On 27 January, a snowy day in Shanghai, many distinguished guests attended Pao School's 10th anniversary appreciation charity ceremony. The 460 guests included Pao School's founders, members of the school's Board, students, alumni and their families, and others involved with the school.
YK Pao School is a pioneering non-profit bilingual school. During the course of running the school, all of the tuition income earned has been devoted to daily operations. Meanwhile, to ensure the school's continuous development, Pao School drew upon its experience in international education and established the YK Pao School Foundation in 2010, which provides a platform for supporters to work together towards the goal of building a school for tomorrow's China. The Pao School Foundation is a non-profit charitable organisation established in Hong Kong and in partnership with the Shanghai Education Development Foundation in China and Give2Asia in the United States. Furthermore, the newly promulgated Law of the People's Republic of China on Promotion of Privately-run Schools stipulates that non-profit private schools are eligible for government subsidies as well as funding from foundations and other donations.
The school has reached an important milestone and a good starting point for a new journey. In order to meet the evolving needs of Pao School in terms of enrolment, faculty and facilities in the following decade, the Pao School Foundation launched its 10th anniversary fundraising campaign. The campaign will focus on three key areas: the construction of the Hongqiao campus, cultivating outstanding faculty, and boosting the number of scholarships and grants awarded by the school.
Like top schools in the UK and US, Pao School seeks to provide students from less affluent families with the opportunity to obtain an outstanding education. These students should have the chance to experience Pao School's distinct whole-person approach to learning. At present, more than 5% of Pao students have received some kind of financial aid. We believe that boosting the proportion of students who receive financial assistance will not only diversify the student body, but also encourage the zealous pursuit of academic excellence.
The celebration kicked off to the festive sound of Zhoushan gongs and drums. President of Pao School Wu Zijian then welcomed the distinguished guests, leaders, parents and students. He said that as a non-profit international Chinese school, Pao School has always stayed true to its roots. Adhering to the concept of 'an international school with Chinese characteristics', Pao School borrowed the classroom space from Shanghai No. 3 Girls High School and welcomed its first 100 students. Today Pao School has three campuses, more than 1600 faculty and students and a curriculum that covers Years 1-12. President Wu pointed out that over the past ten years, Pao School has achieved fruitful results both domestically and overseas thanks to its focus on building a school for tomorrow's China and the tremendous support of the government, the Shanghai Education Foundation and many others, including parents attending the celebration that day.
The highlights of the celebration were the spirited performances by Pao students, such as when they sang 'Glittering Days'. The audience could really feel the passion in the students' performance. The Year 6 student orchestra quartet also played splendidly, charming the audience with the sounds of their strings.
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The audience was then treated to three red-hot jazz standards by Pao School's jazz band. Pao School is dedicated to bringing jazz education to its students and last November began collaborating with Lincoln Center for the Arts, with whom the school hosted a fantastic jazz workshop.
All the distinguished guests in the audience applauded enthusiastically for the performances, showing their appreciation for the fruitful results of whole-person education. Everyone enjoyed the performances. In fact, over the past ten years, Pao School parents have played a vital role in the school's development. They have been by the school's side through thick and thin. Without the unflagging support of Pao parents, the school could never have achieved such fruitful results. Parents have been active on campus, helping to form public-service organisations and participating in both sports and arts activities.
After the jazz performance, a choir made up of Pao parents sang a rousing rendition of 'You Raise Me Up' that expressed the cheerfulness of the Pao School community. It was clear from the quality of the performance that everyone in the choir had rehearsed exhaustively to learn the song. Seeing the fruits of the choir members' hard work, the audience was deeply inspired.
As a way to thank everyone for their support all these years, Professor Anna Pao Sohmen performed a splendid ballroom dance. It was the first time she had performed at a Pao School event. The audience was deeply moved by her passion and devotion. Later, there was an auction which received a great deal of support from guests. All proceeds from the charity auction will be used to support Pao School's 10th anniversary fundraising campaign.
In the future, we look forward to receiving support from all different members of society. Let us join hands and move forward together towards a brighter future.
If you want to get more information, please contact the Foundation Office.
E-mail: foundation@ykpaoschool.cn
Telephone: 6167 1999 ext. 8881/8872
