The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) will confer honorary doctorates on four distinguished individuals, in recognition of their significant contributions in advancing education and dedication to public service. They are (in alphabetical order by surname): 
 

• Professor Stephen J Ball, FBA, FAcSS 
• Professor Marilyn Cochran-Smith
• Professor Frederick Ma Si-hang, GBS, JP 
• The Hon Maria Tam Wai-chu, GBM, GBS, JP  

Professor Stephen J Ball, FBA, FAcSS  
Doctor of Education, honoris causa 
 
Professor Stephen Ball is a sociologist who has been described as one of the most eminent researchers in the field of education policy. He is Emeritus Professor of Sociology of Education, at the University College London Institute of Education. He is a Fellow of the British Academy, an Honorary Fellow of the Society of Educational Studies, and a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences, as well as being Founding Editor of the Journal of Education Policy, and Laureate of Kappa Delta Pi.  

The experience of growing up in a working-class area of post-war London, and the tutorship of Professor Dennis Marsden inspired Professor Ball to become a sociologist. After 16 years at King’s College, London, he became Karl Mannheim Professor of Sociology of Education at the Institute of Education, University College of London between 2001 and 2015. His principal areas of interest are sociologically informed education policy analysis and the relationships between education, education policy and social class, changes in governance and new state modalities, as well as the global education reform movement. 
 
Professor Marilyn Cochran-Smith
Doctor of Education, honoris causa 
 
Professor Marilyn Cochran-Smith is Cawthorne Professor of Teacher Education for Urban Schools, Emerita, at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development, Boston College, USA. She has been a teacher education scholar and practitioner for more than four decades, and is Adjunct Professor in the Department of Teacher Education at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. She is a Fellow and former president of the American Educational Research Association, an elected member of the US National Academy of Education, a Laureate Fellow of the Kappa Delta Pi Honor Society, and a Fellow of the National Education Policy Center. She was the chief editor of the Journal of Teacher Education and founding co-editor of the Teachers College Press book series on Practitioner Inquiry.  

Many times awarded for her scholarship, Prof Cochran-Smith’s research interests include practitioner inquiry and teacher education research, practice and policy, with a focus on social justice and equity. She has written 10 books, seven of which have won national awards, and more than 250 articles, chapters and editorials, and her work has been widely cited.  

Professor Frederick Ma Si-hang, GBS, JP  
Doctor of Social Sciences, honoris causa 
 
Born and raised in Hong Kong, Professor Frederick Ma graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and History from the University of Hong Kong. Having started his finance career at Chase Manhattan Bank, he went on to hold key leadership positions at various financial institutions and major organisations in the private sector. In the public sector, he served as Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, and Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development of the Hong Kong SAR government from 2002-2008, and was Chairman of MTR Corporation Limited from 2016 - 2019.

Professor Ma was Chairman of the Council of The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) between 2017 and 2020. During his chairmanship, he gained the Education Bureau’s support for the site in North Point for EdUHK to establish a down-town study centre. He also personally donated funds to EdUHK to set up key scholarships and greatly supported fundraising efforts of the University. Professor Ma is also the Permanent Honourable President of Hong Kong Special Schools Council, and has taken up honorary professorships in the Business School at the University of Hong Kong and the Faculty of Business Administration at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. 

Professor Ma has made valuable contributions to the higher education sector in Hong Kong , especially during his chairmanship of the Council of the University, and with his unwavering support in promoting character education beyond the classroom to the wider community in recent years, with his loyal and distinguished service to the Government and the Hong Kong community.

 
The Hon Maria Tam Wai-chu, GBM, GBS, JP  
Doctor of Social Sciences, honoris causa 
 
Hon Maria Tam is a well-known veteran politician and former member of four different levels of representative councils. She is currently a member of the District Councils Eligibility Review Committee. 

After obtaining a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of London, Hon Tam was called to the bar at Gray’s Inn. Over many years, she has made outstanding contributions to the process of Hong Kong’s return to the Motherland, and promotion of Basic Law education in Hong Kong and at the national level. She was appointed as a member of the Hong Kong Basic Law Drafting Committee in 1985 and member of the Preparatory Committee for the HKSAR, Hong Kong Affairs Advisor and member of the Selection Committee. She joined the Basic Law Committee of the National People’s Congress Standing Committee in 1997.  

Hon Maria Tam received the Ten Outstanding Young Persons Award in 1981 and was appointed Justice of the Peace in 1982. She received the Gold Bauhinia Star in 1998 and the Grand Bauhinia Medal in 2013.

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