Exhorting alumni to become Ambassadors of their alma mater, the
President of the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) Prof. Said
Irandoust has written to all alumni seeking their support in ensuring
AIT’s long-term sustainability.
In a letter written to the Institute’s alumni, Prof. Irandoust stated
that alumni can act as bridges between AIT and the outer world. He also
informed the alumni of the developments at AIT since the mother campus
was hit by the flood on 21 October 2011. Prof. Irandoust detailed the
efforts made by AIT to relaunch academic classes and administrative
operations.
The letter is reproduced here:
Dear Alumni,
At the very outset I must thank all of you for the outpouring of
support, condolence and messages sent to your alma mater after the
campus in Pathumthani was flooded on 21 October 2011. That day will be
remembered as the darkest day in the history of AIT.
A little over six weeks have passed, and though we are working hard and
have resumed operations, it is still a long way to go for all of us. At
this juncture, I am using this opportunity to reach out to all of you
to apprise you of the developments that have taken place since the
flood.
The 2-3 metres of water at AIT has been drained out, and I take this
opportunity to acknowledge the help and support of the Government of
Japan and the draining pumps provided by Ch. Karnchang. AIT now has
temporary offices working at various places ? at two places in Bangkok,
namely AIS (courtesy AIT alumni) and Chulalongkorn University. Shortly
we will move to a new work location in Bangkok.
Academic classes have resumed at three places in Hua Hin, namely
Stamford International University (SIU), Silpakorn University and Suan
Dusit Rajabhat University. This move has been widely welcomed with
other universities being simply overawed at the pace at which we
resumed classes. This will ensure that students who are scheduled to
graduate are not delayed further. Further, students scheduled to go to
Europe on exchange programs will be able to proceed after completing
their coursework at AIT. Meanwhile AIT is working very hard to ensure
that its campus becomes hospitable and safe so that we can
return.
Apart from informing you of the latest round of events, I also seek
your support in ensuring AIT's long term sustainability. We need our
alumni to be ambassadors of AIT and for them to act as positive
facilitators. We need alumni to spread the word about the good work and
achievements of AIT. Alumni can act as bridges between AIT and the
outer world, so that the world views us in positive light. That is what
we wish alumni would do. The role of the alumni is to help, guide and
facilitate, particularly in fund raising. At AIT, all of us are
positively inclined towards its alumni, and we continue to engage with
them both formally and informally. You need not wait for an annual
event to engage with your mother Institute, and you do not have to go
via any other mechanism to reach us. The AIT management,
administration, faculty, staff and even students are always eager to
hear from you. We would prefer that you reach out directly to AIT, and
we would be more than eager to engage with you.
To end on very positive news ? by the end of January 2012, AIT will be
re-established as an International Intergovernmental Institute. The
present Governing structure will be replaced by a new Council
comprising exclusively of representatives of Governments and
International Organizations who have signed the Charter. As alumni, you
would be very proud to hear that the Institute where you once studied
will soon become a full-fledged International Institute.
From this month onwards I shall be writing exclusively to all of you
every three months. I shall inform you about the developments in your
mother Institute, and help you to connect and reconnect, engage and
reengage with AIT.
I have provided as attachment a brief of some of the activities and
initiatives taken by the current administration under the guidance and
direction of the Board of Trustees and Executive Committee, which
elaborates in more detail some of the above points.
I look forward to closely interacting with our alumni from all over the
world.
Thanks and best wishes.
Said Irandoust
President, Asian Institute of Technology (AIT)