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Atkins is first Kellogg Professor in Community Information
(Mar 2008) A lifelong commitment to empowering communities through the strength of global computing has earned Daniel E. Atkins an appointment as the first Kellogg Professor in Community Information at the School of Information.
The named professorship, the first for the School of Information, was established by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation of Battle Creek through a $2 million gift. The U-M Board of Regents appointed Atkins in March and he will assume his new post on September 1. A long-time member of the U-M and School of Information faculty, Atkins is now on leave while serving as director of the National Science Foundation Office of Cyberinfrastructure.
Dean Martha E. Pollack noted that the professorship is dedicated to guiding information professionals to serve society in the new age of digital information and community technology. In helping carry this out, Atkins will also head the Community Informatics specialization within the master's program of the School of Information.
During his career at the U-M, Atkins has established an international reputation for enabling communities of all kinds -- from space scientists to local nonprofit organizations -- to work and share common resources regardless of geographic location.
Among Atkins' noteworthy accomplishments to date:
- Since June 2006, while on leave from U-M, he has been serving a two-year appointment as the inaugural director of the Office of Cyberinfrastructure in Washington, D.C. He has promoted the development of supercomputers, information management systems, and high-capacity networks throughout the United States.
- This year he received the distinguished Paul Evan Peters Award from the Coalition for Networked Information, the Association of Research Libraries, and EDUCAUSE in recognition of his notable, lasting achievements in the creation and innovative use of information resources and services that advance scholarship and intellectual productivity through communication networks.
- From 1992-98, he was the founding dean of the School of Information. In addition to his professorship in the School of Information, he continues to hold a professorship in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science in the College of Engineering.
A hallmark of Atkins' work has been his drive to make the power of large-scale computing available to act as a stimulus for positive community action. His projects have been as varied as the first digital library projects at the U-M and the former Alliance for Community Technology. That project helped widespread community organizations of varying means work together to maximize their computing resources.
Atkins also played an instrumental role in establishing the renowned Internet Public Library, a resource that continues to be developed through the support of 10 universities with information-related academic programs. He also established a virtual library to benefit 30 Native American tribal colleges across the United States.
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