WEEK # 1, 2 - 8 January 2024
In this issue:
C. Visitors/ MoU/ Agreement Signing
1) Administrative Appointments Effective 1 January 2024
Email from AIT President on 3 January 2024
I am excited to share the news of the appointment of the following Unit Directors, effective January 1, 2024.
Director of Student Affairs (OSA)
After serving as the Acting Director since June 2023, Dr. Tenzin Rabgyal will continue his dedicated service as the Director of the Office of Student Affairs.
With a decade of experience within OSA, Dr. Rabgyal has demonstrated strong leadership qualities. I am confident that he will effectively lead the OSA team and carry out responsibilities with efficiency.
Director of the Office of Sustainable Campus (OSC)
Ms. Sireesha Bantu has been fulfilling the role of OSC Director on a part-time basis since 2022. Concurrently, she held positions as the Senior IFM Manager and Assistant Director of OFAM.
Starting January 1, 2024, Ms. Sireesha will transition into the full-time role of Director of the Office of Sustainable Campus. This move allows her to concentrate fully on OSC initiatives and sustainability activities on campus.
Please join me in supporting both Dr. Tenzin Rabgyal and Ms. Sireesha Bantu in their new roles.
2) A Better Working Environment
Email from AIT President on 4 January 2024
Dear members of the AIT family,
I am committed to creating an environment at AIT that fosters a positive and congenial team attitude. Therefore this important and regular reminder message is sent out to the AIT community at the beginning of every semester.
There may be instances where a person feels that an unsatisfactory situation has developed at AIT which requires addressing, and thus wishes to lodge a complaint or express a grievance. For these cases, AIT already has policies and procedures for addressing grievances, such as sexual harassment, bullying, invasion of privacy and discrimination, among others (PA 2-1-2) and on disciplinary action (PA 1-3-3, X; PA 1-1-1, IX). Procedures for handling the grievances of students are set out in the Student Handbook. Your first step should always be to go through your reporting channel, deviating from that only if the problem is within the channel itself or if you do not receive satisfaction after doing this.
However, if after following these established procedures, it is felt that the complaint or grievance cannot be resolved through these channels and it is of a serious nature, it should be drawn to the attention of the AIT Administration. Should the matter reach this point, here is the system for complaint or grievance:
Step 1 — Make a report and send it, using your AIT email address, to report@ait.ac.th. Any complaint or grievance reported in this way will be addressed seriously, and in utmost confidence. However, no anonymous complaints will be accepted.
Step 2 — The Director of the Office of Academic Administration (OAA) has been entrusted by the AIT President to make an initial assessment of all complaints and grievances (including, but not limited to, cases of unethical behavior and misconduct).
Step 3 — Based on the OAA Director’s assessment, a confidential report will be submitted to the AIT President, who will then decide the actions that the Institute needs to take, including the formation of a Grievance Committee. The Grievance Committee will be chaired by the OAA Director, and shall invite external experts and/or ad hoc members.
I would like all of us to focus on the challenges facing AIT. But to do so requires that we address concerns about the governance of the Institute. Before making a complaint, you should be confident of its legitimacy and seriousness. And use your reporting channel initially as mentioned above. But if you are still not satisfied, this Grievance Process can be initiated. The Grievance Process is described in the recently revised Institute P&P on Ethical Behavior and Grievance Process (PA-2-1-2, attached) and provides an equitable and confidential channel for students, faculty, and staff to put forward their legitimate grievances and complaints. The administration will do its utmost to try to reach a fair resolution.
Let us all strive to have a positive and collaborative working environment at AIT!
Thank you!
3) Invitation to a seminar by Ambassador Dr. Shambhu Ram Simkhada, 8 Jan 2024, 3pm, MEB Auditorium
Email from Prof. Sangam Shrestha, Dean, School of Engineering & Technology (SET) on 1 January 2024.
I would like to extend a warm invitation to each of you for an insightful seminar presented by the esteemed Ambassador Dr. Shambhu Ram Simkhada. Dr. Simkhada, renowned for his roles as Nepal's former Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva, former Chair of the UN Human Rights Commission, and Ambassador to Switzerland, will be sharing his valuable perspectives with us.
Title: Technology and Global Governance Relevance of Gandhi’s Philosophy for Contemporary International Relations
Date: 8 January 2024 (Monday)
Time: 15:00–16:00 hrs (ICT)
Venu: Milton Bendor Auditorium
Registration link: https://forms.gle/9X4xwseRc9CpNuVv6
4) Doctoral Final Examination
Email from Registry Unit, Office of Student Affairs, AIT on 5 January 2024
Mr. Wuttinan Sereethavekul [118978], a candidate for the degree of Doctor of Engineering in Microelectronics and Embedded Systems, Department of Industrial Systems Engineering, School of Engineering and Technology, will have his final examination on 11 January 2024 (Thursday) at 08:00 hrs by Zoom. His dissertation title is " Adaptive Lightweight License Plate Image Recovery Using Deep Learning Based on Generative Adversarial Network."
The members of his Program Committee members are as follows:
Dr. Mongkol Ekpanyapong (Chairperson)
Prof. Matthew N. Dailey (Member)
Prof. Huynh Trung Luong (Member)
All those who are interested in the topic are invited to join.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://ait-ac-th.zoom.us/j/97210467406?pwd=bWNkSERqYUdPYmNRZFJuR29MNEJ1...
Meeting ID: 972 1046 7406
Passcode: 053617
Venue: Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand
Date: 18-22 March 2024
Venue: Asian Institute of Technology
For more information please visit https://tinyurl.com/37fw54u7
Duration: 10 – 21 June 2024
Venue: Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand
For more information and registration please visit
https://extension.ait.ac.th/course/summer-training-program-climate-smart-and-sustainable-agriculture-using-cutting-edge
- Ms. Isha Basyal, AITX/ Kigali, Rwanda/ 8 December 2023 - 2 January 2024
- Mr. Syams Nashrrulla Suprijatna, GIC/ Jakarta, Indonesia/ 9 December 2023 - 6 January 2024
- Ms. Chotiros Mongkolchotirat, Director, Office of the President/ Taipei, Taiwan/ 19 - 22 February 2024
- Prof. Kunnawee Kanitpong, Faculty-SET/ Washinton D.C. USA/ 3 - 12 January 2024
- Prof. Deepak Sharma, Director, CGC/New Delhi, India/ 22 December 2023 - 12 January 2024
- Dr. Sanjeev Jayasinghe, Executive Director, OAAA/ Taipei, Taiwan/ 19 - 22 February 2024
- Dr. Sanjeev Jayasinghe, Executive Director, OAAA/ Houston, New Jersey, Dalias, San Antonio, Humble/ 22 June - 23 July 2024
- Mr. Kona Venkata Anantha Kiran, AITX / Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia/ 15 - 22 January 2024
- Dr. Md. Zakir Hossain, AITX/ Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia/ 12 - 16 Januayr 2024
- Mr. Shashwat Sharma, SET/ Kathmandu, Nepal/ 20 December 2023 - 8 January 2024
- Dr. K. R. Salin, Faculty SERD/ Kochi, Kerala, India/ 16 December 2023 - 14 January 2024
Staff Position:
1. Assistant Professor or Associate Professor, SERD-GDS
3. Associate Professor/Professor, SOM
4. Associate / Assistant Professor, SET-ICT
5. Administrative Officer, GRU (Visa process for AIT's official trips)
6. Administrative Officer, GRU (Visa process for students and their dependents)