Award
Computer Pioneer Award
Source: Wikidata population candidate Q1387801 · wikidata
SACRED LEGACY ARCHIVES™
1928-02-22 – 2024-11-12
Thomas Eugene Kurtz (February 22, 1928 – November 12, 2024) was an American computer scientist and educator. A Dartmouth professor of mathematics, he and colleague John G. Kemeny are best known for co-developing the BASIC programming language and the Dartmouth Time-Sharing System in 1963 and 1964. These innovations made computing more accessible by simplifying programming for non-experts and allowing multiple users to share a single computer, transforming how computers were used in education and research.
For his role in creating BASIC, the IEEE honored Kurtz in 1991 with the Computer Pioneer Award, and in 1994, he was inducted as a fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery.
computer scientist, mathematician, statistician, inventor
Princeton University; Knox College
Computer Pioneer Award; ACM Fellow; BASIC; True BASIC
ACM Fellow · Computer Pioneer Award
Dartmouth College
Association for Computing Machinery
BASIC · True BASIC
Knox College · Princeton University
Computer Pioneer Award
Source: Wikidata population candidate Q1387801 · wikidata
ACM Fellow
Source: Wikidata population candidate Q1387801 · wikidata
BASIC
Source: Wikidata population candidate Q1387801 · wikidata
True BASIC
Source: Wikidata population candidate Q1387801 · wikidata
Family members can contribute records, photographs and stories or request stewardship of this legacy.
Sacred Legacy Memorial Concierge © 2026 All Rights Reserved