Fr Stephen Sau-yan Chow SJ will become Provincial of the Chinese Jesuit Province on January 1, 2018. He succeeds Fr John Lee Hua SJ who has served as Provincial for the last six years.
Fr Chow hails from Hong Kong and is a seasoned educator. Before entering the Society of Jesus in 1984 in Dublin, Ireland, Fr Chow already had a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology/Philosophy and a Master of Arts in Educational Psychology (Counselling) from the University of Minnesota in the United States.
After his ordination in 1994, he obtained a Master of Science degree in Organisational Development at Loyola University, Chicago, USA, and worked at Wah Yan College Kowloon and Hong Kong for five years, from 1995 to 2000, as minister, ethics teacher, vocations director and chaplain. At Wah Yan College Hong Kong and Kowloon, he also served as school manager (trustee).
In 2000, he went to Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education to study Human Development and Psychology, and completed his Doctorate in Education in 2006.
Prior to his appointment as Provincial, Fr Chow served as Formator of scholastics in Hong Kong. Fr Chow will continue as Supervisor of Wah Yan College Hong Kong and Kowloon, positions he has held since 2006 and 2007 respectively, and as Chairman of the Chinese Province’s Education Commission.