CAPT turns 10: Celebrating a decade with the College of Alice & Peter Tan
The College of Alice & Peter Tan (CAPT) marked their 10th anniversary this year with a year-long fiesta of activities to celebrate a memorable decade.
Founded in 2012 as Angsana College with just 19 students and one resident assistant, CAPT has grown from strength to strength in the past 10 years, and is now a full-fledged residential college that provides a rich living and learning environment, based strongly on the ethos of Active Citizenship and Community Engagement.
CAPT is distinguished by its vision of helping students engage the community within and outside of NUS, and encouraging them to apply their knowledge to address issues important to society. The theme of active citizenship and community engagement is emphasised throughout the college’s curriculum and many aspects of the student experience.
A year of celebration
Several sub-committees in CAPT put together a year full of activities in 2022 on the theme of ‘Celebrating the past, embracing the present, and envisioning the future’. Aptly named ‘CAPT10’ to mark the anniversary, the celebrations brought together students and staff in exciting events such as a thrilling race on foot around Singapore that took them from University Town all the way to Sentosa island and a carnival where various CAPT student groups gathered to showcase their activities and initiatives.
Arts and culture at CAPT took the spotlight at the CAPT10 Concert in June, where alumni, fellows, staff, and current CAPTains performed 11 dance and musical numbers. “CAPT here in my heart”, an original song composed by two CAPTains, mesmerised over 500 guests who attended the concert at University Cultural Centre.
In October, close to 100 students and fellows at the College gathered in teams to walk 10,000 steps around campus for the CAPT10K Challenge. A total of 28 groups accumulated an impressive 653,780 steps at the event.
On the same day, students and staff of CAPT also gathered to plant an Angsana tree together at University Town, witnessed by Guest-of-Honour Professor Tan Tai Yong, former President of Yale-NUS College. In line with the Chinese proverb to remember one’s roots, the Angsana tree signifies CAPT’s origins as Angsana College, serving as a reminder for current and future CAPTains of how far the College has grown in the past decade.
Growing and celebrating together
The celebration line-up culminated in the CAPT10 Finale Gala Dinner, graced by Guest-of-Honour Mr Hsieh Fu Hua, Chairman of the NUS Board of Trustees, and attended by many of CAPT’s partners, staff, alumni, and current students. The night was filled with scintillating performances, heartfelt speeches, a scrumptious eight-course meal, and a large birthday cake.
Close to $8,000 was raised at the dinner through the contributions of donors and attendees, which was donated to the SG Accident Help Centre, a volunteer organisation that provides holistic care for injured Singaporeans and migrant workers.
Member of the CAPT10 Committee Lai Qian Ping, a Year 2 student majoring in Business Administration at NUS Business School said: “It was heart-warming to see the smiles of our attendees catching up with one another, collaborating during Trivia Night, and reminiscing about their time in CAPT as they watched the video montage and performances. I look forward to seeing CAPT grow, and celebrating more of its anniversaries for years to come.”
Dr Kevin McGahan, CAPT fellow and lecturer at the Department of Political Science at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS) remarked on the contributions of CAPT’s dedicated leaders. “Both former and current CAPTains as well as faculty and staff at the College have all contributed to CAPT’s numerous achievements during the past ten years,” he said. “The College is not only a learning environment to attain academic excellence, but also a place for personal development and strengthening communities,” he added.
Isaac Sng, a Year 3 student at FASS, shared that being in the CAPT10 Committee had provided him with many opportunities and fond memories. He said that what he found most rewarding about the experience was the meaningful conversations along the way and the satisfied smiles from members. “It was heart-warming to see CAPTains of different generations come back to reconnect with one another,” he added.
By College of Alice & Peter Tan
