Patrick Shih
Patrick Shih, an assistant professor of informatics at the Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering, has been named a Senior Member of the Association for Computing Machinery.
Shih’s research focuses on supporting health and wellbeing through the design, development, and evaluation of sociotechnical systems and community-based mechanisms. He also designs technologies to amplify human and animal capabilities in animal-assisted interventions to improve animal welfare.
“I am extremely passionate about supporting the health and wellbeing of the underserved and vulnerable populations,” Shih said. “Professional milestone awards say as much about the individual accomplishments as the people, environment, and culture that help foster such success. I couldn't have accomplished enough to deserve being recognized for the ACM Senior Member award without the support from the department and the school in the past five and a half years since I joined IU.”
The Senior Members grade of the ACM recognizes those members who have demonstrated performance through technical leadership, and technical or professional contributions. Members reaching Senior Member status are considered to be among the top 25 percent of ACM members for their demonstrated excellence in the computing field.
Shih’s future work will continue to focus on the needs of underserved and vulnerable populations who are oftentimes neglected, marginalized, or even stigmatized due to the lack of awareness, empathy, understanding, and appreciation of diverse characteristics and differences among people and species.
“Moving forward, I’d like to continue to promote the CDC’s One Health concept, which has the goal of achieving optimal health outcomes by recognizing the interconnection between people, animals, plants, and their shared environment, within ACM organizations and the broader STEM communities,” Shih said. “People's perspectives on these issues are changing due to current crises such as social inequities, the coronavirus pandemic, and climate change, and I am optimistic that we will be able to come up with impactful and lasting solutions when people dedicate their energy to tackling these challenges.”
Shih is the director of graduate studies for data science and co-director of the animal informatics track. His research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, National Park Services, Temple World Charity Foundation, Andrew Mellon Foundation, Bloomberg LLP, and Grant Thornton LLP. He earned his Ph.D. in information and computer science from the University of California, Irvine, and joined the faculty at the Luddy School in 2015.
“Earning recognition as an ACM Senior Member is a great honor, and Patrick’s contributions to his field have been incredibly important,” said Dennis Groth, interim dean of the Luddy School. “Our faculty are known around the world for their expertise and innovative spirit, and Patrick has embodied the best of our school since he arrived.”