Dr. Channing R. Kao

DR. CHANNING RWEN KAO, age 93, of Baltimore, died at his residence in Oak Crest Village, Parkville, MD, on August 28, 2003. Born in Jiang Su, China, he received his B.A. in political science from the University of Nanking and then served as the general secretary of the College of Science at the University. In 1943, the Department of Education of the Chinese government sent him to investigate various social problems in a remote northwest part of the country. In 1946, he came to the United States to study at Clark University in Worcester, MA, then transferred to the State University of Iowa, where he received his M. Ed. and Ph.D. in geography. He also studied at Cornell and M.I.T. , and holds an honorary degree from the China Academy.

Dr. Kao taught at several universities in the mid-west including Bradley University and Kent State University. He also taught at Essex Community College and was a faculty member of Harford Community College since the college’s beginning in 1957. He was the first faculty member at Harford Community College to attain the rank of full Professor. He served as Chairman of the Social Sciences Division from 1964-68. During the 1960s he published several weather maps and maps of the U.S. and the world that were used in many public school classrooms. Prior to his teaching experiences, Dr. Kao was a planner for Baltimore County.

Upon Dr. Kao’s retirement, the Board of Trustees of H.C.C. conferred upon him the rank of Professor Emeritus in recognition of his many contributions to the college and community as a teacher, geographer, cartographer and artist.

Dr. Kao began painting as a child when he lived along the southern banks of the Yangtze River in China. He focused on four subject areas: flowers, birds and animals, and landscapes. He continued to perfect his work throughout his adult life and taught continuing education classes at the community college and at Oak Crest Village Retirement Center.

Dr. Kao is survived by his wife, Sylvia Kao; and one daughter, Victoria Kao Yip and her husband, Ivan Yip of Bronxville, New York.