Livingston Education Foundation

  

 

September 9, 2014 Livingston, NJ – Do you recall a specific school experience that made a positive difference for you? For most of us, there may be one particular memory: the influence of one or more special teachers who may have inspired us, a class, a program or an extra-curricular event.

When distinguished alumni, Dr. V.A. Shiva Ayyadurai, (LHS ’81); Charles Bendit, (LHS ’71); Larry Fieber, (LHS ’68); and Dr. Suzanne Steinbaum, (LHS ’86) visit Livingston High School on Friday, October 10 as part of the Livingston Education Foundation (LEF) Hall of Fame 2014 celebration, students will hear honoree narratives of the past as they relate to personal current achievements and conjecture together about the future for both our honorees and our current students. Heidi Cislo, President of LEF noted that, “In the next few weeks leading to the Hall of Fame celebration, LEF will highlight each of the honorees in articles for the community to read.”

An October 10, 1980 West Essex Tribune article title, Livingston Student Designs Electronic Mail System featured Dr. V.A. Shiva Ayyadurai. The caption read Shiva Ayyadurai shows plans for the electronic mail system that he designed [under the mentorship of Dr. Leslie P. Michelson, UMDNJ] to math teacher Irman Greenberg and Stella Oleksiak, coordinator of the Independent Study Program at Livingston High School. For Shiva, only 14 at the time, the support of his teachers to participate in this program lead to August 30, 1982 when the US government officially recognized V.A. Shiva Ayyadurai as the inventor of email. Shiva was awarded the first US Copyright for "Email," "Computer Program for Electronic Mail System," for his 1978 invention. Copyright was the only way to protect software inventions. For more information read, The Inventor of Email – click here.

Following his graduation from LHS, Shiva earned four degrees at MIT spanning the Fields of Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Media Arts & Sciences, Applied Mechanics and Systems Biology. He is a Fulbright Scholar, Lemelson-MIT Award Finalist, and First Outstanding/Scientist Technologist of Indian Origin. Among his many accomplishments, he is the Founder of Innovations Corps, a nonprofit, CytoSolve, Inc., General Interactive, LLC and Board Member of EchoMail, Inc., and Enterprise Email Management. He was recently nominated to receive the President’s National Medal of Technology and Innovation for 2014. Dr. Ayyadurai is a scientist, technologist entrepreneur, author and educator.

LEF invites the public to join in celebration for Dr. Ayyadurai and all of the honorees at the Fifth Annual Livingston High School Hall of Fame Reception. Information on required reservations for the Friday, October 10 Hall of Fame event at The Wilshire Grand Caterers in West Orange from 3:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m., how to send a ‘Roll of Honor’ message to the honorees or how to become a patron for the Hall of Fame is available on the Livingston Education Foundation (LEF) website www.livingston.org/lef. Inquiries can be made at (973) 535-8000, x8898.

 

 

MEMORANDUM written through inter-office mail from Stella Oleksiak to then LHS Principal Alan Berlin on Shiva’s behalf.