LEMONT,
Ill., July 31, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --
The Center for Minorities and People with Disabilities in IT
(CMD-IT) honors Dr. Chad Jenkins,
University of Michigan Professor of
Robotics, as the 2024 recipient of the Richard A. Tapia Achievement
Award for Scientific Scholarship, Civic Science, and Diversifying
Computing. The awards ceremony will take place during the
CMD-IT/ACM Richard Tapia Celebration of Diversity in Computing
Conference, held in San Diego,
California, Sept. 18-20, 2024.
Last year, more than 2,000 attendees, including students from more
than 250 colleges and universities, attended the conference.
![Dr. Chad Jenkins, Phd. Dr. Chad Jenkins, Phd.](https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2472848/CMD_IT_Chad_Jenkins_Headshot.jpg)
Each year, the Richard A. Tapia Achievement Award for Scientific
Scholarship, Civic Science, and Diversifying Computing is presented
to a distinguished computational scientist, computer scientist, or
computer engineer who is making significant contributions to
computing and civic areas, including teaching, mentoring, advising,
and building and serving diverse communities. The award winner
represents extraordinary leadership in computing scholarship and
CMD-IT's mission to increase the participation of underrepresented
communities in computing.
"We are proud to honor Dr. Chad
Jenkins, the University of
Michigan Professor of Robotics, as this year's recipient of
the prestigious Tapia Award," said Dr. Valerie Taylor, CEO and President CMD-IT.
"The recognition is a testament to his outstanding contributions
to the field of robotics, in particular computational reasoning and
perception, and his exemplary work with mentoring students and
professional from underrepresented communities in
computing."
"I am deeply honored and grateful to be recognized with the
2024 Richard A. Tapia Achievement Award for Scientific Scholarship,
Civic Science and Diversifying Computing. I have been
incredibly fortunate to stand on the shoulders of giants across the
Tapia community," said Chad
Jenkins.
"The commitment to both excellence and equity at Tapia has
provided a guiding light for how to be a trailblazer, mentor,
mentee, and catalyst for positive impact," Jenkins adds.
"Joining the distinguished group of Richard A. Tapia Achievement
Award honorees is a crowning accomplishment in my career. I look
forward to our continued work together as a community to extend and
expand the ladder of opportunity for future generations."
Chad Jenkins is a Professor of
Robotics and a Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer
Science at the University of Michigan.
His work aims to discover methods for computational reasoning and
perception that will enable robots to effectively assist people in
common human environments. Professor Jenkins' research pertains
primarily to robot learning from demonstration, semantic
perception, and mobile manipulation towards enabling the usability
of technology by people in real situations.
Professor Jenkins is currently serving as the Vice President for
Educational Activities for the IEEE Robotics and Automation
Society. Professor Jenkins was the founding Program Chair of the
Robotics Major Degree Program launched in 2022 for undergraduates
at the University of Michigan. He was a
founding Editor-in-Chief for the ACM Transactions on Human-Robot
Interaction, serving from 2016 to 2024. Professor Jenkins served on
the Computing Community Consortium from 2019 to 2022. Recently, he
was elected Member-At-Large for the Association of Computing
Machinery.
As a member of the Computing Research Association's Committee on
Widening Participation in Computing Research (CRA-WP), he helped
found The Skip Ellis Early Career Award in honor of Professor
Clarence "Skip" Ellis, the first American Black person to earn a
doctorate in computer science.
Professor Jenkins is a Fellow of the American Association for
the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and Association for the
Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI). He is a Senior
Member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and the
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). He is an
alumnus of the Defense Science Study Group (2018-19).
About the CMD-IT/ACM Richard Tapia Celebration of
Diversity in Computing Conference
The CMD-IT/ACM Richard Tapia Celebration of Diversity in
Computing Conference (TAPIA Conference) is the premier annual event
to acknowledge, promote, and celebrate diversity in computing. Each
year, the conference brings together undergraduate and graduate
students, faculty, researchers, and professionals in computing from
all backgrounds and ethnicities to celebrate the diversity that
exists in computing and tech. The annual conference presents an
opportunity to connect with others and to create communities that
extend beyond the event.
For more information about the Tapia Conference, please visit
the CMD-IT/ACM Tapia Conference website at
http://www.tapiaconference.org
Media Contacts:
Mitch Dowell
Marketing Director
The Center for Minorities and People with Disabilities in IT
(CMD-IT)
marketing@cmd-it.org
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SOURCE CMD-IT