Teaching is only one aspect. A teacher learns by teaching and receiving feedback from the students. A teacher should be a life long learner.
Learning is another aspect. We should not encourage Rote Learning and mindless repetition. “Learning how to learn” and similar courses propose efficient and effective techniques.
Degree
Liberal education is usually offered at the Bachelor’s level.
A university degree was necessary for getting decent jobs. Now, there are some companies that do not mandate a university degree for selected jobs.
Disciplines
In the beginning, there were no computers and no Computer Science. Among the computer pioneers were engineers, mathematicians, physicists, psychologists, and linguists.
Edgser W. Dijkstra, who won the ACM Turing Award (equivalent of Nobel Prize in Computer Science), had to put “Theoretical Physicist” in his marriage license instead of “Programmer” or “Computer Scientist”.
The same is true for any emerging discipline.
Research and Development transcends multiple disciplines. It requires collaboration.
Main Facebook pages
For relatives and close friends
For not-so-close friends
RIT Updates
Member of selected pages
Old Burma
RIT Updates
Lifelong Learning
Memories
Myanmar
I used to be a member of the following:
ကံ့ကော်မြေ (ရာပြည့်တက္ကသိုလ်)
စကားပရိယာယ်
စွယ်တော်ရိပ်ဖေါင်ဒေးရှင်း
NorCal RITAA
P.B.R.S Group
RIT 69ers
Team Old School IT
YUBC Old Members
Buddhism Q&A
Proper use of “Like” button
Some users use the “Like” button indiscriminately.
Puzzled to see Likes in an Obituary posting. Shouldn’t one be sad?
Before clicking “Like”, check if the posting is current or old, and determine if the contents are really likeable.
Malware
Malicious software industry is responsible for losses (in down time, data corruption, identity theft) in the billions.
According to one report, the industry is more profitable and safer than the drug dealing.
The penalty of offenders for malicious software is “peanuts” (e.g. little or no jail time) compared to drug dealers (e.g. life imprisonment and death penalty) in most countries.
Option
One should be aware of “opt-in” versus “opt-out” options.
Many do not read “fine print”.
Retire vs. Re-tire
U Thaung Sein (Steeve Kay, EC70) is a Multiple Golden Sponsor of SPZPs.
He told me, “You should not retire. You may re-tire (as in re-threading a tire). We will try to support you and your projects
I am retired from working to make ends meet.
I am re-tiring as long as my physical and mental health permit.
Took a few on-line courses (for credit) Too taxing and slow; Opted to audit 100+ courses (covering many subjects)
Listen to one Blinkist every day
Listened to Merriam Webster’s Word of the day (WOTD) Podcast every day.
Ride stationary bike for 30 minutes every day.
Write or revise several posts every day.
Salutation
Context and culture dependent.
We call some old unrelated people as “Uncle” and “Auntie”.
At St. Paul’s High School, we call our sayas without the formal U. e.g. Saya Sein
I was reprimanded by a reader for writing Saya Aung Khin instead of Saya U Aung Khin or Sayagyi U Aung Khin.
A visiting German wanted to be addressed as “Professor Doctor” (not just Professor or Doctor).
Saya Allen Htay was told not use “Mr” in Netherlands. He was asked to use “Ingr” (for Engineer).
Early surgeons in the UK were not necessarily doctors. So they did not force people to address them as Doctor
People who have Honorary Doctorates usually put “Honoris Causa” (meaning the degree was awarded for esteem).
Speed and Scope of Writing
A friend said, “You write too fast and too much. Slow down.”
A few said, “We have read every post”.
One said, “Cover topics of interest to the general reader, not just engineers and scientists”.
One can please some readers all of the time, and all readers some of the time, but one cannot please every reader all of the time.
I am just disseminating the teachings of Thin Sayas, Myin Sayas, Kyar Sayas
Saya U Myat Htoo (C68) passed away peacefully on June 9, 2026. May he be bound for a higher abode.
University Days
Attended I.Sc at Mandalay University
Graduated with Civil Engineering in 1968
Joined Faculty
Moved to the USA
Retired from CalTran
Spouse : Daw Hnin Maung Maung / Ma Ku
Activities
SF Bay Area Alumni Group
Founding member of RIT Alumni International
SPZP-2000
Master of Ceremonies for SPZP-2000
Wrote about the SPZP-2000 experience in the Post Reunion series.
U Myat Htoo (Right)NorCal RITAA
Founding member of NorCal RITAA
Chair of BOD (Board of Directors)
Hosted NorCal RITAA lunch meetings. He would invite the attendees to take a boat ride on the nearby man-made lake. He would also arrange a karaoke session.
Past President of Burmese American Democratic Alliance (BADA)
President of Theravada Buddhist Society of America (TBSA) for a decade. Led the procession for the scattering of ashes of Sayadaw U Silananda into the San Francisco Bay near the Golden Gate Bridge.
Lost Neikan RIT
Wrote a parody on “Pyauk Sone Nay Thaw Neikban Bon” (the song by Sai Kham Leik and Sai Htee Saing).
LA Reunion
Played the Ukelele and sang the song described above at the 2015 Alumni Reunion in Los Angeles.
Ukelele
Donation
Donated Life Vests to 20 teachers in the town of Paletwa in Chin Special Division, Myanmar.
The teachers risked their lives daily crossing Kaladan river to teach children on the other side of the town.
One teacher was killed in a boat mishap in surging waters during heavy rains. A life jacket would have saved her life.
Golden Jubilee
On May 20, 2018, the BOD (Board of Directors) and EC (Executive Committee) members of NorCal RITAA threw a surprise party to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of U Myat Htoo (C68, Chair of BOD) and Daw Hnin Maung Maung (Ma Ku, “Nyima Lay”).
According to Saya, he was the youngest in his family and wanted a younger sibling (preferably a sister).
He found an innocent 9 year old neighbor (and family friend).
Maung Nyunt Htay (Ah Htet Min Hla) မောင်ညွန့်ဌေး အထက်မင်းလှ — Saya U Nyunt Htay (Met73)
Ko Toe Hmit Che ကိုတိုး မြစ်ခြေ— U Toe Aung (C73)
Maung Yit မောင်ရစ် — U Maung Maung Win (EC93)
Nick Names
U Seit To and Myauk Nyo ဦးစိတ်တို နဲ့ မျောက်ညို
Cartoon characters
According to Saya U Tin Myint (M80), the nicknames were given to two sayas by G-Hall Thu
Myauk Phyu မျောက်ဖြူ
White monkey
Ah Yan Kan အရမ်းကန်
Random kicking footballer
Bo Daw ဘိုးတော်
Could be sarcastic
Saya Maung ဆရာမောင်
Given by a girl to her teacher/boy friend
Tar Tay Gyi တာတေကြီး
Reference to an actor for scary movies
Dauk Soe ဒေါက်စိုး
Dr. Soe Myint Win (GNBF) was called Dauk Soe by some students
Nyi Nyi & Pho Nyi ညီညီ နဲ့ ဖိုးညီ
Nyi Nyi may be used in a name e.g. Dr. Nyi Nyi
Nyi Nyi & Pho Nyi are used as nicknames, e.g. Than Htut (M67, RUBC Gold)
Sonny ဆန်နီ
May be used in a name, e.g. Sonny Yone Sein
May also be used as a nickname, e.g. “Sonny” Aung Myint, “Sonny” Soe Naing
Lake or Leit လိပ်
U Win Maung (EE69er) represented RIT in Rowing, Swimming and Water Polo. He is a Back Stroke specialist. He swam the 2000 meters Cross-Lake with Back Stroke. He is known as “Lake” or “Leit” (Tortoise in reference to his Back Stroke swimming). U Htay Aung (M69, Burma Selected) and several others using Front Crawl finish quite ahead of Leit. Before graduation, he went to UK for license & training in air craft maintenance. He joined UBA/BAC. He is now an entrepreneur doing family business.
Khwet ခွက်
U Sein Myint (K K Wong, EP69) represented RIT in Rowing, Swimming & Water Polo. Someone transformed his name “Kwet” into “Khwet”. He is a major donor of the 69er Health Care Fund and the EE69er HCF. After retirement, he spends time in Singapore, Yangon and California.
Htaw Kyin ထော်ကြင်
U Htin Kyaw (Peter Wun, MEHS63) worked for the Institute of Economics and UCC before joining HIC and FERD. He was called “Htaw Kyin”. Some British could not pronounce his name. They called him “Ha Htin Coil”.
Kyein ကြိမ်း
U Kyaw Nyein (GBNF) taught Numerical Methods & Numerical Analysis at UCC. He played soccer and volley ball. He was fondly called “Kyein”.
Bo Shoke ဗိုလ်ရှုပ်
U Mya Thein (GBNF) taught at the Institute of Economics, UCC and ITMBU. He was originally called “Bogyoke” and later became known as “Bo Shoke”.
Ah Thay Lay အသေးလေး
U Thein Oo taught at the Institute of Economics and UCC. His friends called him “Ah Thay Lay”. He was good at volleyball, table tennis and cards.
Ah Pho Gyi အဖိုးကြီး
Tin Maung Thant (son of UNSG U Thant) was called Ah Pho Gyee by his PPBRS classmates
U Han Sein (C69, GBNF)
Shwee ရွှီး
U Kyaw Zan Hein (C69, GBNF) was admitted to the 2nd BE in 1964 as Roll Number 14. There were no word processors in those days; only the use of cyclostyle (Gestener). So, when the person who was admitted as Roll Number 14 did not join RIT, the Admin Office typed in Shwee’s name instead. Some would call him Kyaw Zan Shwee.
Ngu Yin Kong Kee
ငုယင်ကောင်ကီး
Burmanized name of a Vietnamese General
Saya U Win Kyaing (GBNF) is uncle of Maurice Chee (M75). He is often called Ngu Yin Kong Kee. He was also known as Wah Kyaing, younger brother of Wah Kyu.
Hna Khan Hmwe နှုတ်ခမ်းမွှေး
Some have notable mustache
One such person was Ko Khin Nyo, “Kyaung Tha Thadin Htauk (Student Reporter at RIT)”. According to Ko Zaw Min Nawaday (EP70), he met — several decades later — Ko Khin Nyi without mustache in New York, USA
Pauk Si ပေါက်စီ
U Hla Min (L T Gwan, SPHS64, EP70, GBNF) joined UCC as Chief Operator. He was called CO by his colleagues and “Pauk Si” by his close friends. His father loaned money to a Pauk Si vendor, who did not pay back the loan. At break time at SPHS, he would get Pauk Si from the vendor.
Pauk Pauk ပေါက်ပေါက်
Daw Aye Aye Than (ChE72) is the sister of Sayama Dr. Hla Hla Sein (Maths) and Ma Myint Myint Sein (Diana, M70). Her friends called her Pauk Pauk.
Bu ဘူး
U Myint Maung (EP69) is one of the young 69ers and one of the few Eligible Bachelors. He represented RIT EE Department in Volleyball along with Saw Edison, U Aye Thein & U Maung Maung. He was called “Bu” in reference to “Minbu” (his home town).
Shastri ရှပ်စတြီ
U Khin Maung Myint (C69, GBNF) was called Shastri (former Prime Minister of India).
Ohn Thee အုန်းသီး
U Ohn Thwin (PPFC, GBNF) attended classes at UCC & BARB. He was called “Ohn Thee” (Coconut) by his friends.
May Pa Le မေပုလဲ
Daw Yee Yee Aung
“မေပုလဲ” is a two-handed compliment given to selected female RIT students. e.g. Daw Yee Yee Aung (EP67, EC member of RIT EE Association)
It means Miss Pearl (a belle who is Pearly White).
It’s concoction “Mae Pa Le မဲပလေ” means “Wow. So dark [complexion]”.
Rocket ရော့ကက် ဒုံးပျံ
U Ko Gyi was a Lecturing Tutor in Maths. He is known for reciting the first 100 digits of PI (a constant which is 3.14159265 …). He used Rocket as an example in his classes. For some reason, he named Tin Tin Myint (Emma, ChE70) as “Rocket”. Classmates who witnessed the naming might provide details.
Emma is co-founder of Triple Gems Publication. She is also co-founder of Dana Sri Lanka (DSL). She is called Mae Daw Gyi မယ်တော်ကြီး by the young monks studying in Sri Lanka.
La La လာ လား
It is a form of “Kala” or “Kular” (Person of dark color).
Some young dark skinned kids (e.g. Aye Win Hlaing (Abel, EE72)) are given the nickname “La La”.
Ajala အာဂျလာ
He was a Nigerian student who led demonstrations in front of the US Embassy in Rangoon (in our younger days).
U Moe Hein (ChE69) represented RIT in swimming & water polo. He has a loud voice (which is very helpful in supporting RIT athletes in the Inter-Institute Tournaments). He is called Ajala by his close friends.
Maung Kabar မောင်ကမ္ဘာ
Obituary of Kabar Myint Thein
Maung Kabar was an adorable Cartoon character.
Those who have slightly round faces are called “Maung Kabar” or “Kabar”.
Saya U Myint Soe (SPHS64, C68, GBNF) was named “Maung Kabar”.
U Myint Thein (M69) is also known as “Maung Kabar”. It appeared in the Obituary.
Bagyi Aung ဘကြီးအောင်
Fictional character from Min Thu Wun’s short story.
U Hla Aung (EP68) wrote : May I share our time nick names. May Pa Le is Yee Yee Aung (EP67). Her friend is Nancy Hla Aung. My nick name is Ba Gyi Aung.
Three Sizes
In Mechanical Drawing, we learned about scales.
One student gave the nicknames “Half size, Full size and Double size” to three female students.
Sayama Daw Mya Mya Than (EP68, GBNF) was “Full size”. Daw Nyunt Nyunt Zaw (T68, GBNF) was “Double Size”. Daw Cho (?) was “ Half Size”.
Sargalay & Lada စာကလေး နဲ့ လဒ
Sargalay is a sparrow. Lada is a vulture.
U Khin Maung Win (EP69, GBNF) was the training partner for Sai Kham Pan (EP69, Burma Selected in Badminton). Kham Pan would give him 10 – 12 points bonus to play a 15-point game.
At a reunion, Daw Saw Yu Tint addressed Khin Maung Win as Sargalay. He replied, “I am now a Lada”. He gained a lot of height from 2nd BE to Final Year.
The nickname allows 69ers to differentiate Khin Maung Wins — Sargalay, Roland Thein, Donald Ba Pe and ChE Kyet.
Most 69ers might remember the cartoon by Kyant Ba Hone Aung Myint (Pet69). “Ah Ba. Kar Ku La Thin Char (Calculus) is very fascinating. If we differentiate a Lada, we get a Sargalay. If we integrate a Sargalay, we get a Lada.”
Kywei Gyi ကျွဲကြီး
Kywei Gyi is a big, strong Buffalo.
U Khin Maung Lay (Henry, T68) was Secretary of RIT Track & Field Association. He competed in 100m, 200m, 4 x 100m relay and Long Jump (emulating Jesse Owens at the 1936 Berlin Olympics). He represented RIT in Track & Field, Soccer and Rowing. He is called “Kywei Gyi” for his physical prowess. His elder brother Ko Khin Maung Latt (M63) represented the Faculty of Engineering in Rowing.
Mu Tu မူတူး
U Khin Maung Lay (M70) represented RIT in soccer. He was emcee (Master of Ceremonies) at the Reunion & Acariya Pu Zaw Pwe of the Combined 1st BE Intake of 64 and 65. He was a member of the Myanmar Human Rights Commission. He is the son of U Khin Maung Latt (AFPFL Minister) and younger brother of Saya U Khin Maung Gyi (English, GBNF).
Phone Gyi ဘုန်းကြီး
Several alumni are called “Phone Gyi” (Monk) by their friends.
U Tin Tun (SPHS63, M69) was my classmate since Std. IV(D) at SPHS. His mother Daw Tin Tin would come and feed him at lunch break. He studied and taught Marine Engineering.
Tin Htoon
U Tin Shein (M69) and I were classmates at the 2nd BE English class of Saya Des. He gave a talk on Chinlon. He represented RIT in Chinlon.
U Soe Myint (M72, GBNF) volunteered as a Kappiya at the Kaba Aye Sun Lun Gu Kyaung. He helped with the maintenance. He retired as Pro-Rector of ICST.
Soe Myint (3rd from Right)
Chauk Pay ခြောက်ပေ
Some tall students are called Chauk Pay (Six Footer).
U Htein Win (Richard, M70) represented RIT in Rowing, Swimming & Water Polo. He tended the goal at the Shallow End. He moved to Canada. He bought tickets for SPZP-2000, but could not attend due to a strike.
Ja Bu & Shorty ဂျပု နဲ့ ရှော်တီ
Some short students are called Ja Bu (Midget) or Shorty.
U Myint Sein (M70, GBNF) represented RIT in Soccer.
There were two Bohmus named “Shorty” Tin Myint.
Japan Gyi ဂျပန်ကြီး
Some who were born during the Japanese Occupation were given Japan Gyi as their nick name.
U Hla Tun (T69, GBNF) would end most sentences with an expletive. He married Dolly Gale (my primary school classmate).
Cowboy ကောင်းဘွိုင်
U Tin Nwe (C69, GBNF) was a jovial person and was called Cowboy by his friends.
Three Paulians — Tin Nwe, Min Thaw (Gilbert) & Maung Maung Aye — were involved in a car accident after an OPA dinner gathering, but they were not hurt seriously. Sadly, they are now all GBNF.
Duwa ဒူးဝါး
It is a title for a Kachin Leader.
U Zau Lai (EP69) spends time in Myitkyina & Yangon. He is an entrepreneur & a Kachin Leader. He often drove a long way from Myitkyina to attend the 69er gatherings.
Zau Lai
Bei Oo ဘဲဥ
It is a “Duck Egg”. It may also stand for “Zero”.
Daw Kyi Kyi Sein (T70) represented RIT in Badminton & Hiking. She is an organizer for the Combined 1st BE Intake of 64 and 65.
Kyi Kyi Sein (Seated 3rd from Left)
Kyet Taw ကြက်တော
I know some people named Kyet Taw. They may have “Taw” in their names.
Harry Taw (MEHS57) was a friend of my older brother.
Dr. Nyan Taw (Dicky, SPHS63) was my neighbor for some time. We jogged, biked and rowed. He worked at RASU, Pearl & Fishery before moving overseas for assignments. He invited me to the wedding receptions of his younger son and daughter.
U Khin Maung Lwin is an organizer for the Class of 87 & 91. RIT was closed for three years. He organized the Golf Tournament for the alumni. He served as Secretary of the Swel Daw Yeik Foundation.
Saya San ဆရာစံ
He is a revolutionary figure in the history of Burma.
U Maung San studied his Masters in the UK. He often shopped in the “Junior” section. He taught Geology at RIT & Assumption University.
I met U Aung Than (Saya San) at a meeting for the Combined 1st BE Intake of 64 and 65. He told me that he had to study for the last ever 7th Standard Government examination.
Gaing Gyi ဂိုင်ကြီး
The Burmese sometimes pronounce “Kyaw” as “Gyaw”; “Kyee” as “Gyee” and “Khine” as “Gaing”.
U Ohn Khine (M70) was named Ohn Gaing at St. Peter’s High School in Mandalay. He was called “Gaing Gyi” by some friends. He is the founder and moderator of the Google Group for the intake of 64 and 65. He volunteered for SPZP-2012, Shwe YaDu, SPZP-2016, SDYF, HMEE-2012 and HMEE-2016. He translated Section 1 and summarized Section 2 of the HMEE-2012 book. He and I compiled the CD supplement for the HMEE-2012 book.
Ohn Khine
Byte and R ဗိုက် နဲ့ အာ
Byte may mean stomach or belly. R may mean “talkative”.
U Tin Hlaing (M63) was called “Byte Tin Hlaing” and “R Tin Hlaing” by his friends to differentiate from the senior Saya U Tin Hlaing (M59, GBNF). He was later known as Dr. Tin Hlaing.
U Kyaw Zin (EP69) was called “R Zin” by some of his friends.
U Myint Soe (UCC) worked as Maintenance Technician in the Systems Division. He was called “Byte”.
Shwe Gaung Byaung ရွှေဂေါင်းပြောင်
It is the name of a cartoon character. It literally means “Golden, Bald Head”. Toe Nyunt (Ted Mya Maung) starred in a movie of that name.
U Wynn Htain Oo (M72) is a super fund raiser is fondly known as “Shwe Gaung Byaung”. He is also known as
WHO (not World Health Organization)
Hmaw Sayagyi မှော်ဆြာကြီး
Mg Mar Ga မောင်မာဃ
Bo Pu Cho ဗိုလ်ပုချို
Mg Mar Ga
Sa Yay စာရေး
Sa Yay may mean a Clerk.
Sa Yay Gyi စာရေးကြီး is a Senior Clerk.
Sa Yay Lay စာရေးလေး is a Junior Clerk.
U Khin Maung Zaw (EC76) was called “Sa Yay Lay” by his teacher Perrera (V Standard in St. Paul’s High School).
In primary school, my spouse was told by her teacher that her hand writing looked like that of a “Sa Yay”. It motivated her to become a medical doctor.
Hanuman ဟာနုမန်
It is an Indian Diety.
U Han Tun Maung (GBNF) was a star athlete at SPHS. He excelled in Track & Field, and Soccer. He was called “Hanuman”. He was President of Old Paulians Association, Kokkine Swimming Club, Equestrian & Archery Associations. His family owned a Stable with “Sein Hlyan” as a Champion horse. The family opened Sein Hlyan Cafe. The Intake of 65 meets monthly as the Cafe.
Mote Seit မုတ်ဆိတ်
It may mean “Beard”.
U Myo Hein (69er) is called Mote Seit by his friends.
Reverend Frederich Ludwig (Buddhist Archbishop of Latvia &!Lithuania) was called “Moke Seit Phone Gyi”. He later shaved his beard and ordained as a Theravada monk with the title Ashin Ananda. He is a Laureate Poet.
Papu ပါပူး
Collegian Nay Win was called Papu by soccer team mates.
Po Htaung & Po Maung ဖိုးထောင် နဲ့ ဖိုးမောင်
Sons of U Khin Maung San (Tommy San, PBRS, GBNF)
U Nyunt Win (classmate of Tommy’s wife Lily at Darjeeling) liked the nicknames and used them in a movie.
Gyi ကြီး
Japan Gyi ဂျပန်ကြီး — Hla Tun (T69)
Kyaw Gyi ကျော်ကြီး — Kyi Win (EP69)
Maw Gyi မော်ကြီး — U Myat Htoo (C68)
Not so nice
Phaung Gyi Sin ဖေါင်ကြီးဆင်း
Ba Lar Gyi ဗလာကြီး
Chota ချိုတား၊ ချွတ်တား
Mutta မွတ်တား
Fatty ဖက်တီး
Chee Pay
EE69ers
U Thein Swe (EP69) described nicknames of the EE69ers in his post.
Example : So Si စိုစိ
RIT English Sayas & Sayamas
Saya Des described some nicknames in his article.
Examples : Byaing Ma ဗျိုင်းမ Ya Khine Gyi ရခိုင်ကြီး
Visited former classmates, colleagues & students in Singapore
Singapore
Hosts
Ko Zaw Tun (UCC) & Ma Kyu were our main hosts
Ko Ngwe Soe (Silver, UCC) & Ma Nu hosted us at their second home in Jahore. Silver took us to Melecca. Earlier he took us to Sentosa which was about to bring down the Lion Statue. He also wanted to jolt my memory of the “Myo Putt Ya Htar မြို့ပတ်ရထား”.
Gatherings
Mini gatherings
69ers
M73 group with their Saya U Tu Myint
ex-UCC & ex-ICST
Micro gatherings
Boe & Ma Phyu
Ma Pale & Ko Ye
Ko Zaw Tun & Ma Kyu offered Soon at their house (in addition to the regular ones at the Singapore Chan Myay Monastery).
Early November
Continued our trip
KK picked me up at the Mingalardon air port and placed me at a hotel.
KK hosted two gatherings : mostly professional speakers and coaches.
ILF
Flew to Mandalay to attend the 5th Irrawaddy Literary Festival. I was a Panelist at two sessions : one on Education and another on Poetry.
Panelist
During a break, Ko Thein Htut (UCC) took me on a quick trip around Sagaing & Mandalay.
Did not meet Ko Kyaw Kyaw Soe. He had to take a trip to see his ailing son.
Received an autographed copy from Ko Htein Win (Dat Pon). He had to wait a long time before he could publish his photos and related articles about two Dark Moments in Burma : U Thant Ah Yay Ah Khin and 8-8-88.
Mid November to End of December
There were several gatherings back in Yangon in November and December, 2019.
RIT Gatherings
RIT 69er Monthly Breakfast Gathering
Golden Jubilee of 69ers (Main event at Gyogone Campus, Reunion Dinner organized by Ko Aung Min at his old office compound)
GJ of Graduation
Lunch hosted by Ko Tin Win (Min)
Guest of the Class of 72 (M72 Annual Gathering and PZP, additional : Indian Lunch, Chinese Dinner)
Guest at All Mechanical Gathering /Dinner
All Mech Gatherinng
Dinner by Ko Nyunt Htay
Ko Nyunt Htay
UCC / ICST Gatherings
Acariya Pu Zaw Pwe of UCSY/ICST
ICST PZP
Several ex-UCC gatherings (MICT, Sweetie’s apartment, Soon Kyway by Ko Soe Win & KZ, …)
Sweetie
SPHS Gatherings
Wedding of Eddie Shein’s daughter
Soon for Uzin Saya Beatson
With Sayadaw Beatson
RUBC
RUBC Annual Regatta
RUBC
Attendees include : U Tin U (Most Senior Past Captain), U Maung Maung Than Tun (Oldest Past Captain, GBNF), Dr. Myo Tint (Past Captain, GBNF), U Sein Htoon (Past Captain), U Myo Myint (Gold), U Tun Mra, U Tin Myint (GBNF), Dr. Thein Hlyne …
MARB
Veda
Visited the new Building
Thai Tarot Master donated Air Conditioners
Sun Lun
Some meditation sessions
Received two books from Mi Mi Win (Junior Win) about her grand parents U Khin Maung Latt and Daw Khin Myo Chit
Miscellaneous
Birthday Lunch by Ko Myint Toe & Ma Nwe
49th Anniversary of Saya Dr. Soe Win and Sayama Daw May Saw Lwin
Thar Yay (Zeyar’s house warming …)
Nar Yay (Ma Cherry’s demise…)
Other gatherings : Ma Hazel, my friends, my spouse’s friends…
Thanks for the rides : Ko Ohn Khine, Ko Win Maung (Lake), Ko Tin Aung Win (Oscar), Ko Tin Win, Ko Ye Myint, Ko Aung Myin Bo, younger son of Y Patail …
Updates
There were restrictions (for Travel & Gatherings) during the pandemic.
Eighteen 69ers & several family members succumbed to Covid
Some ex-UCC — U Mg Mg Lay, U Mg Mg Gyi, U Aung Myint — are GBNF.
RIT Alumni helped establish the following Associations in California :
BEA
Burmese / Bay Area Engineers Association
Saya U Htin Paw (EE58, GBNF) was a founding member of BEA & served as the First President. He was President of TBSA. He wrote articles for RIT Alumni Newsletter & SPZP-2000.
U Htin Paw
Saya U San Tun (Sain Fone Wong, M59) succeeded U Htin Paw as President. He invited us to his birthday party & his son’s wedding reception. He had a Stroke. He is now GBNF. In Saya’s memory, Ma Sylvia donated K40 Lakhs to the Health Care Fund for RIT Sayas.
U San Tun
Saya K C Chiu (Dr. Tin Aung, ChE63) succeeded U San Tun as President. He proposed the idea of forming BEA with sayas and alumni in the SF Bay Area. Lily (T73) agreed to be Secretary.
K C Chiu (Right)Lily (Seated, Center)
BEA merged with BASTS into BAPS.
BAPS
Burmese American Professional Society
Saya U Nyo Win (Dr. K H Chen, M65) served as the first President of BAPS. He also served as Editor of BAPS Newsletter.
U Nyo Win (2nd)
Benny Tan (Tan Yu/Eu Beng, M70) succeeded U Nyo Win as President
Benny
Maurice Chee (U Hla Myint Thein, M75) succeeded Benny Tan as President
Maurice (Seated Right)
The Three became founding members of RIT Alumni International and Core Organizers for SPZP-2000.
BASES
Burmese American Society for Engineers and Scientists
Saya U Tin Htut (M60), U Tin Htway (M59) and U “David” Tun Tin (GBNF) founded BASES. They adapted the BAPS bye-laws and added the needs for those in Southern California.
U Tin Htut
Several sayas and alumni served President, VP, Secretary, Advisor & EC member. They include U Tin Htway (M59), Saya Dr. Chris Lee (L Tin Htun, EE59), Saya U Tin Htut (M60), Saya Dr. Tin Win (M62), U Tun Aung (Jefferey, EC68, GBNF), U Aung Khin (EP68), U Tin Nwe (Milton, C68), U Khin Maung Lay (Henry, T68), U Thura Thant Zin (M76) & U Win Naing (Michael, M81)
Thura
RIT Alumni International
SF Bay Area Alumni Group
Founded by the SF Bay Area Alumni Group led by Saya Allen Htay (GBNF).
SF Bay Area Alumni
To host SPZP-2000
To support RIT Alumni Newsletter (founded by U Hla Min, EC69), and the first RIT website (designed & implemented by U Khin Maung Zaw, EC76).
U Hla Min
Saya Allen served as President.
Maurice served as Treasurer. He and Benny chaired the Working Committee for SPZP-2000. They wore multiple hats for SPZP-2000.
Founding members included Saya Allen (C58), Saya K (ChE63), Saya Nyo (M65), Saya George (ChE66), Saya Myat Htoo (C68), Hla Min (EC69), Benny (M70), Saya Thein Aung (Met72), Maurice (M75), KMZ (EC76) and Gordon (M83).
SPZP-2000 Organizers
Several more sayas and alumni (including BAPS and BASES members) volunteered for SPZP-2000.
Norcal RITAA
Founded to continue the Vision & Mission of RIT Alumni International.
NorCal RITAA
Saya U Maung Maung (George, ChE66) served as the first President. Successors : Gordon Kaung (M83), U Aung Myint Oo (EC84) and U Tin Maung Win (C76)
Saya U Maung Maung
Stan Liou (M67) served as first Chair of BOD (Board of Directors). Successor : Saya U Myat Htoo (C68, GBNF)
YTU Library
Activities: Financial support for children of alumni in Norcal & for eligible YTU students; Support for YTU Library Modernization; Annual Dinner and/or Picnic; Coordinated with BASES for 2015 RIT Alumni Reunion in Los Angeles
After retirement, he and Tin Tin Hla (A70) moved to Seattle, Washington, USA to be near their daughters and grand children.
Attended 69er Golden Jubilee of Graduation on December 14, 2019 in Yangon.
Kyaw Kyaw
Member of elite group who married before graduation.
Myo Tun (Bobby)
Johnian
Studied in UK twice. During his high school days, he received BOC Scholarship to study in the UK, but the program discontinued around 1962.
Finished GCE. Had to take some subjects in Matric to attend Rangoon University.
Won essay contests as Errol Than Tun.
Assisted P Aung Khin (Guardian) with Supplement & Scrabble Tournament
Joined PWD
Received State Scholarship to pursue Masters in the UK.
After retirement, he became Ashin Pannagavesaka. He served as an editor of Pa Auk Sayadaw’s books and a dhamma librarian at the Mawlamyine Pa Auk Taw Ya. He later taught at selected monasteries. He went on dhamma dhuta missions (e.g. to Vietnam).
Tobias Kittim Ku & Uzin Bobby Myo Tun
Saw Tobias Kittim Ku (Tobi, GBNF)
Albertian
Sang “Kawthoolei” at RIT games
Attended 69er monthly breakfast gatherings.
Passed away due to Covid. His daughter also succumbed to Covid.
Thet Htun
Moved to Taiwan.
Thwin Thwin Aye Hmi (Olive)
Played chinlon with her A69 classmates
Spouse : U Han Zaw
Met them last at Lunch gathering at Crystal Jade in 2012
Tin Maung Hla (GBNF)
Expert in Abhidhamma studies.
Although his health was failing, he attended the monthly Breakfast Gathering to bid farewell to his former classmates.
Per his request, his family hosted the BFG after his demise.
Last 7th Std Government exam : We took it in March
Elections
Caretaker Government finally held Elections.
Pyidaung Su Party (former “Clean AFPFL“) led by U Nu won by a land slide. The victory would be short lived.
U Nu
1961
Education
Last HSF & Matric (Combined) exam
First batch of Female Engg Graduates : Tin Tin Ohn (Amy), Julie Han, Yin Yin Kyi, Mi Mi Lay (all Textile) & Pauline Reynolds (ChE)
Faculty of Engineering moved to Gyogone Campus. Also called Burma Institute of Technology (BIT)
SEAP Games
Burma hosted the Second SEAP (South East Asia Peninsular) Games in December.
Burma dominated most events and placed first.
About 20 RU students represented Burma.
2nd SEAP Games
1962
Education
First “Matric Only” exam
First “HSF Only” exam : We (from Rangoon Division) had to take the exam in March & again in August
Coup d’etat
On March 2, a 17-member Revolutionary Council staged a Coup d’etat. President Mahn Win Maung, Prime Minister U Nu & Cabinet Ministers, Sao Shwe Thaik & Sawbwas, and several high-level Government employees were detained.
SamaDuwa Sinwa Naung (President-elect) did not become President.
Sama Duwa
Per Kyemon U Thaung, seven Revolutionary Council members were not aware of the major decisions.
Brigadier General T. Clift (Air Force) resigned. He was succeeded by Col Thaung Dan (who became Brigadier General). Several senior Air Force personnel were appointed Ambassadors or Military Attache to pave way for younger officers.
Commodore Than Pe (Navy) passed away. He was Minister for Health & Education. Commander Thaung Tin (who became Commodore) succeeded CTP as Chief of Navy. Col Hla Han became Minister for Health &Education.
Col Chit Myaing was the last original Revolutionary Council member to pass away. He served as Ambassador to Yugoslavia and UK before moving to USA.
Tin Maung Thant (son of U Thant) passed away during his visit to Burma. The funeral cortège was larger that of Commodore Than Pe.
The usage of “Tar Wun Khan” was later changed back to “Minister”.
Dark Days in July
7th July : 17 official victims
8th July : Demolition of RUSU Building
1963
Education
Matric exam : We took it in May
SPHS has five students in Top Five, seven in Top Ten, and ten in Top Twenty
SPHS63
Last batch for General Honors program
1964
Education
New Education System
Most Faculties became autonomous Institutes with Rectors.
RASU & MASU offered Major
Admission to RIT
In Nov 1964, three batches of students were admitted to RIT
Matriculated were admitted to 1st BE based on Intelligence Level Aggregate (ILA)
Those who passed I.Sc(A) were admitted 2nd BE based on marks.
Those who passed I.Sc(B) were admitted to 3rd BE based on marks.
Luyechun
Shwe Wa Gyaing Camp in Ngapali
Students from 7th to 10th Std were selected as Luyechun
1965
Education
On April 1, private schools were nationalized.
SPHS became No. 6 Botathaung State High School. Non-native De La Salle brothers left Burma. e.g Bro Austin to Malaysia, Bro Felix to Germany, Bro Charles to UK
Luyechun
Khaung Daing Camp in Inlay
Program extended to Universities & Institutes
RIT : Sein Shwe, Hla Min, Zaw Min, Khin Than Myint Tin
IM(1) : Kyaw Sein Koe, Anita Aye Pe, Khin Maung U, Cherry Hlaing
Decline of Economy
After detaining prominent members of Pyidaung Su (formerly Clean AFPFL) and new AFPFL (formerly Stable AFPFL), the Revolutionary Council & government sought help from left-wing Gurus (e.g. U Chit Hlaing who threw in Buddhist terms into “Burmese Way to Socialism” & U Ba Nyein who proposed indiscriminate Nationalization.
Burma Socialist Program Party (BSPP) was formed with core cadres. It later opened up membership for Ah Yan Party Win (Associate member). Party membership became a requirement for important positions.
Free Economy was replaced by rations (e.g. half a can of Condensed Milk per family) using the “Si Sar Oke”. It created a Black Market and the rising cost of living.
The Demonetization crippled the Industry and even had ripple effect on University students. Hostel students, whose money had been demonetized, had to be given free rides to return home.
Per Dr. Nyan Taw (SPHS63) : Both my father U Hla Taw (retired Chief of UMP/ DIG) and my mother Daw Marie Hla Taw together with Col Chit Yaing, Chief Justice U Myint Thein, DIG U Tin MaungMaung and DIG U Khin Maung Maung were taken away by MI (Military Intelligence) in 1964. My parents were released in 1967.
Changes in Education
Bachelor Degrees
Education
Law
NRC rule
Enforced for Professional Courses
Bernard Khaw (First in Burma in the Matric of 1965) had to study Chemistry. He moved to USA and studied Chemical Engineering.
Chu Pu Thein (who scored highest marks in Physics in the first ever HSF Only exam in 1962) moved to Italy
Many had to study in RASU. Chemistry students had very high marks and/or ILA.
A medical student was expelled after he was “found out to be not 3 NRC.”
A few students who had been admitted to RASU because of 3 NRC were allowed to study medicine. They lost a year, but not their dreams.
Names
There was discrimination against students having foreign names.
Two families. They were cousins. Those who retained non-Burmese names were admitted to RASU. Those with Burmese names were allowed to study professional degrees.
Security Concerns
Shortage of rice (never heard before in the “Rice Bowl of Asia”) was transformed into “Tayoke Bamar Ah Yay Ah Khin”. Grapevine says that a lorry strategically placed “Beggars” around Rangoon.
1969
Men on the Moon
Poem
Apollo 11 landed on the moon on July 20, 1969.
My poem “Men on the Moon” was forwarded by Mr. Hall (USIS) to NASA.
The poem was also published in the Guardian daily newspaper.
69ers
Most of us graduated with BE. A few with BArch.
EE69ers
SEAP Games
Burma hosted the Fifth SEAP Games in December 1969. There were riots in the Thamaing College Campus which held some events (e.g. Boxing).
Placard bearers for 5th SEAP Games
News & Censorship
Nation newspaper was the first to be closed (by orders of the higher authorities). U Law Yone was detained. He later moved to Thailand and published the “Nation”. He eventually moved to the USA.
Finally, there were only four Burmese and two English newspapers. They published the news vetted and/or translated by News Agency Burma.
The two new newspapers were Loketha Pyithu Nay Zin and Working Peoples’ Daily (WPD).
The then Number One chose Shwe Oo Daung and U Khin Maung Latt as Chief Editors of “Loketha Pyithu Nay Zin” and Working People’s Daily (WPD) and promised them full authority. Some time later, U Khin Maung Latt was asked, “Do you want to be an Ambassador?” Daw Khin Myo Chit stepped in and said, “Ko Latt will go back teaching at his school”.
Selection of Sayas and State Scholars
In the days of our teachers, the Dean & Professors had the say to select and appoint assistant lecturers, and to select bright students to apply for State Scholarship to study at the prestigious universities in the USA and UK.
Later, the Public Service Commission (PSC) was established to vet candidates for most positions.
Some engineers and architects had to join government departments as “Work Charge” while waiting to get permanent positions approved by PSC.
Some passed away due to old age and natural causes. Sad to learn that many succumbed to the pandemic. See related posts for details (life and achievement …)
Class of 59
U Bo Gyi
Uzin U Bo Gyi (A59) Designer of Daw Khin Kyi Mausoleum
Class of 68
Sayama Daw Mya Mya Than (EP68)
U Zaw Win (Cyril, EP68)
U Saw Win (EP68)
Daw Mya Mya Than
Class of 69
Thein Maung
The GBNF list is maintained by U Aung Min (M69) and his team
So sad and alarming
U Soe Myint Thein (E) : #113
U Tin Shwe (C69) : #112 & spouse
Nan Su Su (T69) : #111 & spouse
Saya U Kyaw Tint (Min69) : #110
U Thein Maung (M69) : #109
Saw Tobias Kittim Ku (A69) : #108
U Aung Gyi Shwe (EP) : #107
U Chit Pe (M69) : #106
U Khin Maung Gyi (M69) : #105
U Soe Win (M69) : #104
U Thein Swe (EP69) : #103
U Tun (Met 69) : #102
U Aung Myint (C) : #101
U Tin Aye (A Rauf, EP69) : #100
U Yi Pin (Mg Mg Kaung, M69) : #99
U Tin Sun (C69) : #98
Class of 70
U Wara
Sayadaw U Wara (U Win Paing, ChE70) : #111
U Win Kyi (Kyar Zan, C, 64 Intake) : #110
U Hla Min (C, 64 Intake, SuperOne) : #109
U Khin Maung Maung (C70) : #108
Ko Soe (M70, Sittang Mill) : #107
U Aung Myint (Eric, C70)
U Min Maung (Mg Mg, MAuto70)
Maung Par (Pet70)
Class of 71
U Kyaw Maung (Min71)
U Ye Gaung (Pet71)
U Hla Min (C71, Intake of 64)
Willie Ko Shwe (SPHS65)
Class of 72
U Ngwe Htun (C72)
U Hla Maung (C72)
U Myo Myint Pe (ChE72)
U Khin Maung Myint (John Tint, M72)
Freda Tin Swe Aye (ChE72)
Tommy Win (66 Intake)
U Pe Aye (66 Intake)
U Than Tun Zan (66 Intake, EP76)
U Soe Myint (Shwe Thwar, M72)
Class of 73
U Ko Ko Gyi (C73)
U Aung San (C73)
U Soe Win (C73)
U Win Kyi (C73)
Class of 74
U Tin Aung (C74)
U Soe Than (C74)
U Kyaw Thaung (C74)
U Myo Thant (C74)
U Maung Maung Myint (C74)
U Aung Htut (C74)
Md Zubai (M74)
Daw Ni Ni Than (M74)
U Nay Win (Tommy, Met74)
U Win Myint (Myeik, ChE74)
U Kyaw Kyaw (M/EP74)
Class of 75 – 79
U Myat Swe (Benedict Sia, M75)
U Aung Kyaw Myint (C77)
U Khine Tin (C77)
Daw May Kyi (EP78)
U Myat Lay (C78)
U Win Maung (C79)
U Win Myint Htay (C79)
U Robin Thet Naing (C79)
U Nyunt Aung (Mn7x)
Daw Kyi Kyi Win (T)
U Than Sin Myint (Met)
Class of 80 – 89
U Soe Naing Aung (C80)
Daw San Myint (C80)
Daw Khin Khin Oo (C80)
U Thar Hlaing (C80)
U Myo Thant (C80)
U Khin Sein (M80)
U Ba Thein (C82)
U Tint Lwin (C82)
U Min Lwin Pe (C83)
U Nay Win (C83)
U Kyi Win (C83)
U Hla Myo Aung (C83)
U Ko Ko Su (EP83)
U Myo Win (C84)
U Tin Maung Myint (C84)
U Tin Win (C84)
U Min Min Soe (C85)
U Tin Oo (C85)
U Tun Thein (C85)
U Toe Aung (C85)
U Soe Lwin (C85)
U Tint Wai (C85)
U Win Nyunt (M86)
U Aung Min (C86)
U Win Sein (C86)
U Latt Myint Naing (C86)
U Kyaw Lin Oo (C87)
Daw San San Myint (C87)
Class of 9O – 99
U Tin Oo (C91)
Dr. Tin Tin Win (C92)
U Than Htay (C92)
U Aung Min (C92)
U Nyan Tun (C94)
U Tin Maung Myint (C95 Jan)
U Tun Zaw (C96)
U Zaw Tun (C96)
U Htay Aung Tint (C98)
U Myo Win / Myo Myo (C98)
U Than Win Tun (Bldg Dip 99)
U Khin Aung Lin (83 Intake)
Class of 2000 – 2009
U Tint Lwin Oo (C03 Apr)
U Ko Ko Aung (C03 Apr)
U Kyaw Naing Thu (C04)
Spouses of Alumni
Spouse of U Aye Thein (EP69)
Spouse of U Hla Shwe (T69)
Spouse of U Thein Swe (EP69)
Spouse of U Yi Pin (M69)
Spouse of Sa Maung Maung (EP69)
Spouse of Daw Aung (ChE79)
Spouse of U Kyaw Sint (T70)
Spouse of U Win Aung (M70)
Spouse of Nan Su Su (T69)
Spouse of U Tin Shwe (C69)
Sayas and Sayamas (From RIT and Other Universities)
U Kyaw Tint (Mining)
U Soe Lwin (Mech)
Daw Khin Saw Tint (Eng)
Dr. Kyaw Win (Pro Rector)
Daw Mya Mya Than (EP)
U Khin Maung Maung (Civil)
Dr. Mi Sandar Mon (Mech)
U Nyunt Yin (Physics)
Dr. Win Thein (Civil)
U Ngwe Tun (Civil)
U Ko Ko Lay (Maths)
Dr. Khin Maung Win (Maths)
Daw Kyin Kyin (Maths)
U Kyin Ko (Maths)
Dr. Zin Aung (Physics)
U Kyaw Tun (ChE & Chem)
Dr. Tin Win (David, Chem)
U Tin Aung Han (Geology)
Robert Thein Tun (YU English)
U Win Maung (DGHE)
Dr. Robert Tun Maung (Rector)
Dr. Mie Mie Thet Thwin (Rector, UCSY)
Daw Khin Ann Mon (ICST)
Dr. Maung Maung Sein (Surgeon)
Relatives & friends
Dr. Myo Tint (Cousin)
Daw Aye May (Cousin)
Daw Maibelle Maw
Daw Thiri Nyunt We (UCC)
U Aung Win (Alex)
Dr. Soe Min Thein (Soe Aung)
U Khin (father of U Soe Myint, UCC, UN)
Daw Khin Pyone Kyi (Mother of Daw Kyi Kyi Aye)
Daw Tin May (Mother of Daw Mi Mi Aung)
Mother of Daw Phyu Phyu Kyaw (UCC)
Brother of U Kyi Shane (M83)
Brother and SIL of Don Min U Yu Swan
Sister and BIL of U Moe Myint (M76) Sister of Daw Moh Moh Han (A77)
Mother, Aunt and Brother of U Hlaing Myint (UCC)
Son of Daw Khin Saw Tint (Eng)
Daughter of Tobias Kittim Ku (A69)
Sister of Daw Khin Toe Myint (Zoo)
Father of Daw Nwe Ni Tun (ICST)
Father of Daw Thin Thu Naing (ICST)
Father of Daw Win Pa Pa Ko (ICST)
Brother of L Shark Moon (C67)
Sister of U Soe Lwin (EC66)
Khamee Khamets of U Soe Lwin (EC66)
Brother of U Aung Win (Owen, M71)
Son of U Khin Zaw (Chem)
Son of U Win Maung (Point)
Father of U Tin Oo (M87)
Uncle, aunt and two cousins of Daw Tin Tin Cho
Brother, cousin and Khameee Khamets of U Win Thein (SLRD)
HlaMin 