Hiba School to offer highly valued full scholarships: why?

In China, a scholarship programme was founded in 1939 enhancing opportunities for three generations and nearly 10,000 students who experience poor study conditions. The programme continues to operate across China as the longest running programme with the greatest number of beneficiaries. The Shuping Scholarship. Ms. Joy Qiao, Founder and Chair of Governors of Wellington College China (WCC), was one of the many beneficiaries of a Shuping scholarship. To realise the saying: "what is gained from the society should be returned to society”, and on the 80th anniversary of the Shuping Scholarship, WCC International Education Group launches the Hiba School Shuping Scholarship. This will be awarded to Chinese students with both excellent academic results and wider talents and will provide a place at Hiba School that is fully subsidised. This article introduces the story behind why WCC has set up the Hiba School Shuping Scholarship.

The Shuping Scholarship has been operating for 80 years, benefiting 10,000 students and fostering the belief “what is gained from the society should be returned to the society”.

In 1939, Gu Jiaqi's grandfather, Mr. Gu Qianlin, founded the Shuping Scholarship. “Shuping” is named in memory of Mr. Gu Qianlin’s father, Mr. Gu Shuping. Mr. Gu Qianlin, originally from Huzhou, Zhejiang Province, discontinued his studies at the age of 17 due to the death of his father and set out early into a career and later business. Mr. Gu Qianlin adhered to his father’s legacy of “what is gained from the society should be returned to the society” and established Shuping Scholarship.

Initially established in war-ridden years, the Shuping Scholarship supported more than a thousand excellent but poor students, helping to prevent them from dropping out of school. After the death of Mr. Gu Qianlin, his second son, Mr. Gu Jiaqi took over as Chairman of the Management Committee of Shuping Scholarship. Although residing in Hong Kong, Mr. Gu Jiaqi spared no effort to realise the Shuping spirit of “what is gained from the society should be returned to the society”. He was fully committed to helping the poor, rewarding learning and educating the young, by continuously expanding the scale of donations to the scholarship fund. The expansion included special scholarship projects specifically supported by the Gu family’s charitable fund.

The Shuping Scholarship is now in its 80thyear, with the award extending to dozens of schools in Beijing, Shanghai, Huzhou, Fuyang and beyond. A total of nearly 10,000 people have been awarded a scholarship; the oldest and largest of an such foundation in China.

As part of the 80th anniversary celebration, Shuping scholars from all corners of China will gather in the Gu family's hometown of Huzhou, Zhejiang Province. Three generations of beneficiaries will be present, most notably some that were awarded the very first Shuping Scholarship who are over 90 years old.

Ms. Joy Qiao, Founder and Chair of Governors of Wellington College China is one of the Shuping Awardees.

In early 90's, Ms. Joy Qiao was a senior high school student at Shanghai No.3 Girls' High School when she was awarded the 34th Shuping Scholarship. In 1994, Ms. Joy Qiao was then awarded the Jardine Scholarship, a trial in mainland China.

The Jardine Scholarship has a four-generation relationship with the Shuping Scholarship. Originating from Mr. Gu Qianlin's grandfather who co-founded a company in Shanghai with the British Jardine Company at the end of the 19th century. In 1982, the Jardine Group established the Jardine Foundation to celebrate its 150th anniversary, which collaborates with Oxford and Cambridge universities to offer full Jardine scholarships of 3-4 years to candidates who succeed in the foundation interview and who received an offer from these universities.

As a result of the Long-term sincere cooperation between the Gu family and the Jardine Group, and in view of the excellent performance of Shuping students, Mr. Gu Qianlin proposed to the Jardine Foundation that to select and award one student with Jardine Scholarship each year among the Shuping awardees who graduate from senior high school. In the final year at senior high school, Ms. Joy Qiao’s excellent performance entitled her to travel to Hong Kong with 20 other candidates to attend an interview with the Jardine Foundation. She came in second place and missed the Jardine Scholarship, but with the efforts of the current Chairman of the Shuping Scholarship, Mr. Gu Jiaqi and friends of Jardine Scholarship, she was able to secure sponsorship from another foundation to subsidise her study at Oxford University. Ms. Joy Qiao then became the first overseas undergraduate student from mainland China to study at Oriel College, Oxford University since the liberation. This became the deepest and strongest connection between Joy Qiao and Shuping Scholarship.

Since, Ms. Joy Qiao has been able to meet many Shuping scholars and inspire them to learn from each other and grow together. The experience of studying at Oxford University brings Ms. Joy Qiao on to a world stage. Since graduation from Oxford University and returning to work in China, she established the Wellington College China International Education Group that now includes nine Wellington College International Schools, private Hiba schools and nurseries, making it the most successful education groups. Ms. Joy Qiao is deeply grateful for the opportunities provided by being part of the Shuping Family.

What mostly moved Ms. Joy Qiao is the Gu family noble tradition: never extravagant, nor flamboyant but positive and giving. This is a model of her own personality, believing that the power of this spirit has contributed to the success of Wellington College China. She wished of one day setting up a Shuping Scholarship in her own school.

On December 1st, at the 80th anniversary celebration of the Shuping Scholarship in Huzhou, Zhejiang Province, Ms. Qiao, as a representative speaker of Shuping Scholarship Students' Association, expressed her gratitude for the positive impact of the Shuping Scholarship on her life and personality. As part of her speech, She announced the launch of the Wellington College China International Education Group Hiba School Shuping Scholarship in order to promote the belief that "what is gained from the society should be returned to the society”.

This scholarship is open to students from Chinese working-class families in Grades 9 and above who have both excellent character and academic results. The scholarship will provide the opportunity to receive the very best bilingual education at Wellington College China’s private bilingual school - Hiba School. It is hoped the scholars become a new generation of pillars within society, contributing to China and displaying a global mind-set, indeed, to truly realise the spirit of a Shuping Scholarship. As the highest-level scholarship programme in WCC, the biggest difference to the previous arts, sports, academic special scholarships is that it has been specially established for students from Chinese working-class families. Moreover, taking the student’s actual family situation into account, the scholarship not only covers the full tuition fees, but also the expenses of meals, uniforms and boarding fees during the time at the school, so that it becomes a 110% scholarship. If the successful scholar meets requirement in academics and character, they can apply for the Hiba School Shuping Scholarship up to graduation from senior high school, meaning access to a scholarship worth RMB millions.

Hiba School Shuping Scholarship will set up in Wellington College Bilingual Tianjin by 2020,and with the development of the Hiba Academy Shanghai and Hiba Academy Hangzhou, it will be also set up in the next 2-3 years in these schools.

On the Huzhou award and celebration ceremony of Shuping Scholarship’s 80thAnniversary and 110thAnniversary of Mr. Gu Qianlin's birth, Mr. Wang Ronghua, Chair of Governors of Shanghai Education Development Foundation, Mr. Gu Jiaqi, Chairman of the Management Committee of Shuping Scholarship, and Ms. Joy Qiao unveiled the “Hiba School Shuping Scholarship". Mr. Gu Weicheng, Vice Chairman of Shuping Scholarship, Mr. Cheng Yihua, President of the Shanghai Shuping Scholarship Students Association, Mr. Wang Xiaofeng, President of the Beijing Shuping Scholarship Students Association, and more than 200 Shuping representatives, witnessed the moment of Wellington College China and Shuping Scholarship coming together to offer further opportunities to students across China.

"The growth of each of us does not only result from personal efforts, but more importantly, what kind of generation and society that we live in," shared by Ms. Joy Qiao when she spoke about understanding the Shuping Scholarship’s spirit. “Living in an era of rapid economic development in China, most of what we get actually comes from the society. I can be engaged in the enterprise that I’m passionate about thanks to the joint efforts by many people.

Today, I have the ability to create value for others through my own efforts, which is an opportunity to “return to the society". Being able to contribute in this way provides a tremendous sense of comfort and satisfaction, and when this feeling is associated with creating value for others, we have unlimited internal drive to keep working hard and adding value to society.” Mr. Gu Qianlin often said that the greatest comfort in his life was to see the students he supported, whom graduated from school to contribute to the society. Ms. Joy Qiao' intends to carry forward the spirit of the Shuping family.

“Encouraging virtue, maximising capabilities, establishing morality and developing talent” are the identity of a Hiba School. The Hiba Schools look forward to cultivating a group of students with a high degree of talent, global awareness and the confidence in Chinese culture through this scholarship programme to continuously carry forward the noble spirit of “what is gained from the society should be returned to the society”.