The GOAT and the Kid: celebrating teaching excellence in CS
Inspired by positive student feedback, the William & Mary Computer Science department has established two new awards to recognize outstanding faculty and teaching assistants. The awards are:
- The G.O.A.T - Awarded to the best professor as voted by CS majors and minors.
- The Kid - Honors the top teaching assistant, also voted by students.
The inaugural winners are Professor Matt Chapman (G.O.A.T) and Collin MacDonald (Kid). Awards will be presented during Homecoming 2024.
The department is grateful to alumni and friends who supported this initiative to recognize excellence in teaching within Computer Science.
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The G.O.A.T
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The Kid
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Matt Chapman (DrChap) is a William & Mary graduate – Class of 1990! After being commissioned a U.S. Army Second Lieutenant through W&M ROTC, Dr. Chapman spent over 24 years as an Army Officer with operational and combat deployments that included Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Germany, and various countries in Asia and Europe. His computer science and cybersecurity career included serving as the Chief of Cyberspace Operations for U.S. Pacific Command, the Deputy Director of the Computer Science Program for the U.S. Military Academy at West Point (USMA), and a Stability Transition Team Leader in the Diyala Province of Iraq for the Department of State’s Provincial Reconstruction Team. Dr. Chapman earned B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in Computer Science and has been happily married to his wife Gabi (who also has her U.S. Army Airborne Wings) for over 32 years – Go Army! |
Collin MacDonald is a second year Computer Science MS/PhD student at William & Mary, co-advised by Dr. Zhou and Dr. Gao. His research interests lie at the intersection of mobile computing, machine learning, and healthcare. For the last year, Collin was a Teaching Assistant and Lab Instructor for CSCI 141. In 2022, he received his bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from George Mason University. Outside of research, Collin is interested in developing iOS apps and games, as well as experimenting with AR/VR technologies. |
