science) sat for Advanced Level examinations. The students were assigned to prepare for the Social Science Faculty at HKU.
- 1978 - Mrs. Cheung Lo Pok Hing's retirement at her 20th year in Heep Yunn School. Mrs. Minnie Lai was appointed the third Headmistress
- 1981 - The swimming pool was opened.
- 1983 - Three tennis courts and a volleyball court were added.
- 1984 - The garden near the chapel and the athletics track beside the basketball court were built. Heep Yunn won its first Omega Rose Bowl (later renamed as the Bank of China (HK) Bauhinia Bowl since 2002). Heep Yunn has been the Hong Kong Island & Kowloon regional Girls' Champion ever since.
- 1985 - The playground in the primary section was built.
- 1986 - The Jubilee Building was opened. Heep Yunn celebrated its 50th anniversary with a concert at City Hall and a two-day exhibition in the school.
- 1991 - The installation of the air-conditioning system was completed.
- 1993 - The top floor of the Jubilee Building was completed; the Geography Room was moved to its new premises there.
- 1994 - The library was doubled in size.
- 1996 - A secondary-primary-kindergarten combined concert was held at the Cultural Centre Concert Hall in July *1996 to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Heep Yunn School.
- 1998 - The library was computerized. The official homepage of Heep Yunn School was established, and each Heep Yunn girl was given her own account.
- 1999 - HK$2.5 million was invested in the LAN system. Sixteen computers in library and seventy-two computers in special rooms were installed.
- 2002 - Mrs. Minnie Lai retired after 24 years of heading the school. Mrs. Clara Lau was appointed headmistress as her successor. The School Improvement Project started.
- 2005 - Completion of the SIP building with the new Mrs. Winnie Man Sports Centre and Mrs. Ip Lo Hing Yuen Student Activity Centre. The Mrs. Minnie Lai Theatre was opened in the Jubilee Building. Completion of the Sorority Garden with the aid of the generous funding from the Old Girls' Association.
- 2006 - Celebration of Heep Yunn's 70th Anniversary with the 'Muse of Spring' in March (a showcase of the school's drama productions), the school concert “Gloria” in July in the Sha Tin Town Hall, as well as the Thanksgiving Service and the Reunion Dinner in October. The library was renamed Au Lam Shui Lan Memorial Library after refurbishment.
- 2007 - Heep Yunn School was awarded the Best Girls' Choir of Hong Kong.
Achievement in speech, drama and music
Over the past few years, Heep Yunn has emerged as one of the fiercest and top competitors in the Drama Festival, debating region and music arena respectively. The Heep Yunn legend is evident at every aspect of her achievement.In the year 2005-2006, Heep Yunn's Drama Group clinched 6 awards out of 7 in total, whereas the 7th award was for 'Best Actor'. They also received the adjudicator's award, qualifying them for the prestigious Drama Festival finals. As one of the four finalists, HYS's own baby production Love Left..Undone received wide acclaim from both the audience and adjudicators. It was praised as "one of the best dramas ever seen in a few years". The drama group has clinched the top award for three consecutive years.
HYS Chinese and English Debating teams have their equal share of glory. The Chinese Debating team has been crowned the Champions in nearly every prominent Debating and Public speaking competition, whereas the English Debating Team clinched the Championship in the Bar Association Debating Competition as well as the YODAC Inter-school Debating Competition 2006. HYS debaters brought home more than 40 best debater awards in the scholastic year 2008-2009. Together, the debating teams form an invincible arcship, united as one.
The Inter-class Chinese Debating Competition is held every year to cultivate interest for debating among students. Each year, preparation work by the Chinese Debating team was intense and of high-quality, planting the debating seeds in HYS.
Music is also one of the strongest areas of Heep Yunn girls.
The Heep Yunn School Senior Choir captured the "Best Girls Choir of the Year" in the 59th Hong Kong Schools Music Festival (2007), the most coveted award in choral music. In the 61st Hong Kong Song Music Festival, her junior choir also got the "Best Junior Choir of the year" and the full orchestra was awarded the winner among some elite orchestras of the other schools. All of her other choirs and orchestras, among them a mixed choir with Diocesan Boys School, were awarded the top three awards.
Most of her students can play two instruments and are proficient in at least one of them. Many of her students have achieved grade eight standard and a considerable number of them have moved on to diploma level.
Colleen Lee, the renowned pianist, was a graduate of HYS (1997) and pays visits to her alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
to share her music.
School song
The melody of the school song is the same as the one of another unisex secondary school in Hong Kong, the Queen's CollegeQueen's College, Hong Kong
Queen's College , initially named The Government Central School in 1862, later renamed as Victoria College in 1889, is a sixth form college for boys with a secondary school attached. It was the first public secondary school founded in Hong Kong by the British colonial government...
. However their counterpart uses English lyrics while at Heep Yunn Chinese style is applied.
School motto
"In strength and grace we stand united,In faith and love we are committed."
協力藉恩、信主愛群
Academic achievement
Being one of the most academically competitive secondary schools in Hong Kong, HYS provides a rigorous curriculum to all of its students. Most students take at least 9 subjects for the HKCEE, and 5 for the HKALE. 96.4% of Upper 6 graduates are admitted to local universities and 3.6% of Upper 6 graduates are admitted to overseas universities. Over the past few years, a number of prestisgious scholarships were awarded to students annually, such as the Sir Edward Youde Scholarship, the Wesleyan Freeman Asian Scholarship, United World College Scholarships and the University of Toronto Hong Kong Scholarships, gaining the students admission to many top-notch world universities, such as Princeton.Heep Yunn girls scored more than 900 Distinctions and Credits at the HKCEE 2008; with ten students scoring 30 points and above.
As of 2010, HYS counts 4 winners of the prestigious Hong Kong Outstanding Students Awards
Hong Kong Outstanding Students Awards
The Hong Kong Outstanding Students Awards is a student contest in Hong Kong. The Awards recognizes students for great academic performance, extra-curricular achievements and commitment to serving society....
, ranking 20th (tied with South Tuen Mun Government Secondary School) among all secondary schools in Hong Kong.
Inter-school sports
There are sixteen sports teams in HYS. They have brought home their 27th consecutive Bauhinia Bowl (formerly known as the Omega Rose Bowl) in the year 2010-2011. It is awarded annually to the school which achieves the "best all-round performance in all sports events".The Bauhinia Bowl is the embodiment of the Heep Yunn Spirit.
Interschool competition results (2010–2011):
| Team | Overall result |
|---|---|
| Athletics Team | 2nd runner-up |
| Badminton Team | Champion, Grand Slam |
| Basketball Team | Champion for the 18th consecutive year, Grand Slam |
| Beach Volleyball Team | 1st runner-up |
| Cross Country Team | 1st runner-up |
| Fencing Team | 1st runner-up |
| Handball Team | Champion, Grand Slam |
| Hockey Team | 1st runner-up |
| Life Saving Team | Champion |
| Netball Team | 4th |
| Softball Team | 1st runner-up |
| Squash Team | Champion |
| Swimming Team | 1st runner-up |
| Table Tennis Team | Champion |
| Tennis Team | 1st runner-up |
| Volleyball Team | 1st runner-up |
Political and Professional Circles
- Mrs Julianna Wai-ling Barnes : (matriculation in the 1970s) Judge of the High Court
- Mrs Yu Kwok Wai, Margaret : (matriculation in the 1990s) Hong Kong Lawyer, Public Prosecutor of Department of Justice
- Mrs. Helen Yu Ku Siu-yin : (HKCEE in the 1970s) Assistant Professor, Department of Applied Social Sciences, Hong Kong Polytechnic University; Registered educational psychologis
- Ms Joyce Ching Tak-kwan : (matriculation in the 1990s) Volunteer, Medecins Sans FrontieresDoctor; Our Lady Maryknoll Hospital
- Ms Ms Priscilla Chiu : Assistant Director of the Office of the Hospital Authority Provident Fund Scheme
- Dr Eugenie Leung : (matriculation in the 1970s) Director of Counselling
- Ms Carol Kwong Sau-chee : (graduated in the 1970s) Headmistress, Hong Kong SKH Bishop Hall Secondary School
Entertainment and Cultural Circles
- Ms Virginia Lok Yee-ling : (graduated in the 1970s) Deputy Controller, Production Resources Division, Television Broadcasts Limited
- Ms Susan Tsui : (HKCEE in the 1970s) Writer, Life Enhancement Counsellor
- Ms Kwan Sau-king : (pen name: Yu Fei) (Matriculation in the 1980s) Writer
- Ms Colleen Lee : (HKCEE in the 1990s) Sixth Prize at the 15th International Frederick Chopin Piano Competition, 2005
- Ms Helen Chan Pik-ha : (graduated in the 1990s) Assistant News Editor, Sing Tao Daily
- Ms Charmaine Sheh See-man : (graduated in the 1990s) Hong Kong famous actress, 2nd runner-up at Miss Hong Kong Pageant 1997
- Ms Germaine Chi-man Li: (graduated in 2002 form 3) 1st runner-up at Miss Hong Kong Pageant 2009
- Ms Virginia Ka-shui Yung: Miss Hong Kong Pageant 1997
- Ms Sheila Shu-lan Chan: 1st Runner-up at Miss Hong Kong Pageant 1988
- Ms Stephanie Yung Cheng: Singer
Sports Circle
- Ms Chan Yu Ning, Elaine : Hong Kong swimmer, former Hong Kong swimming record holder