Hong Kong Student of the Year Awards: Top prize to teen who donated 3D-printed face shields to hospitals
- Grand Prize winner Dylan Fischer, a 17-year-old student at German Swiss International School, also led the student group to raise more than HK$40,000 for care packages to give to the city’s economically disadvantaged families during the coronavirus pandemic
- Hundreds of secondary school pupils competed for 11 awards across nine categories, including science, languages, sports and performing arts
Dylan Fischer speaks at the awards ceremony using videoconferencing. Photo: SCMP / Edmond SoA 17-year-old Hong Kong high school pupil who spearheaded an initiative to donate hundreds of 3D-printed face shields to hospitals overseas when the Covid-19 pandemic first struck has scooped the top prize in this year’s Student of the Year Awards.
Year 12 student Dylan Fischer, who studies at German Swiss International School, is also a dedicated archer who has represented the city at a number of regional and world tournaments. He has set his sights on studying socioeconomics in university and, in the future, tackling inequality in Hong Kong.
The awards, organised by the South China Morning Post and sponsored by the Hong Kong Jockey Club, recognise the city’s best students for their academic excellence as well as contributions to the community.
Hundreds of secondary school pupils competed for 11 awards across nine categories, including science, languages, sports and performing arts, along with best improvement, best devotion to school, community contributor, plus the grand prize.
Check out last year’s SOTY award winners
Fischer, who was awarded HK$25,000 as part of his prize, said he hoped to be able to spread his passion for community work to others. As the pandemic raged last year, he set up two initiatives that helped deliver protective gear to many of those in need.
He said his team, which includes several other students from his school, donated more than 350 face shields, sourced from the Hong Kong 3D Printing Association, to hospitals around the world including in the United States and India.
Read more about Dylan Fischer and the team of students giving back to the community during Covid-19
Last year, they also raised more than HK$40,000 in just weeks to go towards hundreds of relief care packages, which they distributed to economically disadvantaged families in Hong Kong. The packages included hand sanitiser, masks, rice, canned food and other supplies.
“When the pandemic first hit, I didn’t think I would be raising money for the community, or sourcing and distributing face shields to countries in need. However, when I saw the devastation of the pandemic, I knew I could not stand back and watch,” Fischer said on Saturday via videoconferencing from the United States.
The first runner-up was Aditya Shrisankaraan, of the English Schools Foundation’s West Island School, a tech-savvy pupil passionate about tackling issues such as energy efficiency. The second runner-up was Fahim Hossain, of St Joseph’s College, who strived to advocate for inclusivity and diversity including by helping non-Chinese-speaking pupils to integrate in the community.
They were awarded cash prizes of HK$8,000 and HK$4,000, respectively.
Post CEO Gary Liu (left) with second runner-up Fahim Hossain, first runner-up Aditya Shrisankaraan, and Hong Kong Jockey Club CEO, Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges. Photo: SCMP / Edmond So
At an awards ceremony on Saturday, the city’s No 2 official, Chief Secretary John Lee Ka-chiu, described the pupils’ accomplishments as “exceptional”.
“It underscores the extraordinary challenges that our youth and our community have faced these past two years, from widespread social disturbances to the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said, referring to the civil unrest of 2019. “[Our students’] excellence amid these testing times makes us all proud.”
Gary Liu, CEO of the Post and a member of the awards’ advisory board, also praised the students for their resilience on top of their diligence and academic excellence.
“Learning to meet difficulties with courage and fortitude benefits students beyond their academic careers. By rising above obstacles, we can all develop the perseverance needed to unrelentingly pursue even the grandest of dreams,” Liu said.
Hong Kong Jockey Club CEO Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, also an advisory board member, said he hoped awardees would continue to give back to society and become community leaders in the future.
“As the pandemic has reminded us, we must work together, and we must reach out to those in need,” he said.
What this year’s Grand Prize judges were looking for – creativity and resilience
Other winners
Best devotion to school: Leung Oi-ching (Bishop Hall Jubilee School); Ma Hiu-lam (Heep Yunn School); Lee Long-ting (Ho Fung College (sponsored by Sik Sik Yuen)), Zareen Tasnim (King George V School); and Lau Tsz-yee (Munsang College).
Best improvement: Allison Chu Nga-man (Bishop Hall Jubilee School); Ko Wing-lam (Buddhist Fat Ho Memorial College); Rachel Yu Pui-hang (Good Hope School); Chui Chun-hung (Ho Dao College (sponsored by Sik Sik Yuen)); and Evan Lo Hong-tik (La Salle College).
Individual categories: Community contributor (Mok Tin-yan, PLK Tang Yuk Tien College); Linguist Cantonese (Chloe Kwan Wei-ling, Diocesan Girls’ School); Linguist English (Nathan Ng Leong-hang); Linguist Mandarin (Jiang Leyi, Singapore International School (Hong Kong)); Performing Artist (Chung On-ching, Heep Yunn School); Scientist and Mathematician (Luo Junhong, Singapore International School (Hong Kong)); Sportsperson (Vincent Capol, German Swiss International School); Visual Artist (Fung Yan-lam, CCC Kei Yuen College).
The winners in the other categories received scholarships ranging from HK$5,000 to HK$10,000.