La Salle College

La Salle College
喇沙書院
Location
18 La Salle Road, Kowloon
Hong Kong
Coordinates 22°19′45.11″N 114°10′56.93″E / 22.3291972°N 114.1824806°E / 22.3291972; 114.1824806Coordinates: 22°19′45.11″N 114°10′56.93″E / 22.3291972°N 114.1824806°E / 22.3291972; 114.1824806
Information
Type Grant School (Financially aided school[1])
Motto FIDES ET OPERA
("Faith and Zeal")[2]
Established 1932
Founder St. John Baptist de La Salle
School district Kowloon
Principal Tong Wun-Sing
Faculty 87 teachers
Grades Form 1 – Form 6
Enrolment about 1680
Campus 29,000 m²
Colour(s)

Purple, white and red

            
Newspaper The Lasallian
Yearbook The Lasallite[3]
Affiliation Roman Catholic
Website www.lasalle.edu.hk

La Salle College (Abbr.: LSC; Chinese: 喇沙書院; Jyutping: laa3 sa1 syu1 jyun2) is a leading boys' secondary school in Hong Kong. It was established by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, a Roman Catholic religious teaching order founded by St. John Baptist de La Salle.

The school curriculum uses English as the medium of instruction in all subjects with the exception of Chinese-related subjects and French.

History

Foundation

In 5 September, 1917 the Brothers of the Christian Schools,[4] who had founded St. Joseph's College in 1875, opened a junior school on Chatham Road near the Rosary Church.[5] At this time Kowloon was expanding rapidly. The demand for schools was rising and Brother Aimar Sauron (1873-1945), the Director of St. Joseph's, realized that a new school building was necessary. He acquired a 10 acre hilly plot near Prince Edward Road as a site for the new La Salle College on 23 April, 1928, for a sum of HK$120,000. The site was immediately north of the city boundary, and thus was technically in New Kowloon. That section of Boundary Street was not yet a formal road when the school site was bought, which was only gazetted in 1929.

On 5 November 1930, Sir William Peel, the Governor of Hong Kong, laid the foundation stone of the new building. By 3 December 1931, the work on the building and the playgrounds was sufficiently advanced to allow the opening of eight classes for 303 pupils, under the management of five Brothers from St. Joseph's College and four assistant masters from the Chatham Road Branch School.[6]

The formal inauguration of the College took place on 6 January 1932. Seven Brothers, headed by Reverend Brother Aimar as Director, took over. A few days later 40 boarders occupied the quarters to the west of the building. There were then 540 students in 14 classes. About one-third of the students had a European (mostly Portuguese) connection.

World War II

Brother Aimar was the principal of the school for its first seven years. The students were offered matriculation examinations, the laboratories were constructed, four tennis courts and a full-sized football pitch were built, and the statue of St. John Baptist de La Salle that now stands in front of the College was erected. The number of students increased to 805 in 1935 and 1,060 in 1939.

In 1939, La Salle College was affected when World War II commenced in Europe. On 3 September 1939, Britain declared war on Germany, and the British War Department in Hong Kong designated the La Salle College campus as an internment camp for German nationals arrested in Hong Kong that same day. Those interned included the German engineer Gerhard Neumann. The internment camp was run for approximately eight months, during which time the Brothers organised classes in morning and afternoon sessions in the College Annex across the road (the building which was to become La Salle Primary School in 1957).

On 8 December 1941, the Japanese attacked Hong Kong, and the school building was again taken over by the British Military, this time as a relief hospital. After the surrender of Hong Kong on Christmas Day 1941, the Japanese took over the school building. In February 1942, the Brothers were expelled from the college, and the school's operations, terminated since December 1941, was suspended until September 1946. During the Japanese occupation, the college was believed used as a Number One Japanese military hospital (out of four in Kowloon) until August 1945.

After the war

School recommenced in September 1946. By the end of 1949, the Chinese Civil War was coming to an end. Most of China was controlled by the Communist government of Mao Zedong and the People's Liberation Army was rapidly advancing southwards towards the Hong Kong border. Owing to that threat, the British Army reinforced their garrisons in Hong Kong. In need of a hospital, the British Army expropriated the use of the college grounds, originally agreed to be only for 12 to 18 months. Meanwhile, the Hong Kong government erected wood hutments on a plot at Perth Street, Ho Man Tin. The temporary occupation unfortunately dragged on for 10 years, taking the concerted efforts of the local government, some members of the British Parliament, and the Vatican to finally dislodge the Army in August 1959.

A new beginning

Post-war development

Main college campus

Brother Felix was appointed Director of the school in 1956 and re-acquired the college buildings from the military authorities on 1 August 1959. Student numbers grew steadily, and this led to a separation of primary and secondary divisions. La Salle Primary School was founded in 1957 and Brother Henry Pang was appointed its founder and first headmaster.[7]

In 1964 the La Salle College Evening School was commenced within the main campus building; in 1969 the Evening School was separated and became Chan Sui Ki (La Salle) College in Ho Man Tin. The decision was taken by the Brothers, headed by the then Brother Director, Brother Raphael Egan, in 1977 to undertake the replacement of the ageing building. While classes were continuing, a portion of the school grounds were used to erect a new building. The project was funded via the sale of approximately one-third of the school grounds to Cheung Kong Holdings, owned by Li Ka Shing.The Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Murray MacLehose, officially opened the new school building on 19 February 1982, in its Golden Jubilee year.[8]

Admission

75% of La Salle College's total Form 1 intake is from its feeder school, La Salle Primary School, with 25% from other primary schools. Applicants attend interviews in English, which are conducted by the supervisor and the principal. Other criteria include applicants' performance in extracurricular activities, awards and certificates, and academic excellence. La Salle College applicants may apply to study French[9] as an alternative to Chinese.

School associations

The La Salle College Old Boys' Association (LSCOBA) is the alumni organisation. Its membership as of 31 March 2017 was 7,453.

The Student Association (LSCSA)[10] founded in 1975, represents current students.[11]

Achievements

Academic

As required by Hong Kong law, schools must have two examinations every year: mid-year and final examination. In between the two examinations, students are provided feedback on their performance through continuous assessments,[12] which accounts for 20% of the total subject mark.

The school consistently produces scholars who excel in public examinations. In 1993, the school produced the first student achieving ten distinctions in Arts subjects in the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination (HKCEE). In 2001, four students from the school attained the top score of 10 A's, a feat repeated in 2008. The class of 2003 scored a total of 501 A's, the most distinctions a single school had ever achieved in a single sitting in the history of the HKCEE.

LSC counts five winners of the Hong Kong Outstanding Students Awards,[13] ranking 16th (tied with Wah Yan College, Hong Kong, Madam Lau Kam Lung Secondary School of MFBM, and Queen Elizabeth School) among all secondary schools in Hong Kong.

Post-secondary school placement: graduates are consistently accepted by world-renowned universities, including but not limited to the University of HK, the HKUST, the Chinese University of HK, Caltech, MIT, Harvard, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UCLA, USC, Stanford, and Oxbridge universities.

Extra-curricular

La Salle athletes

La Salle College has over 50 clubs and societies. Clubs are divided into academic, cultural, sports, interest and service. Joining clubs is mandatory.[14]

The College's students are active in academic, cultural, and sports competitions. They have a champion record of the Joint School Chinese Debating Competition and the Hong Kong Mathematics Olympiad, and a School Grand Prize Winner record of the Hong Kong Olympiad in Informatics.

Sports

In sports, La Salle College has won badminton championships in all grades in 1993–1994, 2003–2004, and 2004–2005 in the Kowloon area. La Salle has won championships in archery, athletics, badminton, basketball, cross country, fencing (Grand slam in 2010–2011), football, hockey, softball, squash (18 consecutive years,1994–2012), swimming, table tennis, tennis, tenpin bowling and volleyball. The table tennis team was named the overall champions 7 years in a row, from 2000 to 2007.

The Omega Rose Bowl, and its successor the Bauhinia Bowl,[15] is awarded to the secondary school with the best all-round sporting performance in the Hong Kong Island and Kowloon region. La Salle College has been the Boys School Champions 26 times, tied as the most-awarded secondary school in the Boys' Schools section. La Salle College holds the record of receiving the Rose Bowl, predecessor of the Bauhinia Bowl, for the longest period—17 years—between 1974 and 1991.

Music

La Salle College has achieved tremendous results in terms of music as well. In the Hong Kong Youth Music Interflows, organized by the Music Office, the Wind Orchestra achieved four gold prizes (2010, 2012, 2013, 2014) in the "Symphonic Band Contest - Secondary School Senior Class", and were awarded Overall Champion for all four of the Winner's Finals. The Chinese Orchestra achieved a tremendous ten consecutive gold prizes (2008-2017) in the "Chinese Orchestra Contest - Secondary School Class C (46-90 members)". The String Orchestra has won six gold prizes (2010, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017). The Symphony Orchestra has won eight gold prizes (2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017) in "Secondary School - Class A or B" as well. Moreover, La Salle College has thrice achieved "grand slam" achievement (Symphony Orchestra, Chinese Orchestra, Wind Orchestra, String Orchestra won the gold prizes + Wind Orchestra awarded winner in the Symphonic Band Winner's Finals) in the Hong Kong Youth Music Interflows (2010, 2013, 2014).

In the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival, La Salle College has one of the strongest music teams in Hong Kong. The Wind Orchestra was awarded champion in the "Concert Band - Secondary School - Senior Class" on four occasions (2010, 2012, 2013, 2014). The Chinese Orchestra was awarded champion in the "Chinese Orchestra - Secondary School - Senior Class" four times as well (2009, 2013, 2015, 2016). The Symphony Orchestra achieved 2nd runner-up in 2011, 2015 and 2018, and 1st runner-up in 2014 and 2017 in the "Symphony Orchestra - Secondary School - Senior Class". The choirs of the school, the Treble Choir and the Senior choir had achieved excellent results these years. The Treble Choir had captured the first place in the competition group 'Secondary School Choir - Foreign Language - Boys - First Division - Junior Age 14 or under, treble voice only' in 2013 and 2016. The String Orchestra achieved 2nd place in 2015 and 2017, and was awarded Champion in 2016 and 2018 in the 'String Orchestra-Intermediate' category.

Results of La Salle College in 68th Music Festival:

  • Champion in Piano Ensemble
  • Champion in String Orchestra—Intermediate
  • Champion in Junior Boys' Choir (Foreign) (Division 1)
  • Champion in Senior Boys' Choir (Chinese) (Division 2)
  • Champion in Chinese Orchestra

Second place in Concert Band (Senior)

  • Second place in Woodwind ensemble (Senior)
  • Third place in Brass ensemble (Senior)

Prayers

Classes maintain the tradition of praying after the assembly. The prayers are usually led by students on duty, Catholic boys, or sometimes the teacher, and commonly include a Hail Mary, Glory Be to the Father or The Lord's Prayer, and the prayer is closed with the unique Lasallian lines: "St. John Baptist de La Salle – pray for us; live Jesus in our hearts – forever!".

Symbolism[16]

School Badge

Star of Faith

This five-pointed, radiant star is the worldwide logo of the La Salle Brothers. It is the SIGNUM FIDEI, the sign of Faith, the spirit of their Institute.

Chevrons

These form part of the coat of arms of the La Salle family of Rheims, France. There are three bent bars of inverted V shapes.

The Lamp and the Open Book

The lamp and the book often appear on badges of Lasallian establishments. Together they symbolize study, or the continuous process of learning.

The Chinese phrase 克己復禮 is unique to La Salle College. It is a Confucian motto which means "To subdue one's self and return to propriety."

School motto

FIDES ET OPERA at the bottom of the school badge means literally Faith and Works.

The Olive and Holly Branches

The branch on the sinister (left) side of the shield is a holly branch. Holly maintains its vibrant green leaves and bright red berries during winter, a reminder of Jesus' birth at Christmas. The holly plant also possesses sharp thorns, and is also regarded as an emblem of Christ's crown of thorns, a symbol of Christ's suffering before his death and resurrection. The branch on the dexter (right) side is an olive branch, a Christian symbol of peace, restoration and healing.

School Colours of Red and Purple

The sinister side of the shield is red, symbolizing courage and sacrifice. The dexter side of the shield is purple, symbolizing royalty and nobility, and is also a colour distinctive of divinity.

Notable alumni

By tradition, alumni of La Salle College are called La Salle Old Boys, and the alumni association is called the La Salle College Old Boys' Association, which was founded in 1939.[17]

Government

Arts and culture

Business

Science and engineering

Medicine

Sports

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Chargeable Fees (per annum)". HKedCity. Retrieved 13 March 2008.
  2. ↑ "School Badge". La Salle College. Archived from the original on 8 August 2007. Retrieved 19 November 2007.
  3. ↑ "The Lasallite". La Salle College Old Boys' Association. Archived from the original on 5 June 2008. Retrieved 13 March 2008.
  4. ↑ "St. John Baptist de La Salle". La Salle College. Retrieved 19 November 2007.
  5. ↑ Lasallian Family Hong Kong- The Birth of Lasallian Schools in Hong Kong Archived 18 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine.
  6. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 2009-08-28.
  7. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 2009-08-28.
  8. ↑ "School Facilities". HKedCity. Retrieved 13 March 2008.
  9. ↑ "Subject Offered". HKedCity. Retrieved 13 March 2008.
  10. ↑ "Student Association". La Salle College. Archived from the original on 5 June 2008. Retrieved 13 March 2008.
  11. ↑ "Student Association".
  12. ↑ "Examinations & Tests". La Salle College. Archived from the original on 5 June 2008. Retrieved 13 March 2008.
  13. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 2010-12-01.
  14. ↑ School Diary 2006–2007 edition, La Salle College.
  15. ↑ "BOCHK Bauhinia Bowls Awards 2006–2007中銀香港紫荊盃獎項". La Salle College. Archived from the original on 5 June 2008. Retrieved 4 March 2008.
  16. ↑ "Badge".
  17. ↑ "La Salle College Old Boys' Association". Lscoba.com. Retrieved 2016-11-12.
  18. ↑ "About the Financial Secretary". HKSAR Government. Retrieved 8 March 2008.
  19. ↑ "童軍總會". Archived from the original on 28 April 2009.
  20. ↑ "Class of 1993 Distinguished Alumni Forum" (PDF). The Obsession: La Salle College Old Boys' Association Newsletter. June 2014. p. 10. Retrieved 2014-07-02.
  21. ↑ Thomas, Bruce (1994). Bruce Lee: fighting spirit : a biography. Berkeley, CA: North Atlantic Books – Frog, Ltd. p. 11. ISBN 978-1-883319-25-0.
  22. ↑ "黃霑". Last.fm. Retrieved 13 March 2008.
  23. ↑ "School Song". La Salle College. 2004. Archived from the original on 4 June 2008. Retrieved 8 March 2008.
  24. ↑ "Community Relations". Shung Hin Group. Archived from the original on 4 June 2008. Retrieved 8 March 2008.
  25. ↑ "Stocks - Bloomberg". Investing.businessweek.com. Retrieved 2016-11-12.
  26. ↑ "World-Renowned Physicist Talk on String Theory". HKUST. 12 June 2006. Archived from the original on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 30 May 2010.
  27. ↑ "ACM Honors Inventors of Landmark Software Concept". Association for Computing Machinery 15 March 2005 press release on 2004 Software System Award. Retrieved 2 February 2007.
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