32
held four academic staff development seminars in September 1991 and pro-vided training sessions for teaching and tutorial assistants from the Schools of Business and Management and Humanities and Social Science.
LABORATORY SERVICES
The University's Office of Laboratory Services co-ordinates central support facilities supplying some of the basic services Departments and Centres need to carry out their daily teaching and research activities. Specifically, these facilities include an instrumentation maintenance and repair facility, a machine shop, a central warehouse system, a chemical and dangerous goods storage facility, and a glassblowing workshop.
One of the initial tasks of the Office was the commissioning of Phase I teaching and research laboratories on behalf of the University. Commissioning of the laboratories in the Phase II development of the campus will continue to be a major task of the Office. Once laboratories are commissioned and turned over to the Departments, a continuing service function of the Office is to ensure the continuous operation of ancillary utilities and laboratory facilities. A Facilities Maintenance unit has recently been established for this purpose. Working closely with the Estates Management Office, this specialised unit tests and maintains existing utilities such as the fume cupboard system, and assists in the installation or conversion of other utilities and services as required by the introduction of new equipment into the laboratories.
Perhaps the most important initial task of the Office of Laboratory Services
33
was the co-ordination of the procurement of teaching and research equipment for all Departments, which was undertaken in parallel with the construction operation. This ensured that the furnishing and equipping of the bUildings matched the University's requirement. As Departments become more fully staffed, equipment end-users will gradually assume more of these functions.
However, services relating to va,-ious components of the procurement process, such as the writing of equipment specifications, equipment receiving, and installation, will continue to be available to Departments.
LANGUAGE CENTRE
The Language Centre,
whose primary role is to offer remediation in English lan-guage skills, registered 454 students in its English language enhancement programme.
Teaching began on 2 Octo-ber with the first undergradu-ate classes to be offered in the University. In addition to
courses in general English for academic purposes, the Language Centre offered a one-semester course in Business Communication for students in the Scllool of Business and Management.
In accordance with a desire to offer a programme of subjects in modern world languages, a supervised self-access facility was opened in the language laboratories for staff and students, with learning materials available initially in French and Japanese Facilities are also available for Cantonese and Putonghua.
A grant of ¥9 million, now under negotiation, will enable the Language Centre to begin the establishment of a Japanese language learning centre, while plans for an expansion of the self-access programmes, as well as the inauguration of a writing clinic, await a major grant from the Government's Language Enhancement Fund.
FINANCE
35Y e
financial year from 1 July 1991 to 30 June 1992 was the first year the University was funded through the UPGe.The University's expenditure is financed under a number of separate categories of funding sources:
Construction Budget Capital Funding
- Furniture and General Equipment - Basic Teaching Equipment
- Specialist Equipment and Facilities ReCUITent Budget
Research Grants from the Research Grants Council Donations and Non-Government Funds
CONSTRUCTION BUDGET
The Construction Budget for Phases I and II of the campus development, excluding furniture and general equipment, is $3,548 million at the June 1990 price level. $ 1,926 million of this amount was donated by the Royal Hong I<ong Jockey Club. The balance, a subvention of
$
1,622 million from the Hong Kong Government, was approved by the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council on I June 1990. The budget was, and is, controlled by the Jockey Club's project management team, in consultation with the Government. Construction work on Phase I was completed in August 199 I, and Phase 1/ construction is expected to be completed at the end of 1992.CAPITAL FUNDING
Capital funding for Phases I and 1/ of the campus consists of three elements:
furniture and general equipment, basic teaching equipment, and specialist equipment and facilities.
Furniture and General Equipment
A total sum of $453 mil/ion for furniture and general equipment was approved by the Government in July 1990 for Phases I and II. It is believed the amount will be adequate. $ 156.63 million had been expended by the end of the report period, 30 June 1992.
Basic Teaching Equipment
Out of $ 194 million, approved for Phase I by the Government in July 1990
36
to meet basic teaching equipment requirements, $ 73.88 million Ilad been expended by 30 June 1992. Funds for Phase II have been sought from the Government through the UPGe
Specialist Equipment and Facilities
A provision of
$
700 million has been approved and is being released in stages by the Government over a four-year period. As at 30 June 1992, $86. I 0 million had been expended as part of a six-year equipment acquisition plan being developed by the University.RECURRENT BUDGET
In this transitional year during which the responsibility for funding the
University has moved from the Government's Educational and Manpower Branch to the UPGe a recu,-,-ent earmarked gl-ant was received.
Recurrent Account for the Period 1 July 1991 to 30 June 1992
As shown in Appendix B, the total recurrent income amounted to $312.62 million, of which $279.20 million was provided by the UPGe The other items of income include $ I 1.78 million of surplus brought forward from the three-month period ending 30 June 1991, $840 million of tuition fees, $641 million of bank interest. $ 6. 10 million of rent recovered from staff, and $ 0.73 million from miscellaneous sources. Total expenditure was $308.81 million broken down into:
( I) Salaries and Gratuities - Senior Staff (2) Salaries and Gratuities - Support Staff (3) General Expenses
(4) General Office Equipment (5) Research
$
I I 7 18 million 61.09 million 123.76 million 0.88 million 5.90 millionThe $ 5.90 million was in addition to funds separately received from the Research Grants Council. There was a surplus of $3.81 million, Wllich will be returned to the Government through the UPGe
Supplementary Provisions for Salaries
In addition to the recurrent earmarked grant. the UPGC also provided
$
2 I .27 million during the year so that the University could revise salaries for its staff in accordance with the annual revision approved for the Civil Service.37
RESEARCH GRANTS FROM THE RESEARCH GRANTS COUNCIL
During 1991-92, the University received $ 1 1.95 million from the Researcll Grants Council to fund academic research projects. Of the total, $8.95 million (including $0.12 million of unspent balances for two research projects carried over to the University when the principal investigators joined the University from another institution) was obtained on a competitive bid basis for individual projects. The remaining $3 million was given to the University to distribute to individual research projects in the form of direct allocation grants.
DONATIONS AND NON-GOVERNMENT FUNDS
Generous donations from private foundations, corporations, and ind ividu-als help the University to
meet
its immediate needs and to fulfill its mission. Tllese donations provide support in various areas, including seed funding for research units, scholarship assistance for students, library and eqUipment acquisitions, and faculty projectsAt the Ileart of the University's mission is research, and a number of Research Institutes, Centres, and Laboratories have been established through the gener-osity of private foundations and corporations. These research units will enable the University to become a leader in critical fields such as biotechnology, telecommunications, advanced materials, software engineering, and micro-electronics fabrication. Since tile inception of the University, external funding donated and pledged for these and other r-esearch projects has totaled more than $272 million.
In other areas, the University has similarly benefited from the generosity of donors. Support for library acquisitions has totaled more than $1 I million. $2.5 million has been donated for student scholarships, bursaries, prizes, and emergency loans, while eqUipment valued at $28.5 million has been received from supportive vendors. In the arts, more than $ I million was raised by a
concert
celebrating the Opening of the University, and the net proceeds after expenses are being used to enrich campus life by bringing the arts to the University $23.75 million has also been donated to assist the University in meeting its general academic needs.During the year-under review, a total of
$
I 5.63 million was received by the University A further $29.45 million, donated by the Royal Jockey Club (Charity) Ltd for the Biotechnology Research Institute, was received by the HJ<UST Educational Trust.Appendix C lists all donations which have been pledged to tile University from its inception to 30 June 1992.
COUNCIL, SENATE, ADVISORY BOARD 39 AND COMMITTEES
THE UNIVERSITY COUNCIL