Expert List

Professor Christina HONG

President

PhD (Aus), MA (USA), BA (Hons), DipEd, DipTchg (NZ), MLE Harvard (USA) GAICD (Aus)

Professor Christina Hong assumed office as the second President of the Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong (THEi) in January 2017. As the principal academic and administrative officer of THEi, Professor Hong provides strategic leadership and operational management of the Institute and is responsible for promoting the Institute’s mission and profile through fostering strong academic partnerships and collaborations with academic, industry and employer groups both locally and internationally.

Professor Hong has a strong background in educational leadership with an emphasis on organisational change management, academic governance and quality, curriculum transformation, advancing student learning transformation and outcomes through educator capability development and a focus on industry partnerships, entrepreneurship and innovation.

Prior to commencing with THEi, Professor Hong held senior executive leadership and high-level consultancy roles in the Australian and New Zealand tertiary sectors. Professor Hong has disciplinary expertise in the creative industries and in teacher education. She has led curriculum development, professional standards setting and assessment reform projects in the school and vocational and professional education and training sectors and has undertaken international consultancies, including visiting scholar appointments in the USA, the Republic of South Korea and Hong Kong.

Professor Hong is particularly interested in how tertiary institutions are adapting to the challenges of Education 4.0 in relationship to Industry 4.0 and the new world of work, as well as fostering C21st employability skills, the dynamic of innovation ecosystems, and collaboration through internationalisation and applied research activities. Given her theoretical and practical expertise in the field of curriculum and pedagogy, Professor Hong has been championing and implementing strategic initiatives in the key areas of digital transformation, sustainability, and innovation and entrepreneurship.

QUALIFICATIONS

Professor Hong holds a Doctor of Philosophy (AUS), Master of Arts (USA), Bachelor of Arts (Hons), Graduate Diploma of Education, and Diploma of Teaching (NZ). She is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD) and the Harvard University, Graduate School of Education, Institute for Management and Leadership in Higher Education (MLE).

RESEARCH, ACADEMIC PUBLICATIONS, PUBLIC LECTURES

In 2019, Professor Hong initiated and served as Conference Chair for the first International Conference on Applied Education, Technology and Innovation (AETI) held at THEi Hong Kong. As a thematic publication output of the AETI Conference, Professor Hong co-edited a book, Hong, C and Ma, W., (2020) Applied degree education and the future of work: Education 4.0. published by Springer. Based on the success of the first book, a new co-edited book, Applied degree education and the future of learning (2022) was published. Professor Hong will be co-chairing the second AETI Conference themed “Applied Degree Education 5.0: The Shape of Things to Come” in December 2022.

Other notable international conferences which Professor Hong has contributed to in the recent years includes, but is not limited to, the following:

Presented on “Next - Gen Connected Campus” at the 3rd Edition Asia SMART Campus Summit 2022 (17-18 May 2022);
Shared insights on “Vocational and Professional Education and Training (VPET) in Hong Kong: New Qualifications and Competencies” at the UNESCO-UNEVOC Bridging Innovation and Learning (BILT) Learning Forum on New Qualifications and Competencies: Building the Future of TVET (7 December 2021);
Served as the General Co-Chair and keynote speaker (topic: STE(A)M Education 4.0 : Skilling for Industry 4.0) at the 6th International STEM Education Conference (iSTEM-Ed2021), Thailand (10-12th November 2021);
Presented on “VPET in Hong Kong : Skilling for the Future” at the APAC TVET Forum 2021 (12 November 2021);
Keynote speaker on “Skilling for Workforce Futures: VPET and Industry Integration” at The Futures of Education Hong Kong and Greater Bay Area Forum by UNESCO HK, themed “The crossroads of education and future of work in the post-pandemic era” (10 November 2021);
Served as a member of the Fellows Panel at the EdVentures Global Business Acceleration Summit (3 November 2021);
Moderated an international panel session on identifying new qualifications and competencies with speakers from Germany, Botswana and Greece and also gave a plenary presentation at the UNESCO-UNEVOC online International Conference Bridging Africa and Europe: New qualifications and competencies in TVET (15-16 June 2021);
Presented to international audiences as a webinar panelist organised by Esperanza Hong Kong, Reimagine Higher and Continuing Education: Roles of higher education institutes in reskilling and upskilling the workforce (24 September 2020); and
Convened a plenary session, Applied education and future skills in the digital era with international panelists from Australia, Singapore and Switzerland, during the VTC’s first digital VPET International Conference, Skilling for the Future (15 May 2020)