What do Paul Gray, Mark Horowitz, Toshiaki Masuhara, Rudy van de Plassche, Ian Young, and Nicky Lu have in common? They are but a few of the many SSCS members that have been elected to the grade of IEEE Fellow through the nomination and support of SSCS members.
The grade of IEEE Fellow is in recognition of exceptional accomplishment and is conferred by the IEEE Board of Directors on members who have significantly contributed to their technical field. Unfortunately, in recent years, the number of nominations for IEEE Fellow evaluated by the Society has dropped below that for other IEEE societies of comparable size. As a Society, we simply are not doing an adequate job of recognizing the very significant contributions our members have made to our profession. It is very important that we reverse this trend.
The Fellow nomination process is relatively straightforward but does require some forethought and planning. The deadline for receipt of the nomination form and reference letters is 15 March 2001. The nominator does not have to be an IEEE Fellow or even an IEEE member; self-nomination, however, is not allowed. The five (minimum) to eight (maximum) references must be from current IEEE Fellows, who are listed alphabetically at the beginning of the IEEE Membership Directory. If the nominee is not an IEEE Senior Member, that application and its three supporting references must be submitted no later than 4 February 2001. Senior Member forms and references can be emailed or completed online:
URL: www.ieee.org/organizations/rab/md/smforms.htm.
The Fellow nomination form is four pages long. It is not difficult to complete and should clearly focus on the technical achievements for which the candidate is being nominated. It is usually completed in collaboration with the nominee.
Fellow kits will be available in November. They can be requested in hard copy format or downloaded from the Web: Fax: +1 732 981 9019; Email: fellow-kit@ieee.org; URL: www.ieee.org/about/awards/table1.htm. The Society welcomes suggestions of members who should be nominated for Fellow.