Dr. T.Y. Lau

"Education is the one thing that no one can ever take away from you."

「教育是一代影響一代，用生命影響生命的過程。」

Dr. Tuen-yu Lau was always a bright intellectual student, often at the top of his class in school. Born and raised in Hong Kong, his first foray into journalism began in high school, where he was editor of his school’s newspaper at St. Paul’s College. He originally intended on pursuing social work when he applied for college at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, but instead was recruited by the journalism and communication department, and ultimately graduated with a degree in radio and television broadcasting in 1978. During his last year of college, Dr. Lau met his wife Connie while on a tour to mainland China, and they started dating when they returned. They eventually married in 1983, and had two children together - Vivian and Victor.

For much of his life, Dr. Lau traveled extensively with his family between North America and Asia-Pacific in many roles, ranging from senior management executive, professor, researcher, and journalist.

A graduate of Stanford University’s Master of Communications program, and Michigan State University’s Mass Media Doctoral program, Dr. Lau dedicated much of his life both in pursuit of and in service to academia. He was the Founding Director of the Master of Communications in Digital Media Program at the University of Washington in Seattle. He was a communications professor at Purdue University and visiting professor at University of California, Los Angeles; Fudan University in Shanghai; Beijing Central University of Finance and Economics; and the University of Hong Kong. He was also a visiting scholar at his alma mater Stanford University, as well as the University of Southern California, University of San Francisco, and was an external examiner of doctoral dissertations at the University of Fort Hare in South Africa.

Dr. Lau felt it was important for those in his field to have hands-on experience, and personally had an extensive portfolio of industry work. After college, Dr. Lau worked as a TV journalist/producer at TVB, the preeminent TV broadcasting network in Hong Kong. He also took part in a start-up initiative dedicated to launching daily Chinese-language newspapers in San Francisco and New York City. He later became a senior management executive responsible for building, launching, and managing Indosiar Visual Mandiri, where he worked with 50 foreign advisors to train 1,000 factory workers to become TV professionals. Indosiar was the first all-digital national TV network in Indonesia and the first media company ever listed on the Jakarta Stock Exchange. He also worked as an advisor for an internet radio company in Silicon Valley to help turn the company from a revenue-loss to cash-flow positive.

Dr. Lau was a thinker ahead of his time. Dr. Lau believed that the future of education would increasingly involve the intersection of traditional lecture methods and emerging communications technology. One of his final professional endeavors involved a workshop pioneering the conduct of university-level coursework online via Zoom at the University of San Francisco. Little did he know that less than a year after his passing, his vision would come to life across the globe.

Throughout his life, Dr. Lau also strongly believed in the importance of engaging with and giving back to his community. He volunteered for various nonprofits and local organizations, including Northwest Kidney Centers and the Renton Municipal Arts Commission.

Dr. Lau passed away in May 2019 after a hard-fought battle with cancer. Known affectionately by his friends as ‘T.Y.’, Dr. Lau is remembered for his innate curiosity, willingness to help, and strong sense of justice. He leaves behind a legacy of compassion and integrity, and a belief in the lasting effect of education on empowering people.