360° TOUR Friends of Harrow (FoH)
Friends of Harrow was formed in 2013, bringing together parents and teaching staff in support of the School to assist in providing the best possible all-round educational experiences.
Every parent, guardian and academic staff member automatically becomes a member of Friends of Harrow, and is warmly welcomed to actively participate in events and programmes.
Through Friends of Harrow, parents and guardians have ample opportunity to contribute positively to the School community in a variety of ways using their particular skill sets and specialist areas of knowledge. Working together with the School to extend opportunities to pupils beyond those normally available, this collaboration also facilitates the growth of a cohesive and active community of Harrow Hong Kong families. In turn, undertakings of Friends of Harrow also serve to actively promote the School’s vision and core values to the wider Hong Kong community.
Friends of Harrow has partnered together with the School on initiatives such as Summer Work Shadowing for Sixth Form, Senior School Career’s Fair, Long Ducker and New Parents Welcome Evening. These events have been facilitated through a rapidly growing sense of community at the School, with parents working alongside the School to not only enhance the experience of pupils, but also contribute to the wider community through charitable engagement.
PARENT MEMBERS OF FRIENDS OF HARROW FOR 2023-24:
- Mrs Grace Lan, Chair
- Mr Mong-Thien Shim, Vice-Chair
- Dr Marie Bernal, Secretary
- Ms Edith Chan, Treasurer
- Ms Christina Chung, Co-Leader, Charity and Service Engagement
- Mr Larry Cheung, Co-Leader, Charity and Service Engagement
- Mrs Salina Fothergill, Co-Leader, Education Enhancement
- Ms Kaman Lau, Co-Leader, Education Enhancement
- Mrs Jenny Chau, Co-Leader, Social
- Ms Elaine Yeh, Co-Leader, Social
SCHOOL MEMBERS OF FRIENDS OF HARROW FOR 2023-24:
- Ms Ann Haydon, Head
- Mrs Sabrina Peck, Deputy Head (Co-Curricular and Organisation)
- Mr Jonny Franks, Assistant Head (Sixth Form)
- Mr Brendan Shanahan, Head of Lower School
- Mrs Lauren Berner, Deputy Head of Lower School (Pupil Wellbeing)
SUB-COMMITTEES
Education Enhancement Sub-Committee
CAREERS’ FAIR
Friends of Harrow Education Enhancement Sub-Committee, in conjunction with the School, organise an annual Career Fair for pupils in Years 10 to 13. Pupils can speak with a variety of panellists drawn from parents and friends that represent a broad variety of professions. Since 2012, a large number of parents have been volunteering their time to support the event. Feedback from pupils on this event were overwhelmingly positive. As a result, the number of panels increased every year to over 30 professional areas, covering law, medicines, finance, engineering, architecture, design, technology, entrepreneurship, etc.
In addition to current parent volunteers, we welcome and look forward to seeing new volunteers from friends and professionals to support our pupils and to enrich their knowledge on different industries.
PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
The Programme aims to develop pupils’ skills in self-management and development, including a variety of soft skills that enhance pupils’ academic ability. Year 12 pupils who are planning their university applications are invited to mock interviews conducted by parent volunteers. A structured evaluation is then completed, followed by a debriefing that offers feedback and areas of improvement to the pupils.
THE SPEAKER’S FORUM
The Speaker’s Forum is a scheduled forum to give pupils the opportunity to learn from experienced experts and professionals of different industries. The speakers are chosen based on their ability to contribute to the School’s mission statement, Educational Excellence for Life and Leadership.
Seminars are offered to Upper, Prep and/ or Lower School pupils. The wider perspectives and valuable sharing from these esteemed speakers enlighten and broaden perspectives of our pupils to get themselves prepared to be future leaders.
WORK SHADOWING PROGRAMME
The work shadowing programme finds short placements for the Sixth Form pupils. Friends of Harrow works with the parent body and their local contacts to find a variety of placements so that the pupils can gain hands-on experience in different fields of work as they prepare to write their university applications.
LOWER SCHOOL PROGRAMME
Friends of Harrow organises visits to support the Lower School curriculum before the pandemic. For example, following the theme of Transportation, Year 2 pupils would go on a tour of a passenger cruise liner while Year 3 pupils visited the Kwai Chung Container Terminals.
Field trips have been suspended since 2020 due to the pandemic. Therefore, Friends of Harrow invites speakers to complement various themes taught in the classrooms. For example, for the Facing Challenges sessions, an Olympic swimmer responded to questions raised by the Lower School pupils, while a Hong Kong Film Award winning actress shared her path to success.
Charitable Engagement
LONG DUCKER
Long Ducker is the signature charitable fundraiser undertaken by the School. Friends of
Harrow supports the event by organising the International Food Court that brings together over 100 parent volunteers and over 15 international food stalls, showcasing cuisines from across the world.
Not only does the International Food Court serve as the simple provision of lunch for the estimated 2,000 people on site, celebrating the rich cultural diversity embodied by our School community.
Since 2020, however, the Long Ducker has been a virtual event due to the pandemic. Pupils, parents, staff and guests of our School community completed distances varying from 16km to 8km to 1km by running, swimming, sailing, cycling, or walking, raising an incredible HK$410,577 for our 9 pupil-nominated charities in 2021.
CHRISTMAS CHARITY FAIR
The Friends of Harrow inaugural Christmas Charity Fair took place on Sunday 12 December, 2021. Parent, pupil and staff volunteers came together to raise funds for our pupil-nominated charities and spread festive joy amongst our school and the local community. It was a magical event for adults and children alike. Visitors enjoyed games and activities, welcomed a special visit from Santa, posted letters in Santa’s Post Office whilst shopping for holiday gifts, Christmas cards, gourmet food, nearly new books, and festive food and drinks. The event closed with carol singing led by The Head and The US Chamber Choir.
BIENNIAL GALA BALL
Every two years, Friends of Harrow will organise a live auction at the Gala Ball to raise funds for our pupil-nominated charities.
NEARLY NEW UNIFORM SALES
Throughout the academic year, Friends of Harrow works alongside the Upper School Charity Group to coordinate ‘Nearly New Uniform Sales’. The popular Sales support sustainability, reduce waste and generate funds for our pupil-nominated charities.
THE LOWER SCHOOL ‘MAKE A DIFFERENCE’ CHARITY SCA
Throughout the school year, Friends of Harrow works closely with the Lower School ‘Make a
Difference’ Charity SCA on initiatives that inspire our school community to ‘Make a Difference’ and to raise funds for our pupil-nominated charities. Initiatives include selling The Harrow Kindness Bear, creating a kindness rock garden, selling ‘Make Someone Smile’ gifts, designing ‘The Eco Bag’ (a reusable sustainable carry bag with the tagline ‘Be Fantastic Don’t Use Plastic’) and volunteering with HandsOn Hong Kong (the Lower School pupil-nominated charity) to recycle soap for distribution to underprivileged families.
BOX OF HOPE
Box of Hope is an annual charity project aimed at providing useful and educational gifts to
underprivileged children in Hong Kong and throughout Asia.
Each year, Friends of Harrow in conjunction with the Upper School and Lower School Charity Groups encourage pupils to prepare a Box of Hope for those less fortunate. In November 2021, our school community prepared 1,450 boxes which were diligently sorted by our parent volunteers.
Social Sub-Committee
NEW PARENTS’ WELCOME EVENING
In the Autumn Term, Class and House Parent representatives, Friends of Harrow Committee members and the Senior Leadership Team welcome new parents on campus over wine and canapés. It is an informal setting for parents to meet each other and begin the development of relationships within the School community.
BUFFET & QUIZ NIGHT
Friends of Harrow hosts the keenly anticipated parent-teacher social evening every year. The challenging quiz and sumptuous buffet dinner make it a competitive and entertaining event for many.
CHRISTMAS BOWLING NIGHT
Parents and staff gather over pizza and drinks to celebrate the holiday season whilst competing for the Bowling Championship.
LUNAR NEW YEAR CELEBRATION
Friends of Harrow welcomes the Lunar New Year by inviting parents and staff to an evening of mahjong, poker, card games and Chinese buffet dinner.
GALA BALL
Friends of Harrow hosts the exclusive Gala Ball to raise funds for the School’s nominated charities and the operating costs of Friends of Harrow. Guests are invited to a black-tie event completed with live music, auction, dance, and food and drinks.
