CDE welcomed more than 80 donors and guests on 14 August 2024 to witness the unveiling of “Our Circle of Patrons” the College’s donor wall designed by CDE alum Ms Valeksa Tan, Industrial Design, Class of 2023. The wall’s design conveys a sense of togetherness; each donor brings a unique perspective, contributing to a dynamic and vibrant outcome.
The donor wall was launched by Professor Teo Kie Leong, CDE Dean, Professor Heng Chye Kiang, Deputy Dean (Research & Innovation) and Associate Professor Martin Buist, Deputy Dean (Education).
In his opening address, Prof Teo thanked the College’s donors for their generous giving, which made “many valuable opportunities for our students and researchers possible.”
Donors have helped create spaces where students can receive specialised training at and access one-of-a-kind facilities, funded research centres and programmes dedicated to exploring solutions addressing global challenges, supported the exchange of knowledge between academia and industry, expanded opportunities, and alleviated the financial concerns of our students. Indeed, there are numerous ways in which CDE’s donors have supported the College and our students.
Among those mentioned:
- The Portabella Family for making the Architectural Conservation Laboratory possible.
- Mrs Lee Li-ming for her many contributions, including establishing the Lee Kip Lin Bursary in Ageing and Environment and the Lee Li-ming Scholarship for Ecological Design and launching the new Centre for Environment and Ageing Well.
- Woh Hup (Private) Limited for fostering knowledge sharing and funding research in areas relating to the built environment.
- The NUS Alumni Student Advancement Committee, specifically Mr Seah Cheng San and Mr Yeo Keng Joon, for championing the CDE Bursary.
- Mr Hoong Yik Luen and Micron for sponsoring the NUS Calibur Robotics Team.
The Dean acknowledged how the support of donors and partners motivates and aligns with the continued expansion of its education programmes to nurture Singapore’s future leaders and professionals.
Among the highlights shared with the audience was that a new Design Scholars programme has been established alongside the Engineering Scholars programme, which provides students with enhanced educational experiences through mentorship, an on-campus living experience, international immersion, and internship opportunities.
Students are also encouraged to pay it forward through community engagement, where they are emboldened to apply their knowledge and skills to help others in the wider community. The bGood programme is one such initiative started by the Department of Biomedical Engineering, where their students work with community partners and disadvantaged individuals to solve challenges in their daily lives.
Associate Professor James Kah (Department of Biomedical Engineering) added, “Your (the donors) support not just enables our students to make devices... but also plays a very critical role in allowing them the opportunity to work with people in need, who they otherwise will not be able to connect with.”
Our donors were also presented with tokens of appreciation commemorating the launch of the donor wall. CDE faculty and staff across departments and units connected with our donors through poster presentations and exhibits sharing achievements and key focus areas exciting the donors on ways CDE is making an impact.
It was an evening where connections were strengthened through the recognition of shared values and interests, all bound by the common desire to inspire, innovate, and transform.
Learn more about our generous patrons here: https://cde.nus.edu.sg/giving/our-circle-of-patrons
