COMPUTER SCIENCE NEWSLETTER Department of Computer Science March 29, 2002
Computer Science Honors Dr. Willis King		Professor Willis King, a Computer Science Professor at the University of Houston, was honored for his most recent accomplishment as president of the IEEE Computer Society. The reception and dinner took place at the University’s Hilton Hotel on Friday, February 22, 2002. Over 90 faculty, friends and guests attended the dinner. Theresa Chang, UH Regent, and Dr. Paul Chu, UH professor and President of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology are among the guests. To honor Dr. King’s achievement, Houston Mayor Lee Brown declared February 22 as Dr. Willis King Day. The Computer Society of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), which was founded in 1946, is the world’s leading organization of computer professionals. The society has a membership of over 100,000 about 40% of who live and work outside of the United States. Dr. King was elected by the members of the Computer Society at the end of 2000 and served as president-elect during 2001. An active and committed volunteer of IEEE, King has served in various roles during his 30 years of service to the society. He began in 1970 as a local chapter chair and later went on to chair the second Symposium on Computer Architecture, as well as serve as vice president for area activities and educational activities. Prior to his election to his current role he served as first vice president for Conferences and Tutorials. Willis King has been a faculty member in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Houston for over 30 years and was Department chair from 1979 to 1992. He has been very involved in computer science accreditation activities since the early 1980’s and served as the president of Computing Science Accreditation Board (CSAB) for 1993-95. King has received numerous awards for his accomplishments within the Computer Science field including the Meritorious Achievement Award in 1994 and the Distinguished Service Award from the Computer Science Accreditation Board in 1991 and 1993. King received the Dipl-Ing degree from the Technische Hochschule Darmstadt, Germany and PhD from the University of Pennsylvania both in electrical engineering.
Shell Oil Supports NSM and COSC		The Shell Oil Company Foundation has awarded $58,000 in four departmental grants to The University of Houston’s College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics. The purpose of the Shell Departmental Grants is to strengthen activities in specified academic areas in colleges and universities with well-developed areas of teaching and research. The College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics’ Chemistry Department used these funds to present academic awards to students and for graduate recruiting (recruitment materials and associated expenses). The Department of Computer Science used the grant funds to upgrade audio/visual capabilities in the Department’s conference room that is used extensively by faculty and students for thesis defenses, seminar series, and research presentations. One undergraduate student received a scholarship. The Geophysics Department used the funds to support instructional and research activities with an emphasis in computer-intensive applications (for example, the purchase of a system for the computational lab and RAM enhancements, sufficient to visualize large volumes, for workstations). Funds directed to the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics was applied to its Scholar Enrichment Program, workshops designed to enhance student performance in courses such as calculus, organic chemistry, and physics. The Shell Foundation contributed $131,300 in departmental grants to The University of Houston in 2001 in the following areas: accounting, business administration, tax, chemistry, computer science, geophysics, chemical engineering, electrical and computer engineering, mechanical engineering, law, and journalism. Overall giving in 2001 totaled $459,498. The Shell Oil Company Foundation focuses on making a difference in the communities where Shell people work and live. In 2001, the Shell Foundation awarded approximately $27 million in gifts to qualified organizations focusing on areas of civic and public policy, community involvement, culture and the arts, education, environment and health and human services.