Former chairman of E-Bridge Pre-School Ng Hark Seng dies at age 77
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Mr Ng Hark Seng died on Jan 30 from pneumonia, brought about by influenza and complicated by stage 4 lung cancer.
PHOTO: PARENTING.ETONHOUSE.EDU.SG
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SINGAPORE – Mr Ng Hark Seng, former chairman of E-Bridge Pre-School and a pivotal figure in Singapore’s early childhood education landscape, died on Jan 30.
He was 77.
One of his sons, author Ng Yi-Sheng, said in a post on Instagram on Jan 30 that his father died from pneumonia, brought about by influenza and complicated by stage 4 lung cancer.
E-Bridge Pre-school is operated by EtonHouse, an international education group based in Singapore.
The late Mr Ng was married to Dr Ng Gim Choo, founder of the EtonHouse International Education Group, and together they had three children.
In an obituary published in The Straits Times on Jan 31, EtonHouse said that Mr Ng joined the company after retiring from a career at Singapore Technologies. ST understands that he joined EtonHouse in 2006.
The private school operator said that in the 1980s, Mr Ng’s work took him and his family to London and Hong Kong. Dr Ng was so impressed by her daughter’s overseas education that she was inspired to set up EtonHouse in 1995.
In 2014, Mr Ng spearheaded the launch of E-Bridge Pre-School under the Early Childhood Development Agency’s Anchor Operator Scheme.
This initiative aims to make quality early childhood education more accessible to families in Singapore.
Under his leadership, E-Bridge expanded rapidly, growing from a single centre to more than 20 centres islandwide, serving over 8,000 children and families to date.
EtonHouse said that the company and E-Bridge staff mourn the loss of Mr Ng.
“We owe a lot to Hark Seng. Had he not taken me to London, there would be no EtonHouse today,” said Dr Ng in the obituary.
“He was a loving husband, father and grandfather, and we will miss him deeply.”
A key focus for Mr Ng was celebrating individuality and nurturing children to realise their true potential. In an interview published on the EtonHouse website, he said: “You can’t put a round peg in a square hole.”
He also believed that schools could be both affordable and of high quality. He said: “If a school is not good enough for my children or my grandchildren, I will not run it.”
In his post, Mr Ng Yi-Sheng said the family has requested that there be no wreaths or condolence gifts, and instead well-wishers have been asked to contribute to the EtonHouse Community Fund, a charity the group started in 2015 to benefit underprivileged children in Singapore.
A page titled “Condolences on the passing of Mr Ng Hark Seng” on Give.Asia, a Singapore-based fund-raising platform, said that as at Feb 3, more than $86,000 has been raised.
