Viterbi School emeritus roboticist George Bekey is the latest winner of UCLA's Alumni Achievement in Academia award.

 The honor celebrates "UCLA engineering alumni who are full-time faculty members in engineering ... who have excelled in their fields as researchers and educators."  Bekey  received  M.S. and PhD  degrees in Electrical Engineering from UCLA in 1952 and 1962 respectively, coming to USC in 1962.

Earlier this year, Bekey became the first academic to win the IEEE Technical Field Award in Robotics and Automation.

In addition to his work in the Viterbi Schoo'ls department of computer science, Bekey was also instrumental in founding the biomedical engineering department. He began the robotics research and teaching program at USC, and later served as the Viterbi School’s associate dean for research.  He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, with a citation that notes his “pioneering work in computer sciences, biomedical engineering, man-machine systems and robotics.” He is also a fellow of the American Association for Advancement of Science, the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, and the American Association for Artificial Intelligence. Bekey was one of the founders of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society and the first editor of its Transactions.   He served as president of the society from 1996 to 1998. Bekey has also won USC’s highest honor – the Presidential Medallion – and was named a University Professor in 1999, a distinction conferred on less than 20 faculty members in the University’s history. The title is awarded only to those whose multidisciplinary interests and major accomplishments in several disciplines qualify for an appointment that transcends any single field of study.

Bekey will receive his award at a ceremony to be held Nov. 4 in Beverly Hills.