Barry Leiner Awarded ITHS Distinguished Alumni Award

The Island Trees School District announces that Dr. Barry Leiner, ITHS class of 1963, is awarded the Distinguished Alumni Honor for his dedication and expertise in the field of Internet Technology. 

In the 1980s, as manager of DARPA, Dr. Leiner helped establish the Internet Activities Board (later called the Internet Architect Board), which led the effort to set technical standards for the Internet for almost 10 years. 

"Dr. Leiner helped set up the bureaucratic structures that developed Internet communications protocols," the District said in a release. "He was an author of more than 60 technical publications."

Leiner graduated in 1967 from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and earned his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Stanford University in 1973. In 1980, he became assistant director of DARPA’s information-processing technique office and took over management of the Internet research program in 1983. 

In 1985, Leiner took on the role of assistant director of the NASA Ames Research Center’s Research Institute for Advanced Computer Science. Starting in 1999, he directed that institute, which increased in size from 20 to 45 scientist. He died on April 2, 2003 at age 57.

In July of 2013, Leiner was inducted into the Global Internet Hall of Fame at a ceremony held in Berlin, Germany. The induction was seen via live stream thoughout the world.

ITHS is proud of Dr. Barry Leiner, a true pioneer who was instrumental in bringing the Internet to life.