Lee Hysan Hall (Traditional Chinese: 利希慎堂) is one of the 13 residential halls in the University of Hong Kong, which provides accommodation for both male and female undergraduates and postgradutes. It is named after the land developer and entrepreneur Lee Hysan, as it is founded with the help and sponsorship of the Lee family. The building was completed in 1992 and is located at 6B Sassoon Road, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong.[1]
| Lee Hysan Hall | |
|---|---|
| Named after | Mr. Lee Hysan |
| Type | Student Residence |
| Year of establishment | 1992 |
| Color | Lilac/Purple |
| Warden | Professor Raymond Cheung |
| Nickname of hallmates | Hysanians |
| Location | 6B Sassoon Road, Hong Kong |
| Website | http://www.hku.hk/leehysan/ |
Contents |
Named after the renowned land developer in the early 1900s, Lee Hysan Hall is founded due to the generous contribution of the Lee Family. The Lee Family is one of the four big families during the colonial period of Hong Kong, and has built up their power since Lee Hysan's property investment in Causeway Bay.
Lee Hysan (1879–1928) was born in Hawaii, and his father is a Cantonese who gained wealth in the California Gold Rush of 1849. At the age of seventeen, Lee Hysan returned to Hong Kong and studied in the Queen's College. He worked for HSBC as a bank clerk, later went to Malaya and worked as a journalist and a sawmill owner. He had also been the Hong Kong manager of a shipping company form Yangon.[2][3]
Lee Hysan's road to success started when he inherited his father's opium trading business, which also made him called the "Opium Prince". In 1923, Lee Hysan bought a piece of land in East Point, the former name of Causeway Bay, from Jardine Matheson, and developed it into the Lee Gardens, which included a public garden, entertainment ground, and the Lee Theatre. Hysan Development Company Limited was also registered at the same time, which marked the Lee Family's importance in Hong Kong's property development.[2][4]
At noon of 30 April 1928, Lee Hysan was assassinated on Wellington Street, Central on his way for lunch at Yue Kee Club. However, the murderer is not caught until now, even the Lee Family offered a $20,000 reward, which is a large sum at that time.[2]
Despite Lee Hysan's death, the Lee Family, who had the control of Hysan Development Company Limited, continued to develop the area in the vicinity of the Lee Gardens, constructing private residences, shopping malls and commercial buildings, which contributed a lot to the prosperity of Causeway Bay nowadays.[4]
Other than Lee Hysan Hall, the Lee family also sponsored the construction of R.C. Lee Hall, which is next to Lee Hysan Hall. R.C. Lee Hall is named after the son of Lee Hysan, Richard Charles Lee, who is also a renowned entrepreneur.
1n 1991, Lugard Hall of the Old Halls (Eliot Hall and May Hall being the other two) was demolished.[5] Thus, when Lee Hysan Hall was established in 1992, the Old Halls' warden, Professor Cheng Kai Ming along with a tutor and a group of students from Lugard Hall moved to Lee Hysan Hall and became the first group of residents there. Some traditions from the Old Halls were also inherited as a result, like the "Village System", "Dragon Lane", one of the village name, the Lion Dancing Team as well as the symbol of the hall—Tiger. Student Liaison Group was also formed, which became the rudimentary form of the Students' Association at present.[1][6]
There are a total of 16 floors in Lee Hysan Hall, excluding the rooftop. From the fourth to the fifteenth floor are residential floors, which provides a total of 375 bed places for undergraduates and postgraduates of both sexes, including locals and non-locals. Each floor is divided into a big wing and a small wing at the two sides of the lift lobby, and there are both single and double rooms in every wing, as well as a washroom with two toilets and two shower places. On each floor there is also a pantry, where students can cook their food, watch television, play mahjong, etc. On some of the floors, there is also a tutor's flat or a manager's flat, where tutors and senior tutors will be living in.[7]
The ground floor of Lee Hysan Hall consists of a lobby, the reception, pigeon holes and the hall office. The lobby is the area where students usually gather before going out. There is also a photocopying machine and a newspaper rack in the lobby provided for students. The reception usually deals with checking in of visitors, while the pigeon holes are used for receiving notices from the Students' Association or other student groups, which are called "units".
The first floor mainly consists of the Students' Association Room. There is also a corridor linking the two sides of the hall, which is known as Uncle Ben's Bridge (Traditional Chinese: 彬叔橋).
Both the second and the third floor are common areas, where small events and general meetings are held. There are also a lounge on the second floor and a music room on the third floor, which students can use upon booking. Vending machines are available on the third floor, bringing much convenience to students.
The sixteenth floor consists of the Warden's flat, the Senior Tutor's flat and the laundry. Four washing machines and three dryers are available for students. There is also a staircase connecting to the rooftop. The rooftop is an open area where students can have barbecues.
Lee Hysan Hall is composed of a warden, a few senior tutors and tutors, some postgraduates and a majority of undergraduates. Among the undergraduates, around 30% of them are non-local students.[8]
There are different committees, sub-committees and teams that students can join. Each of these committees and teams is called a unit, and hallmates of the same committee or team are said to be having a common unit.
The warden is an honorary member of Lee Hysan Hall, as well as the President of the Students' Association.
The first warden of Lee Hysan Hall is Prof. Cheng Kai Ming, who was also the warden of the Old Halls. He was the warden of Lee Hysan Hall from 1992 to 2005, and is now the Master of Robert Black College. He is also the Chair of Education of the University of Hong Kong since 1995.[9]
Dr. Allan H.K. Yuen was appointed as the warden of Lee Hysan Hall from 2006 to 2009. He is currently the Associate Professor in Information & Technology Studies, and Deputy Director of the Centre for Information Technology in Education.[10]
At present, the warden of Lee Hysan Hall is Prof. Raymond Tak Fai Cheung. He is Professor of Neurology at the Department of Medicine and the Assistant Dean of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Hong Kong, as well as Director of Acute Stroke Services at the Hong kong West Cluster, Honorary Consultant Neurologist at both the Queen Mary Hospital and the Tung Wah Hospital and President of Hong Kong Stroke Society.[7][11][12]
Tutors and senior tutors are also honorary members of Lee Hysan Hall,[7] and they are living on different floors, aiming to give advice to students on academic and hall issues. There are usually a tutor selection forum before a candidate is selected as a tutor, where students can learn more about the candidate.
Lee Hysan Hall Students' Association, H.K.U.S.U. is the official students' association of the hall. The Association aims to promote intellectual, cultural, social, and sports interests of its members; to promote friendship, unity, and sense of belonging among members; to promote general welfare of the members; and to represent the members of the Association in the interests of the members of the Association.[7]
Every year, a new cabinet of the Executive Committee of the Association is formed. The composition of the Committee should include the President, which is the warden of Lee Hysan Hall, a Chairman, an Internal Vice-Chairman, an External Vice-Chairman, a General Secretary, a Financial Secretary, a Current Affairs Secretary, a Sports Captain, a Sports Secretary, a Social Secretary, a Cultural Secretary, a Publication Secretary, a Welfare Secretary, an Affiliated Members' and Alumni Secretary and Past Representative(s). However, in reality, there has never been a cabinet with all the above-mentioned posts.[7]
For each year's cabinet, a name is given. Below is the name of the past Executive Committee.[1]
| Year | Name | Year | Name | Year | Name | Year | Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 93/94 | 創希閣 | 98/99 | 雋希閣 | 03/04 | 昊希閣 | 08/09 | 摯希閣 |
| 94/95 | 展希閣 | 99/00 | 逸希閣 | 04/05 | 薈希閣 | 09/10 | 曜希閣 |
| 95/96 | 呈曦閣 | 00/01 | 勵希閣 | 05/06 | 昀希閣 | 10/11 | 承希閣 |
| 96/97 | 建希閣 | 01/02 | 毅希閣 | 06/07 | 睿希閣 | 11/12 | 鳴希閣 |
| 97/98 | 凝希閣 | 2002–03 | 昕希閣 | 2007–08 | 翱希閣 |
There are seven committees in Lee Hysan Hall, which aims to aid the warden or the Executive Committee in handling specific issues or reviewing different systems of the hall. The committees include:[6]
There are six sub-committees in total, and they aim to aid the Executive Committee in handling daily work and organizing activities. The sub-committees include:[6]
From each of the twelve residential floors, one to two floor representatives are chosen. Floor representatives is responsible for maintaining good relations between the floor and other floors, between the floor and the Executive Committee, as well as among floormates. Floor representatives should also take active roles in leading the floor in participating hall functions, as well as attending the regular Floor Representative Meetings.[7]
In Lee Hysan Hall, there are several sports and cultural teams that hallmates can join freely. Below is a list of the teams and interest groups of Lee Hysan Hall.[1][7]
Although there are thirteen residential halls in the University of Hong Kong, some characteristics of Lee Hysan Hall has made it different from the other halls.
Located at 6B Sassoon Road, which is close to the coastline, Lee Hysan Hall embraces a panoramic sea view. Half of the rooms and the pantry of each floor is able to have the spectacular view form the windows. It is able to view the sunset from the sea view rooms as well.[13]
The roof can give an even broader view of the coastline, thus making it popular for viewing sunset. It is also a romantic place for couples to go in the evening.
Lee Hysan Hall is the only hall where boys and girls live on the same floor, but in different wings. Students can improve their communication skills with the opposite sex through a closer bonding. It also makes inter-floor competitions more practical. Yet, there are still two male floors and two female floors to cater the different preferences of students.[13]
Lee Hysan Hall allows newcomers of the hall to choose their floor and roommate, which is not the case in some other halls.[13] This allows them to live on a floor that the culture best suits them, and to share a room with his or her friend, who they may have known better. However, it is still compulsory for newcomers to live in a double room, and all hallmates cannot change their floor unless with special reason.
Inherited from the Old Halls, Lee Hysan Hall is using the village system, in which each floor is called a village with its unique name.[13] Floor representatives are called "Village Leader"(村長), and floormates "villagers"(村民) or brothers(兄弟). The use of the village system is to promote life-long relationship between villagers as a village is more like a family. Every village has its unique village culture, like cheers and the open-door practice. Below are the names of the twelve villages:[1][6]
| Floor | Name | Floor | Name | Floor | Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4/F | 臥龍莊 BFZ * | 8/F | 玲瓏閣 Ling Lung Court # | 12/F | 龍巷 Dragon Lane * |
| 5/F | 非凡軒 Fever Five | 9/F | 天神村 Tinsunian | 13/F | 吉慶圍 Gutians |
| 6/F | 蓼風軒 Sixian | 10/F | 拾叮轅 Ten Distinct | 14/F | 十四寨 Subsidizer |
| 7/F | 舍Fun坊 Seventh Floor | 11/F | 蓬萊居 Elevenian | 15/F | 綣雲軒 Cloudness Angel # |
*Male Village; #Female Village
IDUA is held in late October every year. It is the open day for the University of Hong Kong and different halls will set a booth at the Run Run Shaw Podium, introducing their own characteristics to visitors, who are usually secondary students. Souvenirs will be given to visitors, and interested visitors can also walk the hall tour guided by students from the halls. There will also be a cheering competition in which most of the halls will participate.
To prepare for IDUA, around 20-30 people, usually freshmen, will be chosen to form the Organizing Committee. However, most students will volunteer to be helpers even though they are not in the Organizing Committee.
Hysan Festival is usually held throughout a week in the early November annually, and the theme each year is different. It aims at enhancing the sense of belonging of Hysanians and to entertain hallmates amid the stressful school life. During Hysan Festival, hallmates will participate in different programmes and activities during the night of the week. Similar to IDUA, the programmes and activities will be prepared by another Organizing Committee of 20-30 people. Some traditional activities include mass game, tug-o-war and singing contest.[14]
Cultural Festival is normally held in February. Other than booths or exhibitions set to introduce a certain theme, there is a cultural night in which different cultural teams like drama, dancing, choir and lion dancing will be performing for their fellow hallmates.
There are monthly high table dinner in Lee Hysan Hall, which is also the only compulsory event of the hall. Except the annual high table dinner held in Loke Yew Hall, other high table dinners are held in Bayview Restaurant. All students have to follow a strict dress code in order to get in. Usually there will be a guest giving out a high table talk after the dinner.
Sassoon Jam is a joint-hall band show exclusive for the three halls in Sassoon Road, Lee Hysan Hall, R.C. Lee Hall and Wei Lun Hall. It is normally held at the roundabout in the middle of the three halls.
Registration Day is equivalent to the Information Day for freshmen held by the University of Hong Kong. It is very similar to IDUA, with booths set at Run Run Shaw Podium and hall tour provided.
Fresh Camp is alway held in early August, after the Registration Day but before the deadline for hall application. It is organized for freshmen to experience hall life in Lee Hysan Hall, thus making their best decision when applying for halls.
Orientation is one of the most important functions of Lee Hysan Hall. Freshmen will be required to participate in the 10-day orientation in late August, in which a large variety of activities and programmes are prepared. It aims to develop freshmen's knowledge about the hall, and be more devoted to hall life. It also aims to build the sense of belonging to the hall and to broaden the social network of freshmen. Personal development like communication skills and time management can also be attained.[6]
Throughout the two semester of a year, there are numerous inter-hall competitions, both sports and cultural. Hysanians are encouraged to watch inter-hall competitions and support their hallmates. After each competition, all hallmates will demonstrate a few cheers together.
For sports competition, Lee Hysan Hall won the Champion for Men's Handball in 2008-2009. In 2009-2010, Lee Hysan Hall also won the 1st Runner-up for Men's Handball, Squash, Tennis and Ladies' Badminton. In 2010-2011, Lee Hysan Hall won the 1st Runner-up for Men's Handball, Tennis and Ladies' Squash, as well as the 2nd Runner-up for Men's Table Tennis and Ladies' Badminton, Basketball, Softball and Tennis. Lee Hysan Hall gained the 2nd Runner-up for Olma Challenge Rose Bowl in 2010-2011, which is the overall result for ladies' competitions.[1]
For cultural competition, Lee Hysan Hall won the Champion for Inter-hall Drama Competition in both 2010-2011 and 2009–2010, and the 2nd Runner-up for overall result in Prof. Yiu-Chung Cheng's cup in 2010-2011 and 1st Runner-up for overall result in Prof. Yiu-Chung Cheng's cup in 2009-2010.[1]
There is also Joint Hall Mass Dance held in semester two in which the dancing team will be performing in front of hundreds of students from the University of Hong Kong.
Apart from Lee Hysan Hall, there are also different parts that formed 6 Sassoon Road.
R.C. Lee Hall is another hall built at the same time as Lee Hysan Hall, with the same but reverted floor plan, and is also sponsored by the Lee Family. The Name R.C. Lee is named after the son of Lee Hysan.[15]
Wei Lun Hall was built two years after Lee Hysan Hall was completed.[16]
Assembly Hall is shared among the three halls in Sassoon Road. Usually hall events like mass game and singing contest will be held in Assembly Hall.
Madam S.H. Ho Residence for Medical Students accommodates around 150 students who are usually year four or final year medical students. Unlike Lee Hysan Hall, there is no hall activities in Madam S.H. Ho Residence for Medical Students.[17]
Despite this 7-eleven is closed after 12 midnight, it brings great convenience to students of the three halls for buying snacks, drinks, condoms and magazines, as well as adding value to the Octopus Card.
Bayview Restaurant is the canteen for the three halls in Sassoon Road. There are a great variety of food offered at an affordable price, however it is often criticized for its oily food.
The canteen of Queen Mary Hospital is often the alternative for students when they do not want to go to Bayview Restaurant. There is also Starbucks Coffee in Queen Mary Hospital, but only medical students of the University of Hong Kong can enjoy the 30% off discount. The 7-eleven in Queen Mary Hospital is also popular in the midnight when the convenience store at Sassoon Road has closed.
Lee Hysan Hall is very close to Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, which is also located at Sassoon Road. This can explain why there are more medical students in Lee Hysan Hall than in other halls along Pok Fu Lam Road.
Stanley Ho Sports Centre and Henry Fok Swimming Pool on Sha Wan Drive are commonly used by outdoor sports teams like hockey team and softball team of different halls for practice. Most outdoor inter-hall sports competition are also held there.[18]
There are numerous bus and minibus routes going to Causeway Bay, Central, Mongkok, etc.
At Sassoon Road: Minibus 8, 28
At Queen Mary Hospital:
Bus 4, 4X, 7, 30X, 37A, 37B, 37X, 40, 40M, 40P, 43X, 46X, 71, 71P, 90B, 91, 93, 93A, 93C, 94, 94X, 970, 970X, 973, 973P, A10[19]
Minibus 10, 22, 22S, 23, 31, 54, 55