CSC eNewsletter

April 29, 2005

NCSU Maintains NSA Center of Academic Excellence Status

NC State and the department of computer science have been re-designated a Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Education by the National Security Agency (NSA) for the academic years 2005 - 2008. NSA Centers promote higher education and research in information security within various disciplines. The formal award will be made on June 7, 2005 at the National Colloquium for Information Systems Security Education in Atlanta, Georgia. NC State was first designated a Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Education in 2002. We, along with UNC-Charlotte, are the only two universities in the state to hold this designation.

Spring Diploma Ceremony Set for May 14th in Memorial Auditorium

Our spring diploma ceremony will be held on Saturday, May 14th at 1:30 pm in beautiful Memorial Auditorium in downtown Raleigh (directions). Over 200 graduates are expected to receive their degrees during the ceremony, which is being made possible in this magnificent venue because of the generous corporate sponsorship of Tekelec and Red Hat. Alumnus Bill Weiss, founder, President & CEO of The Promar Group, will serve as our guest speaker. For the convenience of our guests who might require overnight accommodations, we suggest the Sheraton Capital Center located at 421 S. Salisbury Street adjacent to the Civic Center. For reservations, call the hotel at 919-834-9900 and ask for the $89 NCSU rate.

Departmental Research Grants, Gifts, and Support

Thanks to corporate partner, Duke Energy, for its ongoing support of the department. As part of a much larger gift to the NCSU College of Engineering, Duke Energy allocated $7,500 to computer science in support of the Senior Design Center project program and our ePartners Program.

Thanks to alumnus and Strategic Advisory Board member, Steve Worth for contributing $500 to the Diversity in Computer Science Endowment Fund. This endowment has a current value of $13,500, with total pledges of more than $65,000 over the next five years. It will provide programmatic support for programs and scholarships targeted at attracting and retaining females and minorities in the computer science discipline. If you would like to join in and support this new fund, send your check (made payable to the "NC State Engineering Foundation") to Ken Tate, NCSU Campus Box 8206, Raleigh, NC 27695. For more information, you can contact Ken at 919-513-4292 or email him at kmtate2@ncsu.edu.

Congratulations to Dr. Rada Chirkova, assistant professor of computer science, for receiving a Faculty Early Career Development Award (Career) from the National Science Foundation, effective August 1, 2005, through approximately July 31, 2010. The award is one of the highest honors given by NSF to young university faculty in science and engineering. As part of the award, NSF will provide $489,810 in funding over the next five years. Chirkova will use the funding to support her research project, "Career: Adaptive Automated Design of Stored Derived Data." She becomes the 14th NSF Early Career Award winner on the NC State CSC faculty. more

UPE Honor Society Inducts New Members

The Upsilon Pi Epsilon (UPE) honor society's annual meeting and installation ceremony was held on April 3rd at the home of Joyce Hatch, director of student advising. UPE is the first and only, existing international honor society in the Computing and Information Disciplines, recognizing academic excellence at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. During the ceremony, 26 new members were inducted into the NC State UPE chapter for spring 2005. more

Department Plays Key Role in Credit Suisse First Boston's RTP Plans

Well over a year ago, representatives from the NC State department of computer science met with officials from the NC Department of Commerce to discuss our program and how we might help in the recruitment of an international financial firm considering the Raleigh area as a possible site for expansion. After a very long and thorough period of evaluation, we and the rest of the state were delighted to learn late last fall that the Triangle area was selected by Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) as the new site for their expansion.

As a leading global investment bank serving institutional, corporate, government and individual clients, CSFB employs over 18,000 people across 33 countries on five continents. They are a proven leader across the wide spectrum of investment banking, capital markets and financial services, all driven by innovative technology solutions. As an industry leader, CSFB has established Global Business Centers in support of their clients worldwide. Their most recent commitment to excellence, a Global Business Center in RTP, will support operational and technological resiliency as part of CSFB's business continuity and disaster recovery strategy.

Hiring has begun for over 400 positions to be filed over the next 12-18 months. They are seeking entry level through experienced senior level candidates in two distinct areas - financial operations and software development. Software development skills desired include JAVA, .NET, Oracle, and C++. CSFB recruiters are posting openings on the CSC Career Services page and they are actively recruiting our students on campus.

They are also committed to establishing a strong and meaningful partnership with our department, and we are currently exploring collaborative opportunities which will increase their visibility and engagement among faculty and students. CSFB offers a challenging and intellectually stimulating work environment, and they take immense pride in offering everyone on their staff every opportunity to develop and grow, both professionally and personally. The department is proud to have played a key role in CSFB's selection of this area for their expansion. For more information on opportunities at CSFB's RTP location, please visit www.csfb.com/gbc.

Computer Game Development Showcase set for May 4

The Computer Game Development Showcase, the semester-ending presentation of student projects in the combined courses covering computer game development taught by the Computer Science Department and the Department of Industrial Design, has been scheduled for Wednesday, May 4, 2005 from 8:30 pm to 10:30 pm at Kamphoefner Auditorium on NC State's main campus in Raleigh. The event is free and open to the public. more

"Posters & Pies" Event to Showcase Senior Projects - May 6th

You are cordially invited to the NCSU Computer Science Senior Design Center's "Posters & Pies" event on Friday, May 6, 2005 from 6:00 - 8:30 pm. This semester, the event will be held at Stewart Theatre in the Talley Student Center and will be hosted by one of our Super ePartners, EMC. In a fast-paced and stimulating format, each of our student teams will give a concise 2-minute presentation on their senior design projects in the main theatre. After the presentations, attendees will have the opportunity to visit the Ballroom for refreshments and access to hands-on demonstrations and displays. Companies interested in sponsoring future projects are welcomed and encouraged to attend. Please register your planned attendance at http://www.csc.ncsu.edu/rsvp/posters-pies/ by May 3rd, so that we may properly plan for this special event.

If you are interested in sponsoring a project in the fall, please call Ken Tate @ 919-513-4292 and reserve your slot as soon as possible; class enrollment and the number of available project teams are projected to be down slightly next fall.

2005 Engineering Senior Awards-CSC Nominees

The College of Engineering Senior Awards are given for outstanding performance beyond academic achievement. Each department within Engineering nominates four seniors; one each for Scholarly Achievement, Citizenship and Service, Humanities, and Leadership. From all the seniors nominated within Engineering, four will be chosen as recipients. The nominees submitted by Computer Science for the Senior Awards include: Tyler Michael Johnson for Scholarly Achievement, Sammie William Carter for Citizenship and Service, Nathaniel Horner for Humanities, and Travis Cornwell for Leadership. We are honored to submit these nominees and wish them the very best in the selection process. more

Tri-XML 2005 Conference: Special Opportunity for Students

The Tri-XML 2005 Conference, the official conference for Triangle area XML users, will be held July 28-30, 2005, at NC State's McKimmon Center. This conference is geared toward users of XML and XML-related technologies. Speakers present on a wide range of topics, from beginning concepts to cutting-edge technologies. Registration Fee: $199 for the three-day conference. A limited number of students who submit posters may attend for $89/student (minimum criteria, ask for details from Kay Ethier, kethier@travelthepath.com). more

Student to Student: CSC Peer Advising

Sometimes it takes a student to help a student. As the spring semester draws to a close, Computer Science students start planning their courses for fall. In addition to undergraduate advisors Joyce Hatch and Barbara Adams, students can now count on Peer Advising-a new means of finding out first-hand what classes to take. Peer Advising is informal, candid guidance; such as what classes to take and not take together, what to expect from professors, course difficulty, etc. more

Engineering Summer Camps (including Computer Science) Set

Each summer, the College of Engineering offers rising high school juniors and seniors the opportunity to experience engineering, science, and technology at NC State. Each of the workshops held during the summer are week long residential programs where students get to experience the engineering discipline of their choice. The computer science camps are scheduled for June 12-17, June 19-24, and June 26-July 1. Each session costs $550 and includes room and board, materials and supplies. Need-based scholarships are available for students who provide documentation from their school counselor. This is an excellent opportunity for high school juniors and seniors to gain a hands-on feel for the field of computer science, as well as to gain a glimpse into college life here at NC State. If you are interested in finding out more about the Engineering Summer Programs click here.

EBII Move Set for Early August

According to Ron Hartis, director of operations for the department of computer science, faculty and staff moves to Engineering Building II on Centennial Campus are on track to be completed by August 10th. Understanding that many faculty are away during the summer months, boxes are available now for early packing. Most faculty and staff will have new furniture in EBII, but some existing pieces of furniture will be tagged and moved on request or they may be redeployed for other purposes. Move labels will be distributed soon. Ron reminds faculty and staff that if an item is not properly labeled, it will not be moved. Additional details will be provided soon to faculty and staff via campus mail. If you have any questions or special needs, Ron encourages you to call him at 5-7825.

Faculty / Staff News

Dr. Alan Tharp has been reappointed by the ABET Board of Directors for another term (2005-06) as a Commissioner on the Computing Accreditation Commission. The ABET/CAC Commissioners meet annually in Washington, D.C. and provide oversight and direction for the Computing Accreditation Commission.

We are excited to announce that our top Software Engineering candidate, Tao Xie, PhD candidate from the University of Washington, has accepted our offer and will join our faculty as an Assistant Professor of Computer Science in August 2005.

Congratulations to Dr. Michael Young for being named to the Academy of Outstanding Teachers! Young, who is widely recognized for his research in gaming, will be officially recognized by the University Honors Council at the Honors Baccalaureate and Celebration of Academic Excellence on May 12, 2005 at the Jane S. McKimmon Conference and Training Center. more

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