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18 Oct 2021

In memory of Dr Stephen, Choi-Lai CHAN

    Dr Stephen, Choi-Lai CHAN

    Dr Stephen, Choi-Lai CHAN

    It is with deep sadness that we mourn for the passing away of Dr Stephen, Choi-Lai CHAN (陳載澧), our alumnus and former colleague from the Department of Mathematics, on 10th October, 2021 at the age of 81. 

     

    Dr Chan received his BSc (General) degree and BSc Special degree with first class honours from The University of Hong Kong in 1963 and 1964 respectively. He then went to the University of British Columbia to study theoretical physics, and right upon his oral defense, he joined HKU Mathematics as a Lecturer in Applied Mathematics. Since then Dr Chan has been working in the Department for 34 years until he retired on 30th June, 2002.  Dr Chan was enthusiastic about his work – his lectures were always clear and lively, and students found him very approachable. He also served as the Warden of Old Halls and Hornell Hall. Besides publishing research papers in theoretical physics, Dr Chan also published 3 secondary school  textbooks on Modern Mathematics, and served as the Advanced Level Applied Mathematics Chief Examiner in 1971.   

     

    Since 1974, Dr Chan had been active with the theatre as director, playwright or translator of plays, initially in association with major non-professional groups. His visits to UCLA in 1977 and 1978 had made a huge influence on his career. At UCLA, he was a visiting scholar in the Department of Systems Engineering, and also a visiting associate professor of the Theatre Arts Department where he taught Drama and Directing. Upon his return, he started to work with leading professional companies such as the Hong  Kong Repertory Theatre Company, where he served as the artistic advisor from 1982 to 1998.  He was also the co-founder and Vice-Chairman of the Hong Kong Institute for the Promotion of Chinese Culture.

     

    In 1995, Dr Chan was invited by the then Vice-Chancellor Professor Gungwu WANG to set up and chair a Committee on General Education (GE). Over the years, the Programme had proved to be popular among students. The programme has also acquired a reputation among sister universities as valid and effective efforts toward whole-person education. From 1995 to 2000, some 200 courses and workshops in diverse areas were mounted, with special emphasis on the interaction and interface between different disciplines. The emphasis has always been on education of the whole person rather than mere transmission of knowledge and techniques. Dr Chan, while serving as the chairman of the Committee on General Education, acted also as the de facto director who designed, planned and supervised the implementation of the above programmes.  Given the success of the GE programme in HKU, Dr Chan was invited to establish the Art and Cultural Education Programme for the Hong Kong Baptist University where he served as the Director of the Centre for Holistic Teaching and Learning.  

     

    Dr Chan’s passion for drama, mathematics, physics and the teaching of creative writing had led him to think a lot about learning and creative thinking. He will be dearly missed by the University and the Faculty of Science family.
     
    A full obituary of Dr Chan by Professors Tuen Wai NG and Man Keung SIU and Dr Ka Ho LAW from Department of Mathematics can be viewed at: https://hkumath.hku.hk/web/memory/memory_clchan_main.php
     
    Also, please see the memorial website of Dr Chan at:  http://chanchoilai-stephen.net/