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From: Joan Lippincott <joan@cni.org>
Subject: Dan Atkins to Receive Paul Evan Peters Award at April CNI Meeting

I'm delighted to share this news with the CNI community.
Joan Lippincott
---------------------------------
21 Dupont Circle
Washington DC 20036
202-296-5098
http://www.cni.org/

For Release February 26, 2008

NSF Cyberinfrastructure Director Daniel Atkins to Receive Paul Evan =20
Peters Award

The Coalition for Networked Information (CNI), the Association of =20
Research Libraries (ARL), and EDUCAUSE are pleased to announce that =20
Daniel E. Atkins, inaugural Director of the Office of =20
Cyberinfrastructure at the National Science Foundation (NSF) and a =20
distinguished professor in the School of Information and in the =20
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University =20
of Michigan, has been named the 2008 recipient of the Paul Evan =20
Peters Award.  The award recognizes notable, lasting achievements in =20
the creation and innovative use of information resources and services =20=

that advance scholarship and intellectual productivity through =20
communication networks.

Named for CNI=92s founding director, the award will be presented during =20=

the CNI Membership Meeting in Minneapolis to be held April 7=968, 2008, =20=

where Atkins will deliver the Paul Evan Peters Memorial Lecture.  =20
Previous award recipients include Paul Ginsparg (2006), Brewster =20
Kahle (2004), Vinton Cerf (2002), and Tim Berners-Lee (2000).

=93Dan=92s long and diverse record of accomplishments, and his =
continuing =20
vision for the changes that information technologies can enable for =20
the future of scholarship worldwide, make him a perfect choice for =20
this award.  I=92m thrilled to see his work recognized in this way, =20
particularly because the values that inform Dan=92s work resonate so =20
closely with those of the late Paul Peters,=94 said Clifford Lynch, =20
Executive Director of the Coalition for Networked Information.

Diana Oblinger, President of EDUCAUSE, commented, "Those of us who =20
have had the pleasure of working with Dan know first-hand his =20
commitment to higher education and scholarship, and how he has sought =20=

to enhance those entwined endeavors through the use of technology.  =20
He has worked across many segments=97from presidents to technical staff=97=
=20
making important visions, such as cyberinfrastructure, come alive. =20
Dan=92s work has had international impact."

In 2003, the NSF Blue-Ribbon Advisory Panel on Cyberinfrastructure, =20
chaired by Atkins, issued the highly influential report =20
Revolutionizing Science and Engineering through Cyberinfrastructure.  =20=

The document, now referred to as "The Atkins Report," catalyzed new =20
priorities and led to the establishment of the Office of =20
Cyberinfrastructure (OCI) at NSF.

The OCI coordinates and supports the acquisition, development, and =20
provision of state-of-the-art cyberinfrastructure resources, tools, =20
and services essential to the conduct of 21st-century science and =20
engineering research and education.  Cyberinfrastructure includes =20
supercomputers, information management systems, high-capacity =20
networks, digitally enabled observatories and scientific instruments, =20=

and an interoperable suite of software and middleware services and =20
tools for computation, visualization, and collaboration.  In June =20
2006, Atkins joined NSF, on leave from the University of Michigan, to =20=

lead the cyberinfrastructure effort.

Atkins stated that his charge at NSF would offer =93another important =20=

platform for contributing to my overarching professional aspiration=97=20=

leadership in the creation and use of information and computer =20
technology in service of human learning, creativity, and well-being."

 =46rom 1992 to 1998, Atkins served as the founding dean of Michigan=92s =
=20
School of Information, the first school of its kind in the nation.  =20
This professional graduate school, which =93embraces a vision that =20
harmonizes people, information systems, and organizations to improve =20
the quality of life,=94 was instrumental in shaping the concept of =20
iSchools nationally.

More recently, Atkins has focused on research and teaching in the =20
area of distributed knowledge communities and open learning =20
resources.  He has directed several large experimental digital =20
library projects as well as projects to explore the socio-technical =20
design and application of =93collaboratories=94 for scientific research.

Atkins has also served as Associate Dean for Research at the =20
University of Michigan College of Engineering where he presided over =20
the formation of one of the first and most effective university =20
distributed computing environments.  Earlier in his career, as a =20
professor in electrical engineering and computer science, Atkins made =20=

major contributions to high-performance computer architecture, and =20
led or participated in the design and construction of several =20
experimental machines, including some of the earliest parallel =20
computers.  He developed high-speed arithmetic algorithms now widely =20
used in the computer industry, and he conducted groundbreaking work =20
on special-purpose architecture including collaboration with the Mayo =20=

Clinic on the development of computer-assisted tomography (CAT).

=93Long a pioneer in bringing people, information, and technology =20
together in unique and valuable ways, Dan Atkins helped create the =20
conditions for the current cyberinfrastructure/e-science movement,=94 =20=

remarked ARL Executive Director Duane Webster.  =93In the spirit of =20
Paul Peters, Dan has championed collaborative efforts shaping the =20
future of knowledge-based institutions.=94

Lizabeth (Betsy) Wilson, Dean of University Libraries at the =20
University of Washington and an award search committee member, stated =20=

that Dan Atkins=92s =93commitment represents a critical component in the =
=20
push for broad cooperation and collaboration.  I am certain that his =20
formidable accomplishments, and the contributions he continues to =20
make, will serve to further these goals in profoundly important ways.=94

Three nonprofit organizations=97the Coalition for Networked =20
Information, the Association of Research Libraries, and EDUCAUSE=97=20
sponsor the Paul Evan Peters Award, which was established with =20
additional funding from Microsoft and Xerox Corporations.  The award =20
honors the memory and accomplishments of Paul Evan Peters (1947=96=20
1996).  Peters was a visionary and a coalition builder in higher =20
education and the world of scholarly communication.  He led CNI from =20
its founding in 1990 with informed insight, exuberant direction, =20
eloquence, and awareness of the needs of its varied constituencies of =20=

librarians, technologists, publishers, and others in the digital world.

CNI is a coalition of some 200 member institutions dedicated to =20
supporting the transformative promise of networked information =20
technology for the advancement of scholarly communication and the =20
enrichment of intellectual productivity.  ARL's membership includes =20
the leading research libraries in North America.  Its mission is to =20
influence the changing environment of scholarly communication and the =20=

public policies that affect research libraries and the diverse =20
communities they serve.  EDUCAUSE is an association of nearly 1,900 =20
colleges, universities, and education organizations whose mission is =20
to advance higher education by promoting the intelligent use of =20
information technology.

For more information visit the award Web site at http://=20
www.educause.edu/PaulEvanPetersAward/852, or contact CNI =20
Communications Coordinator Diane Goldenberg-Hart at diane@cni.org.