Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Students' Union

Last updated

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Students' Union
Institution Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Location Clear Water Bay, Sai Kung, New Territories
Established1992
PresidentTong Po Him Bentley (2024–2025)
Members1,257
Affiliations Hong Kong Federation of Students
Website hkustsu.com
  Council Officials (3)
  The Executive Committee (4)
  The Editorial Board (2)
  Independent Clubs Association (3)
  Art and Cultural Clubs (3)
  Sports Association (3)
  House Association (4)
  Schools (11)
  Popularly Elected Councillor(s) (1)
  Previous Union Session (3)
Vacant Seats
  Popularly Elected Councillor(s) (9)
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Students' Union
Traditional Chinese 香港科技大學學生會
Elections
Last election
Annual Election 2020
Next election
Annual Election 2021
Constitution
Constitution of the Hong Kong University Students' Union

The Council (評議會) acts as the legislature branch formed by representatives from different fields within the Union. There are a total of 34 seats to be filled by representatives of the Executive Committee, the Editorial Board, House Student Associations, Independent Clubs Association and Sports Association, Art and Cultural Clubs, school and departmental societies, as well as another 10 seats popularly elected by all union members. [6]

It is responsible for legislation and regulation of finance and operations of Union, including the holding of all elections regarding the union; consideration and approval of applications for affiliation to the Union; supervision, advice, proposing and passing rules and regulations on all sub-organisations; interpretation of and proposing amendment to the Constitution of Union; as well as the consideration and approval of Master Budget of the Union and applications for Union subsidies. [7]

To practice the above duties, the Council has five standing committees, namely the Affiliated Societies Committee, the Constitution Committee, the Council Administration Committee, the Election Committee and the Finance Committee. [8]

Court

Chaired by the Chief Justice, The Court (仲裁會) is the judiciary body of HKUSTSU, responsible for settling disputes within the Union in a court setting arbitrated by judges. It also provides interpretation to the Constitution when need arises. [9]

Editorial Board

Being the sole press agency within the university, The Editorial Board (編輯委員會) is responsible for maintaining WINGS (振翅) and WINGS High Fly Post (振翅之高飛報), the official publications of Union, providing chances for the free expressions of opinion among the student body.

It is responsible for the enrichment of students' awareness on university affairs, social issues and lifestyle, as well as the promotion of literary development within the university. The board also monitors the other organs of the union thru the pressure of public opinion. [10]

The board consists of an Editor-in-Chief, two Assistant Editors-in-Chief, a Financial Controller, an Administrative Officer, a Marketing Officer as well as a number of Feature Editors and Designers. [11]

Activities

Affiliated societies

There are over 100 affiliated societies of different interests and academic disciplines affiliated to the union, under control and supervision by the Union Council's Affiliated Societies Committee (ASC). Apart from the "sponsored student groups" sponsored by the university's Student Affairs Office (SAO), all student societies recognised by the university authority are affiliated under the Students' Union.

There are six types of affiliated societies in HKUST:

According to the Internal Regulations of the Union, all affiliated societies must bear ", HKUSTSU" as the suffix of their full name in English (while in Chinese, "香港科技大學學生會" must be added as the prefix). The suffix is omitted in the following list for the sake of clarity.

Services and outlets

The union operates a Print Shop at the university's LG5 Student Amenities, providing photocopying and printing service to the public. A Students' Union Co-op Shop is also operated by the union, selling stationery, snacks and electronic devices at a discounted price to union members.

Publications

Campaigning

After the 2014 Hong Kong protests, the union has been campaigning heavily for institutional autonomy. In March 2015, Andrew Liao was appointed as chairman of the Council, the supreme governing body of the HKUST, by Chief Executive CY Leung. As Liao was regarded as a keen supporter of Leung, the union issued a statement in opposition of the appointment on the grounds that it constituted alleged nepotism. In response to the union's statement, the government defended its decision as abiding by the rule of meritocracy. [12]

In March 2016, three motions were put to referendum, calling for the abolition of the practice of HKSAR Chief Executive being the ex-officio university chancellor, the removal of Chief Executive's power of directly appointing University Council members, and the enhancement in the proportion of elected representatives from the student, faculty and alumni bodies, respectively. Submitted by the union executive committee, these motions were passed and became the official stance of the union. [13]

In June 5, 2021, the union posted a lengthy post on Instagram denouncing vaccine mandates, creating minor controversy. [14]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Hong Kong</span> Public university in Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong.

The University of Hong Kong (HKU) is a public research university in Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hong Kong University of Science and Technology</span> Public research university in New Territories, Hong Kong

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) is a public research university in Clear Water Bay Peninsula, New Territories, Hong Kong. Founded in 1991, it was the territory's third institution to be granted university status.

A students' union or student union, also known by many other names, is a student organization present in many colleges, universities, and high schools. In higher education, the students' union is often accorded its own building on the campus, dedicated to social, organizational activities, representation, and academic support of the membership.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Nottingham Students' Union</span>

The University of Nottingham Students' Union is the students' union at the University of Nottingham, England. It is a representative body that aims to represent students to both the university and the wider community.

The Alma Mater Society of the University of British Columbia Vancouver, otherwise referred to as the Alma Mater Society or the AMS, is the student society of UBC Vancouver and represents more than 58,000 undergraduate and graduate students at UBC's Vancouver campus and their affiliated colleges. The AMS also operates student services, businesses, resource groups and clubs. The AMS is a non-profit organization that exists to advocate for student viewpoints and ensure the needs of students are met by the University Administration and the Provincial and Federal governments. The Alma Mater Society is composed of a number of constituency organizations for undergraduate students, and works closely with the Graduate Student Society of UBC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Election Committee (Hong Kong)</span> Hong Kong electoral college

The Election Committee is a Hong Kong electoral college, the function of which is to select the Chief Executive (CE) and, since 2021, to elect 40 of the 90 members of the Legislative Council. Established by Annex I of the Basic Law of Hong Kong which states that "the Chief Executive shall be elected by a broadly representative Election Committee in accordance with this Law and appointed by the Central People's Government ." It is formed and performs its selection function once every five years, even in the event of a CE not completing their term. The membership of the Election Committee was expanded to 1,500 under the massive overhaul of the electoral system in 2021. The Election Committee has been criticised for its "small-circle" electoral basis and its composition favouring pro-Beijing and business interests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hong Kong University Students' Union</span> Former officially recognized undergraduate students association of the University of Hong Kong

The Hong Kong University Students' Union was a students' union founded in 1912 and registered under the Societies Ordinance in Hong Kong. It was the officially recognized undergraduate students' association of the University of Hong Kong until 13 July 2021 after the union's council passed a motion in memorial to a deceased assailant who attacked and severely stabbed a police officer on the street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hong Kong Federation of Students</span>

The Hong Kong Federation of Students is a student organisation founded in May 1958 by the student unions of four higher education institutions in Hong Kong. The inaugural committee had seven members representing the four schools. The purpose of the HKFS is to promote student movements and to enhance the student body's engagement in society. Since the 1990s, the federation has taken an interest in daily events in Hong Kong, and no longer restricts itself to the areas of education and politics. The HKFS council (代表會) is convened by representatives of the university student unions. The representatives are elected by the university students. A standing committee is appointed by the council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Student court</span> Form of student government

A student court is a type of judicial system occasionally seen in student governments. Student courts vary in size and functions, but they are most often engaged in conflict resolution and interpretation of student bylaws and constitutions. Names of student courts vary, with the body variously referred to as the "Student Court," "Judicial Council", the "Judicial Board", the "Supreme Court," or others. Typically, however, student governments only possess legislative and executive branches. Student courts are a less-common feature of student governments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maria Tam</span> Hong Kong politician

Maria Tam Wai-chu is a senior Hong Kong politician and lawyer. She is a member of the Committee for the Basic Law of the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) since 1997 and the chairman of the Operations Review Committee of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) since 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hong Kong Metropolitan University</span> Public university in Kowloon, Hong Kong

Hong Kong Metropolitan University is a public university in Ho Man Tin, Kowloon, Hong Kong.

The Central Student Association is the student union for all undergraduate students at the University of Guelph.

No Platform, in the UK, is a form of student boycott where a person or organisation is denied a platform to speak. The British National Union of Students (NUS) established its No Platform policy in April 1974. Like other No Platform policies, it asserts that no proscribed person or organisation should be given a platform to speak, nor should a union officer share a platform with them. The policy traditionally applies to entities that the NUS considers racist or fascist, most notably the British National Party, although the NUS and its liberation campaigns have policies refusing platforms to other people or organisations. The policy does not extend to students' unions who are part of NUS, although similar policies have also been adopted by its constituent unions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Democracy in Hong Kong</span> Status of democracy in Hong Kong

Democratic reforms in Hong Kong did not seriously begin until 1984 and has faced significant challenges since 2014. The one country, two systems principle allows Hong Kong to enjoy high autonomy in all areas besides foreign relations and defence, which are responsibilities of the central government. Hong Kong's Basic Law allows residents to vote for local district councillors and directly elect about half of the region's legislators (LegCo) at the time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony F. Chan</span> Chinese American mathematician

Tony Fan-Cheong Chan is a Chinese American mathematician who has been serving as President of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) since 2018. Prior that, he was President of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology from 2009 to 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010 Hong Kong by-elections</span>

The 2010 Hong Kong Legislative Council by-election was an election held on 16 May 2010 in Hong Kong for all five geographical constituencies of the Legislative Council (LegCo), triggered by the resignation of five pan-democrat Legislative Councillors in January of the same year.

The University of Central Florida Student Government is the student body government for the University of Central Florida, a metropolitan public research university located in Orlando, Florida, United States. It is the largest Student Government within the state of Florida and one of the largest in the United States. It also often places in the top ten Student Governments nationally for the services and outreach it provides for the students it serves. SG also serves as the liaison between the student body and University Administration. Three branches, an executive, a legislative, and a judicial are governed by the student-adopted Constitution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014–2015 Hong Kong electoral reform</span> Proposed electoral reform

The 2014–2015 Hong Kong electoral reform was a proposed reform for the 2017 Hong Kong Chief Executive election and 2016 Legislative Council election.

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Basic Law Drafting Committee (BLDC) was formed in June 1985 for the drafts of the Hong Kong Basic Law for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) after 1997. It was formed as a working group under the National People's Congress. The Drafting Committee had 59 members, of whom 23 were from Hong Kong and 36 were from Mainland, mostly the PRC government officials. The Drafting Committee was dominated by Hong Kong businessmen with a share from different social sectors. The decisions of the Drafting Committee on the political structure and legal system of the HKSAR had a great impact on the politics of Hong Kong today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pascale Fung</span> Professor

Pascale Fung (馮雁) is a professor in the Department of Electronic & Computer Engineering and the Department of Computer Science & Engineering at the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology(HKUST). She is the director of the newly established, multidisciplinary Centre for AI Research (CAiRE) at HKUST. She is an elected Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for her “contributions to human-machine interactions”, an elected Fellow of the International Speech Communication Association for “fundamental contributions to the interdisciplinary area of spoken language human-machine interactions” and an elected Fellow of the Association for Computational Linguistics (ACL) for her “significant contributions toward statistical NLP, comparable corpora, and building intelligent systems that can understand and empathize with humans”.

References

  1. ↑ "Meet us | HKUST UG Admissions". HKUST UG Admissions. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  2. ↑ "HKUST International Students Association". isa.ust.hk. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  3. ↑ "科大學生會經公投加入學聯". Apple Daily . 17 March 2013. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  4. ↑ "City University is latest to leave Hong Kong Federation of Students". South China Morning Post . 7 May 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  5. ↑ "Union Structure". The Executive Committee, HKUSTSU. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
  6. ↑ "Councilors". The Council, HKUSTSU. 3 January 2016. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  7. ↑ "Constitution of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Students' Union". The Council, HKUSTSU. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
  8. ↑ "Standing Committees". The Council, HKUSTSU. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
  9. ↑ "The Court, HKUSTSU". The Court Board, HKUSTSU. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
  10. ↑ "About EB". The Editorial Board, HKUSTSU. 31 March 2014. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
  11. ↑ "Current Year". The Editorial Board, HKUSTSU. 10 April 2014. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
  12. ↑ "Government response to HKUSTSU statement". Hong Kong Government Press Releases. 7 March 2015. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
  13. ↑ "科大公投贊成廢特首校監制". Apple Daily . 20 March 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
  14. ↑ "Instagram". HKUSTSU Instagram account. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.