UTAR Sungai Long Toastmasters Club wins award

From left: Chang, Eric Fong, Lau and Teo Wei Han

The District 102 Toastmasters Hall of Fame was recently held at WP Hotel, Kuala Lumpur on 28 July 2019. The event aimed to recognise the efforts and achievements of all district leaders, special appointees and distinguished clubs of 2018/2019 term. Selected club presidents were invited to receive awards for achieving their Distinguished Club Programme (DCP) goals.

UTAR Sungai Long Toastmasters Club was awarded President’s Distinguished Club Award, the highest award given by Toastmasters International to recognise and reward clubs that maintain a higher standard of service to their members and the community for the term 2018/2019. Representing UTAR Sungai Long Toastmasters Club to receive the award was Eric Fong Mun Lek, the club president for the term 2018/19.He is currently pursuing his Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, UTAR.

“It was an honour to receive the President’s Distinguished Club Award,” Eric Fong said and added, “There were three awards altogether, namely “Distinguished”, “Select Distinguished” and “President’s Distinguished” which is the highest of all. In order to qualify for the awards, the club has to maintain a good club membership and achieve the goals set by Toastmasters International which include being consistent in academic achievement, maintaining a strong membership, conducting regular club officer training and having good club administration.”

He added, “I would like to thank my fellow club members for giving me this opportunity to serve as the club president. When I first became the club president, the club was facing great difficulties to achieve all the goals. However, I took this as an opportunity for me to test my communication, leadership, and management skills. At first, I thought that it was an insurmountable task. However, I was dedicated to achieving the highest club status. I worked closely with the club officers to develop a plan and we successfully rectified the situation. Team collaboration was the key to success.”

The key committees who drove the club to the great achievement against all odds were Eric Fong; Chang Hong Pin, Vice President of Education 2018/19, and Lau Kin Hoong, Vice President of Public Relations 2018/19. Chang is currently pursuing his Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering. Lau, on the other hand, is pursuing his Bachelor’s degree in Mechatronics Engineering. They are both students of Lee Kong Chian Faculty of Engineering and Science.

From left: District 102 Club Growth Director 2018/19 Lee Meng Tze, William Lau, Eric Fong and District 102 Programme Quality Director 2018/19 Dr Yvonne Leong

Toastmasters International rated its clubs on how well they encourage members to pursue their personal public speaking and leadership goals. This is the first time that the club has achieved such an award after the club was chartered three years ago on 1 April 2016. The award was presented by District 102 Director 2018/2019 Dr William Lau.

Eric Fong further added, “I would encourage UTAR students to join our club. Upon joining the Toastmasters Club, students will be able to develop public speaking, communication, leadership and management skills besides boosting their confidence. Toastmasters has education programmes that allow members to learn at their own pace. Hence, Toastmasters club is suitable for both beginners and advanced speakers.”

The Distinguished Club Programme is an annual programme. The award above was based on the achievements attained from 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019. The programme consists of 10 goals for each club to obtain. At year-end, the number of goals the club achieved is calculated. Based on the goals met and whether or not the qualifying requirement has been met, the club may be recognised as a Distinguished, Select Distinguished or President’s Distinguished Club.

For more info on UTAR Sungai Long Toastmasters Club, please visit their Facebook page.