Representatives from The Ngee Ann Kongsi and LASALLE College of the Arts with Mr Heng Swee Keat, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, at the cheque presentation ceremony for a landmark gift for the future of the arts.
LASALLE will develop a new building adjacent to its existing campus
The Ngee Ann Kongsi today announced that they will donate S$50 million to LASALLE College of the Arts – their largest-ever, single donation to date – to develop a new building for the College.
The new 12-storey building will be named The Ngee Ann Kongsi Building. It will be built on a plot of land earmarked for LASALLE, adjacent to the existing campus on McNally Street and connected to Rochor MRT station. The new unified campus is envisioned to have a glass façade that opens into the vibrant thoroughfare of Rochor Canal Road. The announcement of the new building caps off a memorable year for LASALLE, which saw the College receive its second consecutive EduTrust Star, Singapore’s highest mark of quality for a private education institution.
“The Ngee Ann Kongsi has been a part of LASALLE’s journey from its very first days in this campus. This donation reflects the dawn of a new age for our charitable arm as we expand the scope of support beyond only mainstream education – from high quality arts education and culture, to special needs education. We hope our gift will enable LASALLE to become a place of intellectual wealth, to nurture and train our future leaders in the arts and creative industries,” said Mr Richard Lee, Vice President of The Ngee Ann Kongsi and Chairman, Donation & Charity Sub-Committee.
Mr Peter Seah, Chairman of LASALLE College of the Arts said, “As LASALLE continues to grow from strength to strength, it is critical that we provide our students with an integrated environment to foster multidisciplinary practice and innovation, to prepare them well to lead change and chart the future of the arts. I am deeply grateful to The Ngee Ann Kongsi for their generosity, which will propel LASALLE into the next phase of our growth.”
The Ngee Ann Kongsi Building will house an upgraded library to hold a larger collection of books and other arts resources, film and TV studio facilities and a music recital hall that will present free concerts for members of the public. There will be new galleries on the ground floor to reach out to the community as well as specialist and flexible spaces to meet future learning and teaching needs. The public can also look forward to facilities for a wide array of Continuing Education and Training (CET) programmes for professional and personal development.
