3/29/01 - John W. Seybold, founder of Seybold Consulting Group and former editor and publisher for Seybold Publications, will receive the 2001 RIT Isaiah Thomas Award sponsored by Xerox Corporation. The honor is presented annually by Rochester Institute of Technology's School of Printing Management and Sciences (SPMS). The Isaiah Thomas Award, named for one of America's great patriot printers, recognizes outstanding contributions made to the publishing industry. Seybold becomes the 22nd recipient of the award. The official presentation will be made April 11 at Seybold Seminars in Boston 2001 at the Hynes Convention Center. Seybold began his work in the field of computerized composition in 1963, when he founded the world's first computer-composition service bureau, a company which he named ROCAPPI, an acronym for Research on Computer Applications in the Printing and Publishing Industry. The company used a Fototronic CRT typesetter with an RCA301 computer programmed with software that Seybold and his associates defined and developed. He has made major and lasting contributions to the field of publishing technology. "John W. Seybold is truly the father of the modern digital publishing industry," says Frank Romano, SPMS program chair. "He is an inspiration to our students and to our society." "As a digital printing pioneer and leader, Xerox is proud to be sponsoring this award with RIT, a university with a rich heritage in printing and publishing," explained Elaine Wilde, senior vice president and general manager, Xerox Worldwide Graphic Arts Industry Business.