The Alexander Prize is named for former UT president and US Senator Lamar Alexander and his wife, Honey. It recognizes superior teaching and distinguished scholarship.
James S. Plank
James S. Plank is a professor in the EECS department at the University of Tennessee. He came to UT in 1993 after receiving a PhD in Computer Science from Princeton University. His research has spanned computer storage systems, parallel computers and most recently brain-based computing systems. Dr. Plank’s papers have over 13,000 citations, and his research projects have brought in over $16M. His teaching focuses on core computer science: data structures, algorithms and systems programming.
What does being a Volunteer mean to you? How has UT empowered you to make a difference in a way you might not have imagined elsewhere?
“Having been here 31 years, I feel as though I’ve been a Volunteer forever. I associate a “can-do” attitude with being a Volunteer. I primarily teach sophomores, juniors and seniors, attempting to install this “can-do” attitude with respect to computer programming — once you know how things work under the hood, both theoretically and pragmatically, you can attack any problem successfully. You don’t need to be shown the answer — you have the tools to figure it out!”