Founding & Governance

Founding

When CIS opened its doors in 1983, its co-founders Nelly Fung, Kin-yue Fu and Joyce Tai realised a long-held dream of a school that would offer the best of both Chinese and Western worlds.

Their vision was for a school open to all regardless of nationality, race or creed, where students would achieve fluency in Chinese (Mandarin) and an understanding of the dual heritage that makes Hong Kong unique.

Born in Asia and educated in Asia and the West, the founders saw a need in the late 1970s for an educational institution in Hong Kong that could provide an alternative to local schools teaching mainly an exam-based curriculum and to international schools teaching mainly Western curricula.

CIS remains true to that vision today. Dual-language and multicultural, it continues to break ground in its language teaching and to earn acclaim for preparing bright, articulate young people at home in the East or the West.
 


Accreditation

CIS is accredited by both the Council of International Schools (CIS) and New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC), and most recently received its 10-year re-accreditation in February 2011. It is also a member of the Association of China and Mongolia International Schools (ACAMIS) and the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS).
 


Board of Governors | 董事局

The school is a non-profit charitable organisation. Ultimate responsibility for the school rests with the Board of Governors of the Chinese International School Foundation.

The Board establishes broad policies to ensure that the school meets the highest standards of service to its constituents. It is assisted in its long-range planning for the school by various Board committees. Day-to-day operation of CIS is the responsibility of the Head of School, who works closely with the Leadership Team.

CHAIR 主席

Andrew Brandler | 包立賢先生

Mr. Brandler is Chairman of Sir Elly Kadoorie & Sons Limited. A graduate of Cambridge University (BA & MA) and Harvard Business School (MBA), he was formerly an investment banker and CEO of CLP Holdings Ltd. He is an independent non-executive director of MTR Corporation Ltd. He is the father of two CIS students.

VICE-CHAIR 副主席

Venantius Tan | 陳於財先生 
Chair, Nominating Committee

Mr. Tan is a Senior Counsel of the international law firm, Morrison & Foerster. He is a graduate of University of Hull (LLB) and King’s College London (LLM). He was a long-time CIS Annual Fund Advocate and has also served as a Co-Chair of the Annual Fund. He is the father of two CIS alumni.



BOARD MEMBERS | 董事會成員

Abraham Chan ’96 | 陳樂信先生’96 
Chair, Land & Building Committee

Mr. Chan is a Senior Counsel of the Bar of the HKSAR, practising from Temple Chambers. He holds a LLB from the University of London and BCL and MPhil from Oxford University. He serves as a Deputy Judge of the High Court of Hong Kong and on a range statutory tribunals and review panels. Outside the law, he serves on the Hong Kong Tourism Board. He is a graduate of CIS, and the father of two CIS students.

Charles Chen Yidan | 陈一丹先生 

Mr. Chen is a Core Founder of Tencent, Founder and Honorary Chairman of Tencent Charity Foundation, Founder of the Yidan Prize and Founder of Wuhan College. With degrees from Shenzhen University (BS), Nanjing University (MA) and Singapore Management University (DBA), he is also a member of the Harvard Global Advisory Council, a founding director of Westlake University, and Chair of Shenzhen Mingde Experimental School. He is the father of a CIS alumnus and three CIS students.

Jonathan Cheng | 鄭兆俊先生
Chair, Hangzhou CIS Committee

Mr. Cheng is Managing Director of Jen Capital Advisors Limited and Director of Property Investments, Meyer Manufacturing Co. Ltd. He is a director of both City to City Asia Pacific and M620 Foundation. He is the father of two CIS alumni and one CIS student.

Lawrence Chu ’98 | 諸承譽先生’98
Chair, Finance Committee

Mr. Chu is Founder and Chairman of BlackPine Group. He served as Vice Chair of CIS's Phoenix Soaring capital campaign. He is a graduate of University of Chicago (AB) and the parent of two CIS students.

Ti Hua Dennig | 華倜女士

Ms. Dennig has held faculty positions at a number of educational institutions, including CIS, St. Paul’s School (New Hampshire, USA), Middlebury College and University of Michigan. She serves on Middlebury College’s Asia Board and Princeton University’s Centre on Contemporary China. She attended Peking University and received her MA from University of Michigan. She is the parent of two CIS alumnae.

Alice Tai Footman, GBS, OBE, JP | 戴婉瑩女士

Mrs. Footman was a career civil servant, who served as the Ombudsman of Hong Kong from 1999 to 2009. She is a recipient of the OBE and Gold Bauhinia Star and is also a Justice of the Peace. She received her LLB (Hons) from the University of Hong Kong and LLM from the University of London. She is the parent of two CIS alumni.

Fred Hu | 胡祖六先生

Mr. Hu is the founder and Chairman of Primavera Capital Group. Formerly Chairman of Greater China and partner at Goldman Sachs, he also served as an economist at the International Monetary Fund and a professor of Tsinghua University. He is a member of the Harvard University Global Advisory Board, Dean's Council at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, the Chazen Institute at Columbia Business School and the Global Advisory Board of the Council on Foreign Relations. He received his MS from Tsinghua University and MA and PhD from Harvard University. He is the parent of two CIS alumni.

Stephen King | 金昌民先生

Mr. King is Managing Partner of Violet Hill Partners. He is a delegate to the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference of Zhejiang Province, Honorary Consul of Latvia and a member of the Harvard University Asia Committee and Asia Council and Development Board of Phillips Academy Andover. He received his AB from Harvard University. He was a long-time CIS Annual Fund Advocate and has also served as a Co-Chair of the Annual Fund, and is the parent of two CIS alumni and one CIS student.

Joy Tsien Koo | 錢世暉女士

Ms. Koo is a former marketing and communications professional, working in the educational, financial and consumer products industries. She holds a BA from Brown University and MA from Columbia University. She is a former president of CISPTA, who served on the CISPTA General Committee for eight years. She is the parent of three CIS alumni.

Ming Wai Lau ’98 | 劉鳴煒先生’98

Mr. Lau is Chairman of Chinese Estates Holdings Limited. He currently serves as Vice Chairman of Hong Kong’s Youth Development Commission. He received his LLB and PhD from King’s College, University of London and LLM from London School of Economics, University of London. He chaired CIS's recent Phoenix Soaring capital campaign and is the parent of two CIS students. 

Loewe Lee | 李本智先生

Mr. Lee is Managing Director of National Electronics Holdings Limited and National Properties Holdings Limited. He currently serves as a governor of Upper Canada College and a director of the Federation of Hong Kong Watch Trades & Industries Ltd. He received his AB from Harvard University and is the parent of a CIS alumna and two CIS students.

Haresh Melwani

Mr. Melwani is Executive Director of Commonwealth Finance Corporation Ltd. He is a long-time CIS Annual Fund Advocate and has also served as a Co-Chair of the Annual Fund.  He holds a BSc from University of Bristol and MBA from Harvard Business School. He is the parent of two CIS alumni and one CIS student.

Professor Maureen Sabine
Chair, Education Committee

Professor Sabine is an interdisciplinary scholar and author in English, Comparative Literature and History and Honorary Professor in the School of Humanities of the University of Hong Kong. She is also an Elected Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of the Humanities and was elected President of the Academy in 2019. She holds a BA summa cum laude from Fordham University and MA and PhD from the University of Pennsylvania, Phi Beta Kappa. She is a past president of CISPTA and the parent of three CIS alumni.

 

Anne Witt

Ms. Witt, a former management consultant with an international career in the healthcare sector, has lectured at the Department of Public Health at CUHK and has property development experience in Asia. She is a director of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts and a voting member of the Asian Cultural Council. She holds a BSc, Trinity College and MHSc, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto. An engaged CIS parent for 19 years, she contributed to the 2008 Strategic Vision, co-chaired the Annual Fund, and was a member of CISPTA.  She is the parent of four CIS alumnae.

Allison Lutz Wong | 王愛麗女士

Ms. Wong is Director of Learning at Generations Christian Education. She holds a BA from Stanford University and PGDE from University of Hong Kong. A long-time CIS volunteer, she has served as a member of the Head of School and Primary Head search committees, member of the CISPTA General Committee, and 20th anniversary gala co-chair, among other roles. She is the parent of three CIS alumni.


Leadership Team | 領導團隊

Sean Lynch, Head of School
MA & MSc (Michigan State University), DEA (Sciences Po Paris), BA (Yale University)
Joined CIS in 2018
校長 林澤厚先生 2018年加入漢基

Li Bin, Deputy Head of School
MA (University of Bath), Postgraduate Certificate, BA (Capital Normal University, Beijing)
Joined CIS in 2007
副校長 李斌女士 2007年加入漢基

Anne Gardon, Head of Primary
MEd (Lehigh University), MAppLin (University of Southern Queensland), MPhil (Trinity College Dublin), BA (St. Michael's College)
Joined CIS in 2018
小學部校長 高安女士 2018年加入漢基

Christine Doleman, Head of Secondary
MA (State University of New York), BSocSc (University of Waikato)
Joined CIS in 2018
中學部校長 文俐思女士 2018年加入漢基

Catherine Han, Executive Director of Community Relations
PGDE (University of Hong Kong), BA (Wellesley College)
Joined CIS in 2003
公共關係部執行總監 韓周延女士 2003年加入漢基

Adrian Huen, Director of Finance & Business Administration
BSc (University of Wales)
Joined CIS in 2011
財務及行政總監 禤浩焯先生 2011年加入漢基

Jane Narich, Executive Director of Advancement
MBA (University of Wales, Cardiff)
Joined CIS in 2021
拓展部執行總監 那芙女士 2021年加入漢基

Jerry Szombathy, Director of Operations
MA (Michigan State University), BA Education (University of Saskatchewan), BA Psychology (University of Saskatchewan)
Joined CIS in 2010
營運總監 曾傑瑞先生 2010年加入漢基