Dear members of the Alumni Association and fellow alumni,

The Chairman of the SSC Council and School Management Committee, Dr Raymond Ch’ien posted the statement at the SSC website, we want to share with you all by this enewsletter, for the original copy please refer to the PDF from SSC website (http://www.ssc.edu.hk/images/document/revised_schoolsong_4.pdf)

Best Regards,

SSCAA Communication Team

Statement from Dr Raymond Ch’ien, Chairman of the College Council and School Management Committee

At the first meeting of the College Management Committee on 26 April 2010, the issue regarding the College Song was discussed. It was noted that after the Council decision on the amended lyrics of the College Song at its meeting on 28 January 2010, there had been spirited discussions on the matter, among College community members, in various media and fora.

Members of the Management Committee appreciate very much the concern expressed by stakeholders, especially alumni and students, on the matter, as it indicated that stakeholders care much about their ties to the College.

Taking into account some of the feedback we had received on the issue, and after thorough discussion, members felt that the slightly amended lyrics, as approved unanimously by the Council at the January meeting, reflect better the ethos, heritage and educational vision of the College than the version introduced in the 1970s, while fully retaining the original high spirits.

Members also noted that when Council approved the revised lyrics of the College Song in January, it was based on the understanding that alumni had been made aware of the change and there was no general objection. The issue had been discussed extensively over two meetings of the Council, spanning a period of close to four months, with the President of the Alumni Association participating and supporting. Nevertheless, the reactions to the Council decision showed that some stakeholders are unhappy they had not been consulted adequately on this emotive matter. For this reason, the Management Committee proposed to set up an ad hoc Working Group to canvass various stakeholders, including alumni and students, on the matter of amending the College Song. This suggestion was endorsed by the Council in its meeting immediately following the Management Committee meeting. The membership of the working group is as follows:

Convenor, Mr. Christopher To, (College Council member, past President of the SSC Alumni Association)

The Rev. Robin Fung (Parent Representative, College Management Committee member, College Alumnus)

Miss Winnie Wong (Teacher representative, College Management Committee member)

The Rev. Douglas Koon (College Council member)

Ms. Lucille Au (College Council member)

Mr. Samson Lee (College Council member, current President SSC Alumni Association)

The Working Group will, among other things, engage the Student Association in gathering feedback from students. In due course, it will report its findings to the Council with recommendations.

In the meantime, the older version of the College Song shall remain in use.

Care for the College and its educational mission is the principal tie that binds all stakeholders. The Council firmly believes that in St. Stephen’s College’s strive for sustainable educational excellence, all stakeholders’ objectives are aligned. We warmly welcome constructive support, in any form, for the College’s mission. We stand ready to work hand in hand with everyone who is prepared to contribute to building on our long, noble heritage, to making St. Stephen’s a better place for our present and future generations of students.

For and on behalf of the College Council

Raymond K.F. Ch’ien (Class of 1968)

http://www.ssc.edu.hk/images/document/revised_schoolsong_4.pdf

Dear members of the Alumni Association and fellow alumni,

The President of the Alumni Association would like to issue a correction to the “3rd message from SSCAA President for school song” published on April 26.

The statement has incorrectly identified a teacher as the creator of the Facebook group of 反對SSC轉新校歌. The actual creator is in fact a current STUDENT. The mistake was made due to they sharing both the same First & Last names.

The President sends his personal apology to the teacher whom has been incorrectly named, and for any inconvenience that may have caused.

Faithfully yours,

Lee Tat-choy (Ah-choy)

President of St. Stephen’s College Alumni Association

Dear members of the Alumni Association and fellow alumni,

I have listened to the different voices of members and alumni, have had several candid discussions with the College since Easter on the controversy, and also have a chance to review the latest College’s discussion paper being tabled at the April 26 Council meeting.

With the aim of openness and transparency, please find my submission to the College Council / School Management Committee for the April 26 Council meeting.

Faithfully yours,

Lee Tat-choy (Ah-choy)

President of St. Stephen’s College Alumni Association

Dear Dr. Law,

As the College Council member representative of the Alumni Association (AA), I would respectfully request that this letter be admitted as a formal supplement to the April 26, 2010 College Council/SMC meeting dossier, on the subject of “Discussion Paper on the Revision of the School Song”.

I am genuinely surprised that the College had not requested input from the AA, or referencing our several meetings since Easter, for the discussion paper which singled out – as trigger to the whole incident – “some alumni’s misunderstanding” of the extent of the change. It may also benefit the Council’s discussion if the AA’s and Student Association’s (SA) published statements, and outcome of the April 22nd SA Student Forum and Student Survey, are included in the paper.

I am of disagreement to the paper’s analysis that the matter is alumni in nature characterized by: some alumni, misunderstanding that both the melody and all lyrics have changed, herd mentality, irrational and mobbed. In contrary, I observed:

1. 87.5% of 24 emails received in response to AA’s calling for input since April 8th expressed their concern and lack of support to subject.
2. A very sizeable 1,527 people and 1,457 people joined respectively the Facebook groups of 反對SSC轉新校歌 (created by a teacher) & 關注聖士提反書院校歌改動小組 (created by recent graduates). Both communities have no direct affiliation with AA.
3. Common discussion threads sampled from alumni, Facebook and SA’s statement are (a) rally for the original school song with no change whatsoever to maintain unity across alumni generations and loyalty to the College (the debate is not on the amount and type of change); (b) College’s statement on the reason for change is incoherent; and (c) College’s claim on stakeholders consultation and representation proved contradictory from SA and AA’s statement.
4. Majority of the discussions, online and offline, are sentimental and passionate reflecting their deep love, loyalty and care of the College, even though for some of them, their times in the College were a distant past. Such interest in the business of the College should indeed be appreciated and treasured.

Understandably, the prerogatives and authority of the College Council in governing matters concerning the College should not be or appear to be compromised, other than being bounded by the statute. The authority rests squarely with the College Council for matters of importance and the College management for day-to-day operational matters.  Having said that, it is always commendable to include reasonable consultation and communication, to promote transparency and openness particularly in time of transformation. The above observations are not conclusive and ought not be interpreted as a vote in challenge to the College’s authority, but rather, it is indicative enough to reasonably suggest that the deployment and communication of subject were poorly executed and insensitive to the love and sentiment of the stakeholders, giving rise to severe confusion and prompted uninformed debate, which is only natural and not entirely unexpected under the circumstances.

I wish to submit to my fellow Council colleagues for your consideration:

1. That the current issue lies not with religion (which has never been a point of content) nor with setting precedent, but is on what image the College wants to be perceived – to the very nature of our College’s vision, mission and values – what role model we want to set for educating our leaders of tomorrow, and what partnering relationship with the alumni, students and parents to foster mutual understanding, care and collaboration.
2. That the solution lies not with the types (Song/Hymn), variations (Chinese translation, Song, Hymn, …) and/or amount of changes (single word, all lyrics), but is on how the College can rally all stakeholders to put aside our differences and refocus our attention on the wider issue of how we can collectively participate in support of, and champion, the College’s transformation to an exciting new era.
3. It is my recommendation that a new committee be formed to start anew the planning, deployment and communication – with no pre-conceived outcome, and with the above 2 considerations in mind.

We have a unique opportunity here to propel us fast and strong into College’s future development, with creative thinking and sound change management approach, in place of conventional tactical win-win approach. Whereas the alternative is risking – of long term dire consequences – discontent and fragmentation of unity and loyalty for both the student and alumni communities, which is already happening today, if we listen hard enough.

Thank you for your patience and consideration.

Yours truly,

Mr. Samson Lee

President

St. Stephen’s College Alumni Association

cc. Alumni Association

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Dear Alumni,

With respect to the recent open discussions on the changing of our school song, there are a lot of enquiries and confusion seen (both online and offline, verbal or electronic, across different alumni communities and peer groups), the Association wishes to state that it will continue to give full support to our members, all alumni, and the school in accordance to (amongst) the AA’s constitution of :

– to establish, promote and carry on an association for the Alumnus and to maintain and promote unity and fellowship amongst the Alumnus;

– to promote rapport between the Association and the School and its students and to provide assistance, awards and scholarships to the students and graduates of the School;

– to further assist in furthering the interests of Members and the School.

And as such, that :

1) The Association has not received formal request from the school for general alumni consultation on the subject of school song.

2) The development and management of school policy is a matter of school administration. The Association will do its best to assist and/or advise the school only where upon request.

3) If the school should decide to conduct a full and open general consultation process to all its stakeholders on a school matter, the Association – being one of the stakeholders – will support and participate in the school-led process.

And for interim, the Association will support our members and fellow alumni :

a) We strive to keep all our members informed of the progress on the change of school song.

b) The Association has always respected and liaised closely with each separate and individual alumni group/community all over the world. The Association will reach out to the Facebook School Song Interest Group – just as any alumni community – to provide assistance in furthering the communication between the Group and the school, if requested.

Faithfully yours,

Lee Tat-choy (ah choy)

President of St. Stephen’s College Alumni Association

April 8, 2010

Dear Alumni and members,

You may be aware that the College and its Council have recently resolved to adopt some changes to the lyrics of the College Song.  The “new” College Song will be used officially on 1 September 2010 at the beginning of the new school term.   Attached please find a statement (both in English and Chinese) issued by the College as to the reasons for the change.  The changes to the lyrics are also highlighted in the statement.

However, lately I am aware of the discussions going on amongst some alumni made through Facebook raising concerns of and objections to the College’s decision to change the lyrics of the College Song.

These discussions have also attracted the College’s attention, and the Principal, Dr Law, has issued a statement reflecting on her general responses to these discussions.  I have also attached herewith Dr Law’s statement for your reference.

In light of the rising volume of these discussions, as President of the Alumni Association who sits on the College Council, I am fully conscious of my duty to convey and channel your views and valuable comments on this issue directly to the Council.

The next Council meeting is scheduled to be held on 26 April 2010.

In the circumstances, I write to urge you to send me your views (if any) on the College’s decision to change the lyrics of the College Song directly to my personal email account at: samsontc.lee@gmail.com or to the Alumni Association’s email account at: sscaa@sscaa.org by 22 April, 2010.  Most importantly, when you send me your views and comments, may I ask you to also indicate whether you support, oppose or are neutral to the College’s said decision.  On this regards, it is pertinent to note, as I mentioned above, that the Council has already resolved to adopt and use the new lyrics of the College Song.

After collecting your views and comments, I will present them to the Council at its coming meeting on 26 April for discussions.

I look forward to receiving your views and comments.

Best regards,

Samson Lee (Lee Tat-choy)

President, St. Stephen’s College Alumni Association

Encl.

A message from the St.Stephen’s College regarding the College Song, 1 April 2010

A message from the Principal regarding the College Song, 7 April 2010

Message from President for the change of College song, 8 April 2010

Dear students, alumni and friends of the College,

Thank you for your very keen and enthusiastic comments in response to the College’s intention to change parts of the school song lyrics. Although there have been divergent views, one thing is certain: you do have strong attachment to St Stephen’s. This is something positive, which I proudly regard as a definite asset to the College.

One point I would like to take this opportunity to clarify is that the decision to change was not a unilateral one. It was the product of consultation involving various stakeholders beginning from the last school year. The issue was first mooted in internal school meetings of senior teachers, and then brought up for discussion among College Council members, comprising alumni members, at least twice. Several alternatives were discussed, including retaining the original verses and adding a third verse; changing only the second verse; or sprinkling the themes of “faith” and “courage” in the entire song. All these are aimed to align the song more closely with the school motto to reflect the Christian ethos of the founders with a minimum of change. You may like to note too that an old boy was involved in revising the school song along with the chaplain and current teachers.

Having said that, I would like to stress that we do respect the 1970s version of the school song as a cherished and integral part of the school heritage. Its lively and bouncy feel certainly has an appeal of its own that could and should never be erased from collective memory. Our intention is to teach only current and incoming students the new version. To reiterate, alumni are welcome to sing the 70s version on occasions they feel the urge to. I could think of very few events, as speech days, where all have to sing one official version. With this in mind, it might be best if we view the issue not as a zero-sum game, where one party wins and the other loses. It is more a win-win situation in which alumni’s interests are looked after and the Christian nature of the school underlined, and where the ideal of diversity in unity can be achieved.

Admittedly, for complex issues like this one, we have to consider multiple perspectives: respect for traditions, values of various stakeholders, and the Christian ethos of the school, to name just a few. Your suggestions to help resolve this issue for the benefit of the school will be much appreciated. If you feel that you wish to convey more of your views to the school on the school song or indeed any issues related to school development, such as the master plan for capital works, or the plan to internationalizing the College, please do so through email to alumni@ssc.edu.hk before we forward them to the College Council for further consideration.

I am of the conviction that with your ardent support of and allegiance to the College, it will grow from strength to strength in the years to come.

Kind regards,

Louise Law

Principal

The current St. Stephen’s College Song was first introduced in the 1970’s, the same decade when the College turned from a private school into a Government aided school.  Prior to that, from 1903, a hymn was sung in honour of the College.  This hymn, believed to be “We Build Our School on Thee”, was commonly used as a Sheng Kung Hui school song.

Now that the College has become a Direct Subsidy School, and entered a new phase in its development, there have been many suggestions from various stakeholder groups, that it is time to revisit the lyrics of the School Song and to inject some Christian ethos into it, so as to better reflect the spirit of the disciple Saint Stephen.

After much consideration, involving College Council members, the Chaplin, alumni representatives, and members of staff, the revised version with the least changes was approved by the Council.  This 2010 version will better reflect the emphasis on “faith” and “courage” as stated in the College’s Motto since 1903, “Fortitudinis Fundamentum Fides” which means Faith is the Foundation of Courage.  The melody will remain unchanged.

The revised Anthem will be sung for the first time on 1st September, 2010 at the New Term Assembly.  While current students will be taught the revised version, the 1970s version will remain a part of the evolution of St. Stephen’s College.  Alumni are welcome to sing their preferred version at their reunions and gatherings.

我們的校歌

七十年代，聖士提反書院由一所私立中學轉為政府津貼中學之後，校歌也於此時誕生。在此之前，即自1903年創校起計，書院並無撰作自己的校歌，以廣傳於聖公會學校的聖詩 <<學校根基歌>>（We Build Our School On Thee）代校歌。

現在，書院轉為直資學校，標示學校發展踏進了新里程。在這個新階段，來自書院的各類持分者都為學校的發展提出不少建議；此際，重溫校歌的情意，並將基督精神注入歌中，令聖徒士提反的精神更形彰顯，時機確是適當。

經過校董會成員、教牧、校友代表及教職員多番的慎重考慮和商議，校歌修定版終於擬定，歌詞只作少許修改，校歌修定版並獲校董會通過。2010年修定版校歌，校歌旋律保持不變，而歌詞方面就強調「信」和「勇」的精神，使之與書院自1903年校訓「篤信多能」相互映襯呼應。

校歌修定版會於二零一零年九月一日的開學禮上頌唱，到時，會將修定版授予學生。至於1970年版校歌，仍然是書院發展歷程的一個部分，歡迎校友於聚首聯歡時選唱喜愛的校歌版本。

College Song 2010

St. Stephen’s College official announce on College Song issue