John Taylor, Professor of Economics at Stanford University and developer of the "Taylor Rule" for setting interest rates | Stanford University
John Taylor, Professor of Economics at Stanford University and developer of the "Taylor Rule" for setting interest rates | Stanford University
At a recent event, the Stanford Alumni Association (SAA) announced that Mehran Sahami will receive the 2024 Richard W. Lyman Award for his "outstanding Stanford citizenship across the university." Sahami holds several positions at Stanford, including Tencent Chair of the Computer Science Department and James and Ellenor Chesebrough Professor. He is also a senior fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies.
The SAA annually honors one faculty member who contributes significantly to alumni engagement, aligning with its mission to maintain lifelong connections between the university and its graduates. Howard Wolf, vice president for alumni affairs, praised Sahami's dedication: “No matter the subject matter – computer science, the ethics of Big Tech or beyond – Mehran’s unwavering generosity in sharing his scholarship with fellow alumni is a treasure that we deeply appreciate."
Sahami's work spans engineering, computer science, artificial intelligence, and technological ethics. Before joining Stanford's faculty, he was a senior research scientist at Google. His teaching impact is notable; data indicates that 75% of computer science undergraduates have attended his classes.
His contributions extend beyond teaching. As co-chair of the ACM/IEEE-CS joint task force on Computer Science Curricula, he helped develop international guidelines for college programs in computer science. Recently, he collaborated on Code in Place, an introductory coding course that reached over 10,000 students globally within a month.
For more than 15 years, Sahami has engaged with alumni through various initiatives such as leading classes at Reunion Homecoming and Sierra Camp and traveling extensively to connect with alumni groups worldwide.
The Richard W. Lyman Award was established in 1983 to honor faculty members who exceed their university roles in supporting SAA's mission. The award commemorates Stanford’s seventh president.
For further information about past honorees or details about the award itself, interested parties can visit the Stanford Alumni Association website.
Media contact: Ria Flores from Stanford Alumni Association can be reached at riflores@stanford.edu.
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