Dr. Robert C.K. Lee…

…was born in Canton, China. He came to the United States in his teens and earned his BSc, MSc, and PhD degrees in Aeronautics and Astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Since graduation, Dr. Lee has worked more than twenty years in middle management in the aerospace industry; he also taught for ten years as a tenured professor at the University of California at Irvine (UCI). He is the author of Optimal Estimation, Identification and Control, a book published by the MIT Press, and he also published numerous technical papers and articles. He holds many patents ranging from the area of recreational vehicles to missiles and aircraft.

He was listed in Who’s Who in the West in 1970–1971 (twelfth edition).  An active businessman, Dr. Lee’s experience has included owning and operating small businesses and franchises as well as larger enterprises.  In management, he has served as chairman and CEO of a commuter airline, vice chairman of a national bank, chairman and president of New West Recreation Inc., and the president of Next Generation Business Resources, Inc., which markets advanced speech technologies nationwide and worldwide. He also served as a general partner of several real estate enterprises. He was elected as Entrepreneur of the Year 2004 by the Asian Business Association of Orange County.  He is the current chairman of China International University (CIU).

He is also the co-author of two children’s books entitled Selections from 100 Best Children’s Stories from China, Vol. I and II, with his daughter Doreen. These stories, akin to an Asian version of Aesop’s Fables, are available at Amazon.com.

He is very active in Christian and community service. He served eight years as an elder of the Garden Grove Community Church (now well-known as the Crystal Cathedral). He and his wife, Bettie, were members of OCCCC (Orange County Chinese Culture Club), UCI Chancellor’s Club, and the UCI Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center Support Group.