Alumni and their families had plenty of fun in the sun at the Kent Ridge Alumni Family Day, which featured a plethora of engaging performances.
It was homecoming at long last for alumni who gathered in-person, together with their families, as well as students and staff, at this year’s Kent Ridge Alumni Family Day on 13 August 2022. After two years of virtual reunions, the event welcomed over 1,500 attendees for live performances by alumni and student talents at a carnival held at Town Green in NUS University Town (UTown). Organised by the NUS Office of Alumni Relations (OAR), the event also featured workshops, webinars and lab tours.
Kaleidoscope of fun-filled activities
The day took off with two engaging webinars, starting with “It takes guts!”, where the co-founders of Curated Culture, Ms Shermaine Heng (Science, ‘20) and Ms Sew Shu Wen (Science, ‘20) recounted their entrepreneurial journey. They shared insights on how they launched the beverage start-up which makes zero sugar probiotic cold brew teas. During “What isn’t the Metaverse?”, Dr Lu Weiquan (Computing, ‘08), Senior Lecturer at NUS School of Computing, demystified the hype on how the Metaverse will revolutionise the way we work, play, live and learn.
Around UTown, various NUS departments, alumni and student groups set up exciting and interactive booths, welcoming participants to take part in staged crime scene investigations, rock climbing, balloon sculpturing and having their holographic photos taken. Six busloads of participants also joined guides from the College of Design and Engineering on a rare insider tour of laboratories with an exclusive view of their latest technologies.
Participants tried their hand at various activities presented by clubs and societies at the Student Life Fair.
Those preferring to take it easy relaxed on Town Green with family and friends and enjoyed enthralling live music and dance performances by NUS Indian Instrumental Ensemble, NUS Chinese Dance, Imprompt-3, Kameleonjazz, Sheares Hall Band and Sheares Geyao.
A great night of live performances took place at the carnival held on Town Green.
NUS President Professor Tan Eng Chye (Science, ‘85) welcomed everybody back to campus for the University’s biggest annual homecoming event. He noted that “the pandemic has made us more appreciative of face-to-face interactions. Indeed, in-person gatherings allowed us to fully take in the energies, the emotions, and it is a very precious experience.”
Prof Tan also officially announced the rebranding of NUS Day of Service to NUS Cares – a year-long, university-wide movement encouraging everyone to make a difference and give back to the wider community in Singapore. He encouraged everyone present to join in the movement by taking part in meaningful initiatives for society. (Find out more about the volunteering opportunities here)
NUS President Prof Tan Eng Chye (first on right) and OAR Director Mr Bernard Toh (second from right) listened in at one of the booths set up by alumni and student groups around UTown.
As the sun dipped below the horizon, participants laid out their picnic mats, grabbed their snacks and drinks, and settled down for a screening of Disney’s Encanto, winding down the day with their loved ones.
Article from NUS News
