The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate Office of University Programs sponsors the Professional Opportunities for Student Workforce to Experience Research (HS-POWER) Program for undergraduate and graduate students. HS-POWER is open to students majoring in a broad spectrum of homeland security related science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines as well as DHS mission-relevant research areas.

As a participant in the HS-POWER Program, you will participate in quality research experiences with federal research facilities and other HS-STEM focused entities nationwide either onsite or in a virtual environment. This experience will provide you with a competitive edge as you apply your education, talent and skills in a variety of settings within the DHS enterprise. You will also establish connections with DHS professionals that facilitate long-term relationships between yourself, researchers, DHS personnel and research facilities. (Application Info)

"...Imagination helps you perceive reality, try on other realities, predict possible futures, experience other viewpoints. And yet how much do schools prioritize the cultivation of this essential ability?  What happens to a society that lets so much of its imaginative capacity lie fallow?" (NYT, November 2021)

Professional Engineering Programs (PEP) Students,

As you begin your planning for spring 2022, we are also pleased to announce a couple new courses for your consideration:

SYST 691:  Perspectives on Innovation:  This course provides an understanding of the various theories, concepts, and challenges in innovation.  It is designed to prepare you to (1) develop innovation leadership characteristics and (2) contribute to the evolution of how innovation is understood given the rapid pace of global change.  This course will be taught by Joe Bricio, PhD.  Professor Bricio is currently a DARPA Program Manager.  This course is open to all applicable students and serves as an elective course in the Engineering Management, Systems Engineering, and Technical Management programs.

ENMG 691:  Second Generation Agile Development:  This course teaches concepts collectively called “Flow.” Flow principles are universally applicable to any work situation—not just software and IT. Flow promotes agility, is inherently resilient to changes in circumstances, and adds a solid economic decision-making nervous system that earlier agile practices alone didn’t include. The course journeys through the evolution of modern product development methods and their challenges and how it came to be that there’s even a “second generation” of agile at all.  This course will be taught by Professor Hillel Glazer.  Please check out this recent interview with Professor Glazer where he discusses the course.  This course is open to all applicable students and serves as an elective course in the Engineering Management, Systems Engineering, and Technical Management programs.

We would also like to spotlight the following courses:

SYST 660:  Systems Engineering Principles:  This fundamentals of systems engineering course was recently updated and has been approved by the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE) for Academic Equivalency.  Any student who receives a final score of 80% or better in this course is eligible to waive the Knowledge Exam for INCOSE’s SE Professional certification program, both at the Associate (ASEP) and Certified (CSEP) levels.  This course is taught by Professor Paul Martin, 2021 Adjunct Faculty Excellence Award recipient.  This is an excellent way to earn an industry recognized credential while you complete your degree requirements (i.e., Triple Threat Graduate).  This course is open to all applicable students and serves as an elective course in both the Engineering Management and Technical Management programs.

SYST 672:  Decision and Risk Analysis:  This course provides an overview of decision and risk analysis techniques. It focuses on equipping you with the skills and confidence to make critical decisions among multiple alternatives in environments rich with uncertainty, and limited information.  This course covers modeling uncertainty, the principles of rational decision-making, representing and solving decision problems using influence diagrams and decision trees, sensitivity analysis, Bayesian decision analysis, deductive and inductive reasoning, objective and subjective probabilities, probability distributions, regression analysis, defining and calculating the value of information, modeling risk attitudes and utility functions.  A recent news piece highlights some of the methods and tools covered in this course.  This course is taught by Professor John Johnson, IV, PhD.  This course is open to all applicable students and serves as an elective course for the Engineering Management program.

As Ms. Kim Edmonds, Program Manager states in her spring 2022 registration note, please contact Professor Toby Gouker (EM or TM) or me (SYST, IPDM, or PM) with any specific advisement questions or concerns. 

Enjoy the awesome fall weather this week.

Warm regards,

Woodrow