On 13 December 2021 UOW Malaysia KDU staff came together for a day of celebration, remembrance and thanksgiving. Staff at the Selangor and Penang UCs gathered in their respective campuses for the annual Staff Appreciation Day.
The purpose of UOWMKDU Appreciation day is to acknowledge the contributions of all staff for making 2021 a successful year. It was the first and last gathering in 2021 after the forced separation by the covid pandemic.
The occasion was celebrated while observing strict Standard Operating Procedures mandated by the Ministry of Higher Education. Around 160 staff from the Selangor campus and 85 staff from the Penang campus participated. They were treated to a scrumptious meal followed by a lucky draw. The fortunate winners received gifts ranging from vouchers to mobile phones.
The UOWMKDU CEO/UOWGE CEO Asia, Jennifer Ng delivered the welcome address, which was shared virtually with staff gathered at the Penang campus. She commended staff for embracing the new alignment and direction of UOWM KDU. She said that we are ending the year having achieved the 6 strategic priorities and she attributed this to the hard work of everyone.
This was followed by tributes to those who have passed on in 2021. They are our first Chancellor Dato’ Teoh Chiang Quan, Hor Kok Teng, Program Leader at the School of Hospitality, Tourism and Culinary Arts and Hema Madhavan, Lecturer at the Teaching & Learning Centre. It was an emotional and solemn occasion as colleagues reminiscence about their lives and contributions. They will be sadly missed but never forgotten.
The highlight of the day was the presentation of the S.T.A.R. awards to the winners of the S.T.A.R. Challenge competition. The S.T.A.R Challenge is a campaign launched in the beginning of 2021, inviting academics to showcase any one of the S.T.A.R. qualities through a 60 second video and accompanying article. A total of 35 submissions were received and can be viewed here.
The S.T.A.R qualities and the number of submissions from academic staff under each of these categories are as follows:
S – Speak inspiringly of our disciplines - 9
T – Teach our subjects innovatively - 9
A – Articulate future career options fluently - 9
R – Research passionately to benefit the wider community - 8
The 35 videos and articles were put through a 3-stage judging process by a panel of 6 judges. The 6 judges were the Vice Chancellors of both campuses, the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic), the Human Resource Managers of both campuses and the Librarian of the Selangor campus. Four submissions with the highest total marks awarded by the judges emerged as the winners.
The four winners were:
- For category S: Loh Eugene, School of Computing and Creative Media, Selangor Campus
- For category T: Vanessa Serbastian, School of Engineering, Computing and Built Environment, Penang Campus
- For category A: Yeap Gik Hong, School of Engineering, Computing & Built Environment, Penang Campus
- For category R: Murina Rose binti Pawanteh, School of Communication and Creative Arts, Selangor Campus
The judges decided to award 2 special prizes:
- For most votes on the effectiveness of the video: Hema a/p Madhavan, Centre for Teaching & Learning, Selangor Campus.
- For most likes on YouTube: Sumiko Cheng, School of Hospitality, Tourism and Culinary Arts, Penang campus.
The prizes were presented by Ms. Jennifer Ng, and the two Vice Chancellors, Prof Dr. Hiew Pang Leang for the Glenmarie campus and Prof Dr Chong Beng Keok for the Penang campus. The event closed with a vote of thanks to the event organising teams by the Vice Chancellors at the respective campuses.
(Top-right) Ms. Jennifer Ng presents STAR award to Munira Rose; (Top-left) Prof Chong presents STAR award to Vanessa Serbastian; (Bottom-right) Prof Hiew presents STAR award to Loh Eugene; (Bottom-left) Prof Chong presents STAR award to Assoc Prof Dr. Yeap Gik Hong