John E. Kelly III ’76, senior vice president and director of research at IBM, was recently honored at the Independent Sector Alumni Hall of Distinction Awards ceremony. The honorees were selected for their outstanding contributions to New York State's economy by members of the Board of Trustees of the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities (CICU).
The Hall of Distinction was created in 2000 to honor those who have made extraordinary contributions to the state through their careers and community involvement. The awards ceremony was part of CICU's 54th annual meeting for college and university presidents.
A gallery of honoree profiles will be on display in the Legislative Office Building in Albany from March 15-19.
The CICU represents the chief executives of New York’s 100-plus independent (private, not-for-profit) colleges and universities on issues of public policy.
To view an online gallery of all honorees, click here.
The CICU event was the latest honor for Kelly. Last fall, he was named the winner of the Robert N. Noyce Award. The award is presented annually by the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) to recognize outstanding contributions to the microelectronics industry.
Kelly joined IBM in 1980. He received a bachelor’s degree in physics from Union in 1976, a master’s in physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1978 and his doctorate in materials engineering from Rensselaer in 1980. He also received an honorary Doctor of Science Degree from Union Graduate College.
An avid supporter of Union, he has been a member of the College’s Board of Trustees since 2003. He also has contributed signifcantly to the Peter Irving Wold Center for Science and Engineering, scheduled to open in fall 2011. The $22 million building was made possible in large part due to a lead gift from John S. Wold ’38 and his wife, Jane. The Wolds have directed more than $14 million of their original $20 million You are Union Campaign commitment to be a catalyst for the project.
In 2006, the College dedicated the John E. Kelly III ’76 Digital Arts Lab. Kelly had earmarked part of his contribution to the College’s $250 million “You are Union” campaign for support of the digital arts program, an interdisciplinary endeavor between the departments of Visual Arts and Computer Science.