HlaMin

Category: RIT

  • Kyaw Than Aung (M83)

    Kyaw Than Aung (M83)

    by Hla Min

    Updated : June 2025

    • Matriculated from No. (1) Dagon State High School (formerly Methodist English High School)
    • Graduated in 1983 from Rangoon Institute of Technology with Mechanical Engineering Bachelor Degree, standing top of the class.
    • Worked as Saya at RIT Mechanical Engineering Department
    • Postgrad studies at Asian Institute of Technology (AIT, Bangkok) and University of Michigan, USA
    • Professor and Interim Chair at the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Lamar University, Beaumont, Texas 77710, USA
    • Board of Director, Myanmar American Science & Technology Alumni Association (MASTAA)
    • Passed away unexpectedly on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2021 at his home :
      3417 Ocean Ridge Cir, Seabrook, TX 77586, Texas USA.

    Education

    • Ph.D. (Aerospace), University of Michigan
    • M. Eng. (Energy Technology)z, Asian Institute of Technology
    • B. Eng. (M83), Rangoon Institute of Technology

    Awards & Honors

    • Distinguished Faculty Fellow, Lamar University, 2015
    • Presidential Fellowship in Teaching Innovation, Lamar University, 2015
    • Presidential Fellowship in Teaching Innovation, Lamar University, 2014
    • Presidential Fellowship in Research, Lamar University, 2014
    • Tim Kendall Memorial Prize,
      Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok, Thailand, 1991
    • Pi Tau Sigma, Honors Society of Mechanical Engineers

    Ivan Lee (M69, co-Founder and Patron of MASTAA) wrote

    • Kendrick has been with MASTAA, USA since June 2019.
    • He was an invaluable member of our team.
    • He was the heart and soul of our team in promoting Myanmar students who want to study abroad. His information was vital to our organization’s Students Info page. His contribution to MASTAA can be seen on Students Info page at MASTAA.ORG website.
    • He left his beloved wife Khin Khin Hla and two adult sons. Khin Khin Hla is also an RIT Alumni 1984 B.Engg Civil as well as AIT Alumni 1991 M. Engg Water Resources
    • The funeral service will take place on January 20, 2021.
    • Our condolences for this tragic loss and wish Dr. Kendrick Aung, RIP.

    Phyu Phyu Kyaw (ex-UCC) wrote :

    KTA came & joined us (Methodist English High School / No. 1 Dagon SHS : K Class) when Ye Myat Soe (ex-UCC), his wife Ohnmar Aung (our classmate) & daughter visited Los Angeles in September, 2019.

    We had the Class Gathering in Las Vegas. All were from K Class (starting from Lower KG to High School).

    KTA was a Top Student since he was young.

    Learnt that KTA is a cousin of Ko Aung Zaw Myint (ex-UCC). Both have the nick name “Gaung Gyi”.

    Ko Soe Myint (President, MASTAA) wrote :

    I will offer Soon and three sets of robes to Sayadaws (in New York) in memory of Dr. Kyaw Than Aung, and share merits with him.

    Ko Wint Khin Zaw (Sydney, Australia) wrote :

    I felt unjustifiable by the shocking news of a very untimely loss of our AIT contemporary Burmese Engineering Scholar, Prof. Dr Kyaw Than Aung. He was our academic idol and the pride of Burmese students body at the time as the first Burmese Awardee at AIT, the first chess champion and a runner-up table tennis champ. He also helped any Burmese students who found difficulty academically. He was a good friend and one of the smartest Burmese persons I have ever met. I could recall our table tennis games and watching World Cup Soccer matches together at the Student Union parlour. We lost contact since 1990s then a few years ago he and family visited Sydney so we met again as a pleasant reunion. He said he will come again but ….

    So long Ko Kyaw Than Aung …

    Our heartfelt condolences and sympathy to Ma Khin Khin Hla and sons. Our metta and prayers are with you at this difficult time.

    Ko Maw Lin, President of AMA (Association of Myanmar Architects) and Chief Editor of ‘Pyithu Ayay’ journal wrote :

    မြင်ကွင်းထဲမှာ ယုတ်မာသူတွေ လူဆိုးတွေ လူညံ့တွေ လူမဖြစ်ညစ်ကျယ် တွေ ရှိတယ် ဆိုပေမယ့်…
    တကယ်တော်တဲ့ ထက်မြက်တဲ့ ရင့်ကျက်တဲ့သူတွေနဲ့ ရင်းနှီး ခင်မင်ခွင့်ရခဲ့တာ၊ စိတ်စေတနာ အလွန်ဖြူစင်သူတွေနဲ့ ကြုံရဆုံရခဲ့တာတွေအတွက် ကံကောင်းလှတယ်လို့ မကြာမကြာ တွေးမိတယ်။
    အေအိုင်တီမှာ မဟာဘွဲ့အတွက် ကျမ်းပြုတော့မယ်ဆိုတော့ ကိုယ်လုပ်မယ့် နယ်ပယ်နဲ့ဆိုင်တဲ့ ပရိုဂရမ်တချို့ ဆော့ဝဲတချို့ကို အစက စပြီး လေ့လာရတယ်။ အဲဒီမှာ ဆရာ သုံးယောက် ရခဲ့တယ်။ ကိုကျော်သန်းအောင်ရယ်၊ ကိုမိုးမြင့်ရယ်၊ ကိုစောထွေးဇော်ရယ်။ သူတို့ ကျေးဇူးကြီးပါတယ်။ ခုပြောချင်တာ ကိုကျော်သန်းအောင်…
    ကိုကျော်သန်းအောင်ဟာ အာအိုင်တီ ဝင်ကတည်းက အတန်းတိုင်း ပထမ၊ အေအိုင်တီမှာ ထိပ်ဆုံးဆု၊ မာစတာရပြီး အမေရိကား ပီအိတ်ချ်ဒီ… အဲဒီလို အကယ်ဒမစ်မှာ ပထမတန်း ဖြစ်သလို ရုပ်ရှင်ကောင်းတွေကြိုက်တယ် စာဖတ်တယ်… စားပွဲတင်တင်းနစ် ရိုက် တယ်၊ စစ်တုရင် ကစားတယ်။ အားကစားလည်း ချန်ပီယံစာရင်းထဲပါ တယ်။ အဓိကကတော့ အလွန်ထူးချွန်ထက်မြက်သူ ဦးနှောက်ကြီးသူ ရင့်ကျက်သူဖြစ်ပါတယ်။ အကောင်းမြင် တယ်။ ဟာသရှိတယ်။ နိုင်ငံတကာ တက်ကျယ်နိုင်သူပါ။
    ဆော့ဝဲတစ်ခု သင်ပေးရမယ်ဆိုတော့ ကျနော့်ကို ဟိုမေးဒီမေးလုပ်တယ်။ ငါးမိနစ်လောက် ပြောပြီးတော့ သဘောပေါက်သွားတယ်။ ဘာဆိုဘာမှ အခြေခံမရှိတဲ့ ဖိုးသုညကို သင်ရတော့မယ်ဆိုတာ။ အဲဒီအခြေအနေကိုကြည့်ပြီး ကျနော့်ကိုသင်တယ်။ တစ်နာရီလောက်တောင် မကြာဘူး။ ခုထိမှတ်မိနေတာကတော့ အက်ဖ်ဝမ်းနှိပ် Help ကိုသွားကြည့်တတ်ရင် ကိုမော်ဂျီး အားလုံး လုပ်လို့ရပြီ ဆိုတာပဲ။ အဲဒီခေတ်က ကွန်ပျူတာ ဗိုင်းရပ်စ် ပြဿနာနဲ့ ဒစ်စကက်တွေကိုပြင်တဲ့ နော်တန်ဆော့ဝဲပါ အပိုထည့်ပေး ပြောပေးသွားတယ်။
    သူသင်ပေးလိုက်တဲ့ပညာနဲ့ နောက် သုံးလေးငါးလလောက် အဲဒီကွန်ပျူတာစင်တာမှာ တခြား နိုင်ငံတကာက ကျောင်းသားတွေကို ဆရာလုပ် ပြန်သင် လုပ်ခဲ့ရတယ်။ ပြီးတော့ အလုပ်ထဲမှာ လေးနှစ်လောက် အသုံးချခဲ့ရတယ်။ သူဟာ ဆရာကောင်း။ ဘယ်လိုလူကို ဘယ်လိုသင်ရမလဲ ဆိုတာ သိတယ်။ အခု အမေရိကားတက်ဆက် က လာမား တက္ကသိုလ်မှာ သူ ပရော်ဖက်ဆာလုပ်တော့ စာသင်ကောင်းတဲ့ဆရာ ဆုရတာ မဆန်းဘူးလို့ဆိုရ မယ်။
    သိဖူးခင်ဖူးသမျှထဲမှာ အထက်မြက်ဆုံးတွေထဲက တယောက်ပါ။ အခု ၁၃ ဇန်နဝါရီ ၂၀၂၁၊ မနေ့က သူဆုံးတယ်လို့ကြားတော့ စိတ်တော်တော်ထိခိုက်မိတယ်။ ပြီးတော့ ကျေးဇူးတင် သတိရနေတယ်။
    အေအိုင်တီမှာနေတုန်း သူ ကျနော်တို့ကို ဖန်ခွက်လေးလုံး လက်ဆောင်ပေးဖူးတယ်။ ဖန်ခွက်တွေ ကျကျကွဲတာ နောက်ဆုံး တစ်လုံးပဲကျန်တော့တယ်။ အဲဒီတစ်လုံးကို သုံးတိုင်း ကျနော်တို့ ‘နေမဝင်အချစ်ဟာ ကမ္ဘာ ပေါ်မှာ ရှိနေတယ်’ ဆိုတဲ့ သီချင်းအလိုက်နဲ့ ‘ကိုကျော်သန်းအောင် ကမ္ဘာ ပေါ်မှာရှိနေတယ်’ လို့ ဆိုကြလေ့ရှိတယ်။
    ခုတော့ အဲဒီဖန်ခွက်လည်း မရှိတော့။ ကိုကျော်သန်းအောင်လည်း မရှိတော့….

    Obituary

    Dr. Kendrick Aung, 60, passed away on 01/13/2021 in Seabrook, TX, USA. He was born on June 5th, 1961 in Yangon, Myanmar to U Than Aung and Daw Nyunt Nyunt. Dr. Kendrick Aung is survived by: his wife, Khin-Khin Hla Aung; sons, Raymond Aung and Andrew Aung; brothers, Dr. Khin Zaw Aung and Dr. Min Zaw Aung; sisters-in-law, Daw Theingi Swe and Dr. Aye Aye Yee, and numerous family members and friends. He earned a Ph.D (Aerospace) from University of Michigan, M.Eng (Energy Tech) from Asian Institute of Technology, B.Eng (Mechanical) from Rangoon Institute of Technology, and matriculated from No. (1) Dagon State High School in Yangon. Dr. Kendrick Aung worked as an Interim Department Chair & Professor for Lamar University located in Beaumont, TX. He had a passion for teaching, books, Chess and loved to travel with family and friends.

    There will be a Visitation for Dr. Kendrick on Wednesday, January 20, 2021 from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm followed by a Memorial Service at 3:00 pm at Crowder Funeral Home, 111 E Medical Center Blvd Webster, TX 77598. Those wishing to send flowers in Dr. Kendrick Aung’s memory should be directed https://www.kemahflorist.com or by calling 281-532-6933 and having them sent to the Crowder Funeral Home – Webster, TX.

    Condolences

    Daddy (Ko Ko Gyi)
    I love you and will miss you forever.
    Whatever I do, I am thinking you are next to me. you will be always with me in my heart.
    I greatly appreciated the time we were together.
    Don’t want to let you go but please go freely. Share all the merit we did with you.
    Amya-amya-amya, sadu sadu sadu
    Khin Khin Hla

    Dad
    We love you and miss you, thank you for everything you have done for us and the community.
    Aung family

    We understand that we own nothing in this world. Everything surrounding us are only temporary. Only the love we have in our hearts will remain forever. Those we Love don’t go away, they Walk beside us Every Day.
    Unseen, Unheard, but Always Near, So Loved, So Missed, So Very Dear. So Thar Thar, you may be gone prematurely, but you are going to be with us forever!
    Your eldest brother Ko Ko Ni, Ma Theingi & Chan (Khin Zaw Aung)

    Please take care Thar Thar wherever you are
    Hope to see you again in next life.
    You left so early…………… Amya-amya-amya
    Your elder brother
    Ko Latt (Dr. Min Zaw Aung)

    I am totally broken hearted my baby brother.
    I didn’t know that our last Zoom in December was your way of saying good-bye.
    Want to remember you as someone who was full of motivation inspiration and a brilliant mind.
    I am sure you knew that you were very much loved by all of us. .
    You are in my prayers sweetheart and may you look down from heaven to share the merits.
    amya amya amya.. thar thar yay
    Your big sister
    Ma Ma Aye
    xxx
    (Aye Aye Yee)

    Though I got to know you very briefly , just for a span of 3 years or so when you came to stay with us, you were like a younger brother that we never had ; for ma ma aye and I.
    I will not forget you. You will be sadly missed thar thar.
    Than Than Yee

    Compiled information from people close to Dr. Aung and shared it to selected Facebook groups. The original post is archived in my web site hlamin.com and updated periodically. Sad to lose a young all-round (academic, athletic and community services) star who had brightened the lives of many.
    May Dr. Aung rest in peace.
    Hla Min (Life Long Learner)

    May you be peaceful at much higher realm Ko Kyaw Than Aung.
    You will be dearly missed by all of us.
    Our deepest condolences and sympathy to Khin Khin, Raymond and Andrew at Seabrook, Texas and all the bereaved family members elsewhere.
    With metta
    Wint Thanda & Tharlon (Wint Khin Zaw)

    Our condolences to you and your family. Our thoughts and prayers are with you.
    The Boyce family (Mee Mee)

    So sad your early departure my friend (our high school class mate @ Dagon 1)
    Please accept my sincere condolences to my friend family.
    You will be missed.
    Rest in Peach my friend.
    Sincerely
    Phyu Phyu Kyaw (Los Angeles)

    So sorry for your loss. I know this must be a very difficult and demanding time for you all. Our thoughts and prayers are with you. Please accept my condolences.
    Ohnmar nyunt (SHS1 Dagon)

    So sorry for your loss. I was saddened to hear my friend kyaw Than Aung Passed away. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family. Please accept my condolences.
    Ohn Mar Nyunt

    I am so sorry and saddened by the news of losing my friend from Dagon 1.
    Please accept my sincere condolences.
    I will remember the great time we all had with our childhood friends in Las Vegas in October 2019.
    Rest In Peace my friend. 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
    Zaw Lwin

    Dear Ko Kyaw Than Aung,
    Recently we met you at San Francisco after the graduation (1983 -Mech).
    You are talented, honest and having beautiful mind and so lovely.
    When I heard about you, I was shocked and very sad.
    Please accept my condolence .
    Where ever you go, May you be healthy, happy, wealthy, peaceful and attain the highest wisdom!
    You will be always in our heart!
    With All the Best Wishes,
    Kyi Shein (83-Mechanical)

    I am grateful to have shared memorable-days with Saya Ko Kyaw Than Aung while studying in RIT and AIT. Will always remember you Saya!
    Engshwe

    It’s so hard saying goodbye to you. Our condolences and prayers to you and your family. You will deeply be missed, rest in peace.
    Chu family from LA

    To Uncle Ken,
    My heart is heavy, there are no words to describe how sad I am. I still can’t believe that you are no longer here with us, you will always be in our hearts and thoughts. You are like second father to me growing up with Raymond. Thank you for always caring for me and teaching me. You inspired me with all of your achievements. I will always cherish and remember the time that I had with you from growing up as a kid and the family vacations we had together. You are gone too soon..
    My family and I will miss you so much, Rest in Peace
    Stephanie Chu

    Dear Aung Family,
    We are very sorry to hear of the lose of Dr. Aung.
    He’s a brilliant Professor whom will be missed by many hear at Lamar University.
    I wish to thank him for sharing his knowledge with my students.
    Praying for overwhelming peace during this difficult time for all of your family.
    LU Family and friends

    Dr Kendrick Aung
    We never forget you.
    Shu & Sue Chin family

    No man is an island,
    Entire of itself.
    Each is a piece of the continent,
    A part of the main.
    If a clod be washed away by the sea,
    Europe is the less.
    As well as if a promontory were.
    As well as if a manor of thine own
    Or of thine friend’s were.
    Each man’s death diminishes me,
    For I am involved in mankind.
    Therefore, send not to know
    For whom the bell tolls,
    It tolls for thee. [John Donne]

    So sorry to hear of Ken’s passing, he was kind, intelligent, caring and a wonderful colleague who will be missed.
    Taken far too soon.
    Love and condolences to the family.
    Harley Myler

    We are all deeply shocked and saddened to hear the terrible news, and are so sorry for wife and sons’ loss. Kendrick’s untimely departure will be felt very keenly by everyone; not least his students, his colleagues , us and all his friends . Kendrick had so much more to give in this life, and such a beautiful family to enjoy. His premature departure is cruel. 
    May Kendrick rest in peace.
    With our sincere condolences,
    Kyaw Thu Ya, Jacqueline, Shan and Thazin (London)

    You can shed tears that he is gone,
    Or you can smile because he lived,
    You can close your eyes and pray that he will come back,
    Or you can open your eyes and see all that he has left. Your heart can be empty because you can’t see him
    Or you can be full of the love that you shared,
    You can turn your back on tomorrow and live yesterday,
    Or you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday. You can remember him and only that he is gone
    Or you can cherish his memory and let it live on,
    You can cry and close your mind be empty and turn your back,
    Or you can do what he would want: smile, open your eyes, love and go on.
    Khin Sabai

    The Department of Computer Science from Lamar University is deeply saddened of the untimely passing of Dr. Aung. He was a dedicated leader who cared about his students and colleagues. Sincere condolences to Dr. Aung’s family and friends.
    Stefan Andrei

    Dr. Aung Family,
    My condolences on the passing of Dr. Aung. I’ve had the opportunity to work with him at Lamar University for more than 14 years. He was truly an exceptional person, a great colleague, a favorite teacher, and a true friend! Dr. Aung was a founding member of the Office of Undergraduate Research Advisory Council and played an instrumental role in the development of the program at Lamar. He touched so many lives for the good. I’m honored and blessed to have known Ken! He will be missed badly!
    With deepest sympathy,
    Kumer Das (University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, Louisiana)

    My condolences to the Aung family on the passing of Ken. He was an exceptional colleague and a genuinely good person who cared for his students. I have fond memories of the many times we met in the dining hall and discussed how our program offerings could be improved. He was taken too early and will be missed a lot. Srinivas Palanki

    Dear Dr. Aung: I am blessed to have a great friend and colleague like you! Thank you very much again for all your kindly help and support at Lamar! You will be always be remembered. RIP!!
    Qiang Xu

    No words can describe my great sadness. Dr. Aung had always been a trusted colleague and true friend for the past 17 years. He was such a brilliant and knowledgeable person. I thought we’d have so many more years and so much more time to talk about curriculums, course contents, travelling, martial-art novels and other books … It just ended too early and too suddenly! My deepest sympathies to Dr. Aung’s family. My heart goes out to you all.
    Jenny Zhou (Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Lamar University)

    Rest In Peace Dr. Aung
    I will miss you
    Justin Ho (Hung Ho), Lamar University – Mechanical Engineering Student

    My condolences to the Dr. Aung’s family. I have had the opportunity to work with him in Mechanical Engineering at Lamar University for 3 years. He was truly a great colleague, a favorite adviser, and an exceptional person who cared for his students and colleagues. I have lots of good memories with him as we met each other in his office where he advised me how my teaching could be improved. He will be deeply missed, rest in peace.
    Monayem H. Mazumder (Saginaw Valley State University, Saginaw, Michigan)

    I am so sorry to hear about Dr. Aung’s passing. He was one of my favorite professors and definitely the most generous with his time. Not sure I would have made it through with his help.
    Tim Dwyer

    My most sincere condolences. Much Love and Prayer for the Family! Dr. Aung was a great mentor. As we grieve him let’s also remember to Celebrate his Life!
    Carlos A. Caballero (Mechanical Engineering, Lamar University – Class of May 2018)

    I am at a loss for words with hearing of the passing of Dr. Aung. He was such a great person and a terrific influence for so many at Lamar. He would always take the time to help his students, and he has helped so many to become successful in their endeavors. My deepest condolences to his family and all the Lamar family as well who will truly miss this great man.
    Eli Clark

  • U Min Wun

    U Min Wun

    by Hla Min

    Updated : June 2025

    U Min Wun

    Brief Bio

    Professor Emeritus & Head of Civil Engineering at Rangoon Institute of Technology

    Nativity

    Born, brought up, and schooled in Taungdwingyi, Magwe Division, Myanmar, by my parents Saw Boon Koke (aka) U Win Myint and Daw Kyin Toke.

    Family

    Named as Maung Kyit Ing, the eldest son of six, three younger brothers (two Medical Doctors and one Head Master of State High School) and two younger sisters (one Medical Doctor and one Director of Education).

    Married to Daw Khin Myint Myint.

    Have two sons (Nicholas, a Medical Doctor and Daniel, a Computer Analyst) and one daughter (Penthea, a Medical Doctor), and three grand daughters.

    Residence

    Currently living with my spouse at 5947 Loma Avenue, Temple City, California 91780-1924, U.S.A.

    Academic Career

    • School Leaving Certificate from Taungdwingyi State High School and Matriculated, 1948
    • University of Rangoon: Intermediate of Science, 1950
    • B.O.C. College: 1st Year B.Sc. Engineering, 1951
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT): BS (Civil Engineering), 1955
    • Cornell University: MS (Civil Engineering) with Major in Geodesy and Photogrammetry, 1956

    Employment History

    • Hycons Engineering Inc., Pasadena, California, 1957
    • Faculty of Engineering, University of Rangoon, 1957-1961
    • Colombo Plan Professor, University College, London, 1974-1975
    • Rangoon Institute of Technology (RIT), once also known as Burma Institute of Technology (BIT), Department of Civil Engineering, 1961-1988

    Accomplishments

    • Professor & Head of Department of Civil Engineering, more than 31 years of service as educator and administrator at RIT, (1957-1988)
    • Director of Regional Colleges Development Project (Burmese Counterpart to Foreign Experts) (1978-1982), helped establish 20 Regional Colleges all over Burma
    • Chairman of Civil Engineering Construction Cooperative (CECC) (1976-1982), created job opportunity and On-the-Job-Training (OJT) for RIT and University Graduates, a Consultant Firm engaging the expertise of Faculty and Laboratory Staffs
    • Consultant Member of the Myanmar National Calendar Advisory Committee (1972-1988), helped revise and update Traditional Calendar Computation and Compilation Methods
    • Member of the Advisory Committee for Restoration of Bagan (1975-1988), helped strengthen Bagan Monuments (Stupas & Pagodas) and establish Photogrammetric Resources for rapid and precise mapping of Bagan Monuments.

    Editor’s notes

    • Saya taught “Surveying” in my 2nd B.E. course
    • He is an expert in both Western & Eastern Astronomy, Western & Eastern Astrology.
    • He served on the “Myanmar Calendar Advisory Board” for many years.
    • He wrote an article, which complements/augments Kogyi Koung’s narrative of the “Kyaikhtiyo Project”.
    • He also wrote about “Bagan restoration” and “Civil Engineering Department”.
    • He retired from Caltrans when he was about 80 years young.
    • He passed away in Southern California.

    Memories

    • Attended SPZP-2000 & gave speech
    Welcome Dinner for SPZP-2000
    • Alumni mostly from SoCal meet annually for Lunch gathering with Saya. Dr. San Lin invited us to one gathering.
    Saya & former students
    • Dr. Aung Soe led the practical for Saya’s course on Surveying.
    Saya 3
  • Kyaik-Htiyo Development Project 1979 (Supplement)

    Kyaik-Htiyo Development Project 1979 (Supplement)

    by Min Wun

    Updated : June 2025

    U Min Wun
    Professor Emeritus, Civil Engineering, RIT

    U Min Wun

    When I read the article on “Kyaik Hti Yo Development Project” (KHYDP) by Dr. Koung Nyunt, Arch 67 – New Zealand, it brings me lots of fond memories and remind me of the “Good Old Days” of my tenure at the then R.I.T. It urges me to write this supplemental article.

    There are many attractive sites in Myanmar for pilgrims, such as

    • “Ah Laung Daw Katha Pha” to the west of Monywa,
    • “Popa Taung Kalat” and “Mount Popa” north of Kyauk Pa Daung,
    • “Pin Da Ya Hlaing Gu” near Nyaung Shwe in Shan State,
    • “U Daung Taung” near Inlay Lake in Shan State,
    • “Mrauk U” and “Wei Tha Li” in Rakkhine State,
    • “Kyaik Hti Yo” in Mon State, … and so on, just to mention a few.

    These pilgrimage sites are our “National Wilderness Heritages”. A Wilderness is a place where the imprint of humans is substantially unnoticed, and the changes will occur primarily through natural disturbance, and minimum human influence. This is not the case with Kyaik Hti Yo, and many of the above pilgrimage sites in Myanmar, where human encroachment and activity are becoming noticeable.

    On your way up the Kyaik Hti Yo Trek, after the Nga Gar Lain climb, the first sight of the Gilded Stupa-Topped Boulder, resembling a Hermit’s Head, floating on top of a Stone Pillar, appears in vista vision. At that time, a thrilling feeling of achievement and excitement is beyond description and all the physical tiredness seems to have dissolved and melted away in the bodily blood stream. During the Pagoda Festival Season, this scenario was usually hidden from view by a long row of bamboo huts along the last ridge toward the Kyaik Hti Yo Pagoda Plateau. Many smaller boulders along the ridge were painted in white for advertising the vendors.

    To the East of the Pagoda Plateau many bamboo huts align the smaller ridges with waterless bathrooms in the back and human wastes are dumped along the slopes, creating ugly and unsanitary sites for parasites, and causing unpleasant smell in the air. Water is a scarce property and it is a luxury to afford a shower.

    With the blessing of the venerable “Me Byaw Sayadaw”, the Kyaik Hti Yo Pagoda Trustees (KHYPT), requested me to prepare a Project Report for the development of Kyaik Hti Yo and its Environment. The Project was sponsored by the KHYPT under the auspices of the Kyaik Hto Township Party and Council. The Project Development Team (PDT) was formed with the following volunteer Team Leaders: Dr. Koung Nyunt, ( Dept of Architecture, R.I.T.); Dr. San Lin and U Hla Thein (Electric Power Corporation, E.P.C.); Dr. Kyaw Latt, (National Housing Board, N.H.B.); U Tint Lwin (?), (Dept of Geology, R.A.S.U.); U Aye Win Kyaw, (Dept of Civil Engineering, R.I.T.).

    And volunteer members from R.I.T., E.P.C., N.H.B., R.A.S.U., too numerous to mention and I do hope they will excuse me.

    Preservation of Wilderness : Dr. Koung Nyunt and his team had prepared many good recommendations to preserve Kyaik Hti Yo and its environment by maintaining the natural landscapes and scenic beauty, and to preserve it as a Wilderness Area. (See Slide #16 of Kyaik Htiyo Album, KHA. Dr. Kyaw Latt is the Second from the Left, looking away from camera.)

    Zoning : The team lead by Dr Kyaw Latt had prepared useful Zoning Maps, with guidelines for enforcement, to demarcate Kyaik Hti Yo Plateau for Resting Huts, Food Stalls, Souvenir Boutiques, Photographers, etc.

    Hydro-power : The Hydropower Team lead by Dr. San Lin & U Hla Thein made a feasibility study for Micro-hydro Power Project, for lighting, for pumping water to the Pagoda Plateau level for water supply and sanitation purposes. U Hla Thein will design the turbine and manufacture it locally. (See Slide #29 of KHA.)

    Geological Survey : U Tint Lwin and his team made a general geological survey of Hyaik Hti Yo Pagoda Site. A detailed study of the Stone Pillar and the Hermit-Head Boulder was conducted. Disposed “Food Offerings” were found at the foot of the Stone Pillar and many “rodent holes” were also observed. These holes became small piping tunnels for runoff water to drain deeper and quicker into the ground, causing erosion and exposing the base of the Stone Pillar. This process was gradually endangering the stability of the Stone Pillar, which is “supposed” to support the 160-ton Hermit-Head Boulder on top of it. A concrete slab was poured around the base of the Stone Pillar and discarding of “Food Offerings” at the base was at once prohibited. Several hairline cracks were observed at the top of the Stone Pillar and “Water Offerings” to the Stupa on top of the Boulder was prohibited temporarily until the hair line cracks were sealed with apoxy resin. (See Slide # 25 of KHA.)

    Civil Engineering : U Aye Win Kyaw and his surveying team were very ingenious to determine the volume of the Hermit-Head Boulder and its weight, which was calculated to be approximately 160 tons. The center of gravity of the Boulder was determined to be 6 to 9 inches away from the vertical axis of the “Contact Point” with the Stone Pillar, giving an impression of being on the verge of falling off. The Boulder seems to be afloat and can be rocked back and forth about a shifting “Contact Point” on top of the Stone Pillar. A rope can be pulled through this “Contact Point”, without getting crushed, by rocking the Boulder gently. And it seems to defy the Law of Gravity, thus making it both a terrestrial and a celestial “Wonder”. (See Slides #13, #22, and #24 of KHA.)

    Many field trips were organized by each team to do site investigations both during Kyaik Hti Yo Festival Season (beginning at the end of the Buddhist Lent and ending on the Lunar New Year Day) and off the Festival Season. According to an age-old saying, the author should become rich because he had made more than “Three Trips to Kyaik Hti Yo Pagoda”, at least nine trips. The age-old saying is, perhaps, true, because many of the PDT members and volunteers are now abroad living comfortably or enjoying a retirement life.

    A feasibility report was submitted to the Kyaik Hti Yo Pagoda Trustees in 1982. Since then I have not been to Kyaik Hti Yo Pagoda Festival. I have learned that there are many improvements to make Kyaik Hti Yo a Tourist Attraction. We should, however, keep in our mind that the “Wilderness” of Kyaik Hti Yo should be protected and valued for its unique ecological, historical, religious, scientific and experiential resources.

    Note :

    Saya Dr. Koung Nyunt (A67) and Sayagyi U Min Wun are GBNF.

  • MET / MAT

    MET / MAT

    by Hla Min

    Updated : June 2025

    Terms

    • Metallurgy
    • Metallurgical Engineering
    • Material Science

    U Thit (GBNF)

    • Was studying Mechanical Engineering when he was offered to study MET at Lehigh University in the US.
    • Completed BS & joined Faculty as Assistant Lecturer
    • Received MS from Melbourne University
    • Became Lecturer & Head of Metallurgy Department
    • Taught “Materials and Processes” in our 2nd BE class. He would throw chalk at the noisy student(s).
    • Moved to Australia.
    • Sent condolences via the RIT Alumni Newsletter when Saya Allen Htay (C58) passed away. He was a bit senior to Saya Allen during their high school in Yegyaw.
    • Wrote a brief history of the Metallurgy Department for HMEE project. He suggested other Met sayas to cover more (after he left RIT).
    • Attended selected Reunion and PZPs in Yangon.

    Dr. Saw Pru (GBNF)

    • He succeeded U Thit as Head of Department
    • Ko Thein Ngwe (ChE76) posted an article about “လူဝင်စား” It mentioned that Saya chose to be reborn as a son of his nephew Ko Khin Aung Shwe.

    U Than Tin

    • He studied in US.
    • Acting Head of Department
    • After teaching for several years, he moved to US.
    • I spoke with him briefly before SPZP-2000.
    • Dr. Tin Win said that U Than Tin moved from East Coast to Los Angeles

    Dr. Khin Maung Win (GBNF)

    Dr. Khin Maung Win
    • B.Sc. from Mandalay University
    • Worked at Mandalay U and later at UBARI in Rangoon.
    • Went on a government scholarship to USA to get his MS and PhD in Metallurgy.
    • Joined RIT Met
    • Later became DG of Technological Agricultural and Vocational Education.

    U Aung Hla Tun (GBNF)

    U Aung Hla Tun
    HMEE
    • Retired as Associate Professor
    • Published two books
    • Won National Literary Award for his first book.
    • Chief Editor of RIT Annual Magazine
    • He & his team published the History of Myanmar Engineering Education book in 2012. U Ohn Khine (M70) and I compiled the CD supplement for the book.
    • Saya led HMEE-2012 & HMEE-2018 projects.

    Some Senior Sayas

    • U Pe Win : Professor and Rector
    • U Tin Maung Nyunt (Met70) : Retired as Professor. Note that U Tin Maung Nyunt (M60) taught Agricultural Engineering.
    • Daw Victoria Simon (Met70) : Retired as Professor. Her father was Workshop Superintendent.
    • U Win Kyaw (Met71) : Rowing; Moved to Ministry of Mines in 1982
    Win Kyaw
    • U Thein Aung (Met72) : Mr. RIT in 1968; SPZP-2000 (co-emcee, Associate Editor), Lawrence Livermore Lab
    Thein Aung
    • U Nyunt Htay (Met73) : High school Luyechun, Poet, Chief Editor of Mudita Myanmar)
    Nyunt Htay

    Miscellaneous

    • U Win Kyaw, U Thein Aung & U Nyunt Htay had a micro-reunion at 2015 RIT Alumni Reunion in Los Angeles and at the iNapa Winery Lunch & Dinner hosted by Gordon Kaung (M83) and Lillian Kaung (EC83).
    • U Nyunt Htay hosted a Dinner for U Win Kyaw, U Ye Myint and me during my visit to Yangon (from Nov 2019 to Jan 2020). He also gave me the Kabyar book (by five RIT sayas / alumni) and the Mudita Sar Saung (which featured the kabyars of him and Saya U Moe Aung).

    Younger sayas and sayamas include Dr. Naing Naing Aung (Met91, who organized seminars).

    U Win Kyaw & spouse
    U Aung Hla Tun
    U Thein Aung

  • Aung Myint (M69)

    by Myint Thin

    Updated : June 2025

    Education & Work

    U Aung Myint (3rd Standing)
    • U Aung Myint (Bassein)
    • Son of U Maung Thwe & Daw Lay
    • Gradated with Mechanical Engineering degree from the RIT in 1969
    • Joined the Institute as an Instructor in 1970
    • Received Masters degree in Fluid Mechanics from UK in 1974.
    • Worked as Assistant Lecturer at RIT till 1980, when he left for Singapore.
    • Lectured at Singapore Polytechnic until retirement.

    Family

    Aung Myint 2
    • Spouse : Daw Khin Nwe Aye
    • Two daughters.
    • Elder studied at Medical Trinity College at Dublin, UK.
    • Younger studied Neuroscience at University of Otago, New Zealand.
  • Kin Mg Yin, Myo Myint, Khaing Tin

    Kin Mg Yin, Myo Myint, Khaing Tin

    by Hla Min

    Updated : June 2025

    ဦးခင်မောင်ရင် (ပိသုကာ 1960, ကွယ်လွန်)

    * အချိန်ပိုင်းဆရာ

    * မော်ဒန် ပန်းချီ Modern Art

    * ရုပ်ရှင်ဒါရိုက်တာ

    ဦးမျိုးမြင့် (စက်မှု 1974)

    * စက်မှုတက္ကသိုလ်မဂ္ဂဇင်း၊ စွယ်တော်ရိပ်မဂ္ဂဇင်း Cover Design

    * ပုံတူ — ရေးဆွဲ ပြီး လှူ

    * ကာတွန်း

    * အင်ဂျင်နီယာ၊ မီးရထား (ငြိမ်း)

    ဦးခိုင်တင် (မြို့ပြ 1976, ကွယ်လွန်)

    * ပန်းချီ ခိုင်တင်

    * စက်မှုတက္ကသိုလ်မဂ္ဂဇင်း Cover Design

    * ဆရာ

    * ရုပ်ရှင် — သရုပ်ဆောင်၊ ဒါရိုက်တာ

  • Tin Myint (David Ko, M67)

    Tin Myint (David Ko, M67)

    by Hla Min

    Updated : June 2025

    Highlights

    David (Left)
    • Graduated with Mechanical Engineering from RIT in 1967.
    • Worked at Sittaung Paper Mill.
    • Moved to USA. Became a successful Entrepreneur and Philanthropist
    • Co-founded “M & Ko”. Hired several Burmese (including RIT graduates) in the SF Bay Area. Sponsored “Ya-han-khan” (ordination) ceremonies for his employees.
    • Did not forget his roots. Golden Sponsor of SPZP-2000. Donated $3000 to SPZP-2012. Donated to NorCal RITAA and sponsored table for the Annual Dinner.
    • Donated to the general and building funds of various monasteries in the Bay Area.
      One was in memory of his spouse Daw Sein Yone.
    • Played Table uTennis
    • Built audio equipment to play Vinyl Records with high fidelity
    • Became a Vegetarian
    • Retired after Serial Entrepreneurship. Joined the Bay Area Retirees’ monthly lunch gathering.
    • Passed away on February 22, 2021.
    • Mavis Ko donated $2000 to NorCal RITAA in David’s memory.

    Article from BAPS Newsletter

    • Edison Paw wrote the success story of two RIT alumni : David Ko (M68) & Benny Tan (M70)
    • Thanks to BAPS, Maurice Chee (Past President), Henry Lim (Former Chief Editor) & Edison Paw for permission to reprint the article

    David Ko

    Mr. David Ko (U Tin Myint, M67) has a successful mechanical components manufacturing firm in Union City. He co-founded the business back in 1978 with a partner from Croatia. The two partners have since expanded their business. With approximately 100 employees, they currently occupy 72,000 sq. feet of space for their warehousing and manufacturing operations. The company is continuously growing at a rate of 5-25% per year. Ninety percent of their employees started out as trainees in their shop. BAPS [and RIT Alumni International] would like to congratulate Mr. Ko for his hard work, his dedication to his employees and his contribution to the community.

    Besides his successful business, David and his late wife, Daw Sein Yone, have three wonderful and promising children, two daughters and one son in all. The eldest daughter is working on her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at the University of California at Santa Barbara and is expected to start her internship this year. Their second child is in his second year at the Stanford University Medical School studying for his MD and Ph.D. program. Their third daughter is studying hair design at the Vidal Sassoon Academy.

    Mr. Ko emigrated to the U.S with his family in 1973 and they have been living in Fremont since 1976. He worked at the Raychem Company for five years before opening his own business. His interest in machining and tools started early in his life when he read Popular Mechanics and Mechanics Illustrated. He graduated in mechanical engineering [in 1967] from the Rangoon Institute of Technology (RIT) in Burma. He is one of a few Asian Americans who are not only trained machinists but also professionals in their own right. Inspired by their keen interests in mechanical devices and accessories, they learned, for the most part, on their own and developed their skills. However he had to overcome many obstacles that other minorities and immigrants encounter. In the late seventies, there were few Asian American machinists. David was constantly asked by his customers whether he was a machinist, if he knew how to operate a machine, and where he acquired the skills.

    David and his partner continue to thrive in this very cyclical business mainly because they take good care of their employees, re-invest their earnings into their business, re-invent themselves, and expand their business cautiously. Competition in the mechanical components business continues to be fierce because of new improvements in technology. In many ways, David compares technological advances in the machine industry to those of the software industry. Every year new models come on the market. These new products work faster and give you a whole lot of functions and features. Just as David manages his family and nurtures them carefully, he manages to nurture his business relationship with his partner and his employees quite successfully.

    David, Congratulations to you and your family!!! You are a role model to everyone! It shows that the United States is truly a land of opportunities. Hard work and perseverance can and do lead to success. David and his company are always looking for trainees.

  • RIT Class of 1973

    RIT Class of 1973

    by Hla Min

    Updated : June 2025

    • The Class celebrated the Golden Jubilee of the admission in 1967.

    Hovercraft Project

    • Six final year M73 students (including U Hla Win and U Khin Maung Cho) did their project on Hovercraft under the supervision of Saya U Tu Myint.
    M73 Project
    • John Rao organized a mini-gathering during my visit to Singapore to meet Saya U Tu Myint and selected M73 members headed by U Hla Win (formerly known as “Roll No. 1”). Saya had retired as Director from Singapore Polytechnic.
    • I met U Khin Maung Cho at my nephew’s house warming party in Yangon. He was a junior colleague of my elder brother at HIC.
    • Saya U Moe Aung arranged for a media interview (partly online and partly face-to-face) with the Hovercraft team members.

    UCC Alumni

    U San Lin (Robert) & Daw Hla Myint (Marina) in Dallas, Texas
    • U San Lin (Robert, EC73), U Htun Aung Kyaw (HAK, EC73) and U Khin Maung Aye (M73, GBNF) attended M.Sc. (Computer Science) course at UCC.
    • Robert worked for Texas Instruments in Singapore and was transferred to Texas. He worked for Tech Companies until retirement. He and his spouse Marina (Daw Hla Myint, EC73) hosted the first leg of our trip to Texas. They have a son (medical doctor) and two grandchildren.
    • HAK worked for Schlumberger before moving to Australia. I met him and his spouse (medical doctor) during our visit to Sydney in 2006.
    • U Khin Maung Aye (GBNF) worked for Railways Computing Section.

    Ph.D’s

    • Dr. Myint Thein (M73) received his doctorate from Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, USA. He wrote articles for RIT Alumni Newsletter with the pen name Ba Thein (Atlanta). His spouse is Daw Nyo Nyo Win (T73).
    Dr. Myint Thein
    • Dr. L. Sein Myint (M73) received his doctorate from UK. He co-hosted the first RIT Alumni Reunion in East Coast.
    East Coast Reunion

    Dhamma Lecturers

    U Jotika
    • Sayadaw U Jotika (EE73) is a distinguished lecturer and author. He spent a vasa at Taung Pulu Kaba Aye monastery in Northern California. He made Dhamma Duta missions to Singapore and USA.
    • U Ohn Kyaw (EP73) has visited and shared dhamma in the USA. He also had a mini-reunion in Los Angeles with his former classmates.

    ChE73

    • U Kyi Aung (Roland Chen, ChE73) submitted the Class Photo for the first ex-rit website.
    ChE73
    • Ko Roland offered to give us a ride to attend gatherings hosted by Saya U Aung Myaing (ChE72) and Daw Gyn Yu (ChE72). He shared some anecdotes. One was “why he was offered to test ride the M73 hovercraft”. Another one was about his Final Year Computer Programming Class taught by Dr. Maung Maung Win (GBNF). He did all the assignments at UCC. At the final exam, he saw a single question “If you have done the assignments, leave them in the exam hall”. His two friends (who had not diligently done their assignments) were caught by surprise.

  • Classes (1973 – 93)

    by Hla Min

    Updated : June 2025

    1973

    M73 Hovercraft
    • U Hla Win (M)
    • U Khin Maung Cho (M)
    • Dr. Myint Thein (M)
    Myint Thein
    • Dr. L Sein Myint (M)
    • U Myo Myint (M)
    • U Hla Win (M)
    • U Aung Moung (M, GBNF)
    • U San Lin (EC) & Daw Hla Myint (EC)
    San Lin
    • U Htun Aung Kyaw (EC)
    • U Kyi Aung (ChE)
    • Dennis Mackey (C)
    • George Peters (C)
    • U Nyunt Htay (Met)
    Nyunt Htay

    1974

    • Dr. Htay Lwin Nyo (EP, GBNF)
    • Sai Aung Thu Yein (EC, GBNF)
    • U Myint Swe (EP)
    • Daw San San Swe (EC)
    • Daw Khin Swe Oo (EC)
    • U Nay Win Maw (E)
    • U Myo Thant (E)
    • U Maung Maung Thant (M)
    • U Sann Aung (M, GBNF)
    • Charlie Than (M)

    1975

    M75
    • Maurice Chee (M)
    • U Win Khaing (M, GBNF)
    • U Than Po (M, GBNF)
    • U Tin Myint (M, GBNF)
    • U Khin Maung Win (M)
    • U Ye Lin Oo (M)
    • U Ohn Win (M)
    • Daw Mar Mar Yee (M)
    Mar Mar Yee
    • U Mya Thwin (EP)
    • U Sein Tin (EC)

    1976

    • U Khin Maung Zaw (EC)
    • U Wynn Myint Aung (EC, GBNF)
    • U Sein Myint (EC)
    • U Thura Thant Zin (M)
    • U Aye Tun (M)
    • U Khin Maung Aye (M)

    1980

    • U Tin Myint (M)
    • U Lu Aye (M)

    1981

    • U Tin Aung Win (C)

    1983

    Gordon & Lillian Kaung
    • Gordon Kaung (Kaung Kaung Oo, M)
    • U Kyaw Than Aung (M, GBNF)
    • U Kyaw Myint (M)
    • U Kyi Shane (M)
    • Lillian Kaung (EC)
    • U Tha Hlaing (EC)
    • U Thaung Tin (EC)
    • U Shein Soe Myint (EC, GBNF)
    • U Thein Htut (EC)

    1984

    • U Ko Ko Zin (M)
    • U Aung Myint Oo (EC)
    • Daw Khin Khin Hla (C)

    1985

    • Saw Yu Ket (Edward, EC)
    • U Tun Mra Gyaw (EC)
    • U San Oo (EC)
    • U Tin Tun (EC)

    1986

    • U Tin Maung Win (C)
    • U Nyunt Than (M)
    • U Thaung Nyunt (M)
    • Daw Cho Cho Thwin (E)

    1987

    • U San Lin (M)
    • Eng Shwe Ho (M)
    • Andrew (M)

    1992

    • Nan Khin Nwe (M)
    • Daw May Than Htay (M)

    1993

    • U Mg Mg Win (Mg Yit, EC)
    • U Soe Min Oo (EC)
  • Classes (1968 – 72)

    Classes (1968 – 72)

    by Hla Min

    Updated : June 2025

    1968

    C68

    U Myat Htoo
    • U Myat Htoo
    • U Myint Soe (GBNF)

    ChE68

    U Ohn Maung
    • U Ohn Maung (GBNF)

    A68

    • Sai Yee Laik (GBNF)
    • U Yu Swan (M68)
    • U Aung Khin (EP68)
    • U Tun Aung (Jeffery, EC68, GBNF)
    • U Soe Myint Lwin (EP68, GBNF)
    • U Khin Maung Lay (Henry, T68)

    1969

    M69

    U Aung Min
    M69
    • U Aung Min
    • Ivan Lee (Khin Maung Oo)
    • U Htay Aung
    • U Tin Aung Win (Oscar)

    C69

    C69
    • Daw Myint Myint
    • U San Lin (GBNF)
    • U Han Sein (GBNF)

    EC EP 69

    EE69
    • U Sein Myint (EP)
    • Sai Kham Pan (EP)
    • U Hla Min (EC)
    • U Tun Aung Gyaw (EC)
    • U Toung (EC)
    • U Kyaw Soe (EC, GBNF)
    • U Aung Thu Yein (EC, GBNF)
    • U Chit Tin (EC, GBNF)

    A69

    A69
    • U Aung Khin
    • U Myo Tun (Bobby, Uzin)
    • Tobias Kittim Ku (GBNF)
    • U Tin Maung Hla (GBNF)

    T69

    • Naw Mu Mu Aye
    • Saw Yu Tint
    • U Hla Shwe (GBNF)
    • U Hla Tun (GBNF)
    • Jimmy Kyin (GBNF)

    1970

    M70
    • Dr. Myo Khin (C)
    • U Thaung Sein (Steeve Kay, EC, GBNF)
    • Benny Tan (Yu Beng, M)
    • Tommy Shwe (GBNF)
    • Peter Pe (GBNF)
    • U Cho Aye (M, GBNF)
    • U Tha Htay (M70)
    • U Ohn Khine (M)
    • U Zaw Min Nawaday (EP)
    • Daw Tin Tin Myint (Emma, ChE)
    • U Ye Myint (ChE)
    • Daw Thynn Thynn Khaing (Janet, EP)
    • Daw Than Yi (Maubin Ma Shwe Than, EP)
    • Daw Tin Myint Oo (Rosy Tin Maung, May Lin Set Hmu, M)
    • Sai Thein Maung (C)

    1971

    M71
    • U Saw Lin (C, GBNF)
    • Daw Mai Khin Nyunt (Rosie Gyi, ChE)
    • U Khin Maung Myint (ChE)
    • U Khin Maung Myint (M)
    • U Myint Than (M)
    • U Myint Toe (M)
    • U Myint Thin (M, GBNF)
    • U Win Kyaw (Met)

    1972

    • U Thein Aung (Met)
    • U Thein Aung (M)
    • U Wynn Htain Oo (M)
    • U Myint Pe (M)
    • U Aung Myaing (ChE)
    • Daw Gyn Yu (ChE)
    • Trixie Tan (ChE)
    • U Myo Myint Pe (ChE, GBNF)
    • U Tun Shwe (ChE)
    • U Kyaw Myint (T)
    • Daw Sandi Hlaing (T)
    • U Kyaw Myint (EP)