HKUST chief calls it quits in surprise

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology president Shyy Wei will resign with effect from October 19 - a year earlier than expected.

The 65-year-old was appointed the fourth head of HKUST in September 2018 and his five-year term was supposed to end in September 2023.

The Taiwanese-born engineer, who chaired the University of Michigan's department of aerospace engineering before his HKUST move 11 years ago did not give a reason for his early departure.

A spokeswoman said Shyy feels "it is the right time to pass on the torch," given that he will be able to witness the opening of HKUST Guangzhou's campus before stepping down.

For his part, Shyy said it was his privilege to have called HKUST home for the past 11 years.

Calling him a "visionary educator," HKUST said Shyy has been driving changes like a university-wide strategic framework built upon both curiosity-driven and mission-encouraged pursuits.

"Under his leadership, HKUST's research capabilities, such as inventions and solutions created during the pandemic, have earned wide recognition in Hong Kong, the mainland and the world, gaining donations, investments, collaboration opportunities and high assessments from both public and private sectors," it said, adding a global search would soon be launched for his successor.

University council chairman Andrew Liao Cheung-Sing said "Shyy is a committed and strong leader, with clear vision and whole-hearted dedication to the university" and thanked him for his "valuable contributions" in the past decade.

Shyy first joined as provost in August 2010, overseeing academic affairs, including the transition of the undergraduate programs to new curriculums.

In 2013, his role was further expanded when he became executive vice-president and provost, tasked with managing the workforce, financial, physical and other resources, as well as matters relating to postgraduate studies and research.

Shyy was one of three university heads who did not express support for the imposition of the national security law in a joint statement issued by their counterparts in the University of Hong Kong and Chinese, Lingnan, Polytechnic and the then Education universities.

He said then the upcoming law was just a piece of legislation and that he did not have to say whether he supported it or not.

Shyy had also mourned the death of Chow Tsz-lok after a fall in Sheung Tak Estate near a protest at a November 8, 2019, congregation and demanded an "independent investigation."

The Education Bureau expressed thanks for his contributions to HKUST and Hong Kong's higher education sector, while University Grants Committee chief Carlson Tong Ka-shing also expressed "heartfelt gratitude."