Editor’s Roundup

When Centennial II beat all other Asian teams and roared into 9th position in overall design at the Formula Society of Automotive Engineers (FSAE) competition in Romeo, Michigan, USA – there was another triumphant roar back home in NUS. It was the roar of the NUS community cheering as one for the success and dedication of the team of Mechanical Engineering students who worked ceaselessly to put the racing car together.

The NUS spirit is strong. And to keep it strong will be a “home on campus”. The Alumni Complex held its groundbreaking ceremony on 8 May officiated by Dr Tony Tan, Chairman of the National Research Foundation. When completed, it will be home to 160,000 alumni across the globe – 43 local alumni groups and 13 overseas alumni chapters. At the ceremony, Dr Tan said it will be a gathering centre for alumni across generations and campuses – above all, it will be a warm, welcoming home on campus, encouraging alumni to return to their roots.

And when the team which has put Centennial II together has graduated and gone into the fast-racing real world, they can always come home to NUS, perhaps to share warm memories at the Alumni Complex – of how they have put together a FSAE model that has made NUS proud.

The NUS community – alumni and friends – also gathered on 29 May at the University. The occasion? An evening to honour the legacies of the late Tan Sri Dr Lee Kong Chian and Tan Sri Dr Tan Chin Tuan. These two pioneers have left behind rich legacies for the University. The Lee Foundation and the Tan Chin Tuan Foundation have contributed generously towards the University. To pay tribute to these two benefactors, two foundation stones at the University Hall where two wings were named after them, were unveiled by NUS Chancellor and Singapore ’s President, Mr S R Nathan.

Later, as two kois were released by representatives of the two Foundations into the pond at the courtyard of the University Hall, the friendship and bonding that the gesture symbolised, was felt by everyone.