Gong Hei Fat Choy, HKIS!

As the celebrations come to a close and the weather FINALLY warm up by a few degrees, the time has come for us to dust off our alarm clocks and open our molding textbooks. I too, have slowly begun to wake from my week-long hibernation and got my brain working for once--writing with a pencil now is really awkward!

The Senate welcomes you all back to a fresh start to school. Just as the third quarter began to heat up with academics, the break provided a refreshing break to rest the brain from exams, etc. We hope all of you were able to find a fresh focus and order to begin anew.

As the year slowly progresses, you will notice and feel the pressure as assignments and overseas trips are squeezed tightly in between numerous breaks and school events. As you take on task after task, please always remember to rest well and stay healthy! A healthy body means a healthy mind (I don't see this being a worry for you seniors).

I and the rest of the Senate hope to see you all healthy on Monday. We wish you a restful Sunday, and good health.

Charles Kim
Presiding Officer

This new and shiny website was named @senate in the style of popular social networking service Twitter (and now Facebook) because it represents a new attitude and outlook for the Senate. It represents our commitment to be more connected to the student body. If you recall last year's elections, "communication" was the big buzz word thrown around a lot. Now we're supporting that sentiment with action.

I'll spare you from a long geeky spiel and just say that we're bringing the Senate into the age of Web 2.0 -- no longer will we be represented by the static, rarely-updated website of yesteryear. Instead, @senate is dynamic and interactive, letting you take part in the discussion. If we are to be your representatives, we must tune in to your opinions. Through blog comments and forums, this site will provide that channel.

While you're at it, follow us on Twitter and subscribe to our YouTube channel. Along with the website, these outlets will keep you in the loop with the Senate's activities. After all, communication is a two-way street: you keep us informed so we can better represent you, and we'll keep you informed of our progress. We even have various RSS feeds (look for these buttons ) so that you'll never miss an update.

So what exactly can you do here at the moment? Well...

• Find out what we're all about
• See what your class officers have been up to
• Read minutes from all the meetings so far

We hope you enjoy the new website. As always, direct all of your questions, opinions, and suggestions to hssenate@hkis.edu.hk. How are we doing? How can we improve? Help us better serve you. You could even try out the site's new capabilities and post a comment below. Thank you for your support!