Thomas Stuart Tullis

Thomas (Tom) Stuart Tullis, Ph.D. (April 16, 1952 - April 29, 2020) was renown around the world for his intellect, humility, and terrible jokes. Tom was born in Memphis, TN, to Isaac Frank Tullis, Jr., M.D., and Selma Virginia (Samuels) Tullis. While earning his bachelor's degree from Rice University in the early 1970's, he met his wife, Susan Cheryl (Richardson) Tullis, with whom he spent 47 joyful years of marriage. Tom delighted in his children, Cheryl Marie (Tullis) Sirois (along with her husband, Craig Ernest Sirois, Jr.) and Virginia Susanne Tullis. He is also remembered fondly by his brother, Kenneth Frank Tullis Sr., M.D., his sister-in-law Madge (Wood) Tullis, his nephew Kenneth Frank Tullis, Jr., his nieces Meg (Tullis) Morris and Mary (Tullis) Barker, and his sister Kay (Tullis) Ledbetter. In 2017, Tom retired from his position as Vice President of User Experience Design at Fidelity Investments. During his 24 years with Fidelity, he was instrumental in the development of the company's User Experience department, and founded its usability labs. An icon in his field, he was recognized in 2011 by the User Experience Professionals Association (UXPA) with a Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2013, he was also granted the honor of becoming a member of the CHI (Computer-Human Interaction) Academy. As an Adjunct Professor at Bentley University and a guest lecturer at many other schools, he was beloved by his students for his willingness to hold lengthy discussions about user experience, and his ability to consistently provide geeky trivia questions and answers. Over the years, his accomplishments included assisting on the design of the original NASA Space Station, publishing over 70 papers and articles in numerous scholarly journals, holding eight patents, writing two books, and speaking at a multitude of national and international professional conferences. Tom was a collector of many things. He repaired vintage cameras and miscellaneous pieces of old technology in order to sell them online (he considered the money made from these sales his "lunch money"), actively researched facts regarding his genealogical ancestry, and owned over 150 baseball caps. He was an avid photographer, and would often cause his family to wait patiently while he took a seemingly longer than necessary amount of time in ensuring that he got "just the right shot." As Tom was an incredibly logical and compassionate person, the family is asking that in lieu of flowers, donations in his name are provided to the Global FoodBanking group. A small outdoor ceremony for the family was held on Tuesday, May 5, 2020, in Easton, MA, and a larger public celebration will be held at a later date. Click here to view the virtual Celebration of Life held for Tom on June 20, 2020