St. Paul's College

ABOUT US

COLLEGE HISTORY

	1841 The Reverend Vincent Stanton, who was appointed the first Colonial Chaplain in Hong Kong in 1843, raised funds in England to start an Anglo-Chinese school in Hong Kong. The Reverend Stanton is regarded as being the Founder and the first Principal of St. Paul's College.
	1849 St. Paul's College opened for the purpose of teaching English to Chinese boys. Situated at Glenealy (Tit Kong), the school started with one tutor, Mr. Moncrieff, and nine boys.
	1851 St. Paul's College was officially founded in this year. Bishop George Smith, the first Warden and the second Principal of the College, noted that the number of students had swelled to 33.
	1867 Bishop Charles Richard Alford became Warden and the third Principal of the College. The year 1868 started with 30 Chinese and Eurasian boys.
	1873 Bishop John Shaw Burdon, the Warden and fourth Principal, turned the building into a school mainly for English speaking boys. This school lasted for about six years. During this time St. Paul's College and St. Joseph's College competed in the earliest inter-school football matches ever played in the colony.
	1878 The college again became an Anglo-Chinese school under the headmastership of Mr. John Fryer.
	1898 In 1898, Bishop Joseph Charles Hoare became Warden and fifth Principal. However, the Anglo-Chinese section of the school was suspended again and the building used as a training school for Chinese Catechists. The Reverend P. A. Bunbury was in charge. In 1906, Bishop Hoare and four students were drowned in a typhoon whilst returning from a trip to Castle Peak.
	1907 Bishop Gerard Heath Lander became Warden and sixth Principal.
	1909 The Church Missionary Society took over the school building and St. Paul's College re-opened again with Reverend Arthur Dudley Stewart as the seventh Principal (headmaster). The primitive facilities of the school at this time was captured in this article about St. Paul's history: "Some of us can remember the old south wing - two enormous classrooms on the first floor and one on the ground floor - the rest of the space taken up with wide verandahs and staircases, the whole constructed of ancient and somewhat worm-eaten wood, which must have caused a headache to the Insurance Company; the bad lighting and amazing discomforts which would not be tolerated by modern schoolboys." by Colonel E. G. Stewart
	1911 The enrolment soared to 300 and extensions became necessary. In this year, the Wu Ting Fang Hall and St. Paul's Church were erected.
	1915 St. Paul's Girls School was founded by Reverend A. D. Stewart's sister, Kathleen Stewart.
	1933 Headmaster Reverend A. D. Stewart retired and his brother Colonel Evan George Stewart took charge as the eighth Principal of the College.
	1941 In December, the school closed abruptly when Japan invaded Hong Kong in the Pacific War. Colonel E. G. Stewart, together with some school staff and students, risked their lives for the defense of the colony.
	1945 In the difficult times of reconstruction, St. Paul's College was amalgamated with St. Paul's Girls' School to form St. Paul's Co-educational College.
	1950 With the hard work of Colonel E. G. Stewart, the original college staff and students, St. Paul's College re-opened by taking over the old St. John's Hall premises at Bonham Road.
	1959 The Reverend Geoffrey L. Speak was appointed as the ninth Principal. The College was expanded from a school of about 600 students to a campus housing in excess of 1000 students. This was a time of major rebuilding on the Bonham Road site.
	1963 The Students' Association was officially established..
	1968 Mr. Ha Wing Ho, Timothy was appointed as the tenth Principal of St. Paul's College.
	1969 The current school buildings including the Hall, the Chapel, the new block of 36 secondary classrooms, the covered playground, the staff rooms, the Library and the Primary School building were completed.
	1979 An outdoor swimming pool, named St. Paul's College Alumni Association Tse Yu Chuen Swimming Pool, was opened. Its construction was made possible by funds from parents, old boys and, most importantly, the Alumni Association.
	1981 The school spent $1,200,000 to improve the teaching and learning environment by installing double-glazed windows and air-conditioners in all classrooms.
	1992 St. Paul's College was the first aided school to opt for the Direct Subsidy Scheme. However, the scheme was eventually suspended when the government policy changed. Under DSS, the school would have been given maximum freedom with regard to curriculum, school fees and entrance requirements.
	1993 St. Paul's College Primary School was relocated to a site at Hill Road which formerly housed a secondary school. The vacant block at Bonham Road was transformed into a series of special purpose rooms including an art room, a music room,a staff room, a teaching resource room, a computer room and a teachers' common room.
	2001 150^th Anniversary: a year of activity and celebration. There was an exhibition day, a carnival and a concert. The reunion dinner was also a great success with teachers, alumni and friends of the College gathering together from many different parts of the world. Over 1500 people attended the dinner. Funding for the new Multi-Media Learning Centre was provided by the Quality in Education Fund.
	2002 180 students were enrolled in Form 1 classes as the first students of the new Direct Subsidy Scheme (DSS).
	2003 The School Improvement Project (SIP) was started in early September, 2003. The St. Paul’s College Primary School joined the DSS.
	The School Improvement Project was started in early September, 2003. The School Improvement Project commenced with the construction of the New South Wing
	2006 Dr. John Richard Kennard was appointed the eleventh Principal of the College.
	The College celebrated its 155^th Anniversary.
	The new South Wing was opened by Archbishop Kwong Kong Kit, Peter
	The College commemorated the Centenary of the death of Bishop Hoare and four students on the 18th September 1906.
	2007 Twin-School relationship established with the High School Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
	Artist-in-Residence Programme launched. Inaugural resident: Dr. Stephen Ng (alumnus), tenor, Stetson University, Florida.
	2008 Community Service Programme launched, Harbin, China.
	St. Paul's College Foundation Limited established The Stewart Dinner, celebrating the life and work of late Col. E.G. Stewart, Principal 1930-1958.
	2009 Teacher-Visits Programme launched with inaugural visit to St. Mark's School of Texas.
	2010 Class of 2010 was the last cohort taking the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination (HKCEE).
	2011 (160th Anniversary) Renovation of the College Hall and the Bonham Road Main Entrance.
	Renovation of the College Hall and the Bonham Road Main Entrance.
	2012 Class of 2012 (Form 6) was the first cohort taking the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination (HKDSE). Last batch of Form 7 students participated in the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination (HKALE). With 42 years of history in admitting female students, the last batch graduated from the College
	2013 January: the Primary School was relocated from 70 Hill Road to 777 Victoria Road.
	July: Music Concert “La Famiglia” was held in the Lyric Theatre of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. September: Academic-in-residence Programme started to provide student with opportunities to research with a scholar in his/her field of expertise.
	2015 Mr. Yuen Dick Yan, Dennis （源廸恩先生）was appointed the twelfth Principal of the College.
	Summer Concert 2015, Metamorphosis was held at the Grand Hall of Centennial Campus in The University of Hong Kong.
	2016 November: the College History Gallery at Wong Ming Him Hall was opened.
	The College celebrated its 165th Anniversary.
	The bronze bust of Dr Wu Ting Fang was installed in the library.
	2018 March: Commencement of Phase One of School Enhancement Project
	October: Renovation work on the 5/F of Classroom block was completed and first batch of students moved in the classrooms.
	December: Formation of the Fundraising Committee under St. Paul’s College Foundation Limited. Dr. Chan Yau Nam, Ian was appointed Chairman of the Fundraising Committee. The Fundraising Campaign was officially launched on December 4, 2018 at Bishop’s House in Central.
	2019 Phase 1 of the School Enhancement Project was completed in August 2019. In this phase, F.1 to F.6 classrooms were enlarged and upgraded while Tutorial Room 1 & 2, Histroy Room and Liberal Studies Room were renovated. In addition to the renovation of these rooms, the old Multimedia Learning Centre was remodelled, repurposed and renamed the Innovation Centre, with advanced technological facilities to help spark students’ creative ideas.
	2021 The College celebrated its 170th Anniversary.
	October: The 170th Anniversary Kick-off Ceremony was held at St. Paul’s College.
	The 170th Anniversary Concert was held at the Grand Theatre of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre.
	December: The Alumni Choir Concert, Magnificent 170, was held at the Hong Kong City Hall.
	2022 Commencement of Phase II of the School Enhancement Project
	March-May: The SPC 170th Anniversary Seminar Series was launched.
	November: The 170th Anniversary Open Days were held at St. Paul’s College.
	2023 April: The 170th Anniversary Heritage Exhibition was held at the Central Market.
	August: The summer concert, Rinascita, was held at the Jockey Club Auditorium (JCA), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.