CSC eNewsletter

Welcome to the online edition of CSC eNews, a monthly electronic newsletter for alumni and friends of the Department of Computer Science at NC State University.

If you are a CSC alum and wish to be added to the email distribution list, click here. Corporate or individual friends of the department may be added to our distribution list by sending an email request to Ken Tate, Director of Development & External Relations for the NCSU Department of Computer Science.

January 31, 2006

NCSU Among Nation's Most Connected

NC State University is among the 25 "Most Connected Campuses" in the nation, according to the editors of The Princeton Review.

The list, published by Forbes on Jan. 20, 2006, features colleges and universities selected based on criteria including the breadth of the computer science curriculum; the sophistication of campus technology, including streaming media of classes and extracurricular offerings; availability of school-owned digital cameras and equipment for student use; wireless Internet access on campus; and support for handheld computing.

NC State is the only representative from the state of North Carolina to make the Top 25 listing. And the students, faculty and staff in the department of computer science are among the most connected on campus. more

NCSU Teams with IBM to Develop New Services Curriculum

NC State University and IBM recently announced a new curriculum initiative in Services Sciences, Management and Engineering (SSME). The new academic initiative is designed to prepare graduate students for careers in the evolving multidisciplinary field of services management. NC State, whose motto is 'Innovation in Action,' will be the first research university in the U.S. to launch a master's-level curriculum initiative in SSME, which was created in collaboration with IBM through its Academic Initiative program. The new program draws on research and teaching in the fields of computer science, computer engineering, business strategy, and management sciences to help students develop the skills required in a technology-based, services-led economy.

Dr. Harry Perros, Alumni Distinguished Graduate Professor of computer science, and program coordinator of the MS degree in computer networks at NC State, is among a team of faculty members from the management and engineering colleges which developed five new services-related courses that will be added to the graduate-level studies in SSME and Master of Science in Computer Networking (MSCN) programs. Graduates from both programs will have master's-level expertise in business processes, business strategy, information technology, and management of people in the workforce. Both colleges will be admitting students for the new curriculum in fall 2006. IBM will also encourage its employees to enroll in the program. more

Departmental Research Grants, Gifts, and Support

As a result of a substantial unrestricted cash donation to the department, we are very proud to recognize IBM as our newest Super ePartner. Long a strong and active corporate partner with university, IBM has donated well over $6M to various NC State colleges, departments and programs over the years, including numerous substantial equipment grants, faculty awards, and research grants to the department of computer science. Consistently ranking among the top consumers of NC State new grad talent, IBM holds the distinction of being the #1 employer of computer science graduates at NC State. Since its inception, IBM executives have been actively involved in the department's Strategic Advisory Board. They have also worked very closely with our faculty on the evolution of our curriculum to meet the ever-changing needs of the global business community. Andy Rindos will be our primary contact and liaison, and it is with great pride and gratitude that we welcome him and IBM as a Super ePartner with the department.

Join us in welcoming the following new ePartners with the department:

• RedPrairie - For over 30 years, RedPrairie has been a global leader in supply chain technology solutions that enable business process transformation. Headquartered in Waukesha, WI, they have a large and growing presence in Cary. They plan to sponsor student projects and take advantage of ePartner engagement opportunities to provide students exposure to the fantastic career opportunities available at RedPrairie.
• NC Office of the State Auditor - Under the direction of State Auditor, Mr. Les Merritt, the office is taking a "think outside the box" approach to work closely with our department on a number of potential partnering opportunities ranging from student projects addressing mission-critical software application needs to enhancing the office's visibility and exposure as a viable career option for students and graduates.
  

Thanks to ePartners, Field2Base and SlickEdit, which recently contributed $6,000 each in unrestricted cash contributions to the department.

Thanks to Computer Service Partners for their recent contribution renewing their recognition as a valued ePartner.

Intel recently donated 30 iMotes and iMote2s to Dr. Rudra Dutta for use in his research. The equipment donated is valued at approximately $6,000.

Microsoft recently donated $3,000 to Dr. Michael Young to help build Planet Academic, a new web-based community centered on the integration of computer game technology with teaching and research efforts in schools around the world. In addition, Microsoft has given the department a copy of their Visual Studio Team System 2005 software to the department. The software, which was designed to support complex programming efforts involving large teams of developers, will be made available to all faculty and students via the Virtual Computing Lab (VCL) platform, but should be of particular interest to those specializing in software engineering.

Thanks to the recent generous contributions (and matching corporate gifts) from Dr. Annie Antón and Manpan Hui, the Dr. KC Tai Memorial Endowment has grown in value to over $35,200.

"Pathway to the Future" Campaign Update

Phase I of our "Pathway to the Future" brick campaign is complete and we are happy to report that to date, approximately 250 bricks have been purchased by alumni, students, faculty, staff, and friends of CSC and ECE, generating almost $38,000 in support for the two departments. Phase I orders should be installed in time for the EBII dedication event on April 28th.

If you would still like to order a brick, you can still do so. Brick orders will be accepted on an ongoing basis, and will be installed when there are sufficient quantities. These commemorative bricks require a donation of $150, and can be ordered through this printable online order form.

ePartners Career Connection Event Planned for February 1st

Just a reminder to our students - our annual ePartners Career Connection event is scheduled for Wednesday, February 1st from 10 am to 2:30 pm on the main classroom hallway in the east (CSC) wing of EBII.

This event, provided exclusively for CSC students and our valued ePartners, will feature representatives from Network Appliance, Cisco Systems, EMC, Progress Energy, Tekelec, Red Hat, IBM, RedPrairie, and the NC Office of the State Auditor. Students are encouraged to bring their resumes and to be prepared to explore career opportunities ranging from part-time coop and intern roles to full-time new grad positions.

CSC Faculty / Staff News

Congratulations to Dr. Xiaosong Ma, assistant professor of computer science, who recently received a Faculty Early Career Development (Career) Award from the National Science Foundation (NSF), effective March 1, 2006, through February 28, 2011. The NSF will provide $400,000 in funding over the next five years to support Ma's research project entitled, "Career: Transparent, Interactive Desktop Parallel Computing for Scientific Data Processing." NSF Career Awards are one of the highest honors given to young university faculty in science and engineering. With Ma's award, she becomes the 15th current CSC faculty member to have been recognized with this prestigious award.

Dr. Annie Antón, associate professor of computer science, is featured in the January 2006 issue of CSO Magazine after she was awarded one of four "Women of Influence" awards at the 2005 Executive Women's Forum in Phoenix, AZ. CSO Magazine sponsors the award, recognizing women for the excellent exercise of influence - both within an organization and across the security ecosystem as a whole. The online article is available here.

We are very pleased to announce that Dr. Ben Watson of Northwestern University has joined the department as an associate professor of computer science effective January 1, 2006. His research focus is in Visualization and Graphics. With Dr. Watson's arrival, we now have 44 tenured and tenure-track research faculty, and we remain one of the largest computer science departments in the nation.

Dr. Laurie Williams, assistant professor of computer science, will present "Industrial Case Studies of Extreme Programming Teams" at the Distinguished Speaker Series at the Institute for Software Research at UC-Irvine.

The CSC Office of Graduate Programs is very pleased to welcome Valerie Nordin, who will serve as Admissions Specialist and Counselor. Valerie has a Baccalaureat Internationale through international studies in France, and a BS in Communications - Public Affairs from the University of Miami. Most recently, she has spent six years working with a local law firm on immigration and asylum issues for an international clientele. Her unique background and work experience should make her a strong asset to the department.

Congratulations to Carlos Benavente, our department webmaster & DBA, and his wife Larissa, who are now the proud parents of a newborn baby girl. Daniela Benavente was born at Wake Med on Saturday, December 31st.

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