Siek, Wang named ACM Distinguished Members

Katie Siek (left) and XiaoFeng Wang

Professor Katie Siek and James H. Rudy Professor of Computer Science, Engineering and Informatics XiaoFeng Wang at the Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering have been named Distinguished Members by the Association for Computing Machinery.

The Distinguished Members grade recognizes those ACM members with at least 15 years of professional experience and five years of professional membership in the last 10 years who have achieved significant accomplishments or have made a significant impact on the computing field. Siek was recognized for the importance of her research on the intersection of human-computer interaction and pervasive computing in the domain of health and wellness.

“Being named an ACM Distinguished Member shows how the definition of computing has broadened over the past 20 years,” said Siek, who also is the chair of the Department of Informatics at Luddy. “When I started in computing, not many people were acknowledging this research as a computing area, but now not only is it recognized, researchers are also being recognized in the top 10 percent of our professional organization’s membership. I am honored to be part of this group and help to broaden computing for the next generation of researchers.”

Siek earned her M.S. (2004) and Ph.D. (2006) in computer science from IU, and she joined the Luddy School as a faculty member in 2013. Her research is supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the National Science Foundation including a five-year NSF CAREER award.

“Being named an ACM Distinguished Member helps with those imposter syndrome moments that most people experience,” Siek said. “Since I work in an interdisciplinary area, sometimes I wonder if I belong in computing. This recognition is a reminder that not only do I belong, but my accomplishments are recognized by my computing colleagues and community.

“I am thankful to all of the students and colleagues I have had the opportunity to collaborate with—without them, I would not be able to make the contributions that are recognized in this award. Also, I am thankful for the colleagues who wrote supporting letters for me and nominated me for the honor. Finally, I want to thank all of my women faculty mentors and advisors who encouraged me to stay in computing when life was tough and keep working to make our community an inclusive place for everyone.”

Wang received his Ph.D. in computer engineering from Carnegie Mellon University in 2004 and joined Indiana University at Bloomington as assistant professor that same year. He currently is the co-director of IU’s Center for Security and Privacy in Informatics, Computing, and Engineering. Wang is known for his high-impact research on security analysis of real-world systems and biomedical data privacy, and his research has been supported by National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Army Research Office, and industry.

“I am honored to be elevated to the rank of distinguished member and believe that this is an acknowledgement not only to myself but to the cybersecurity research at IU,” Wang said. “I would like to thank my current and former students, my colleagues, the school, and the university for the support I have received.”

ACM Distinguished Members are selected based on a nominee’s leadership, technical contributions, and professional contributions, including service to societies, review committees, conference committees, and standards committees.

“The Luddy School is known for its world-class faculty who are leaders in their respective fields,” said Dennis Groth, interim dean of the Luddy School. “Both Katie’s and XiaoFeng’s work has been exemplary and continues to push the boundaries of what is possible with computing, and they’re richly deserving of this prestigious honor.”