Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) officially opened its Jockey Club Campus of Creativity, a 7,500-square-meter campus new building dedicated to nurturing regionally connected creative arts professionals. The HK$2.3 billion ($295 million) campus integrates education, technology, and residential areas into an all-round setting for the development of students.
As a flagship project of HKBU's Strategic Plan 2018-2028, the new campus comprises four dormitory buildings, offering more than 1,700 bed spaces for students. The campus is also home to the Jockey Club Creative Hub and the HKBU Academy of Music, which are equipped with cutting-edge post-production theaters and audiovisual research laboratories. The campus also has professional recording studios that can accommodate over 100 musicians simultaneously, and 12 large classrooms for different departments.
Johnny Poon Ming-lun, the associate vice-president for interdisciplinary research at HKBU, conducted a media tour of the campus, highlighting that its focus is not limited to music education. "The campus hosts all kinds of creativity, from business to scientific innovation and other related fields," he said.
Jockey Club Campus of Creativity, which was planned as an outgrowth of the main Kowloon Tong campus of HKBU, was only possible through the gift of HK$452 million from The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust. Site work started in 2020, and part of the campus began operating in September.
During the opening ceremony, Secretary for Education Christine Choi Yuk-lin emphasized the alignment of the new campus with the government's vision of promoting high-quality tertiary education and cultivating innovative talents. "The integration of learning, living, and social spaces is intended to engage students more intensely, stimulating their creative thinking and enriching their campus life", she said.
HKBU President Alexander Wai Ping-kong called the new campus a milestone for the university and for Hong Kong's drive to cultivate creativity and build future leaders. He was confident that the innovative integration of study and social areas would enhance students' individual growth and collaborative innovation.
With this new campus, HKBU hopes to establish itself as a pioneer in creative education and continue to draw the best talents in a range of creative disciplines.
