Hua Yi Secondary School

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School History

Hua Yi Secondary School started in 1956 as the first government Chinese middle school, located on Fowlie Road. It was then known as Hua Yi Government Chinese Middle School. In April 1957, with a rising enrolment, the school moved to Winstedt Road. Months later in December 1957, Hua Yi was housed in its own building on Margaret Drive.

In 1971, Hua Yi’s student population reached 2,207, with 40 secondary and 17 pre-university classes. Towards the late 1970s, enrolment in Chinese schools decreased gradually. In 1979, Hua Yi started English classes and became a mixed-medium school. The school was renamed ‘Hua Yi Secondary School’ and ceased the enrolment of pre-university students.

In 1983, Hua Yi relocated to a new, well-equipped campus on Depot Road, and was officially opened on 26 April 1985. In December 1999, the school moved to its present premises at Jurong West Street 42 to serve residents in the area.

Then-Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew visited Hua Yi on two occasions, in 1959 and in 1969. The second visit was for the 150th anniversary of the founding of modern Singapore. In 2016, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was the guest-of-honour at Hua Yi’s 60th anniversary celebration.

Today, Hua Yi aims to be a school for inculcating values, inspiring talents and impacting communities. The school’s core values are the four virtues of benevolence (仁), justice (义), wisdom (智) and togetherness (群). The school aspires to nurture their students to be passionate learners, resilient leaders, empathetic contributors and glocalised citizens, who are grounded in values and ready to make a difference to society.

Hua Yi’s heritage lies in its nurturing of xinyao (a genre of local Mandarin music) talent and bonsai cultivation. Hua Yians composed the award-winning xinyao song ‘亲爱的你’, and the original compositions ‘华义人’ and ‘根在华苑’ have bonded different student cohorts. Hua Yi is the only school in Singapore with a bonsai garden, and many of the plants are between 30 and 50 years old.

Hua Yians participate actively in sports and the performing arts. Girls’ volleyball is recognised as the school’s niche sport. In 2018, Hua Yi organised the Montage Aesthetics Concert to showcase its talents in aesthetics and the performing arts.

In 1967 and 1978, Hua Yi performed a mass dance for the years’ National Day Parades. In 2019, Hua Yi was part of a mass dance performance celebrating the nation’s bicentennial at the National Day Parade.

Principals:
- Mr Wang Hou Ren (1956–1958)
- Mr Liu Pai Hu (1959)
- Mr Wu Tsung Kan (1960–1963)
- Mdm Huang Shu Fen (1964–1972)
- Mr Tan Ching Luen (1973–1978)
- Mr Wong Sun Fei (1979–1992)
- Mr Loke Kay Khee (1993)
- Mrs Molly Ooi (1994–1999)
- Mrs Kong-Tan Yen Fong (2000–2005)
- Mrs Mabel Leong (Boey Wai Wah) (2006–2011)
- Mdm Tay Siok Hwa (2012–2016)
- Ms Sandra Gwee (2017–present)

Key Milestones


1956	Establishment of Hua Yi Government Chinese Middle School.
1957	Relocation to Winstedt Road and then to Margaret Drive.
1958	Inauguration of the school.
1959	Visit by Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.
1969	Visit by Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew for the 150th anniversary of the founding of modern Singapore.
1982	Relocation to Depot Road.
1985	Official opening of school campus.
1999	Relocation to Jurong West Street 42.
2002	Official opening of school campus.
2016	Celebration of 60th anniversary with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong as the guest-of-honour.

School Crest

The school badge features a lion and the initials of Hua Yi Secondary School, ‘HY’. The lion signifies the sovereignty of Singapore. Cradled under the lion, the initials signifies that the school is a cultivator of talent for the country. The colours of the school badge are red, white and blue. Red depicts equality amongst the races, white represents the pure and virtuous character of the students, and blue symbolises the boundless sea of learning.

School Song

♫ Listen

遵守我校之校训
Observe the school motto
发扬仁义与智群
and spread its guiding principles

求取种族和谐
seek racial harmony
促进社会繁荣
and foster prosperity
为国家为民族我华义
O serve our nation our Hua Yi