CNYSP Convocation Dinner 2022: Reverie

10 Jun, 2022 | Events, Feature

BY CLARISSA JOANNA LIM AND FLORETTA SETIA PRADANA

As you stand at the crossroads of life, Reverie calls out to you to come and indulge one last time.

CNYSP Convocation Dinner is one of the last few events every CNYSP batch will have before officially leaving NTU. Traditionally, the event is held physically, where the graduating batch can mingle around with their batchmates and professors while reminiscing their four-year-long journey in NTU. However, this year, faced with the prevailing COVID-19 restrictions, CNYSP Convocation Dinner is held online once again. Despite the limitation, the graduating batch had a great time during the event on the evening of 21 May 2022.

This year’s Convocation Dinner’s theme is Reverie — being pleasantly lost in one’s thoughts. Drawing inspiration from Alice in Wonderland, the organising committee has meticulously designed a space within Gather Town embellished with whimsical elements.

The night began when the graduating batch slipped into reverie and wound up in the enchanted forest. Falling down the rabbit hole, they finally entered the main event area. There, they were greeted by the lovely emcees, Zi Wei and Jin Hong (who were also the emcees for DnD 2022).

As more people gathered, the event commenced with an opening address delivered by the CNYSP Director, Prof Fan Hongjin. He imparted his wisdom to the graduating batch before they embarked on a new chapter of their lives. Sharing the values that they have gained from going through the rigorous curriculum of CNYSP, he had high hopes that they would continue to thrive in these difficult times.

” 常存善意，莫悔於心。积思顿释，三省吾身。”

~ Prof Fan

For those curious to know what he said in Chinese, here’s a rough translation (by our batchmate, Li Siyuan!): “Always be kind. Go with your intuition. Don’t give up and a breakthrough will come to you. Reflect on yourself constantly.”

Following that, the graduating batch looked back on their memories and enjoyed a photo montage proudly presented by the publicity team. As they watched the video, they recalled the joyful moments they spent with one another, from FOP 2018 and DnD 2019 to the numerous CNYSC events, MnT and CY1101 group project. Some of their batchmates even specially created a vlog video that encapsulated the unforgettable experiences they shared during their time in Stockholm, Sweden in 2019.

During the first activity, “The First Chapter”, the graduating batch was graced by Dr Koh’s presence. Everyone was thrilled to see him and his cute avatar and started throwing confetti at him to welcome him.

The night continued with more bittersweet feelings as the committee streamed more videos of interviews with the CNYSP professors, as well as touching performances presented by the Y1 scholars, Junius Pun and Ryan Tan. Their melodious tunes serenaded everyone whilst the graduating batch enjoyed their dinner.

What is a convocation dinner without hanging around with their batchmates for one final time as undergraduates? During Free and Easy, the graduating batch had a great time chatting and playing games with one another. Dr Koh also got to interact with them through games and short conversations. Unfortunately, he had to cut his visit short due to external circumstances. Taking his leave, he left a few heartwarming parting words for the graduating batch.

“It was my pleasure to teach all of you. I had a great time and I wish you all the best for your future endeavours.”

~ Dr Koh

The event continued with a series of videos made by the graduating batch for the graduating batch. They reflected on their time in NTU and expressed their hopes and dreams for their batch. Eightysix Choco, consisting of Jing Xuan, Reuben, Aaron, Damien and Wei Xin then blessed their ears with their beautiful voices and euphonious harmonies.

Prior to the lucky draw, the organising committee brought the graduating batch on a trip down memory lane once more through the egg hunt, “Searching for the Queen of Hearts”. In the game, various cards were hidden throughout the map with pictures displaying the various moments they spent together in CNYSP.

Through the activity, the graduating batch cracked the code required to progress onto the next segment, which is the long-awaited lucky draw!

Unlike typical lucky draws, this event’s Mad Hatter’s draw consisted of two parts. There was a chaos draw, which sparked excitement amongst the graduating batch as they got to increase (or decrease) the probability of winning the actual lucky draw prizes. Moving on to the actual lucky draw, there were numerous prizes to be won. There was a Nintendo Switch, a pair of GV Gold Class All-Day tickets, several tickets to different Sentosa attractions, and many more. (The website is specially coded by our talented programmer, Junius Pun!)

As they inched closer to the end of the event, Seet Ynn gave a heartening speech to her batchmates.

“Equipped with your new knowledge from your degree and CN Yang, I hope you be bold, test limits, take risks, and strive to do what you are passionate about… And everything is gonna be fine.”

~ Seet Ynn

The night finally came to an end and the graduating batch said their goodbyes. One by one, they took their leave. As you close out a momentous chapter of your lives, you begin another, a little older, a little wiser. May you look back benignly on the journey you’ve completed, and work towards your future endeavours with renewed resolve.

We hope you enjoyed the event as much as we did planning it.

Happy Graduation, Class of 2022.

CNYSP Dinner and Dance 2022: Carpe Noctem

30 Mar, 2022 | Events, Feature

BY DANISH UZAIR

CN Yang Scholars study very hard. But, did you know that they can play very hard too? Just ask them to sign up for a fun event!  

The annual CN Yang Scholar’s Club Dinner & Dance (DnD) was the first large-scale social event of the academic year. DnD 2022 was held on the Thursday of recess week to enable scholars to destress from their various commitments in a night full of fun and excitement. Due to the ongoing pandemic, the event was held online via Zoom. Nonetheless, the scholars had a ton of fun. 

The evening started with the collection of the dinner bento. Usually, DnD would be held at fancy ballrooms where the food served would be really atas. This time around, scholars flocked to the CresPion Seminar Rooms to collect their Premium 4-Course Bento Box by Rasel Catering. What was so appealing was the self-heating main course which made the food way better. 

After collection, the magical night began. The event started with an insightful pre-recorded opening address by the Director of CNYSP Prof Fan Hongjin. He gave words of encouragement to spur scholars on to achieve greater heights during their time in NTU. Then, the trailer for the event was played, introducing the theme of the event, ‘Carpe Noctem’, which means “Seize the Night”. ‘Carpe Noctem’ told the story of a time traveller who was trapped in unfamiliar eras and had only a single night to fix his time machine. After the conclusion of the trailer, the emcees, Leong Zi Wei and Chew Jin Hong, introduced themselves and got the ball rolling.

Check out the trailer here:

The next segment was the CN Yang Got Talent 2022 Segment 1. CN Yang Got Talent 2022 is a talent competition the Dinner & Dance 2022 Organising Committee organized to encourage scholars to showcase their talents. The first performance was a dance piece by Megan Lim. She danced to “Sanctuary” by Joji. Describing her performance, Megan said, “A sanctuary is a place or person which makes one feel safe, but our lives are temporary, so hold tight to your sanctuary.” 

After her mesmerizing performance, scholars were treated to “Nothing Changes” performed by Floretta Setia Pradana. Her harmony melted the hearts of scholars. 

Next came the first game, Codenames. Scholars had to work together in their pre-assigned teams to choose the correct words from a given set of words. Scholars really had fun, both by figuring out the words they had to choose and by trying to confuse the other team.  

After playing Codenames, scholars were treated to Segment 2 of CN Yang Got Talent 2022. Before the event, scholars took part in a popularity vote to determine the winner of the Song (Group) Category. First up was a performance by the second runners-up, “We only sing sad songs”, comprising of Leong Zi Wei and Leoh Khai Ken, of “Little do you know” by Alex & Sierra (check out their performance here). The runners-up, Ballad Boys comprising Junius Pun and Ryan Tan, then serenaded the audience with the song “Make You Feel My Love” by Adele (check out their performance here). Lastly, the winners, the eightysixchoco, consisting of Siow Jing Xuan and Reuben Foo, made us feel valued by singing 你最珍贵 (You’re the Most Precious) by Zhang Xue You and Gao Hui Jun (check out their performance here).

After a short break, scholars were split into different breakout rooms to play the next game, Skribbl.io. Although it seemed like a simple game, the game was intensified by pitting scholars from different teams against each other in the different Skribbl.io rooms. With points seemingly hard to get, scholars did their best to describe drawings or sketches based on given words.

After an exhilarating round of Skribbl.io, scholars were treated to a whimsical TikTok performance by the emcees. After experiencing some laughter, scholars then played the final game of the night, Dialogue Improv. Back in their teams, scholars had to come up with a conversation that had to include a few words given. The night was then filled with conversations and laughter.

At the end of the game, the lucky draw commenced. As the draw ensued, the zoom meeting was filled with noises of joy, agony, despair and anticipation. In the end, lucky scholars won prizes such as Starbucks GiftCards and Foldable Tables. The top prize was a Lumos Ray Home Projector, won by Koh Shao Ming.

The winning team, the team with the greatest number of points from the games, was revealed. That was Repair Team A, consisting of Year 3 scholars that included Zann Teo and Wong Zhen Xuan, the former president and vice-president of the 13th Management Committee. With many Year 3s winning prizes, it was a really enjoyable experience for them, especially when they could not enjoy their first DnD due to the onset of the pandemic back in early 2020.

To end the night, the chairperson of the organizing committee, Danish Uzair, and the vice-chairperson, Ryan Poon, gave heartwarming farewell speeches, thanking participants for their attendance and committee members and emcees for their hard work.

CNYSP Dinner & Dance 2022 was a fun event for scholars to celebrate their friendships and the fruits of their labour. By letting loose and immersing themselves in the myriad of games the event had to offer, they truly Seize(d) the Night.