Edward Fox, professor of computer science in the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech, has been conferred the title of professor emeritus by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors.

The emeritus title may be conferred on retired faculty members who are specially recommended to the board by Virginia Tech President Tim Sands in recognition of exemplary service to the university. Nominated individuals who are approved by the board receive a copy of the resolution and a certificate of appreciation.

A member of the Virginia Tech community for more than 41 years, Fox directed 53 master's degree theses, 35 doctoral theses, and 17 master’s degree reports, and he served on hundreds of master's degree and doctoral committees. In addition, Fox served as principal or co-principal investigator on 147 grants, doing highly multidisciplinary research.

Fox held numerous honors, including fellowships in:

  • Association for Computing Machinery
  • Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
  • Artificial Intelligence Industry Alliance
  • Asia-Pacific Artificial Intelligence Association

Fox was awarded inaugural membership in the Academy of the Association for Computing Machinery Special Interest Group on Information Retrieval, received several best paper awards, and was honored with the first Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations Leadership Award (NDLTD).

Through his work on digital libraries and information retrieval, including since 1996 as founder, executive director, and chairman of the board of NDLTD, he has brought international visibility to Virginia Tech, which has led the global initiative for electronic theses and dissertations.

In addition, Fox received numerous awards from Virginia Tech including:

  • College of Engineering W.S. “Pete” White Award for Innovation in Engineering Education
  • Research and Innovation and LINK+LICENSE+LAUNCH Commercialization Champion Award
  • XCaliber Award
  • Research impact award from the Center for Human-Computer Interaction
  • College of Engineering Dean's Award for Excellence in Service

Throughout his career, Fox served Virginia Tech for two terms as president of the College of Engineering Faculty Organization and for seven years as director of the Internet Technology Innovation Center. In the classroom, he taught undergraduate and graduate courses in computer science.

Fox received his bachelor’s degree from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his master’s degree and Ph.D. in computer science from Cornell University.

Written by Anja Hemesath, a senior and a student writer for Virginia Tech Marketing and Communications

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