Henry Houh '89, '90, SM '91, PhD '98
Alumnus Puts Computer Science Background to Work for Alumni Association
Henry Houh '89, '90, SM '91, PhD '98 enjoys an alumni barbeque with his son Vincent.
Ask Henry Houh '89, '90, SM '91, PhD '98 about volunteering for MIT, and you'll most likely get a modest shrug. That's because volunteering comes naturally to Houh who has been raising his hand to help out ever since he was an undergraduate.
"I like being involved in various activities," says Houh. "I also enjoy meeting new people, hearing of their experiences." As an undergraduate Houh was active as class officer, a member of the symphony, the brass ensemble, the Technique yearbook, and senior gift committee, to name but a few of his extra-curriculum activities.
"MIT is such an invigorating place that it was natural to want to be involved," says Houh. After graduating with an SB in Course 61 in 1989, Houh enrolled in graduate school where he went on to earn his Ph.D. in electrical engineering. It was during this time that the World Wide Web was exploding as a new business tool, and Houh immediately saw its potential to help organize student and alumni activities.
"I had become involved with the MIT Alumni Association as a member of the senior gift committee," says Houh. "So I approached some staff members, and volunteered to help get them on the Web."
"Henry's timing was perfect," says Joseph Recchio HM, director of the Alumni Association's technical services. "We were really just contemplating our online strategy. The Web was new, its potential and pitfalls were a big unknown to us, and here came Henry with real world experience and a very steady approach."
Houh eventually gave a presentation to the Alumni Association's board of directors, who then asked Houh to join the committee which led the development of the Association's online strategy.
"It was a lot of fun to help out," says Houh about the Association's first Web site. "I also learned quite a bit about the workings of the Alumni Association."
Houh's background in Course VI was certainly helpful, but so was his real-world experience, where he served as systems architect and chief technical officer for a number of high-tech start-up ventures.
"I'm very attracted to the mindset of a start-up," says Houh with a small chuckle. "I love the focus, the energy and drive that permeates a start-up. It's all about creating something and working with high-energy, dedicated people. It's invigorating."
The soft-spoken Houh would probably not be labeled an extrovert by the casual observer, but beneath the technical expertise is a genuine people person, and someone who likes to roll up his sleeves to get things done. His volunteer activities for MIT include the MIT Club of Boston, the MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge, the Advisory Committee for MIT Clubs, Advisory Council for Alumni Network Services, class reunion committee, and the Alumni Association Board of Directors.
"One of the reasons I volunteer," says Houh, "is I really enjoy meeting new people. For instance, when I joined the MIT Club of Boston I got to know a lot of very interesting alumni from a number of different generations. That's very rewarding as you build a community of new friends and lasting relationships. And you're also learning new things from fellow alumni who have different experiences than your own."
Houh says he joined the MIT Club of Boston right after graduation, and gradually became more involved, first as a volunteer and then as a club officer. Houh currently serves as vice president of communications for the club.
"The MIT Club of Boston was among the first clubs to build a Web site to facilitate club communications," says Houh, who revamped the Boston club's Web site. Since then the club has added a number of online enhancements, including rich-text e-mail capabilities, an online photo album of club events which now houses over 1,500 pictures, and electronic transaction capabilities.
"We had been very interested in putting the registration for our club activities online for a number of years," says Houh. "We knew the demand was there, so it was a matter of developing an efficient technology." The Boston club began with a product called 'Club Tools,' but moved to PayPal shortly after. "Right away, we noticed that 30% of our registrants were signing up online."
That success motivated Houh and the Boston Club to participate as a Beta site for the development of SmarTrans, the online registration and payment system the Alumni Association was working on.
"I knew from our Paypal experience that our club would embrace online registration," says Houh about SmarTrans. "And personally, I was delighted to contribute feedback because it gave me a chance to see how the Association is continuing to build out its online strategy, which is one of the rewards of volunteering, watching a project grow beyond its original goals."
As to his own goals, Houh says he plans to continue volunteering at MIT. "It keeps me connected to other alumni, which is what volunteering is all about."
