Dr. Dorothy E. Denning
Forefront of information warfare, security, and cryptography fields

Adele Mildred Koss
Developed the first compilers

Esther Dyson
A powerful thinker in the computing industry!

Dr. Anita Borg
Founder of Systers

Margaret H. Hamilton
Founder of Higher Order Software

Dr. Ruth M. Davis
Distinguished in government service

Dr. Thelma Estrin
Professor of computer science at UCLA

Adele Mildred Koss
2000 Lovelace Award Recipient

Adele Mildred (Milly) Koss is one of the pioneer women in computing. She had a distinguished career over more than 47 years in all phases of computer technology, implementation and management, including applications design and development, software/hardware selection, database technologies and computer security.

After graduating in 1950 from the University of Pennsylvania with a BS in Mathematics, she joined the Eckert-Mauchly Corporation as a Programmer Analyst, working under Grace Hopper's supervision on the UNIVAC I: the commercial successor to the ENIAC. She shared with Hopper a vision for the use of of higher-level languages to program computers where problem-solving skills were important, and the computer was perceived as a tool. In Milly’s own words “In using the computer as a tool to solve problems with programming, logical thinking and experience was as important as theory.” While working with Hopper she developed the Editing Generator in 1952 and was a member of the group developing the first compilers, the A0 and A2. After four years she went to the Burroughs Corporation where she participated in solving problems in the area of Operations Research, then in its infancy. Her journey continued to the Philco Corporation where she developed a sort generator for the TRANSAC, one of the first transistorized computers. From there she joined Control Data Corporation where she worked with a team that was developing some of the early geometric manipulation algorithms as well as a new interface to the computer with a light pen. Her next move was to Raytheon where she worked on an interactive financial planning modeling system.

Ultimately she moved on to Harvard University where she spent 27 years until her retirement in 1994. At Harvard, her data management expertise was applied to applications for the library, personnel, press, student, facilities, and financial data. She led an R&D effort to develop one of the first data warehouses, the Information Utility. As an Associate Director of the Office for Information Technology she managed a 40 person applications development group and a technology evaluation group. She acted as the Information Security Officer for the University and was responsible for producing a handbook of policy and guidelines in the use of information resources.

Milly was one of seven women honored with a Pioneer Award at the Grace Hopper Celebration for Women in Computing, San Jose, California, September 1997. Throughout her career she was a role model for women in the computing arena and involved in their concerns. In her retirement she has given talks to groups of women such as students at Simmons College in Boston and the Boston chapter of AWC.