One-and-a-half years in the making, the publication’s release took
center stage at a special welcome dinner on 21 November 2014 for
attendees of the 43rd Governing Board Meeting (GBM) of Asian Institute
of Technology Alumni Association (AITAA) held in the Philippines.
Unveiled to the public at an open-air ceremony at De La Salle
University in the presence of the Thailand’s Ambassador to the
Philippines H.E. Mr. Prasas Prasasvinitchai, Chairman of the AIT Board
of Trustees H.E. Dr. Subin Pinkayan, and AITAA President Mr. Thanin
Bumrungsap, the book was later signed by former President of the
Philippines HE. Fidel V. Ramos, who is an honorary AIT alumnus and was
the keynote speaker at the annual AIT alumni gathering.
“AIT Alive at 55” was the brainchild of editor-in-chief Mr. Joseph
Paul Sianghio, who championed the book project from its inception and
readied its release just in time for the 2014 GBM meeting. Other
members of the editorial board were Ms. Fe Nuestro-Ferriols and Mr.
Dell Santos. In a letter to the sixteen alumni chapter representatives
and attendees to the meeting, Thanin said 'AIT Alive at 55' was
"prepared magnificently by the great team of the AITAA Philippines
chapter under the leadership of JP Sianghio."
The book arrives on coffee tables after a string of crises in recent
years tested the very foundation of the institute. Sianghio, who is the
President of the AITAA Philippine Chapter, writes in the introduction
that the publication was “the fruition of the dream of the Filipino
alumni to publish a commemorative book with a loaded title to celebrate
its [AIT’s] glorious history while alluding to its recent near-death
experience.”
Anything but macabre, the voluminous ten-chapter compilation of AIT
from 1959 to 2014 is an inviting page-turner that captures the rich
life and times of the institute in a vivid tapestry of pictures and
human interest features that make it hard to put down. “The book is
dedicated to the 20,000 (plus) students who pursued their dreams
through AIT in the past 55 years, and to all stakeholders who continue
to keep our beloved institute’s dream ALIVE,” reads the
dedication.
The publication opens with “Building a Dream”, a chapter taken from a
definitive fifty-year history of AIT written by prominent Filipino
alumnus and Hall of Fame member Prof. Ricardo P. Pama, and ends with
optimistic messages for the future from AIT Chairman Dr. Subin and
recently appointed AIT President Prof. Worsak Kanok-Nukulchai. The
publication then moves on to cover “Milestones in History”, “Evolution
of Academic Programs”, “AIT Hall of Fame” and “AIT Today”.
Of particular appeal to the large alumni diaspora in the Philippines
are later chapters titled “AIT Alumni Association”, “Distinguished
Filipino Alumni”, “Filipinos: Then and Now”, and “Filipino Awardees and
Graduates”, all of which contain poignant pages of graduates’ personal
life stories that are packaged in compelling ways for alumni and
mainstream readers alike. Sianghio and his team of researchers have
included an impressive catalogue of facts and figures that will prove
invaluable for anyone interested in AIT and its alumni hailing from the
Philippines. It contains precise lists of outstanding Filipino
graduates and records of all Filipino graduates from 1961 to
2014.
Funded largely by the Royal Thai Embassy in the Philippines and The
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Thailand, as well as a number of private
and public sector partners and individual sponsors, including AIT
Extension and AIT Consulting, “AIT Alive at Fifty Five” was hailed in
Manila as new benchmark for all publications to follow about the Asian
Institute of Technology.
Other editorial and publisher credits from Sianghio and the editors
went to the AIT Office of the President, Alumni Affairs Office, Media
and Communications Unit and the AIT Alumni Association.
(Photo Below) From Left: Prof. Ricardo P. Pama, H.E. Mr.
Prasas Prasasvinitcha, President Prof. Worsak Kanok-Nukulchai, Mr.
Joseph Paul Sianghio, H.E. President Fidel V. Ramos, H.E. Dr. Subin
Pinkayan, and Mr. Thanin Bumrungsap.
