In 1977, Dr. Tam Sheung Wai was reassigned to the role of Head of Chung Chi College. The above image depicts his office photograph.

Professor Tam Sheung Wai (1934–2021) was born in Hong Kong. He received his early education at Diocesan Boys’ School and St. Paul’s Co-educational College. After secondary school, he entered the Department of Chemistry at The University of Hong Kong, obtaining his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in 1959 and 1961 respectively. Shortly thereafter, he was awarded a Commonwealth Scholarship to pursue further studies at the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom, where he obtained his PhD in 1964.

In 1965, Professor Tam joined Chung Chi College, where he held successive posts as Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, and Chairman of the Department of Chemistry, as well as Dean of the Faculty of Science. He was also Warden of Ying Lin Tang. In 1976, he assumed the position of President of the College. At a time when The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) was undergoing institutional restructuring, he led the College in delivering a student-oriented education. The following year, his title was changed to Head of College, a position he held until 1981, making him the only person in the College’s history to have borne both the titles of “President” and “Head”. From 1988 to 1990, he returned as Head of Chung Chi College, during which time he oversaw the planning of the chapel and library extensions, as well as the reconstruction of the teaching blocks.

Professor Tam also shouldered significant teaching and administrative responsibilities at CUHK. In 1974, he concurrently held the appointments of Associate Dean of the Graduate School and Master of the Postgraduate Halls. In 1978, he was appointed Professor in the Department of Chemistry. In 1981, he became Dean of the Graduate School, and the following year was promoted to Chair Professor of Chemistry. From 1990 to 1994, he was Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the University, coordinating research and development activities; under his stewardship, the University made considerable progress in both teaching and research. In 1995, Professor Tam retired from CUHK and was appointed President of the Open Learning Institute of Hong Kong. He subsequently succeeded in upgrading the Institute to university status and continued as President of the Open University of Hong Kong (OUHK) until 2003.

A devout Christian, Professor Tam was deeply committed to the life of the church. He held the chairmanship of the Hong Kong Bible Society, the Ping Wo Fund Advisory Committee, the Hospital Governing Committee of the United Christian Hospital, the Council for World Mission/Hong Kong Nethersole Fund, the United Christian Medical Service Board of Directors, and the Council of St. Paul’s Co-Educational College. In recognition of his outstanding contributions, he was appointed the Justice of the Peace and awarded honours including the OBE and the Gold Bauhinia Star. He received honorary doctorates from the Open University in the UK, the University of Nottingham and OUHK, and was conferred an Honorary Fellowship by CUHK.