Robinson Award Honors Achievements In Computer Education

The first time John Kemeny heard of the Louis Robinson Award was last summer, when the mathematician, computer scientist, and former Dartmouth College president was notified that he had won it. Now, in the second of four years in which the Robinson is slated to be given, award administrators are hoping that Kemeny's name will come to be automatically associated with the honor, which recognizes lifetime achievement in applying computer technology to education. "It is the body of previous winners that defines what an award means," explains John Clement, a staffer with Educom, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization that promotes educational uses of information technology, and the agency that oversees the award. "The hope is that the award will allow the field of information technology to really take flight." The Robinson Award was endowed in 1990 by IBM to honor the late Louis G. Robinson, a 32-year veteran of the Armonk, N.Y.-based computer company and its former director of university relations. Throughout his career, Robinson was regarded in both industrial and academic circles as an expert in applying technology to education. A gifted teacher, he was also a well-known commentator, explaining and clarifying computing applications for the general public. In addition to writing chapters about computing for the Encyclopedia Americana, he appeared on numerous television and radio shows. While at IBM, he created the IBM Scientific Centers, which focus on research and development projects on advanced computer applications in science and engineering. The award itself consists of a $25,000 cash prize and another $25,000 worth of IBM computer equipment. This year's winner will be announced in mid-June. The deadline for nominations is March 29. At present the award is slated to be given for only four years, an IBM spokesman explains, because the company tends "not to make commitments in perpetuity." He adds, however, that "the time line is really not that significant," an indication that the company has not ruled out extending the number of years it funds the award. If Kemeny's long list of accomplishments is to serve as any indication, the Robinson Award stands to become one of the premier honors in the field of information technology. Among other achievements, Kemeny developed one of the first natural computer programming languages, BASIC. Kemeny, who served as Dartmouth's president between 1971 and 1980, is also credited with establishing the nation's first campus computer time-sharing system at the college, where he served as a professor of mathematics before and after his presidency. "In his early work as well as more recent efforts, through his tenure as president of Dartmouth, and in his writings, he has consistently sought to adapt the computer to the needs of students and teachers, rather than adapt the person to the computer," reads the text of the award citation. "In this way he exemplifies the spirit that the Louis Robinson Award seeks to honor." Last year Educom reviewed fewer than 30 nominations for the award, according to Clement. This year, following wider publicity for the award, the organization is hoping that the pool of possible winners will be larger and that there will be a broader range of nominees. Candidates need not be computer scientists; individual educators and administrators, educational institutions, or groups within institutions are all eligible to win. Clement also encourages last year's candidates to reapply. Nominees will be judged on long-term or lifetime contributions to the understanding and effectiveness of information technology in education or to applying information technology to improve teaching and learning environments. "Nominators should keep in mind that nominees will be looked at by a group of generalists," Clement advises. "Materials accompanying the nomination should substantiate the nominee's achievements and offer guidance to our various review groups as to why the nominee should be chosen." No official application is required to nominate a candidate. A letter to Educom, accompanied by the nominee's r‚sum‚, a biography, and any other material that may be helpful to reviewers is sufficient, Clement says. Self-nominations are also acceptable. Last year, two groups--one consisting of members of Educom's Committee on Educational Uses of Information Technology (CEUIT), the other made up of three education officials from Columbia University, the National Science Foundation, and the Educational Testing Service--reviewed nominees' credentials before passing on the names of the top three to Educom's board of trustees, which makes the final selection. This year, Clement expects the same procedure will be followed, although nothing about the selection process or the award itself is cast in stone. "I emphasize that this is the way we did things last year," Clement says, noting that Educom is open to refining this process and even to creating additional awards if necessary. Last year, he says, while it was evident that Kemeny was the clear winner, there were several other worthy nominees whom Educom officials had considered honoring with additional awards. "But it is difficult to develop criteria for other awards without making them sound like second prizes or honorable mentions," Clement explains. "We're still trying to figure out some way to honor up-and-coming stars or to create some kind of awards for some of the really nifty projects that people are doing. We're just not sure we have the right concept." "I myself wouldn't make too much out of the first year's experience," says George Bateman, a University of Chicago computer scientist and a CEUIT member who reviewed last year's nominees. "This is all a learning process." However, Bateman adds, one thing is clear: "When IBM created the Robinson Award, it was to recognize lifetime achievement. In reviewing candidates I put a heavy emphasis on that simple criterion." Furthermore, he notes, "There are any number of awards in higher education and in the area of computing that are very targeted." The Robinson, by contrast, "takes the broadest swipe at recognizing lifetime achievements in computing." The Robinson Award is also quite lucrative, according to Kemeny, whose other honors include the Priestley Medal in 1976 and the Education Award of the American Federation of Information Processing Societies Inc. in 1983. "I've won my share of the awards, and the Robinson is very unusual in that there are really very few that are this substantial," says Kemeny, who retired last June after 41 years of teaching. Referring to the IBM laser printer and new PS/2 personal computer he selected as part of his prize, he adds, "This is equipment I would never have bought for myself. And it came at a perfect time in my life--when I have lots of free time to experiment." Since receiving the equipment just before Christmas, Kemeny says, he has written a program for solving diagramless crossword puzzles. Future uses will include his continued research in number theory and mathematics. For more information about the Louis Robinson Award, contact Educom, 1112 16th St., N.W., Suite 600, Washington, D.C. 20036; (202) 872-4200.

Robinson Award Honors Achievements In Computer Education

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