Dr. Stephen Mancini, an Assistant Professor in the Computer and Information Systems Department, filmed an international documentary called Fedelta’ Soldier Prisoner last year. He worked with the US Army, Franklin County Historical Society, the Regional Government of Lombardia and the Association for Italian Prisoners of War (AMPIL). The film premiered in Chambersburg, PA as well as Milan and Rome back in September. It has been selected to appear in film festivals in 4 different countries as well as multiple cities in the US and has recently won the best Feature Documentary Award at the Dallas MovieFest. The film chronicles the story of 1,250 Italian Prisoners of War who were kept at Letterkenny Army Depot in Chambersburg, PA during WW2. You can watch the film on Amazon Prime.
Congratulations to Dr. Ping Wang who recently got renewed as an ABET Expert.
ABET accreditation provides assurance that a college or university program meets the quality standards of the profession for which that program prepares graduates. ABET accreditation assures confidence that a collegiate program has met standards essential to prepare graduates to enter critical STEM fields in the global workforce. Graduates from an ABET-accredited program have a solid educational foundation and are capable of leading the way in innovation, emerging technologies, and in anticipating the welfare and safety needs of the public.
Make sure to congratulate Dr. Ping Wang next time you see him!
Students and Faculty attended the 64th IACIS Annual Conference to present research and to learn about new findings in the field from colleagues.
Robert Pava, Reese Martin, and Dr. Sushma Mishra presented their research: Unveiling Exploitation Potential: A Comparative Analysis of Flipper Zero and Rubber Ducky.
James Bonacci, Peyton Lutchkus, Reese Martin, Robert Pava, Dr. Ping Wang, and Bradford Kline presented their research on: Estimating Intrinsic Dimension To Architect Compact Neural Networks.
(Pictured: Peyton Lutchus, James Bonacci, Reese Martin and Robert Pava)
Dr. John Stewart, Dr. G. Alan Davis, and William Glascoe presented their research on Determining Successful Translocation of Large Mammalian Carnivores Using Random Forest Classification. Imran Hossain was also a co-author on this paper.
(Pictured: Dr. John Stewart & Dr. William Glascoe)
William Glascoe presented his research on Human Digital Twin Initiatives. (Dr. Wenli Wang was also a co-author on this paper.)
Dr. Sushma Mishra, Dr. Natalya Bromall, and Dr. Kevin Slonka presented their research on What do High School Students Know About The Field of Cyber Security? A Survey of Perception and Experiences. Dr. Slonka is a graduate of RMU’s doctoral program and currently teaches at Saint Francis University. Dr. Peter Draus was also a co-author on this paper.
(Pictured: Dr. Kevin Slonka and son)
Dr. Ping Wang, and Christopher Johnson presented their research on The Impacts of Generative Artificial Intelligence (ai) In Knowledge Discovery and Generation For Cyber Defense.
(Pictured: Christopher Johnson)
Jing Hua, Dr. Ping Wang, and Peyton Lutchkus presented their research on How Effective Are Large Language Models In Detecting Phishing Emails?
Reese Martin, Robert Pava, and Dr. Sushma Mishra presented their research on Analyzing Machine Learning Algorithms For Antivirus Applications: A Study On Decision Trees, Support Vector Machines, and Neural Networks.
Dr. Natalya Bromall, Dr. Jamie Pinchot and Dr. Sushma Mishra presented their research on Racing To Build Your Ai Skills: Programming Rl Models With Aws Deepracer. Dr. Steve Mancini and Dr. Peter Draus were also co-authors on this paper.
(Pictured: Dr. Natalya Bromall)
Dr. Sushma Mishra, and Dr. Noory Etezady presented their research on Embedding Ai Competencies In A Cyber Security Graduate Program: Identifying Existing Gaps.
Dr. Karen Paullet and Dr. Jamie Pinchot presented their research on Can Gptzero Detect If Students Are Using Artificial Intelligence To Create Assignments? Evan Kinney and Tyler Stewart were also co-authors on this paper.
(Pictured: Dr. Jamie Pinchot & Dr. Karen Paullet)
A special shoutout to the students who attended as NSF Scholarship for Service:
Peyton Lutchkus, James Bonacci, Reese Martin, and Robert Pava
Congratulations to Dr. Ping Wang, who is the recipient of the Distinguished Service in Research and Mentorship Award from the 21st International Conference on Information Technology: New Generations (ITNG 2024).
Dr. Wang also served on the program committee for ITNG 2024 and organized the Cybersecurity track for the conference.
The 2024 Global Engagement Awards were presented on Tuesday, May 7, 2024 from the Center for Global Engagement. This year, three of the award recipients were from our school!
Lavanya Kusampudi (pictured left with Dr. Sushil Acharya) was the recipient of the 2024 International Student Global Engagement Award. Lavanya is a student in the MS Data Analytics program, and will be graduating this month. Congratulations, Lavanya, on this excellent achievement!
Congratulations to Michelle Yamada who won Staff Member of the Year (pictured left with Provost Zimmer) for her work in advising international graduate students, and her overall support of international students in CIS programs. Thank you for your hard work!
And finally, another round of congratulations to Dr. Sushma Mishra (pictured below with Provost Zimmer) who won Faculty Member of the Year for her efforts in teaching and advising international students in the CIS department. In addition, Dr. Mishra is the faculty advisor for the Indian Student Club at RMU. Thank you Dr. Mishra for all of your support for international students and global perspectives!
The Global Engagement Awards are designed to recognize globally engaged students, faculty, and staff members who have made significant contributions towards continued growth and sustainability of the university’s core value of a global perspective. Nominees are judged based on their contributions to internationally focused campus programming, research/teaching, or program development that promote(s) cultural understanding and/or a global perspective on the RMU campus.
Dr. Karen Paullet is the recipient of the 2024 Legacy Award for the Center for Veterans and Military Families (CVMF). All candidates for this award must be student-nominated, and Dr. Paullet was nominated for the CVMF Legacy Award by Lauren Holswade, senior CIS major. The award is given to recognize lasting impact on RMU’s military-connected students.
In Lauren’s speech at the award ceremony, she noted that she nominated Dr. Paullet “due to her unwavering support and understanding of our military-connected students at RMU. Dr. Paullet’s dedication to accommodating the unique challenges faced by military personnel balancing both their service commitments and academic responsibilities is truly commendable.”
She went on to say, “I vividly recall instances where Dr. Paullet’s support went above and beyond expectations. Her efforts to ensure military students are not overlooked, such as announcing their temporary absence from class and recognizing their service publicly, highlight her dedication to our community.”
Congratulations, Dr. Paullet! This award showcases your outstanding commitment to student success and support of our military-connected students.
Dr. Karen Paullet was recently asked to be a guest on the Hub Cast podcast for The Cyber Social Hub with Kevin DeLong! Check out the episode where Kevin talks with Dr. Paullet about the latest trends in education for the digital forensics field:
Matt Rosenberg, an Allegheny County Mobile Device Forensic Examiner ranked second out of nearly 4,000 digital forensic examiners in the United States. The U.S. Secret Service’s National Computer Forensics Institute recognized the top digital forensic examiners and Allegheny County’s Matt Rosenberg rose to the top. This ranking took into consideration an investigator’s ability to extract data in three areas: mobile devices, digital media, and hard drives.
In addition to his full-time job as an Allegheny County Mobile Device Forensic Examiner, Professor Rosenberg also teaches part-time at RMU, instructing students in several courses including Intro to Digital Forensics, Fundamentals of Cyber Forensics, and Mobile Forensics. Congratulations, Professor Rosenberg, on this prestigious ranking!
Our CIS faculty are active in research, and several of our faculty are part of ongoing grants. Several faculty members presented at the Research and Grants Expo on March 15, 2023.
Among those presented was the CyberCorps Scholarship for Service grant. Dr. Ping Wang is the PI for this grant, and Dr. Sushma Mishra (pictured below) and Dr. Frank Hartle are Co-PIs.
The CIS Cyber Scholars grant “Developing a Faculty-Student Mentor Model” was also presented. Pictured below (left to right) are Dr. Abdur Shahid, Dr. Natalya Bromall, and Dr. Karen Paullet. Dr. Paullet is the PI on this grant and Dr. Shahid and Dr. Bromall are Co-PIs.
Dr. Abdur Shahid (pictured below) presented “Data Poisioning Attack Against Wearable Artificial Intelligence Systems.” His co-researchers include Dr. Peter Wu and Dr. Diane Igoche from RMU, as well as two colleagues from other institutions.
Congratulations to the faculty for this outstanding work!
Congratulations to Dr. Kevin Slonka (RMU D.Sc. Graduate, Class of 2014) from Saint Francis University and Dr. Sushma Mishra, Dr. Peter Draus, and Dr. Natalya Bromall from the Computer Information Systems department at RMU for winning the Best Paper Award at the Conference on Information Systems Applied Research (CONISAR) 2022! CONISAR 2022 was held in Clearwater, FL on November 2-5, 2022.
CIS @ RMU 