compiled reports from social & welfare.pdf

7/30/2019 Compiled Reports from Social & Welfare.pdf

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Annual General Meeting Report

56th JCRC, King Edward VII Hall


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Annual Report from AB Block Committee 2012/2013

Main Projects for the Year

Project/Event Participation

Rate

Comments Improvements to be made

Inter-Block

Games

Good Participation was good, butdifficult to pull numbers for

some sports, especially

towards the end. Publicity

was made via sms,

Facebook, phone calls, and

door-to-door.

Facebook posts were usefulin updating the blockers

about each nights sports

and results. Maintaining apositive and sportsmanlike

attitude helped to boost

block spirit.

Positive feedback wasreceived from blockers

about how IBG helped to

facilitate block spirit and

how the freshmen had fun.

This should remain the

focus and goal of IBG.

IBG shirts for each blockwere a good idea.

IBG was too long, especiallywith the weather delays, and

blocker participation dipped

towards the end. IBG should be

kept to a maximum 2 weeks.

Fire-drill Poor People tend to avoid fire-drill, choosing to avoid

returning to Hall during the

time period or to hide in

PGP/Med Library.

Participants are mostlyblock committee members

and a few blockers. This

negates the purpose of fire-

drill.

Cash incentives forparticipating/performing blocks

is ineffective and unnecessary

for an activity which is

supposed to be educational.

Cash incentives also pose aproblem when incidents

happen such as the one in the

first semester where the PGP

fire alarm caused confusionamong blockers and many went

ahead and moved to the

meeting point only to be told to

go back.

A separate fire safety briefingduring the first block suppers

may be more effective at

communicating the information

than the fire-drill where

participation is generally low.

Block Suppers Good Having a small suppercommittee to plan each

Scheduling should be donecarefully to avoid clashes with


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supper and decide on

theme and menu is more

efficient compared to

having the entire block

committee gather and

discussing. Publicity via email, sms,

facebook, door tags, and

posters was adequate.

Food purchase andpreparation were done in

good time.

Good feedback wasconsistently received about

the quality of AB supper

food.

major Hall events. The Hall

calendar should be up early and

Block Heads should be aware of

major event dates so that they

can plan for their own supper

dates. What happened often this year

is that the blocks all had supper

within the same week. This is

not a bad thing, but it shows

how there were limited time

slots during which block

suppers could be held.

Have to take into account blockdynamics when setting supper

dates (if most blockers are from

a certain CCA, avoid havingsuppers on the day of the CCA)

Can have more themed suppers(CNY themed, Valentines Day,

etc.)

East Wing

Supper 1

Oktoberfest

Good Attendance was good at thebeginning and increased

towards the time that the

food was released.

The partner charades/guessthe song game was highly

entertaining and one thatengaged all the blockers.

Other games such as thebread eating game were

entertaining, but held too

near the end of supper as

blockers were already

finishing their food/leaving.

Door prizes of mugs andparty-poppers were good.

Xinyao performance at thebeginning was entertaining but

too time consuming. Games are

more engaging for the entire

audience.

East Wing

Supper 2Hunger Games

Good Attendance was lower atthe beginning and someconfusion over the initial

game led to a slow start.

However, attendance

greatly increased near the

time food was brought out.

Revelation of BestDemon/Poor Mortal was

entertaining and the prizes

were good.

More interactive games withthe blockers (similar to thegame nights of previous years)

would be more engaging.

Block committee membersshould make a point of

participating actively in the

games to encourage

participation from the rest of

the block.

AB Secret

Valentines(Angel/Mortal)

High New initiative this AY whichwas effective inencouraging more

Revelation supper could havebeen better planned andexecuted. Better timing can


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interaction among blockers

that usually do not talk.

Posts on facebook byAngels/Mortals alike were

good in generating interest

and hype about the gameas it was ongoing.

Blockers seemed to enjoythe gifts/small acts of

kindness and many were

quite enthusiastic.

Timing the game aroundValentines Day was helpful

in setting the festive mood

of the game.

enable more people to come

down.

Generally, participation in thegame was high among those

that signed up. More blockers

can be encouraged to sign up,as this is a good avenue for

blocker interaction.

Block committee participationshould be mandatory in order

to encourage other blockers to

participate.

East Wing

Demon Week

High New initiative this AY whichwas effective inencouraging more

interaction between East

Wingers.

Posts on the East WingFacebook page by

Demons/Mortals alike were

good in generating interest

and hype about the game

as it was ongoing.

Blockers seemed to havegenuine fun with the prankswhile keeping it within

reasonable/safe guidelines.

Many were quite

enthusiastic and creative.

Timing the game aroundApril Fools Day was helpful

in setting the festive mood

of the game.

Revelation during 2nd EastWing supper was well done.Showing photos of the pranks

on screen was highly

entertaining.

Generally, participation in thegame was high among those

that signed up. More blockers

can be encouraged to sign up,

as this is a good avenue for East

Wing interaction.

Block committee participationshould be mandatory in orderto encourage other blockers to

participate.

Barley Nights Lukewarm Response was good initially,but attendance tapered off

towards the end of firstsemester and Barley Nights

did not continue into

second semester.

A worthwhile effort as itdoes help to build a core of

enthusiastic blockers and is

a good avenue to unwind.

However, block committee

members must be

committed to its execution.

New desserts other thanbarley are a welcome

Frequency can be reduced toonce every two weeks so that

more budget can be allocatedto each barley night. The

burden on the block committee

members would also be

reduced as well.

Block committee membersshould make a point of going

down to meet/interact with

blockers and to promote a

more cohesive mood in the

kitchenette.


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change for blockers.

Delivering Barley Night

desserts to IBG participants

is a good idea and helps to

generate block

spirit/cohesion.Block Shirt N/A Changes in design caused

some delay, as well as

problems with shirt type

and color availability from

the supplier.

Blockers liked the color anddesign of the shirt.

However, the quality was

not as good as the previous

years due to lack of stock

from the supplier. Blockers seem to prefer

cotton t-shirts to dri-fit

ones.

Find another supplier otherthan the one that we have

been using as they no longer

supply the same quality shirt as

in AY 11/12.

East Wing shirt idea was notbrought up this year. The East

Wing Block Heads can consider

reviving the idea for AY 13/14.

Door Tags N/A Door tag designs weredetailed and original.

All residents received newdoor tags in the second

semester including new

residents, which was good.

Many door tags were blownaway by wind/rain throughout

the first semester. New door

tags need to be reinforced and

more tightly secured to the

doors.

Blockers should be reminded toremove their door tags beforemoving out at the end of

Semester 1 as cleaners will

clear the door tags.

Welfare Pack N/A Blockers enjoyed both Sem1 and Sem 2 welfare packs.

Investing in a good welfarepack is a good way of

returning money back to

the blockers.

Gathering suggestions fromblockers about what theywant in the packs is a good

idea.

Some perishable items(coffee/milo) in some of the

SCRC packs resulted in a foul

smell affecting several packs.

These had to be washed and

repacked. Some milo packets

also burst during handling.

Welfare items should becarefully checked to ensure

that all items are fresh and

undamaged.

General Comments

Mass sms-ing the blockers remains a good publicity tool and avenue forannouncements.

Buying more/new furniture for the block lounge continues to be a good choice asblockers now have better tables to study at in AB lounge and a variety of chairs to


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use. However, the lounge should be cleaned more often (more than once a

semester) and block residents should be reminded to clean up after themselves.

A reminder should be sent to all residents that only KEVII residents should beallowed access to the block lounges. Any PGP/non-Hall people caught using the

lounges unaccompanied should be asked to vacate immediately. This was a recurring

problem for the AB lounge during weekends.

Seniors should continue to be encouraged to come down for Block and Wingsuppers. Participation in Block events such as AB Secret Valentines is also a good way

for seniors and juniors to bond.

Overall a good year in that a strong core batch of AB seniors was able to be carriedover into the next year and the general AB spirit was maintained, establishing a good

foundation for the new AY 13/14.

Prepared by:

Miss Jennifer YehAB Block Head 2012/13


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Annual Report from the CD Block Committee 2012/2013

Main Projects for the Year

Project/Event Participation Rate Details Recommendations

Flag Day Above Average The attendance was goodand CD flaggers did very well

in terms of coordinating

within the team and

reporting to the KEWOC in

charge. Came in first at Flag.

More seniors can be gatheredto help and guide the

freshmen and make it an even

more enjoyable and fun

experience especially for the

freshmen.

Block Day Average With the help of the

enthusiastic seniors, CD

participants were very active

and enjoyed the games a lot

as a block. Managed to get

the first place!

Both seniors and freshmen

should be included as many as

possible as this is the rare

opportunity to get the

blockers to know each other

and interact since the start ofterm.

Inter-Block

Games

Average Participation rate was

average but players were

aggressive and supporters

were very helpful. Did a very

good job in terms of strategy

planning and teamwork.

Came in second at IBG.

More welfare could be

provided to boost the morale

of the players and more

publicity and updates could be

made to gather players for all

matches.

Block Events

(Suppers)

High The attendance was very

good in the beginning and at

the end of both semesters,but went slightly poor during

IHG period and midterm

weeks.

More publicity could be done

via Floor I/Cs to invite and

make sure all blockers areaware of the events and

encouraged to attend.

East Wing

Suppers

Average The first EWS was

Octoberfest and the second

one was a revelation of

Prank Week. Attendance

was slightly poorer in the

second one, probably due to

the timing and venue of the

suppers. However, PrankWeek was quite epic and

managed to get the blockers

from both AB and CD to

interact with each other.

A weeklong event such as AnD

week could be held prior to

the suppers so that people are

more keen to attend. Publicity

could be grander and more

frequent to grab the East

Wingers attention.

Angel and

Demon Week

High AnD became the peak of

Semester One as the block

turned into its liveliest state.

Happenings and activities in

Facebook can also be seen

to have increased

tremendously. Blockers gotto know each other better

Try to involve all blockers as

the game was definitely fun

and added a lot of life to the

block.


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through interactions via

various gifts and pranks.

Random

(Welfare)

Nights

Average Take and go desserts or

drinks to boost morale of

the blockers, especially

during exam times.

Block committee could use

the chance to interact with

the blockers.

Birthday

Celebrations

NA Birthday sabos and

celebrations (both groups

and individuals depending

on circumstances) were

done least once per month.

Door tags NA Blockers liked the door tags

a lot but most were torn

down during the vacation.

Blockers should be reminded

to keep the door tags before

leaving for vacation to prevent

the door tags from being torn

down by the cleaner.

Block Shirt NA A competition was held tocollect designs and vote for

the best one in a democratic

way.

KEVIIans Day Average Due to time constraint, the

event was held in a rush but

overall it was very successful

and great fun with a new

campfire element added to

it.

The date of the event could be

set a little earlier to make sure

there was enough time for

planning and publicity.

Fire Drills Above Average Attendance was good and

everyone was verycooperative. Won the first

prizes for both semesters.

Senior

Appreciation

Above Average Graduation certs and gifts

were prepared and notes

were written by the blockers

to all the graduating seniors.

A very happy ending the AY!

:D

CD

Newsletter

NA One newsletter per

semester was prepared and

distributed by the PublicityTeam. Very good read and

important to show the

blockers about the

upcoming events refresh

their memories in the block.

More writers could be

recruited among the blockers

instead of block members.

General Recommendations

1. Block committee should be well informed about the heavy year-long commitmentfrom start to ensure constant commitment level (attendance for meetings, eventpreparations and cleaning up), especially during the intensive IHG period.


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2. More interactions could be made by the block committees, especially Floor ICs, toreach out to the blockers and bring them into the block family especially during the

midterm weeks. Dessert nights, waffle nights and random block bonding events

should be utilized to talk to the blockers and make CD Block more homely.

3. Residents that entered in Semester 2 usually find it hard to integrate into hall andmake friends. Block committee members can be assigned to new residents and helpto integrate them into hall. An orientation for new blockers would help too.

4. STAY POSITIVE!Prepared By:

Miss Ho Sue Yuin

CD Block Head 2012/13


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Annual Report from E Block Committee 2012/2013

General Comments

1. Seniors and Juniors tend to not interact with one another. More platforms for interactionshould be created, and block committee members should facilitate the process.

2. Block committee members need to take down posters after each event has ended.3. Block committee members should make it a point to help new residents in semester 2 to

integrate into hall and the block.

4. A feedback system would be helpful in reflecting what can be done by the block committeefor the block.

Major Projects

Project Comments Areas for Improvement

Regular Block Suppers - About 3-4 regular blocksuppers (excludingKEVIIans' Day and west

wing suppers) were

organized per semester.

- Attendance for suppers islow with an average of

about 30 blockers.

- Blockers should beencouraged to attendsuppers

- Interaction betweenblockers should be

encouraged.

West Wing Supper - Attendance for west wingsupper was high.

- Good feedbacks werereceived regarding theeffort in decoration of the

dining hall.

- Some food items wereinsufficient during the

course of the supper.

- Budgeting of food mustbe carefully planned as

over-spending may be a

problem.

KEVIIans' Day - The stage gameseffectively gathered

people to interact with

one another while

cheering for their

blockers in their games.- There were no carnival

games, but the event was

still fun-filled.

- Excessive food was beingprepared, leading to food

wastage.

- The after party segmentof the event received

poor response as people

started to leave after the

food was cleared.

- Food amount should bereasonably planned to

prevent wastage.

- The photobooth shouldbe better promoted.

Angel and Mortal - Participation of Angel and - An opt-out option can be


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Mortal was high in

semester 1.

- Facebook was used as aneffective tool to share

images of the gifts

received, whichencouraged many to

participate in the game.

given for those who do

not wish to participate.

- Feedbacks were giventhat 2 weeks is too short

for the game.

Block T-Shirts - T-shirt designing is opento all residents of E block.

- The winning design isselected by the number of

likes on Facebook.

- Designing should startearly in case changes are

needed.

New Initiatives

Project Comments Areas for ImprovementExam Welfare Supper - Food was being ordered

during reading week

leading to final exams.

- Supper was easy toexecute, and received

very good response.

- May order more food ifbudget allows as many

people (approx. 50) tend

to join the supper.

Running Man - Running Man game wasplayed around the area of

E block and the admin

block (dining hall and

comm hall area).

- The event should bebetter promoted to

encourage more people

to join.

- The nametags shouldbe well attached to theback of the players as

they tend to fall off with

masking tape.

Problems Encountered

Problem Recommended Solution

Block commers and block members are busy

with major productions in semester 2, leading to

lower attendance for block suppers and lack ofmanpower.

- Block commers should take the initiative tolet the block head know about their other

commitments.- The committee should plan early on

semester 2s activities and ensure there

are no clashes with major productions.

Exchange students and students who moved into

hall in semester 2 found it hard to integrate into

hall.

- The block committee should take note ofthese students and take extra effort in

helping them integrate into the hall and

the block.

Prepared by,

Miss Adela LeeE Block Head 2012/ 13


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Annual Report from the F Block Committee 2012/2013

General Comments

F Block Committee underwent a thorough revamp in AY2012-2013. The most distinctive change

from the previous year was that the committee had one Block Head and two Assistant Block Heads.

Assistant Block Heads were able to provide a system of checks within the committee, and had the

authority to make decisions as well. However, the final decision would be made by the Block Head.

In addition, instead of splitting members into three distinct departments (Food and Programs,

Logistics and Special Events, Design and Publicity), members were not placed into any particular

department, therefore allowing them to be shuffled around to carry out different tasks for different

events. This was to allow members to gain a wider range of experience handling activities from

different planning perspectives.

Members

The new structure of the committee appeared not to work as well as the previous years structure in

terms of efficiency and developing team spirit, perhaps the structure may be revised further before

it is reintroduced again.

Member composition

At the start of the AY, there were a total of 20 members in the committee, of which there were 7

seniors and 13 freshmen. However, over the course of the year, 2 freshmen left the committee and

we were left with 7 seniors and 11 freshmen. This posed a problem with succession of the Treasurer

position as one of the freshmen who left hall and F Block Committee had taken up the role.

Seniors came from a wide range of backgrounds and experience with block committees. All seniors

were Year 2s, and some had come from other blocks' block committees previously. This gave us a

chance to pick their brains on how other blocks ran their block committees, giving us a new

perspective and more ideas on how to run activities for the block.

The senior-to-freshmen ratio was also unusually high, which may have caused some problems within

the committee. Seniors, apart from the Block Head and Assistant Block Heads, were to be

considered the same rank as freshmen (i.e. they had no particular authority over them to order

them around, etc.). However, some freshmen may have perceived a hierarchy whereby the seniorswere of higher ranks and thus did not mingle much with them. This undoubtedly created a clear

freshmen and senior divide within the committee.

Buddying Block Committee Members with residents

In previous years, F Block Committee members would be assigned a number of F Block residents and

act as a bridge between them and the Block Committee. This included the dissemination of

information for suppers, engagement activities and hall events, as well as the collection of

information from the residents. This year, however, instead of assigning each member a number of

residents, we restructured the system. A group of 2-4 members (Level ICs) would be in charge of

each level, depending on how many rooms there were on the level. Thus different levels may have


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had different ways of disseminating information (e.g. one person sending out messages to all level

residents, or each member handling a number of residents). However, in the end, despite whatever

means they used, things still got done.

Bonding between Block Committee Members

Members in the committee were bonded to a certain extent, however, they tended to form cliques

and stuck to those rather than interacting with everyone. The first bonding activity (outing) did not

take off well, and attendance was extremely poor (most seniors, plus 2 freshmen indicated that they

would be going). The failure to develop a strong sense of belonging and a bonded team may be

because of the different characters of the members, where some people may not be able to gel or

get along well with others. Perhaps it was also a lapse on the Block Heads part to push and

implement further bonding activities or avenues for interaction between block committee members

as well.

Referring to the previous years success in bonding the committee and creating the sense ofattachment, more unofficial gatherings, heart-to-heart talks (HTHT) and making sure to have meals

together should be carried out so that members will better understand and be more comfortable

with each other.

Personal Development of Block Committee Members

There were many promising members; however, many did not show their full potential in the end.

Whether this was another lapse on the Block Heads part or other reasons, overall, every member

was given at least one chance to take on a leadership role in planning of suppers or engagement

activities.

Succession of Leadership

Leadership succession started in the second semester, where potential candidates for the next block

head and assistant block head were identified. Unlike the previous year, there was no election

process as only one candidate was identified. This was followed up by personal talks between the

current block head and the incoming block head for mental preparation and advice. The incoming

block head was given more authority in making decisions, and more experience with planning events

or management throughout the second semester.

Areas for Improvement

Following are some areas that problems arose in, some of which may be recurrent in previous years

as well.

1. Members of differing personal views and conflict resolutionMany members, especially the seniors, had strong views and opinions about how certain things

should be carried out. They were also much more vocal during meetings than the freshmen, thus the

freshmen tended not to speak up, and meetings at the beginning of the year tended to be senior-run.

The way that the committee was run based on efficiency may have turned off some of the freshmen

because they were not given the chance to try out their ideas, and were coerced by the seniors to do

things that were already tried and tested in previous years.


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It may be worth allowing freshmen to try their ideas, and deal with any failures later so as not to give

them a feeling of disengagement from the block committee as they feel that their ideas have been

shut down and are not appreciated.

2. Maintaining member motivationMany members seemed to lose steam in the later part of semester one and semester two. Thiscould be due to academic issues, or commitments to other CCAs. Once again, referring to

suggestions from the previous year, such issues should be identified early on and everyone in the

team should pitch in to help find a solution. This may range from lightening the workload during

busy periods, or making sure the workload is spread amongst people who do have the time and

energy to carry it out at different times of the semester.

More support should be provided, whether from other members or the block head, where someone

who feels stressed, overwhelmed or unhappy can get everything off their chest. This may solve the

problem of members quitting, or losing motivation and lack of commitment to the committee.

Programmes and Events

F Block Committee AY1213 did conduct a number of programmes, mainly suppers and engagement

activities. We aimed to have at least one supper a month, and two engagement activities per

semester.

The year started off great with F Block winning Inter-Block Games for the first time in a number of

years. The first engagement activity, angel-mortal, was started before FHD 1, and it was heartening

to see people participating and posting on the F Block Facebook group about things that their angels

had done for them. Attendance for the Welcoming Supper and welfare suppers were also high, with

more than 50 residents turning up.

However, as the semester continued, other engagement activities did not seem to be as well

received and suppers tended to clash with other events or CCAs. Perhaps activities for the upcoming

year should be reviewed and checked to ensure that residents will enjoy them and participate in

them.

It was especially heartwarming when the F Block couple won DnD this year as well. Though F Block

may not have been as vocal with constant cheers or jeers as the other blocks were, it was great to

know that F Block residents rallied around their pageant contestants and voted for them.

Publicity of events

We encountered problems with publicity of events, as none of the members seemed to be

particularly inclined towards designing posters or other publicity materials. As such, publicity tended

to be more slow-moving and did not get done as fast as would be ideal. This may have negatively

affected the number of people attending the events as well. This problem may just be attributed to

bad luck as one of the seniors who was consistently designing posters for F Block Committee events

for the previous academic year had left hall, and there happened to be no freshmen that had the

skills to take on that role.

Allocation of manpower


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This has been a recurrent problem, especially during supper preparation, execution and washing up.

Allocation of manpower should be taken into consideration as it ensures that everyone that is

needed turns up, and that everyone present is working efficiently. While it is important to have

enough people around, it is equally important to ensure that there is no excess manpower.

Members who show up but end up not having any task to do will feel like they are not needed and

this may lead to the previously mentioned problem of losing motivation.

Ensuring that members stay to complete the washing up and cleaning up of the supper and cooking

area is another problem as members tended to leave halfway through the supper and insufficient

manpower was left to clear up later on. One possible way of countering this would be to allocate

manpower for food preparation, serving and cleaning up, so that none of the members would feel

overly drained or spend too much time for one event.

Miscellaneous

1. Importance of member personalitiesAs raised in the previous years report, this is truly an important point. Despite attempts to develop asense of attachment and belonging, if the individual personalities of the members do not match,

they will not be able to build strong rapport with one another. If a strong bond between members is

established, they would be better able to galvanise and rally their residents to participate in events.

This is purely based on luck of the draw, and cannot be helped.

Prepared by

Ms. Melissa Chee

F Block Head 2012/13


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Annual Report from the GH Block Committee 2012/2013

General Comments

GH Block Committee faced many problems in the prior academic year, leading to a loss of block

pride and other related problems among the previous batch of blockers. The first and foremostobjective of the AY12/13 GH Block Committee was to foster a strong block pride in seniors and

international students, not just the freshmen. I believe that this objective was achieved in seniors

and freshmen. Successful existing methods were kept and new initiatives to solve exsiting problems

were also implemented.

Main Projects for the AY 12/13

Project/Event Participati

on Rate

Comments Improvements to be made

Block Timeduring KEWOC

High Participation was goodand the mood was

high, probably due to

the excitement from

KEWOC

Potential blockcommittee members

were scouted during

this time and the initial

promotion for block

committee was

conducted during thistime. This could have

led to the high sign-up

rate for block

committee

Whacko and other icebreakers were

conducted during this

time

GH block could have beenmore prompt for the next

activity so as not to affect

the schedule

Block Day Low Participation was lowdue to event being

held during theweekend and the

nature of the activity.

The atmosphere wasquite awkward for the

blockers initially

though much effort

went into making

Block Day could be on aweekday instead or

conducted when there is astronger block pride

The activity could be heldin hall

The activity could beunrelated to water so that

it could be more inclusive

for everyone

Flag Day Moderate Participation was pooramong the seniors and

moderately good

among the freshmen Publicity for Flag Day

More publicity could havebeen conducted during

KEWOC so that freshmen

would flag with theirblocks, instead of with


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was conducted during

Block Time and every

freshman was

individually contacted

through their phones,

to be informed aboutFlag Day

Potential blockcommittee members

were paired up with a

senior from the block

committee so that they

could be informed

more about the block

committee

their faculties

Angel and

Mortal (withBuaya Week)

Moderate-

High forAngel and

Mortal.

Low for

Buaya

Week.

This initiative wastweaked from theprevious year, with

there being two weeks

of Angel and Mortal

and the final week

being Buaya week,

when a persons

assigned Devil will play

pranks on him, before

revelation during

supper. This was an

initiative taken fromSheares Hall.

To give ideas for BuayaWeek, an example was

given by conducting a

demonstration on one

of the blockers doors.

To boost theparticipation rate,

prizes were given to

the best Angel and

Devil, as well as to onlyinvolve the seniors who

wanted to play.

This led to amoderately high

participation for Angel

and Mortal but still a

low participation for

Buaya Week.

One suggestion could be toinvolve only the blockerswho want to participate in

this activity, so as to keep

the game moving quickly.

Block committee memberscould set examples by

giving more flamboyant

and public gifts to their

mortals.

Buaya Week could betaken out as it does not

suit the nature of KEVIIHall now and breaks the

momentum of Angel and

Mortal.

Inter-Block

Games (IBG)

Generally

High

Participation was goodfor most games and

there were a numberof supporters for each

Training sessions could beconducted for all sports,

initiated by block membersfamiliar with the sport, so


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IBG game. However, it

appears to be that

roughly the same

people will turn up to

participate and cheer

for their block mates. Publicity was carried

out early, during the

first supper, through

SMS and email. One

senior familiar with an

IBG sport was in-charge

of it and was

responsible for finding

players and training

them. The seniors were

briefed through email. Block committee

members posted

reminders on the GH

Facebook group, as

well as score updates

to boost morale.

as to train and bond the

team.

A more effective methodshould be come up with to

get blockers to come down

for match support. Asuggestion could be to

hold mini suppers during

that time at the IBG game

venue.

Besides using Facebook toremind and boost the

morale of the blockers,

more platforms could be

used, such as through

email and SMS.

Block Suppers High The participation forblock suppers were

high in general, with

about 50 blockers each

time. Food and activities

were well-received

each supper, especially

in semester 2.

Food purchase andpreparation were

usually well-planned

and executed.

Publicity was donethrough Facebook, SMS

service and innovativeand eye-catching door-

tags, door gifts and

posters. The creativity

was a hit among the

blockers. For example,

for the last supper of

Semester 1, the

publicity poster was an

interactive one.

The activities conductedduring supper should be at

one venue and should not

be too sadistic

The food prepared shouldnot be too ambitious orunique so that they will be

well-received and

prepared on time

Proposals should be givenfor all events, besides just

a briefing, so that the rest

of the committee knows

about the exact plan.

Mini Suppers High This was a newinitiative for GH blockcommittee to have

This is a very goodinitiative to allow blockersto interact more. However,


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more interaction

among the blockers but

not at the scale of a

block supper, to reduce

the workload of the

block committeemembers.

Mini suppers have thepurpose of having no

activities planned,

allowing the blockers

to eat the food and

mingle while eating.

Participation was high,with about 40 blockers

turning up each time,

as many as for aregular block supper.

Publicity was also donethrough Facebook, SMS

service and innovative

and eye-catching door-

tags, door gifts and

posters. The creativity

was a hit among the

blockers. In this case,

for the Chinese New

Year Mini-Supper, theblock was decorated

with red packets and

hong baos with one

gold coin and a door-

tag were given to each

blocker.

one suggestion could be to

put in less effort into each

mini supper but

distributed to have more

mini suppers so that there

will be more interactionamong blockers. This is so

as to have more suppers

without over-taxing the

block committee.

West Wing

Supper

Moderate Programmes andpublicity went well,

with few hiccups. More

food could have been

purchased with theamount spent though,

if proper research was

conducted.

The theme wasadhered to and quite a

few blockers came

dressed to suit the

theme.

Playing station gamesto get food stamps was

a good idea to getpeople to play station

There should be morecommunication between

the different committees

so as to cross-check on

various decisions beingmade, such as the food

items bought, when

cheaper substitutes could

have been bought in a

larger quantity, resulting in

the same amount of

money spent on more

food.

More creative stage gamescould be played to get the

blockers to interact morewith one another, instead


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games

Screening ScoobyDoo was effective in

gettimg blockers to

stay until the end of

the event.

of in their cliques.

KEVIIans Day High Programmes, publicityand food were all well-

received in general.

Food was slightly slowin coming out, leading

to the delay in starting

the event.

The games consisted ofstage and station

games. Hardly anyone

played the stationgames, resulting in not

many blockers getting

the stamps for taking a

photo at the

photobooth.

The theme was BeachDay, a theme that

many blockers could

adhere to in terms of

outfit, as well as a

theme that the threecommittees could

incorporate.

More time could havebeen given to food

preparation.

For stage games, gamesplayed should be clearly

visible to the audience and

not be blocked by people

on stage.

Having 4 station gamesand 3 stage games, with

time blocked out fordancing, in a span of two

hours is a rush. Resources

could have been allocated

to other areas.

All block committeemembers should be

present on the day itself,

from the start until clean-

up is over, for the event to

go more smoothly.

Block Outing Low This was also a newinitiative. An outing

was planned to West

Coast Park during the

first recess week.

About 25 blockersturned up, most of

them being block

committee members. Publicity and

programmes were

well-organized but

many non-block

committee blockers

chose not to turn up as

they perceived this

outing to be a block

committee outing

Frequent suppers are moreuseful than a block outing

as blockers are more

willing to turn up for

suppers, instead of

devoting one entire day to

a block outing.

While it is important forthe block committee to bebonded, more effort

should have been made to

extend this bond to non-

block committee blockers.

Block Dinner Moderate This was another newinitiative by the GHblock committee.

This should beimplemented as soon asthe academic year starts,


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While members of the

same block are likely to

have dinner together,

they might eat in their

cliques or might decide

to eat dinner outside.This initiative was

implemented with the

hopes of the whole

block eating together

at least once a week

and to prevent the Jon

Wong incident from

occuring again.

Participation startedoff high but decreased

over the weeks asblockers got busier and

as the hype died.

However, people from

other blocks would join

the GH dinner table

and were welcome to.

The main objective ofthere being people to

have dinner with was

fulfilled and nobody

should feel left out.

to bond blockers and get

them used to eating as a

block, before they form

other routines.

More publicity could havebeen carried out.

Fire Drill Moderate While a cash incentiveis wrong in principle, a

monetary reward in

incentive for blockers

to attend the fire drill

so that their block

wins. This was evident

when the last fire drill

was conducted without

any incentive.

Therefore, if there is amonetary reward,

more people in hall will

learn how to react in

the case of an

emergency.

Participation wasmoderate during the

first two fire drills as

blockers wanted to

help their blocks to

win. However, the lastfire drill consisted

Fire drills might not be thebest method to learn what

to do in the event of a fire

as about half of the

blockers will not attend

this, even with the

monetary reward. This is

especially so as most

blockers would have

undergone many fire drills

in their lives so far andthey are usually common-

sensical.

Another method could beimplemented, distributing

a laminated copy of the

assembly point and route

to take in case of a fire to

each room, along with the

set of rules that comes

with each room. This will

be seen by all blockerswhen they move in.


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mainly of block

committee members.

Block Shirt N/A The block shirts wereordered early, allowing

the blockers to wear

their own block shirttowards the later part

of IBG.

The shirts were notworn much by blockers

as the design was not

to some of their tastes.

While the material wasgood, the sizes were

slightly big.

A few designs could havebeen put to a vote,

allowing the blockers to

have their say and choosetheir own block shirts.

Specimens for the shirtsshould have been shown

to the blockers to allow

them to choose the

appropriate size.

Other New Initiatives Implemented

Besides the new initiatives mentioned above, such as Block Outing, Block Dinner, Buaya Week and

Mini Suppers, GH Block Committee also changed its structure. Previously, GH Block Comm discussed

about events during the meeting and two members will then take over to organize the rest of the

activity themselves, making sure to consider all aspects. This led to inefficiency during meetings and

little supervision of the freshmen by the seniors. As the freshmen were also unsure on what to do,

this led to many avoidable mistakes and less successful activities.

The AY12/13 GH Block Committee was made up of the Block Head, vice-Block Head,

Secretary/Treasurer and three departments, which are Food and Programs, Logistics and Welfareand Publicity. There was a standing committee and a working committee for every event. For each

event, the working committee was made up of one or two members from each department,

supervised by a senior, while the rest of the block committee formed the standing committee for

this event. The members of the working committee were responsible for the aspects of the event

under their various departments, discussing with their own departments, if necessary, before

coming to a conclusion with the rest of the working committee. The proposal was vetted by the

Block Head before the standing committee was briefed, the standing committee being mobilized

only on the day of the event. Each block committee member would only be involved in a maximum

of 2 working committees so as not to over-tax the member. This structure was very efficient,

resulting in less wastage of time during meetings and members not losing interest in the block

committee. Block committee members could also put in devote more time and energy into the

event when they were in the working committee as they could choose to work on events during

periods that they were less busy. There was also supervision and passing-on of skills and experience

from the supervising senior to the freshmen.

Another initiative was block committee outings. It was the thinking of the senior members from

experience and observations that a block spirit could only be inculcated if the block committee was

bonded. This led to regular outings of the block committee, sometimes joined by our friendly

Resident Fellow, Jenson Goh.


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Major Problems Encountered (New/Existing)

Problems Faced Recommendations for the Future

The Jon Wong incident affected me and

a few of my block committee members.

We were shaken that someone could have

such strong negative feelings towards hall.

This shows that despite our hard work,

people still slipped through the cracks.

More effort can be made to reach out to

all blockers.

It was found that suggestion boxes are not asuseful as talking face-to-face with blockers.

Level In-Charges can make more of an effort toreach out to every single of their level people,

initiating whatsapp groups, suppers and so on.

Residents who move into hall in Semester

2 and exchange students usually find it

hard to integrate into the hall and block.

Block committee members can each beassigned to a new resident to help them

integrate into hall and possibly bring exchange

students around Singapore.It was sometimes felt by blockers that the

block committee was very close, leading

them to feel left out. While this is useful in

creating a strong block culture and

inculcating block pride, the blockers

should not feel left out

More effort could be made by the blockcommittee members to reach out to blockers

through block committee members mixing

more with their level people.

Birthday celebrations is a great way of bondingblockers. More birthdays could be celebrated

and everyone invited to each celebration.

Prepared by:Miss Yasmin Yeow

GH Block Head 2012/13


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Annual Report from Dinner & Dance 2012/2013

General comments:

DnD event was well received and the tickets are fully sold out (250 pax)Major events for the year:

Formal Hall dinner 1 Formal Hall dinner 2 Dinner and Dance on 30th March 2013

Factors that lead to success:

Pricing of the ticket is reasonable ($25 for residents)

Location for the DnD venue is near to our hall thus encouraging high participationrate

Participation of in-house talents such as KE Band, Music Ensemble and the in-househosts

Areas for improvement:

The period for sales of DnD tickets can be longer to confirm the seatingarrangements

For fund raising activities, the committee should focus on dedicate a large part oftime doing sales of roses on valentines day as those made the most profits

Collaboration with OCIP team is a good form of publicity and it reaches out to othergroups of consumers

Encourage residents to come earlier or on time by providing incentives or gifts Pageant contestants need to start pageant work earlier, in order to help with

pageant and Dinner and Dance publicity

Committee should be dedicated to testing the games for all events, together, inorder to simulate the actual reactions from participants.

A meet-and-greet of the pageant contestants helped with Dinner and Dancepublicity, however, it should not be done over FHD2

Acknowledgements:

We would like to thank the SCRC, the 56th JCRC, and all participants for your support to make our

Dinner & Dance a success to end the new academic year in the right tone.

Prepared By:

Miss Avery Linn & Miss Cheyenne Phillips

Dinner and Dance Co-Heads 2012/13


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Annual Report from OCIP Cambodia 2012/2013

General Comments

The NUS King Edward VII (KEVII) Hall Overseas Community Involvement Programme (OCIP) first took

seed in the hope of developing the compassionate side of the residents in King Edward VII Hall,

National University of Singapore, by providing the opportunity for hall residents to make a difference

in the lives of the underprivileged. Our project this year is different from the previous years as we

have decided to work with a new non-governmental organization, Love Cambodia, in addition to the

previous partner that we have worked with last year.

This year, the Cambodian team comprises of 22 students. With the support of Uncle Jacob and Love

Cambodia, this year we served both the orphanage community in Phnom Penh as well as the village

community in Kampung Sleng in Prey Veng province. Furthermore, our Rest and Recreation was

carried out in both Siem Reap and Phnom Penh. The trip itself commenced on 23rd May to 6th June2013.

Main Projects

Project 1: Kumpung Sleang, Prey Veng Province

Needs assessment:

Lack of proper sanitation facilities and the lack of water during the dry season. Hence,

the NGO (Love Cambodia), has suggested that we can help address some of these needs

by donating toilets and wells.

Sustainability of the project:

What our project aim to achieve would be to target the direct needs of the villagers to

help them improve in the long run. Through the donation of wells, we can ensure that

the villagers receiving them would at least have a source which they can turn to for

water during the dry seasons. Also, structures such as the toilet would not be deemed as

a disposable item and it can aid in improving the sanitation standards of the village.

Villagers (adults and children) would also undergo health education lessons, to

emphasize the importance and benefits of better hygiene and sanitation levels. This

would be a crucial step in helping to change the mindsets of the villagers to achieve

greater compliance and care of the donated items. Upon completion of the project, the

NGO would help to follow up on the state of the village while the team is back in

Singapore. Also, in the following year, the team would head back to this village to ensure

that the wells and toilets have been used and well taken care of.

Another aspect of our project in the village would be to expose the village kids to

interesting classroom activities like sports day, balloon sculpting, paper mask making etc.

to spur their interest in learning. As we all know, the main way out of poverty would beeducation.


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Project 2: Rainbow Bridge Orphanage

Needs assessment:

The paint on the walls of the boys room is peeling off and in pretty bad shape. Hence,

the organization requests that we help to provide a new coat of paint for 3 rooms.

A lack of toilet doors has also been noted, and the organization has requested for us to

donate 3 doors. HIV children are generally still ostracized in their society; hence it would

be good for us to go down and to interact with them.

Sustainability of the project:

This is a follow up project from our project Love Beyond Boundaries last year.

Furthermore, we will continue our work with this organization for following projects as

we feel that the experience gained from the interaction with the children here is verymeaningful. In addition, there are still many parts of the orphanage that is rundown and

would need refurnishing works to be done.

General Overview of Activities in AY2012/13

Date Activity

Aug 2012 CCA fair - recruitment

3-5 Sept 2012 Interviews

Mid Sept 2012 1st Combined Meeting (followed by fortnightly meetings)

Oct 2012 Fundraising event 1: Bazzar

Nov 2012 Chocolate Sales

Dec 2012 Recce Trip

FR 2: Carwash x2

CPR AED session for members

Jan-Feb 2013 FR3: Preparation and executing the CNY fundraising project

26,27 Jan 2013 FR4: Newspaper collection (Fundraising)

Feb 2013 Local CIP at THKMarch 2013 FR5: RunKE

April 2013 FR6: Tshirt sales

May 2013-June 2013 Actual trip

Aug 2013 Post trip project at THK

Conclusion

OCIP, already in its sixth year, has reached a new benchmark this year, by working with another

organization to serve a new group of beneficiaries in the villages in the province of Cambodia.


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Through this, we can not only reach out to more people who may need our help, but also, to further

encourage all hall residents to step up and embark on this self-learning journey.

We would also like to thank the SCRC, JCRC, as well as all hall residents for their kind help and

support.

Prepared By:

Miss Huang Huiling

OCIP (Cambodia) Head 2012/13


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Annual Report from OCIP Laos 2012/2013

General comments

A successful run that fulfilled most objectives set for the group and delivered theintended deliverables for both the local and overseas beneficiaries

Managed to procure YEP funding again, which amounts to about $7000. Membersfinancial contributions could thus be lowered.

Served as a successful learning platform for its members, especially the keyappointment holders, by providing an opportunities involving overseas planning,

liaising and execution

Served as an adequate platform for KEVIIans of different backgrounds to bondFactors contributing to success

Experience accumulated from previous trips in handling administration work,especially applying for YEP funding.

Overseas host was experienced in hosting Singaporean groups. She was animportant point of contact and liaison between us and the beneficiary, and was quite

heavily involved in ground work before our arrival.

Team consisted of awesome members and had good dynamics.Changes from previous year

R&R took place in Luang Prabang instead of Vang Vieng. Luang Prabang is a quietertown.

Areas of improvement

YEP funding is difficult to procure and dictates a stifling project framework; futureteams may wish to explore other sources of funding.

Among the many fundraising activities conducted, rag-and-bone collection is themost profiting and time-efficient. Future teams can focus on this method of

fundraising.

Can consider direct flight instead of stopping at KL. Future leaders, if unbound by YEP obligations, can explore the option of travelling

during the December break.

Efforts to bond team should begin early to create a good working dynamic for theteam.

If possible, reliance on a overseas contact person should be minimized.Prepared by:

Mr. Wu Yang

OCIP (Laos) Head 2012/13

compiled reports from social & welfare.pdf

Documents