2011 will mark the 30th anniversary of the University of Macau (UM). The new campus will bring about unprecedented opportunities for UM to better fulfill its educational missions. To celebrate these major milestones, UM has kicked off a fund-raising campaign whose slogan is, “Three decades, a fruitful journey; UM’s future, let’s build it in unity.” The slogan clearly conveys the purpose of the campaign: encouraging alumni, current students and their parents, staff, as well as members of the general public, organizations and enterprises that care about UM, to support the university’s development through donation. Every donation to UM—whether big or small—is a far-sighted investment in Macao’s higher education backed by a common goal: developing UM into a world-class university with regional characteristics. Today (28 June), UM launched the “Fund-raising for UM’s 30th Anniversary” campaign and held a press conference to disclose detailed information on fund-raising plans for the coming year. The launch ceremony was presided over by Chair of the University Council Dr. Tse Chi Wai, UM Rector Wei Zhao, President of the Executive Committee of the University of Macau Alumni Association (UMAA) Mr. Kot Man Kam, Chairman of the University of Macau (Hong Kong) Alumni Association Dr. Sidney Sze, Acting Director General of the Board of Directors of the University of Macau Students’ Union (UMSU) Mr. Pui Sin Tat, and Director General of the Board of Directors of the University of Macau Postgraduate Association Mr. Liu Weigang. In his speech, Rector Wei Zhao noted that practical support from alumni and society has been the common denominator that underpins the success of all top universities overseas. He pointed out that active donations from a university’s alumni and society reflects recognition of the university’s outstanding performance; indeed “alumni giving rate” has become an important indicator of a university’s reputation and quality. He said that next year will mark the 30th anniversary of UM; and the new campus will bring about unprecedented opportunities for UM to better fulfill its educational missions. He said UM launched the “fund-raising for 30th anniversary” campaign whose slogan is, “Three decades, a fruitful journey; UM’s future, let’s build it in unity,” with the aim of encouraging alumni, current students and their parents, staff, as well as members of the general public, organizations and enterprises that care about UM, to support the university’s development through donation. Rector Wei Zhao stressed that every donation to UM is a noble, far-sighted investment in Macao’s higher education. He noted that all donations will be used exclusively for the purpose of supporting the development of UM, and will play an extremely important role in enhancing the quality of the university’s research, teaching and students. Rector Wei Zhao said that the fund-raising campaign is aimed at fostering a culture of giving to higher education in Macao, adding that what matters is not the amount of a donation, but rather the act of donation per se. He said that with the support of society, UM will be able to obtain more financial resources to explore more educational areas to the benefit of the students and carry out more innovative, far-sighted projects, thereby moving closer and closer towards the goal of joining the ranks of world-class universities. President of the Executive Committee of UMAA Mr. Kot Man Kam said that the motherly support of the alma mater for the students does not cease after their graduation, but rather continues throughout a lifetime; therefore, every UM alumnus has a duty to make his or her share of contribution to support the future development of the alma mater. He said that every donation, whether big or small, will be of great importance for UM’s future development. He added that every donation to UM is a far-sighted investment in Macao’s higher education, which makes it more meaningful. He said UMAA will exert its best effort to encourage more alumni to support the alma mater’s long-term development. Acting Director General of the Board of Directors of UMSU Mr. Pui Sin Tat said that all UM alumni should take pride in the universally recognized achievements UM has attained over the past three decades since its inception. He noted that giving to UM is a far-sighted investment in Macao’s higher education, and the return on such investment will be immeasurable. He said that UMSU, along with 60-odd sub-organizations, will organize a campus-wide fund-raising activity, in order to cultivate a sense of gratitude in students and also foster a fine tradition of giving to the alma mater that will hopefully pass from one generation to the next. Everyone is welcome to make a donation and learn about the latest information on UMDF through its website http://www.umdf.org.mo. Other than this website, donations can also be made through bank account transfer (bank account name: University of Macau Development Foundation; bank name: Bank of China, Macau Branch; bank account number for donations in MOP: 01-01-20-822777; bank account number for donations in HKD: 01-11-23-875622), hand delivery, or contacting UMDF staff. For enquiries, please call 853-83974316 or 853-83974381 or email to info@umdf.org.mo.
