A Colorado State University computer science professor is being honored for his research accomplishments by the Institute of Caribbean Studies.
Robert France, who was born in Jamaica and raised in Guyana and St. Vincent and the Grenadines, will receive the Institute’s Excellence in Science and Technology award at a Caribbean American Heritage gala next month in Washington, D.C.
The award recognizes an individual of Caribbean descent who epitomizes commitment, leadership and unmatched contributions to expanding awareness about science and technology in the Caribbean and on the global stage.
“We note your leadership and influence among the academic elite in your discipline of computer science at the global level,” said Claire Nelson, chair and founder of the Institute,in a prepared statement. “We also view with utmost respect your commitment to promoting diversity through your champion of the next generation of programmers, by way of awards earned through research and for teaching at Colorado State University. You make us extremely proud to claim you as one of us, and we wish to commend and honor you.”
A leading researcher
France is known as a leading researcher in the area of model-based software engineering. His research focuses on producing technologies for building highly reliable complex software systems, such as aircraft flight management systems, and targets safety-critical software in which failures can lead to loss of life or expose vulnerable sectors of society.
He has spoken and lectured on his work at universities and research institutions around the world. France also is the founding editor-in-chief of the Springer journal on Software and Systems Modeling and has authored and published hundreds of papers in peer-reviewed journals, conferences and books.
The CSU professor has received numerous awards during his career. Earlier this year, he was named a CSU College of Natural Sciences Professor Laureate. In 2008 a paper he co-authored in 1998 about formalizing UML, a standard modeling language used in many industries, to enable the development of safety-critical systems, was given a “Ten-Year Most Influential Paper” award.
France is one of six other Caribbean Americans who will be honored at the Institute’s gala Nov. 14.
