$26 Million UON Scholarship Program
6 March 2017
$26 MILLION UON SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
Date: 06 March 2017
Jack Ma and Ken Morley. Image credit: University of Newcastle, Australia
The establishment of a ground-breaking scholarship program at The University of Newcastle (UON) has recently been made possible by the philanthropic support of Alibaba founder and executive chairman, Mr Jack Ma, through the Jack Ma Foundation.
The Jack Ma Foundation will give US$20 million (AU$26.4 million) to fund a first of its kind scholarship program at UON.
The Ma-Morley scholarship will be for Australian students and will target high achievers, indigenous Australians, and those from economically disadvantaged groups. The program will be in place from 2018 onwards. One of the core principles of the scholarship program is to foster cross-cultural understanding, cooperation and peaceful development.
The scholarship highlights the ties between NSW and China and the value this brings to the NSW economy. International education is NSW's largest services export and second largest export overall, worth $7.2 billion to the NSW economy in 2015-16.
Close ties to Newcastle
Marking the largest philanthropic commitment in UON’s history, and the Jack Ma Foundation’s first philanthropic contribution in Australia, the new scholarship program will pay tribute to Mr Ma’s close personal connection to Newcastle.
When Mr Ma was a teenager, he met Novocastrian Mr Ken Morley, while Mr Morley and his family were on a tour with the Australia-China Friendship Society in Mr Ma’s hometown, Hangzhou, China.
Mr Morley went on to become a highly influential figure in his life, instilling core values and a global perspective that positively impacted Mr Ma’s future and contributed to his personal success. Mr Ma and Mr Morley remained close friends until Mr Morley’s death in 2004.
Learn more about the Ma & Morley Scholarship Program here: