Purpose

The purpose of this award is to recognize outstanding achievement in research and teaching by young scholars in the Information Theory community.  The award is named in honor of James L. Massey, who was an internationally acclaimed pioneer in digital communications and a revered teacher and mentor to an entire generation of communications engineers. He was one of the outstanding researchers and leaders of the IEEE Information Theory Society over a period of 50 years.

Eligibility

The nominee must be a Society member, who on January 1st of the year in which the award is given, is no more than 10 years beyond having their highest degree (up to doctorate) conferred.

Award

The award consists of a plaque and a $1000 honorarium and shall be given to a single individual; multiple recipients are not allowed.

Evaluation Criteria

The basis for judging shall be the research and teaching contributions of the nominee. Contributions to research will be judged by the perceived impact of the nominee on the field of Information Theory as evidenced by publications, patents, product development, research awards, and other tangible items. Contributions to teaching will be judged by evidence of new and innovative teaching methods, curriculum development with inclusion of current research, teaching/learning tools made available to students and faculty worldwide, textbook authorship, university teaching evaluations and awards, and innovative short courses and tutorials in fields of interest to the Information Theory community. In evaluating nominees, equal weight will be given to research and teaching accomplishments.

Nominations

Nominations and supporting materials must be submitted by March 15 using the online form.

The nominator should submit a nomination package that includes a rationale (maximum three pages) describing the nominee’s contributions, accomplishments, and impact on research and teaching in the field of Information Theory as well as a brief biography (maximum half page) of the nominee. Finally, the nomination should also include the names and contact information of up to 3 community members who are willing to provide endorsement letters (maximum two pages) to support the nomination. Endorsement letters must be emailed to the Chair of the Massey Award Committee by the March 15 deadline.

The selection of the winner will be completed by April 30.