Remembering Paul Baker
Posted December 20, 2023
Dear friends of CACP,
It is with deep sorrow and great sadness that we, as the Director and former Director of CACP, share with you the news that our friend and colleague Paul Manuel Aviles Baker passed away on Thursday, Dec. 14, 2023.
Dr. Baker was with the Center for Advanced Communications Policy for over twenty years and played an important part in its growth and operations. Paul served as the Senior Director of Research and Strategic Innovation and the Chief Operating Officer of the Center for the Development and Application of Internet of Things Technologies (CDAIT). He was active in domestic and international research covering accessible technologies, social media innovation diffusion, workforce inclusion, and applied usability research. Dr. Baker’s transdisciplinary research resulted in new insights into public policy, improvements in the lives of people with disabilities, and the professional growth of all who collaborated with him. Paul served on numerous boards and academic committees. He participated in academic scholarship that resulted in widely cited research papers. Dr. Baker was also part of many collaborative policy networks.
He found time to mentor both students and junior researchers while simultaneously contributing to or leading numerous impactful research projects for both government and industry. We may never know the true impact Paul has had on the lives of those he impacted because Paul often worked behind the scenes to help ensure others had the opportunities and recognition they deserved. He liked to joke that he was bald because of wearing so many hats. He loved every minute of it. This is a difficult time for all of us especially for his family, but know that Paul cared deeply for his friends and colleagues.
Formal announcements from Ivan Allen College will be forthcoming. In the interim, we wanted to share with those who cared for him, as much as his CACP family. His passion for life will be missed.
Sincerely,
W. Bradley Fain, Ph.D.
Executive Director & Regents' Researcher
School of Public Policy
Center for Advanced Communications Policy cacp.gatech.edu
Georgia Institute of Technology
678.361.4428 (mobile)
Helena Mitchell, Ph.D.
Regents’ Researcher Emeritus
School of Public Policy
Center for Advanced Communications Policy cacp.gatech.edu
Georgia Institute of Technology
678.245-9694 (mobile)