On 20–24 April 2026, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Taweewat Watthanakuljaroen, President of Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU), led a delegation of faculty and researchers to the 28th OU5 Bi-Annual Summit in Halong, Vietnam.
Accompanying the President was Mrs. Rattip Phukkeson, Head of Internationalization Development and STOU’s OU5 Coordinator, along with five distinguished researchers:
- Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nareerut Seerasarn (School of Agriculture and Cooperatives)
- Asst. Prof. Dr. Worrawit Nakpan (School of Health Science)
- Asst. Prof. Dr. Patthanan Bootchuy (Office of Educational Technology)
- Asst. Prof. Dr. Kajornsak Sitti (School of Political Science)
- Dr. Choneratt Suriyarangsun (School of Liberal Arts)
The OU5 group is a strategic alliance of five leading distance-learning open universities in the ASEAN region. The summit serves as a platform to enhance distance education, collaborative research, and pedagogical innovation. The member institutions include:
- Hanoi Open University (HOU) – Vietnam (Host for this summit)
- Open University Malaysia (OUM) – Malaysia
- University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) – Philippines
- Universitas Terbuka (UT) – Indonesia
- Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU) – Thailand
A total of 35 participants, including university presidents, coordinators, and researchers, attended the meetings. The hosting duties rotate among the members, with the next summit scheduled for November 2026 in Magelang, Indonesia.
Before the main summit on 21 April 21 2026, Hanoi Open University hosted an international conference titled “Digital Economy in the Era of Artificial Intelligence.” During this academic event, Asst. Prof. Dr. Worrawit Nakpan, Director of the Department of International Affairs at STOU, was honored to serve as the Chairperson for the academic paper presentation sessions throughout the conference.
