MEDIA RELEASE

 

CAMPUS FOR THE COMMUNITY

Republic Polytechnic students spread the Yellow Ribbon message to help build an inclusive society

Singapore, 1 November 2007 – Living up to its name as a campus for the community, Republic Polytechnic’s students from the School of Sports, Health & Leisure (SHL) and the Centre for Innovation and Enterprise (CIE) put their problem-solving skills to great use by working together with the Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises (SCORE) to promote an inclusive society.  Their jointly organised event is the Yellow Ribbon Sports Carnival, which will be held at Toa Payoh Sports Hall.  Associate Professor (A/P) Ho Peng Kee, Senior Minister of State for Law and Home Affairs is the Guest-of-Honour.

The students’ involvement includes publicity, securing sponsorship and volunteer recruitment.  Their peers from various performing interest groups in Republic Polytechnic (RP) will also be invited to entertain the crowd.  The students credit their ability to play a key role to the unique learning environment on campus which made them effective and articulate events managers.  They are heartened by the fact that the theme which they proposed was adopted - “Breaking the Barriers”.

The chosen theme highlights the deep desire for social acceptance that ex-offenders need upon their re-entry into society.  Their longing for a new lease of life, accompanied by their genuine determination to work hard, touched the students and motivated them to do more for their fellow Singaporeans.

“RP’s approach to learning forces us out of our comfort zones. It is not about understanding theoretical concepts alone. We are encouraged to apply what we know to make a difference,” says Luke Robert Parimanam, a second year student in SHL. 

The Yellow Ribbon Sports Carnival is an annual event organised for residents of halfway houses and ex-offenders.  It was first organised in 1997 to promote healthy lifestyle amongst ex-offenders. Then, only one game was organised - futsal - and participation was limited to residents of halfway houses only.  Over time, other games such as netball and 3-on-3 basketball were included.  This year, it will be a community carnival complete with game stalls, exhibition booth, free health screening and races.  One event to note is that A/P Ho will play a friendly futsal game with representatives from the National Council Against Drug Abuse (NCADA), Yellow Ribbon Fund (YRF), SCORE, RP, Prisons and halfway houses.

It is evident that this year’s Yellow Ribbon Sports Carnival is yet another testimony of how successful the Yellow Ribbon Project has been in galvanising the community to come together to support the rehabilitation and reintegration of ex-offenders.

For media enquiries and interviews of Republic Polytechnic’s staff and students involved in organising this event, please contact:

Benjamin Chow                                

Administrative Officer, Office of Corporate Communications    

DID: 3100 1779        Mobile: (65) 9423 4423

Email: benjamin_chow@rp.sg

Emma Sue (Ms)                   

Director, QUOTIENT SG

DID: 6222 8968        Mobile: 9735 7760

Email: emma@ibrand.com.sg

For media enquiries and interviews on Yellow Ribbon Sports Carnival participants and Yellow Ribbon Project, please contact:

 

Cai Chengji

Employment Assistance Executive

DID: 68462127         Mobile: 91550443

Email: CAI_Chengji@score.gov.sg

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About Republic Polytechnic

The first educational institution in Singapore to adopt the Problem-Based Learning approach for all its diploma programmes, Republic Polytechnic has five schools and two centres offering twenty nine diploma courses in Information & Communications Technology, Engineering, Applied Science, Technology for the Arts, Sports, Health & Leisure, Innovation and Enterprise, and Culture and Communication. Republic Polytechnic is committed to nurturing innovation and entrepreneurial learning in an environment that develops problem-solving process skills and a life-long learning attitude. Its holistic, broad-based curriculum, covering culture, enterprise development and cognitive processes, prepares students for an active and meaningful role in society. Republic Polytechnic strives for excellence by achieving various national and international accreditations, including People Developer Standards, ISO9001, ISO14001, OHSAS 18001, Singapore Quality Class, Singapore Innovation Class, and the Singapore Health Awards (Gold). For more information, visit http://www.rp.sg.

About School of Sports, Health & Leisure

The School of Sports, Health & Leisure (SHL) is the newest and latest school set up in Republic Polytechnic. Launched in December 2005, the school is the first in Singapore to focus on the niche sectors of sports, health and leisure. SHL offers three full-time diplomas – Diploma in Sports & Exercise Sciences (DSES), Diploma in Sports & Leisure Management (DSLM) and Diploma in Outdoor & Adventure Learning (DOAL). SHL also runs Specialist Diploma programmes in Sports & Exercise Sciences (SD-SES) and Sports & Leisure Management (SD-SLM). For more information on SHL, visit http://www.rp.sg/shl.

About Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises

The Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises (SCORE) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Home Affairs. SCORE’s mission is to rehabilitate and help reintegrate offenders to become responsible and contributing members of society. SCORE is the secretariat of the Yellow Ribbon Project.

About the Yellow Ribbon Project

The Yellow Ribbon Project (YRP) is a nation-wide campaign to raise the awareness of Singapore’s community towards difficulties faced by ex-offenders and their loved ones, during the journey towards integration. The project has 3 goals; represented by the 3 ‘A’s

§         Create Awareness of giving second chances to ex-offenders.

§         Generate Acceptance of ex-offenders and their families into the community.

§         Inspire community Action to support the rehabilitation and reintegration of ex-offenders.

It was started by member agencies of the Community Action for the Rehabilitation of Ex-Offenders (CARE) Network in October 2004.  CARE Network was formed in May 2000 to improve the effectiveness of rehabilitation for ex-offenders in Singapore. The organising of the YRP is in line with its vision and one of its objectives of seeking to engage the community in rehabilitation. The CARE Network is made up of the following agencies: Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports, Singapore Prisons Services, Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises, National Council of Social Services, Industrial & Services Co-operative Society Ltd, Singapore After-Care Association, Singapore Anti-Narcotics Association.

 About the Yellow Ribbon Sports Carnival

Since 1997, SCORE has assisted halfway houses in organizing an annual futsal (5-aside indoor soccer) tournament to promote healthy lifestyle to their clients[1]. New sporting activities such as netball and 3-on-3 basketball were included over the years to increase the level of participation.  Participation in these tournaments was also extended to the Singapore Anti-Narcotics Association, Singapore After-Care Association, youth clubs and other ex-offenders. 

In line with the Yellow Ribbon Project to inspire community action in the rehabilitation and reintegration of ex-offenders, students from another polytechnic co-organised the event with SCORE in 2005 and 2006.  This year, students from Republic Polytechnic (RP) have taken up the challenge of organizing the event.  There will be 7 teams participating in the 3-on-3 basketball tournament, 8 teams competing in the futsal tournament and 4 teams participating in the netball tournament.  The day’s programme is as follows: