This event serves to address the critical issues and challenges of the Indo-Pacific region, focusing on topics in science, technology, and security. This conference encourages leaders in academia, industry, and government to ideate solutions, with showcases in support of joint fires, information advantage, contested logistics, and other joint warfighting challenges.
SERC UPDATES – February 2025
FEBRUARY 2025
Dear Colleagues,
We hope 2025 is off to a productive start. Throughout the SERC and AIRC network, we are eager for another year of vigorous research, workshops, conference presentations, and engagement with the broader systems and acquisition communities. We remain dedicated to producing high-value research for our sponsors across the Department of Defense.
This newsletter includes a report on how AIRC is guiding the Defense Civilian Training Corps pilot program, a recap of a webinar Dr. Laura Freeman hosted on generative AI, and a welcome to Dr. Jose Ramirez-Marquez as AIRC’s first Director of Acquisition Analytics.
Sincerely,
Dinesh Verma
Executive Director
Freeman of the SERC Research Council Leads Generative AI Webinar
Dr. Laura Freeman of Virginia Tech moderated a panel with representatives from government and academia that discussed the potential for generative AI to influence the DoD acquisition process.
AIRC Adds First Director of Acquisition Analytics
Dr. Jose Ramirez-Marquez of Stevens Institute of Technology will track the dynamic convergence of defense acquisition, data, and analytics.
AI4SE & SE4AI Workshop Early Interest Form
Get updates for this fall’s workshop co-hosted with the U.S. Army DEVCOM Armaments Center, with a theme of “Systems Engineering AI That Works: Assuring Transformative Capabilities and Enabling a Digital Transformation.”
Research in Support of DCTC Development, Piloting and Instrumentation
This full-length report details AIRC efforts to pilot the Defense Civilian Training Corps at four universities and shows its potential for scale to prepare larger numbers of talented students for civilian DoD careers.
Implementing a Digital Data Strategy for Acquisition and Sustainment
AIRC Chief Scientist Dr. Philip Antón partnered with Virginia Tech researchers to develop frameworks, models, and practical next steps for transforming the DoD A&S community into a next-generation data-driven organization.
Systemic Factors Influencing Risk Aversion
Dr. Amanda Girth of the SERC Research Council and Dr. Laura Maguire and Dr. Mike Rayo of Ohio State collaborated with the Air Force Installation Contracting Center to study systemic pressures that impede innovation.
Bot Automation Using Large Language Models and Plugins
Dr. Naren Ramakrishnan and colleagues from Virginia Tech developed tools that automate information extraction pipelines to support business processes in contract and procurement management.
Test and Evaluation Methods for Middle-Tier Acquisition
Mr. Geoff Kerr of Virginia Tech and Dr. Laura Freeman led seven organizations collaborating on research for the Director, Operational Test and Evaluation’s Strategic Initiatives, Policy, and Emerging Technologies Directorate.
Transforming T&E for AI/ML, Autonomous, and Evolving Systems
Kerr and Freeman also produced this report regarding ongoing research for DOT&E to develop concepts and best practices to address new capabilities and methods for T&E.
Development of an Artificial Intelligence Test Harness for the DoD
A large team from Virginia Tech designed a framework for an AI test harness that could be applied to multiple types of AI models, including for use cases involving radio frequency machine learning and large language models.
March 3-7, 2025
NDIA Pacific Operational Science and Technology (POST) Conference (Honolulu, HI)
March 18-21, 2025
Conference on Systems Engineering Research (CSER) (Long Beach, CA)
April 7-10, 2025
IEEE SysCon (Montreal, Canada)
May 7-8, 2025
Naval Postgraduate School Acquisition Research Symposium (Monterey, CA)
June 9-11, 2025
CESUN International Engineering Systems Symposium (Arlington, VA)
July 26-31, 2025
INCOSE International Symposium (Ottawa, Canada | Hybrid)
We invite collaborators to submit research news to be included in future releases of the SERC Updates.
Resources:
Search SERC Publications
Search AIRC Publications
If an opportunity exists at your institution that you would like us to share, please submit a collaborators’ update.
SERC & AIRC
DoD College Acquisition Internship Program
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL
INCOSE International Workshop 2025
INCOSE’s International Workshop is the event of the year for systems engineers to contribute to their industry. Attendees spend 4 focused days working alongside fellow systems engineers who are there to make a difference. Unlike INCOSE’s annual International Symposium and other conferences, there are no paper, panel, or tutorial presentations. Systems Engineers at all levels and from all backgrounds are encouraged to engage in working sessions, and contribute their knowledge and experience to take the discipline forward.
SERC UPDATES – December 2024
DECEMBER 2024
Dear Colleagues,
It was wonderful seeing many of you last month for the SERC Research Review and SERC Doctoral Student Forum. Thank you to the Honorable Dr. Douglas C. Schmidt of the Office of the Secretary of Defense for giving a keynote on test and evaluation; to Ms. Kristen J. Baldwin of the Air Force, Ms. Jennifer Swanson of the Army, and Mr. Thomas Simms of the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering for speaking on a panel of Senior Executive Service members; and to the SERC researchers who presented on digital engineering, mission engineering, architecture decision making, cybersecurity, and much more.
This newsletter includes the summary report for another of our major events, the AI4SE & SE4AI Research and Application Workshop, as well as AIRC research on megaprojects and reliability requirements. When we return in the new year, Dr. Laura Freeman will host a webinar on generative AI with Dr. Schmidt and other stakeholders. Be sure to register before you break this month. We wish you the warmest of holidays!
Sincerely,
Dinesh Verma
Executive Director
AI4SE & SE4AI Research & Application Workshop 2024 Report
This fifth annual report covers presentations, panels, and keynotes from Dr. Missy Cummings of George Mason University, Mr. Dan Mahanty of the Civilian Protection Center of Excellence, and Mr. Matthew Rose of Snowflake.
16th SERC Research Review Highlights Five Focus Areas
Dr. Douglas Schmidt joined SERC researchers and distinguished leaders from the DoD for rigorous discussions on applying systems engineering for national defense.
University of Alabama in Huntsville Student Wins SERC Boehm Award
During the SERC Doctoral Student Forum, Ms. Casey Eaton earned honors for her presentation on the “Impact of Technical Measure Omission in Systems Design Frameworks.”
Trusted AI Challenge for Armaments Systems Engineering
Dr. Peter Beling of Virginia Tech is the PI on SERC research that enlists college teams to develop engineering methods for system reliability and trustworthiness in the design and architecture of AI-enabled systems.
Setting Reliability Requirements for Subsystems
An AIRC research team led by Dr. Azad Madni of the University of Southern California spoke with DoD personnel responsible for system maintenance about improving reliability.
The Future of Megaproject Management
Paired with a webinar series co-hosted by Defense Acquisition University, SERC CTO Tom McDermott and colleagues examined technologies, methods and tools critical to managing the future of megaprojects.
On January 6, Dr. Laura Freeman of Virginia Tech and the SERC Research Council will moderate a webinar – Generative AI in the DoD Acquisition Lifecycle – with insights from Dr. Douglas Schmidt, Director, Operational Test & Evaluation, Office of the Secretary of Defense; Ms. Alexis Bonnell, Chief Information Officer and Director of the Digital Capabilities Directorate, Air Force Research Laboratory; Dr. Heather Wojton, Director of the Operational Evaluation Division, Institute for Defense Analyses; and Mr. John Robert, Deputy Director, Software Solutions Division, Carnegie Mellon University Software Engineering Institute. See more details and register on the event page.
January 6, 2025
Generative AI in the DoD Acquisition Lifecycle Webinar (Virtual)
February 1-4, 2025
INCOSE International Workshop (Seville, Spain | Virtual)
March 18-21, 2025
Conference on Systems Engineering Research (CSER) (Long Beach, CA)
April 7-10, 2025
IEEE SysCon (Montreal, Canada)
May 7-8, 2025
Naval Postgraduate School Acquisition Research Symposium (Monterey, CA)
June 9-11, 2025
CESUN International Engineering Systems Symposium (Arlington, VA)
We invite collaborators to submit research news to be included in future releases of the SERC Updates.
Resources:
Search SERC Publications
Search AIRC Publications
This fall, AIRC continued a webinar series with the Baroni Center for Government Contracting at George Mason University on the Commission on Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution (PPBE) Reform. In the screenshot above, AIRC Chief Scientist Dr. Philip Antón (top left) spoke with (clockwise) Mr. Greg Little, Senior Counselor, Palantir Technologies; Ms. Yousra Fazili, Chief of Staff to the Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller/CFO); and Mr. Mark Krzysko, SES, Principal Deputy Director of Enterprise Information, Acquisition Data and Analytics in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. Visit the AIRC website to see recordings of the fourth webinar and the fifth webinar.
If an opportunity exists at your institution that you would like us to share, please submit it here.
SERC & AIRC
DoD College Acquisition Internship Program
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL
SERC Doctoral Student Forum 2024
13
NOV
On November 12-13, the Systems Engineering Research Center will host its 16th annual events series. The SERC Research Review will gather academic innovators, government sponsors and industry colleagues for a showcase of SERC research. The following day, the SERC Doctoral Student Forum will feature the next generation of systems thinkers competing for the Boehm Award.
SERC Doctoral Student Forum (SDSF) Agenda
| 8:00AM | Light Breakfast and Networking |
| 8:30AM | Introduction |
| 8:45AM | Examination of Community Responses to Hurricane Evacuation Orders Using High-Fidelity Mobility Data Dr. Harsh Anand, University of Virginia View presentation slides |
| 9:15AM | Impact of Technical Measure Omission in Systems Design Frameworks Ms. Casey Eaton, The University of Alabama in Huntsville View presentation slides |
| 9:45AM | Networking Break |
| 10:05AM | Towards a Hetero-functional Graph Theory Approach to MegaProject Management Mr. Seyed Amirreza Hosseini, Stevens Institute of Technology View presentation slides |
| 10:35AM | Exposing Bad Behavior in Operational Systems Mr. John Phillips, Naval Postgraduate School View presentation slides |
| 11:05AM | A Systems Engineering Methodology for Integrating Autonomy with System of Systems and Conducting Data-Driven Trade Study Analyses Mr. Mohammedreza Torkjazi, George Mason University View presentation slides |
| 11:35AM | Closing Comments and Boehm Award Presentation |
| 12:00PM | Adjourn |
The SERC is seeking future leaders in systems engineering to showcase their research to an audience of academia, government, and industry. All doctoral student presenters will be considered for the Dr. Barry Boehm Award for Doctoral Student Research Excellence that includes a small monetary prize.
Doctoral students who are selected and accept are expected to present their work in person. All presentations will be 20 minutes (including Q&A). All materials must be appropriate for public release. Presentation slides will be uploaded to the SERC website after the forum.
Submissions are open to students currently enrolled in doctoral programs at SERC collaborating universities. The deadline for submissions is October 8, 2024 at 4:00pm ET.
If you have any questions, please contact SERC Communications Manager as******@st*****.edu?subject=SDSF%2023″ target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>Alan Skontra.
*SERC universities include:
Air Force Institute of Technology, Auburn University, Carnegie Mellon University, George Mason University, George Washington University, Georgetown University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Naval Postgraduate School, North Carolina A&T State University, North Carolina State University, Ohio State University, Old Dominion University, Pennsylvania State University, Purdue University, Stevens Institute of Technology, Texas A&M University, University of Alabama in Huntsville, University of Arizona, University of Central Florida, University of Maryland, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, University of South Florida, University of Southern California, University of Virginia, Virginia Tech.
October 8, by 4:00pm ET
Abstract Submission Deadline
October 14
Notice to Accepted Presenters
October 18
Hotel Room Block Closes
November 3, by 11:59pm ET
Presentation Submission Deadline
November 5, by 10:00am ET
Registration Deadline
SERC Research Review 2024
12
NOV
On November 12-13, the Systems Engineering Research Center will host its 16th annual events series. The SERC Research Review will gather academic innovators, government sponsors and industry colleagues for a showcase of SERC research. The following day, the SERC Doctoral Student Forum will feature the next generation of systems thinkers competing for the Boehm Award.
SERC Research Review (SRR) Agenda
| 8:00AM | Registration and Networking |
| 8:30AM | Welcome and Opening Remarks Dr. Dinesh Verma, Executive Director, SERC & AIRC |
| 8:45AM | Executive Panel (Moderator) Dr. Dinesh Verma, Executive Director, SERC & AIRC Ms. Kristen Baldwin, SES, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Science, Technology, and Engineering, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Acquisition, Technology and Logistics) Ms. Jennifer Swanson, SES, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Data, Engineering & Software View presentation slides Mr. Thomas Simms, SES, Principal Deputy Executive Director, Systems Engineering and Architecture (SE&A), OUSD (R&E) View presentation slides |
| 10:00AM | Networking Break |
| 10:20AM | Keynote HON. Dr. Douglas C. Schmidt, Director, Operational Test & Evaluation, Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) View presentation slides |
| 11:15AM | Trust and Trustworthiness in AI-Enabled Systems* Dr. Zoe Szajnfarber, The George Washington University View presentation slides *SERC Strategic Talk |
| 11:40AM | Trusted AI SE Challenge Dr. Peter Beling, Virginia Tech View presentation slides |
| 12:00PM | Lunch |
| 1:00PM | Digital Engineering for Test and Evaluation Dr. Laura Freeman, Virginia Tech View presentation slides |
| 1:30PM | Transforming SE to MBSE and Roadmapping a Framework of Computationally Enabled Ontologies for Digital Engineering Dr. Mark Blackburn, Stevens Institute of Technology View presentation slides |
| 2:00PM | Improving and Assessing Architectures and Architecture Decision Making Dr. Bryan Mesmer, The University of Alabama in Huntsville View presentation slides |
| 2:30PM | Digital Materiel Management / Digital Engineering Strategy Ms. Phil Zimmerman, Stevens Institute of Technology Mr. Tom McDermott, Stevens Institute of Technology View presentation slides |
| 3:00PM | Networking Break |
| 3:20PM | Space Systems Command Military Communications & Positioning, Navigation, and Timing Directorate – Mission Engineering and Integration of Emerging Technologies Dr. Michael Orosz, University of Southern California View presentation slides |
| 3:50PM | Secure Cyber-Resilient Engineering Methods and Tools* Dr. Peter Beling, Virginia Tech Mr. Tom McDermott, Stevens Institute of Technology View presentation slides *SERC Strategic Talk |
| 4:10PM | Center for Offshore Wind Energy Cyber Vulnerabilities and Threat Identification Dr. Sachin Shetty, Old Dominion University Dr. Peter Beling, Virginia Tech View presentation slides |
| 4:40PM | Closing Remarks Dr. Dinesh Verma, Executive Director, SERC & AIRC |
| 5:00PM-6:30PM | Networking Reception |