Faculty Award

As a young academic with a keen professional passion and motivation, Dr. Chen I-Ling explores the transformation of Classical Chinese Fiction and Shang Shu from China to her neighboring countries and clarifies the characteristics of changes that happened in these countries, especially Korea, Japan, and Vietnam. When she encounters topics that arouse her interest, she conducts further research and enriches teaching materials continuously. A prime example is on the application of multimedia teaching materials in the study of the Chinese classics. By adopting a student-based teaching style, Dr. Chen brings to life the textual studies of classical documents that are often considered boring to learners.

Dr. Chan Mau Hing has been a true pioneer who has innovated a variety of experimental pedagogies for the Department’s undergraduate (UG) and Master of Science (MSc) programmes. By embracing information technology, he has delivered different learning experiences to drive deeper student engagement. Specifically, the miniaturisation of experimental tools and the adoption of mobile technology have opened up science exploration beyond the confines of a lab-based setting, thereby creating many new learning opportunities. To enrich the UG students’ experiential learning portfolio, Dr. Chan designed a portable learning resources kits for them to lead outreach programmes for high school students.

With a reputation as an innovative and effective teacher, Dr. Fung Pui Sze Lucia is an invaluable faculty member of the Department. By leveraging story-telling as a fundamental tool, she has engaged students to navigate the complex issues in business ethics courses. She has also embraced the gamification concept with role-playing scenarios to encourage active learner participation and elevate the learning process. Furthermore, her commitment to authentic assessments is demonstrated through the implementation of projects where students create practical and innovative solutions to real-world business ethics challenges, while also incorporating Harvard Business School's case teaching method into her classes.

As an educator in scriptwriting and directing of fiction and non-fiction films, Mr. Ying Liang fosters an interactive and immersive learning environment in which he engages the students in a reciprocal exchange of ideas, critiques and assignments. His teaching acumen is demonstrated by the international accolades being bestowed on his student’s work. This included Top 10 Documentary Film Awards at the Urban Nomads Film Week 2022, as well as recognition from the Beijing International Short Film Festival, and the prestigious DMZ International Documentary Festival in South Korea. Mr. Ying has cultivated an inclusive and supportive atmosphere for students to learn not only from him but also from one another.

In her young career, Dr. Angela He has demonstrated exceptional promise as a rising scholar in the field of developmental psycholinguistics, unravelling the mechanisms underlying young children’s linguistic and cognitive development. As a fourth-year assistant professor, her impactful work has garnered a Scopus h-index of 6 and the Google Scholar h-index of 9. Through interdisciplinary collaboration with a broad academic network, she demonstrates increasing maturity in her scholarly pursuits. Her recent emphasis on the role of sleep and memory in young children’s language development has attracted funding from the General Research Fund (GRF) and media coverage, driving advancements in the field and making a meaning societal impact.

As an emerging young researcher with exceptional acumen, Dr. Lyu Xiaopu has been investigating formation mechanisms of photochemical air pollution. He has authored over 70 influential papers in top-tier journals, including One Earth, Nature Communications and multiple Nature-index journals, garnering 3,000+ citations and an H-index of 29. He has secured competitive grants totaling HKD 6 million from a variety of sources, including CRF (Co-PI), 2 GRF, PPR and NSFC. Moreover, he has been invited to serve as Youth Editor at The Innovation with an IF of 32.1 and organize special issue at a Nature-index journal. Dr. Lyu is a member of the Australia-China Centre for Air Quality Science and Management.

Dr. Stephanie Jean Tsang has established an impressive portfolio early in her career. Her achievements include the publication of one edited book, nine book chapters, 20 journal articles, and 45 refereed conference papers, accruing over 670 citations in total. Dr. Tsang has excelled in securing research funding, successfully obtaining three external and nine internal grants, exceeding a total of three million Hong Kong dollars. Additionally, she has served as a reviewer for more than 55 academic journals, demonstrating her dedication to scholarly rigor. Her expertise in misinformation research has attracted significant attention, resulting in over 20 media interviews, both locally and internationally.

Since joining the Department in 2015, Dr. Chang Song has produced impactful research into human resource management (HRM), firm sustainability and organisational behaviour. His influence in this field is affirmed by his seven peer-reviewed journal articles published in the past three years, driving more than 3,400 citations according to Google Scholar. His co-authored study of the dual-causal relationship between HRM and firm performance secured him 3rd place in the Michael Poole Best Paper Award in the International Journal of Human Resource Management in 2021. In the same year, he was ranked among the top eleven scholars in Chinese HRM research.

Dr. Angelo Lo Conte has gained international recognition for his pioneering work on historical interconnections between art and disability. His research has resulted in one monograph, 10 peer-reviewed articles published as single author in top-tier international journals, 4 book chapters and 11 refereed conference papers. He has been principal investigator (PI) of one ECS grant, one GRF grant, and of research projects funded by the Australian Government, the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Renaissance Society of America. Furthermore, he has delivered keynote lectures in Australia, Switzerland and the United States. His most recent essay, rediscovering the life of a deaf painter working in Renaissance Italy, was awarded the prestigious Renaissance Studies Article Prize 2023.

With her consistently high-quality research outputs in the field of communication, Dr. Shi has made significant impacts on a global scale. Her portfolio of 32 refereed journal articles has earned a Google Scholar citation count of 1,230 and an H-index of 16. A recipient of the Qi Hao Award for Young Scholars in New Media Research from Tsinghua University, the Top Paper Award from the International Communication Association, and the Promising Professor Award from the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Dr. Shi has been invited to serve as a steering committee member for a project on communicating health risks through social media by the World Health Organization.

With his expert supervision spanning a period of more than two decades, Prof. Shuttleworth has guided 13 HKBU students from diverse cultural backgrounds to obtain doctorates. In a move to enrich the level of support provided to research postgraduate (RPg) students, he revamped the policy regarding employing RPg students as teaching assistants. Prof. Shuttleworth guided and oversaw the development of WikiAligner, a research tool with potential international impact developed by a research team led by his PhD student. Finally, he has put forward innovative collaboration models to increase the participation of the Department's RPg students at international conferences and symposia.

Prof. Celine Song has dedicated more than fourteen years to teaching and mentoring research postgraduate students (RPGs). Her unique expertise in interdisciplinary research has attracted high-quality candidates from diverse academic backgrounds, both locally and internationally. With an unwavering commitment to helping each student discover their own research path, she provides skilful guidance through the various stages of the research journey, from writing proposals to career planning after project completion. She ensures that her students make the most out of their research initiatives and achieve high-reaching learning goals. Accolades won by Prof. Song’s students include the prestigious Chinese Communication Association (CCA) Outstanding Dissertation Award.

Mr. Lee Wing Ki has proven himself to be a valuable asset not only to HKBU, but also the education sector and the contemporary arts community. As Acting Director of the Academy, he has overseen the development of robotics and immersive laboratories while leading preparations for flagship events such as Art Basel Hong Kong and the Venice Biennale Project. He has also been instrumental in establishing the School of Creative Arts. Furthermore, Mr. Lee serves on the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications and the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority. He also provides consultancy services for a variety of non-profit organisations in the professional arts.

Under the restructuring of the School of Business, Dr. Byron Song has successfully implemented the merger of three academic units into the new Department of Accountancy, Economics, and Finance, while maintaining the smooth running of teaching, learning, research, and administrative activities. In addition to his service on university-level committees in finance, honorary degrees and undergraduate admissions, he serves as an external examiner or advisor for other higher education institutes in Hong Kong and Macau. Dr. Song has devoted his expertise to several renowned local and international professional bodies and engaged in editorial work in high-impact international journals such as the Accounting Forum and the Asia-Pacific Journal of Accounting and Economics.