A natural calling to the fields of computer science and information technology have transformed into an award-winning trajectory for Kevin (Tianyou) Hou, and his educational path continues with much growth in the 2021-2022 academic year, as he is now the award recipient of Rosedale Academy’s Chris Royce Memorial Scholarship.
The scholarship recognizes achievements of full-time international students currently working towards their Ontario Secondary School Diploma at a Rosedale Academy partner school, and provides a monetary award to a student who consistently meets one, or many, of the following criteria: high academic performance; strong work ethic demonstrated by effort, accountability, and determination; and/or is a positive and supportive role model demonstrating leadership, compassion, and generosity to their peers and community. This year, our award recipient studies at Beijing No. 12 High School in China, and has not only successfully met each criteria area, but his scholarship application illustrated a commitment to his own growth, and the growth of his peers. Kevin’s ongoing commitment and perseverance continue to earn him accolades in his courses—particularly in math, physics and chemistry—and his work outside of the classroom is equally exceptional.
The scholarship honours the memory and contribution of Chris Royce, Rosedale Academy’s first classroom teacher who taught in Shenyang, China from 2014 until he passed away unexpectedly in 2019. A talented and caring educator, Chris was known to go above and beyond to support his students and colleagues. He was a knowledgeable and effective educator who knew how to connect with learners and motivate them to achieve success.
An accomplished student, Kevin has received numerous awards during his educational career to date, including in the area of robotics at the World Robot Championship and International Robot Challenge; in the area of computers and informatics at the Blue Bridge Cup Computer Skill Contest and the National Olympiad in Informatics; and in academics, earning the First-Class Scholarship and Certificate of Distinction from the International Department at Beijing No. 12 High School, as well as the Learning Star, Daily Study and Studying Awards.
Kevin’s academic strengths are fueled by his personal motivation to take ownership of his learning and goals. He enthusiastically supports his peers and puts knowledge into practice both inside, and outside, of the classroom—creating opportunities for his own learning, while supporting his peer group to learn alongside him. Whether he’s sharing his photography and video-editing sills, or supporting the build of a computer server, his collaborative learning approach with his peers is exceptional.
“I built a computer server by myself to serve friends who like computers and games like me. During the operation of the server, I play the role of the administrator to carry out technical maintenance and organize activities.” he says.
When Kevin’s not focused on academics, building computers or using his knowledge to support the learning of others, he’s participating in events on behalf of his school. Recently, he participated in Amazon’s “Deep Learning Automated Driving Competition,” where participants build, train and deploy racing car models through machine learning that can compete in the official AWS DeepRacer League.
Kevin says, “In the last few years, I have realized my passion for computers is a natural calling.” He continues, “I have strived to achieve my goals with hard work and determination. My future is in computer science and information technology, and I would like to focus my university-level education in computers.”
While currently in Grade 11, Kevin has begun goal setting for post-secondary education and shares that he hopes to attend the University of Waterloo in Canada—home to Canada’s highest ranked computer science program.
Principal of Rosedale Academy, Fernando Oliveira, says, “Kevin demonstrates the best of Rosedale Academy—he embraces his unique interests and strengths, takes ownership of his learning journey, and continues to develop skills that align with his university goals. We look forward to seeing his progression in Grade 12 and beyond.”
Through differentiated education and Rosedale Academy’s Transformative Approach to Learning, our educators create successful learning experiences by tailoring instruction to the individual needs of students, resulting in the rapid development of their unique strengths. By focusing on strength-based learning, students take ownership of their learning and acquire essential skills that lead to life-changing learning outcomes—and lifelong success—for our future world.
As a committed student and positive role model with a bright future, we are proud to award Kevin the Chris Royce Memorial Scholarship for the 2021-2022 academic year.
Chris Royce Memorial Scholarship, Honourable Mentions
We would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge all of our nominees and are pleased to extend Honourable Mentions to the following Rosedale Academy students in the Global High School Program:
- Victoria Olayinka Odubunmi—Canadian Bridge Academy, Nigeria
- Flavia (Yunfei) Chen—Puxin Fuzhou in Fuzhou, China
- Ore-Ofeoluwa Odeyemi—Maple Canadian College, Nigeria
- Rita (Xiaoang) Chen—Northeastern UOC, China
- Ella (Shwe Yee) Win Moht Moht—Royal Academic Institute, Myanmar
- Anna (Enlu) Yao—Beijing Shuren-Ribet Private School, China
- Iris (Ruijin) Li—Tianjin UOC, China
- Sizhi Xu—University of Electronic SciTech, China
- Leah (Yuhan) Shan—Walton International School Xuzhou, China
The Chris Royce Memorial Scholarship Award submission dates for the 2022-2023 academic year will be announced in November 2022.
