McRobbie tapped for committee

After spending the last four years masterminding IU's information technology plan, Michael McRobbie will take a stab at doing it for the rest of the country as well.\nMcRobbie, vice president for information technology, was named this week to the National Science Foundation's computer science and engineering advisory committee. The committee works through the NSF's Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering.\nHe will serve on the advisory board for two years and continue to work in his posts at IU.\nThe NSF is an independent government agency designed to foster communication and technological advancements in science. The foundation consists of the National Science Board of 24 part-time members and a director, according to the organization's Web site. \nThe computer science directorate is one of six departments dedicated to advancing the development of policies in science-related fields. It deems its major goal as "contributing to universal, transparent and affordable participation in an information-based society," according to a press release.\nCISE Director Ruzena Bajcsy said McRobbie, a Fulbright senior fellow and Australian, was selected based on his professional record and his prior experience in dealing with the National Science Foundation. McRobbie's responsibilities to the committee will include granting funding to research programs in information science. \nThe National Science Foundation now accounts for more than 20 percent of federal support to academic institutions, Bajcsy said. \nOne of McRobbie's achievement's at IU includes a $10 million grant from the National Science Foundation to create a computer network, TransPac, that links Pacific Rim countries with the United States.\nIt is one of several collaborative efforts IU has joined since McRobbie's 1997 appointment. IU is also one of the key players in running Internet2, a research network established by the federal government to replace parts of the original Internet.\n"Since he's been here, McRobbie has had enormous opportunities nationally and internationally to participate in a variety of technologically-related matters," said Karen Adams, executive officer for the vice president. "NSF has been able, then, to see the sort of work he does and the roles he plays here."\nMcRobbie said he is pleased to offer his expertise by serving on the board.\n"The NSF, in appointing the committee, is essentially trying to get a group that will represent a whole set field of interests," McRobbie said.\nHe said his past experience as a recipient of NSF funding gives him insight on how the organization should develop. And his IU position allows him to observe current trends in student information technology, shedding a new perspective on the field's advances, he said. \nMcRobbie said the group meets twice a year and the position will not detract from his current responsibilities at IU.