UOB and the Wee Foundation pledged S$110 million to supporting projects at Nanyang Technological University (NTU). It will initially go towards three new education projects, among others, that will help up to 1,200 NTU students and 1,500 from underprivileged groups.
The first program is the NTU Opportunity Grant, which provides aid to students in need to engage in activities outside the classroom to gain a "holistic university education", like living on campus and studying abroad, NTU and UOB added. These students will get S$10,000 throughout their studies at NTU. Over 400 freshmen are set to be aided annually. Students receiving this grant will have an opportunity to pay back by contributing their skills to help the community on projects", says both organizations.
The second is Uplift@NTU, a credit-bearing service-learning program that will have NTU students mentoring and tutoring children and youths from single-parent families through community-based mentoring and tutoring. The university will collaborate with social service organizations, schools and government agencies to engage up to 1,500 beneficiaries annually.
The final one is the NTU Venture Creation Programme, a new project module to infuse students with an entrepreneurial culture. Under the module, about 300 students will be part of interdisciplinary teams to develop solutions for new industries like artificial intelligence and sustainability to serve businesses and society.
NTU and UOB stated "The programme will foster innovation and offer high-potential students the chance to gain useful skills like critical thinking and problem-solving". The winning teams with the 'most promising' proposals will be awarded an extra grant of up to S$100,000 to expand their projects.
These three programmes also seek to instill in students a culture of giving back to society. In addition to the government matching, the combined gift by UOB and the Wee Family Foundation will grant up to S$275 million to the university. Wee Ee Cheong, UOB deputy chairman and group chief executive, said the new pledge, together with an earlier S$30 million donation, will have a combined effect of S$120 million to 'assist in creating a future where each young person can thrive'.
This donation continues the assistance UOB and Wee Foundation have provided to NTU over the years, in terms of education and research development, as well as financial support. It is also part of the bank's 90th anniversary initiatives to help fund the education of children and youths throughout South-east Asia.
