Chair's Message
Dear Friends,
This past July, I became the sixth chair of the Department. The entire Department, and certainly I, thank the outgoing chair, Anselmo Lastra, for his service and leadership. Anselmo presided over the department during what were extraordinarily challenging times. The 2008 economic downturn hit the State, the campus, and the Department quite hard; its effects are still being felt. Nonetheless, under Anselmo's leadership, we have emerged a revitalized department, ready to embark on the next 50 years of teaching, research, and service. Thank you Anselmo!
This past August, we wished Brian White a happy retirement with a celebration in his honor. Brian retired in June after 27 years working in the Department and 19 as its IT Director. That the Department remains on the cutting edge of technology is due in large part to Brian's leadership in constantly growing and evolving our computing and communications infrastructure. We wish him all the best.
As many of you know, this year we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the creation of the Department of Computer Science. What was a bold experiment in 1964 has led to the development of a world class academic unit that, through it's more than 3,000 graduates, has helped shape the computing landscape today. To celebrate, we held an open house in Chapel Hill in October, as well as alumni reunion events in Palo Alto, Seattle, and Washington, DC. And this is just the beginning! We have a continuing alumni speaker series and a gala event in Chapel Hill scheduled for early May 2015. Please continue to visit www.cs.unc.edu/50th to stay in touch with the Department, view photos from previous events, and be informed of upcoming events.
In honor of our 50th Anniversary, we recently announced The Toolsmith Endowment Fund, which will build a sustainable discretionary funding base for the Department. We greatly appreciate the support provided by our alumni, and I encourage you to read more about the fund and consider making a contribution.
We hope to see you all at our 50th Anniversary Celebration Gala on May 2nd-3rd or at one of our other remaining 50th Anniversary events. Please stay in touch, and please stop by and say “hello” whenever you are in Chapel Hill.
Kevin Jeffay
Chair of the Department