Latest news with #KeningauVocationalCollege
Borneo Post
27-05-2025
- Business
- Borneo Post
Sabah students shine at Social Project Challenge 2025
The Sabah school teams gathered for a photo opportunity before their turns for the elevator pitch. KOTA KINABALU (May 27): Three teams of 17-year-old aspiring changemakers studying at All Saints Secondary School, Kota Kinabalu, and Keningau Vocational College emerged as grantees for Social Project Challenge 2025 hosted by myHarapan and sponsored by Yayasan Telekom Malaysia (TM) during the bootcamp and pitch contest from May 23 until May 25 at Crystal Crown Hotel, Petaling Jaya, Selangor. There were 15 shortlisted teams nationwide and 10 teams were chosen to receive grants of RM800 to carry out their social projects in the next three months. The teams were initially shortlisted from 70 entries from 30 teams who attended online training and pitched their ideas before the list was further narrowed down to 15 teams who were fully sponsored to attend a three-day physical bootcamp followed by an elevator pitch. They were given the exact five minutes to present their ideas and another 10 minutes for the judges to ask the presenters questions. All Saints' all-male quartet pitched their Mini H20 Purifier, a water filter which they designed for rural villagers in Sabah who have a limited access to clean water. The team members were Boy Foo E Nang, Ryan Adriel, Mirza Abreshyam and Joshua Robin. There were two teams from Keningau Vocational College (KVC) who made it to the list of the 10 winners. The first team developed a project titled Sign & Tell which intends to teach sign language to hearing school students and teachers so they can communicate better with hearing-impaired individuals for a more inclusive environment. This team was made up of five female students – Victoria Jacob, Rosselina Senora, Iris Sofea, Daffeny Jeanne and Aleysa Felix. The second team consisted of three students and they were Nur Adawiyah Balqis, Nur Syaidattul Akma and Syehekeel Daniel Hanry who developed a food and paper waste management system in collaboration with a local farm. They named their project Waste 2 Awareness. The All Saints Secondary School's team was coached and managed by Siti Azizah Md Yussof while the teams from Keningau Vocational College were chaperoned and mentored by Vienny Balakrishnan and Dr Sirhajwan Idek. These 10 winners will be presenting their projects again after the three-month implementation phase at another event and the success of their projects might secure them more grants with greater amount to further scale up their social projects. The Social Project Challenge (SPC) is a programme that seeks to introduce youth to social entrepreneurship and equip them with skills as well as provide them the resources including grants and network to kickstart their social enterprises. This programme has been initiated by myHarapan also known as Youth Trust Foundation which is a not-for-profit association established to empower young Malaysians by supporting youth projects and initiatives that lead to better nation-building.
The Star
22-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Teen chef with a taste for sustainable business
Delicious outcome: Thomas (left) and his teammate Danish showing their Serusik product. KOTA KINABALU: While many teenagers are still figuring out their future, Thiery Christian Thomas already has his path mapped out. 'I want to be a social entrepreneur one day,' said the 18-year-old third-year culinary arts student at the Keningau Vocational College (KVC). He recently led his team to clinch the overall champion title in the secondary school category in the international Greenovate 2025 competition. Greenovate is an annual competition that challenges students to address real-world obstacles in property and engineering with cutting-edge green thinking. Thomas rose to the challenge by captaining a team comprising his classmate Danish Asyraf and three final-year students currently interning in the industry – Danial Jauhari Sidar, Faiz Asmaan Hamizan and Iqwan Qhairi Naidu – to create their award-winning product, Serusik. The name Serusik is a combination of serunding (meat floss) and sisik (fish scales) made into a tasty and sustainable protein snack. 'This will not only tackle food waste but also transform it into a delicious, marketable delicacy,' said the Tamparuli-born student, who is the middle child among three brothers. Thomas' passion for business is inspired by his father, who runs a clothing printing business. With strong support from his mother, a secondary school teacher, Thomas is confident that his dream is within reach. 'To me, entrepreneurship is not just about making money. It is about solving problems and turning everyday challenges into opportunities. 'I feel really proud and amazed to win the competition. 'Being an entrepreneur at this age is stressful, especially with classes, co-curricular activities and student council duties, but it is a fresh experience that can shape us into better entrepreneurs,' said Thomas, who is also student council president. He said the idea for Serusik came after he noticed that fish scales were often discarded and ended up clogging pipes. 'When I noticed how much fish waste was being thrown away, I knew there had to be a better way to deal with it,' he explained. So, the five culinary arts students brainstormed, developed and tested the product, which has already been sold via pre-orders and small-scale marketing, marking Thomas' first business venture. Their mentor, teacher Dr Mohd Sirhajwan Idek, described Thomas as a natural leader and a role model for vocational students. 'He is not only academically excellent, but also leads with heart, vision and purpose. Our goal is to produce entrepreneurs. Students like him show us it is possible even before they graduate. 'We are turning this product into our college's flagship product,' he said. The team's effort did not go unnoticed as KVC director Lumang Lang also congratulated them for their dedication in applying their culinary skills to develop an innovation that not only has commercial potential but also addresses environmental issues. Despite his many achievements, including past success with a Nyonya-inspired burger patty and as a decorated karate athlete, Thomas remains humble. 'This win is a win for everyone at KVC, and I hope that it will inspire my fellow classmates to continue their creativity because being creative is gold itself,' he said.
The Star
22-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Sabah teens win Greenovate 2025 with meat floss made of fish scales
KOTA KINABALU: A group of teens from Keningau Vocational College has clinched top honours at the international Greenovate 2025 competition with their groundbreaking creation - Serusik, a sustainable meat floss made from fish scales. Thiery Christian Thomas captained his team, comprising classmate Danish Asyraf and three final-year students, Danial Jauhari Sidar, Faiz Asmaan Hamizan, and Iqwan Qhairi Naidu, to be crowned overall champion of Greenovate 2025 in the regenerative design category for the secondary school group. Greenovatte is an annual competition that challenges students to address real-world obstacles in property and engineering with cutting-edge green thinking. The results were announced last Friday (May 16) on organiser Hong Kong-based Asia Pacific Children and Youth Talent Association's website. Thomas said the name Serusik combines serunding, a traditional meat floss, and sisik (fish scales), reinvented into a sustainable and tasty protein snack. 'This will not only tackle food waste, but transform it into a delicious, marketable delicacy,' said the Tamparuli-born student, who is the middle child among three brothers. Thomas said the idea for Serusik came after noticing that fish scales were often discarded and sometimes caused clogged pipes. 'When we noticed how much fish waste was thrown away, especially scales that were hard to clean and clogged pipes, I knew there had to be a better way to deal with it,' he said. So the five Culinary Arts students brainstormed, developed and tested the product, which has already been sold via pre-orders and small-scale marketing, marking their first business venture. Their mentor, teacher Dr Mohd Sirhajwan Idek, described Thomas as a natural leader and a role model for vocational students. 'He is not only academically excellent, but also leads with heart, vision and purpose. Our goal is to produce entrepreneurs, and students like him show us it is possible even before they graduate,' said Sirhajwan. 'We are turning this product into our college's flagship product. This is also part of our target, which is to produce entrepreneurs,' said Sirhajwan. The team's effort did not go unnoticed as KVC director Lumang Lang also congratulated them for their dedication in applying their culinary skills to develop an innovation that not only has commercial potential but also addresses environmental issues. Despite his many achievements, including past success with a Nyonya-inspired burger patty and as a decorated karate athlete, Thomas remains humble. 'This win is a win for everyone at KVC, and I hope that it will inspire my fellow classmates to continue their creativity because being creative is gold itself,' he said.
Borneo Post
18-05-2025
- Business
- Borneo Post
Sabah students create meat floss from fish scale
Thiery (left) and Danish showing their product. KOTA KINABALU (May 18): A group of students from Keningau Vocational College (KVC) has been crowned the overall champion of the Greenovate 2025 competition in the regenerative design category for the secondary school group, with their food innovation called 'Serusik'. This international online competition was organized by the Hong-Kong based Asia Pacific Children and Youth Talent Association and it was divided into two main categories: artistic design and regenerative design. Its main goal is to encourage ideation that helps protect the environment. The official results were announced on May 16, 2025, on its website: The team consists of five students from the Culinary Arts program, two second-year students, Thiery Christian and Danish Asyraf, and three final-year students, Danial Jauhari Sidar, Faiz Asmaan Hamizan and Iqwan Qhairi Naidu who are currently undergoing interning in the industry. They created a type of meat floss locally known as serunding made from fish scale waste which has received positive feedback from the local community. They have also successfully sold the product and made a profit. The idea came about when they realized that fish scales are a common waste in food preparation and these tiny scales are often problematic in kitchens due to their strong fishy smell, fine texture, and sliminess which makes them difficult to clean and they tend to clog drains and pipes. This project is one of the college's initiatives to venture into social entrepreneurship by recycling and reusing waste materials to turn them into marketable products. The project was also the winner of the Reimagine Waste competition organized by Catalyst of Change ASEAN several months ago. The college director, Lumang Anak Lang, congratulated the team for their dedication in applying their culinary skills to develop an innovation that not only has commercial potential but also addresses environmental issues. He stated that such success is in line with the educational goals of vocational colleges under the Ministry of Education with the target of producing entrepreneurs among the graduates. Video link:
Borneo Post
13-05-2025
- General
- Borneo Post
Five Sabah Students publish English articles in Indonesian magazine
From left: Jeorgienn Yvelle, Rabiatul Adawiyah, Syehekeel Daniel Hanry, Nurul Huriyah Mahirin and Rosselina Senora Ungkak. KOTA KINABALU (May 13): Five Sabahan youths who are studying at Keningau Vocational College (KVC) have published articles themed around World Book Day in an English language magazine issued by an educational institution in Indonesia, STKIP PGRI Pacitan. The latest edition of the magazine known as E-Magz which features these articles was released on April 30, 2025, and it can be accessed via the link: These students are from various vocational programs including early childhood education, cosmetology, bakery and pastry, and business management. Their articles discuss the role of books in human civilization, the importance of reading culture in society, and the practice of writing personal life stories. They are Jeorgienn Yvelle, Syehekeel Daniel Hanry, Rosselina Senora Ungkak, Nurul Huriyah Mahirin and Rabiatul Adawiyah Hardy. These authors drafted and completed their articles in English with the guidance from their teacher who served as the editor and mentor. After finalizing their articles, they submitted them to the magazine, which eventually accepted them for publication. The magazine is published once every two months and only selects six articles for each edition out of all submissions. The college director, Lumang Anak Lang, expressed pride and joy over this achievement since language and writing skills are essential for all students and this is a great platform for students to develop their skills further. He hopes that the college's students will continue to hone their talents and seek appropriate platforms to apply the skills they have learned and this includes their English language skills.
