Fillia Makedon facts for kids

Fillia S. Makedon is a Greek-American computer scientist. She has researched many different areas in computer science. These include designing computer chips (called VLSI), solving problems with graph algorithms, and working with robots. She is a special professor at the University of Texas at Arlington.

Early Life and Learning

Fillia Makedon was born in Samos, Greece. She came to the United States as a Fulbright Scholar. This is a special scholarship for students to study abroad. She first studied biochemistry at Skidmore College. She finished there in 1968.

Then, she earned a master's degree in biophysics in 1971. After that, she decided to study computer science. She got another master's degree in 1979. She finished her Ph.D. (a high-level degree) in 1982. Both of these degrees were from Northwestern University.

Her Career in Computer Science

After her Ph.D., Dr. Makedon worked as a researcher. She was at the National Technical University of Athens in Greece. In 1983, she became a professor at the Illinois Institute of Technology.

In 1985, she moved to the University of Texas at Dallas. She also worked with the University of Patras in Greece. At UT Dallas, she started a special place called the Computer Learning Research Center (CLEAR) in 1987.

Dartmouth College and Beyond

In 1991, Dr. Makedon became a professor at Dartmouth College. There, she led two important programs. She was the director of the Dartmouth Experimental Visualization Laboratory (DEVLAB). This lab helped people see computer information in new ways. She also directed the Summer Institute for Advanced Graduate Studies (DAGS). At the same time, she worked with the University of the Aegean.

In 2005, she worked for the National Science Foundation. This is a government group that supports science research. She was a program director there. In 2006, she returned to teaching. She took her current job as a professor at the University of Texas at Arlington.

Leadership at UT Arlington

At the University of Texas at Arlington, Dr. Makedon did many important things. She started the Integrative Computational Science Program. She also became the founding director of the Human Centered Computing Laboratory (HERACLEIA). This lab focuses on how people and computers work together. From 2006 to 2013, she was the head of the computer science and engineering department.