story Scott Currie, Staff Writer
A semester later than expected, the new campus will be officially inaugurated on Monday, Oct. 12, and the ceremony will be attended by a number of dignitaries. The celebration will be a holiday and see all classes officially suspended. In addition, the occasion will be marked by Yale-NUS College’s inaugural Symposium on International Liberal Education. After a delayed move-in process, students are happy to have their own space but are uncertain of the practical implications of the Inauguration.
The main Inauguration ceremony will include officials such as the Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong. At the symposium, speakers will include Yale University President Peter Salovey and National University of Singapore President Tan Chorh Chuan.
Students will participate in the Inauguration, with performances such as singing and dancing. Additionally, a group of students have traced the development of the campus and will present the Legacy Project exhibition, opening this Friday, Oct. 9. This includes extensive interviews with architects and construction workers along with architects’ plans.
Executive Vice President (Institutional Affairs) Doris Sohmen-Pao said it is a “common practice to mark a milestone in the completion of a building project.” Students are questioning the extent to which the campus is completed. President Pericles Lewis conceded that “it’ll be a couple more months” before finishing touches are complete; however, he is relieved that “things worked out so beautifully,” he said.
Nonetheless, students are excited for the actual event. Tan Heng Yeng ’18, who is curating the Legacy Project, said, “The Inauguration will anchor and make real our existence with a day for putting the school out there.”
The College will be live-streaming the Inaugural Ceremony on Oct. 12 at the Performance Hall and the Multi-Purpose Hall.
Correction: This infographic originally misstated that (former) Minister of Education Heng Swee Keat will be in attendance. It should be Co-Acting Education Minister (Higher Education and Skills) Ong Ye Kung. This article was updated on Oct. 7 5.30 pm.