education
Anniver sar y
HONG KONG ACADEMY
When Hong Kong Academy first opened its doors 20 years ago , it was a very different campus . Playtimes takes a look at the school ’ s growth and ethos through the years as it celebrates its milestone year .
The development of Hong Kong
Academy ( HKA ) from being a primary school with just three students to being a throughschool of 540 pupils is impressive , but the way the school has retained its core values is truly inspirational .
Hong Kong Academy was founded by two individuals ; one with a financial and legal background and the other with an educational background . They wanted to create a space that provided children with a sense of inclusion ; they wanted an environment where everybody was welcome and where everybody could thrive . It was very different to anything else that was available at the time — they provided an environment that was nurturing in a world that was exam driven .
They located a space , albeit a small and rather unimpressive one , on Stubbs Road and found that a few other people wanted to be a part of it . The school grew from there . Stephen Dare has been Head of School at HKA for 11 years . He first interviewed for the position at the Stubbs Road campus and was immediately struck by the sense of passion that people had about the school and the programmes . “ At that stage you did need a sense of passion because the building was so terrible ,” he jokes , “ but as you engaged with people , you got a real sense that this was something really special and something worth the time and investment to see it through to becoming a mature organisation . That ’ s what attracted me to the school ”.
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