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Ambareen Siraj
Program Director at National Science Foundation (NSF). Founder WiCyS (Women in CyberSecurity).
Dr. Ambareen Siraj is a distinguished professional in the field of cybersecurity and computer science. She currently serves as a Program Director at the National Science Foundation (NSF), a position she has held since June 2022.12
Career Highlights
Dr. Siraj has had an impressive academic career:
- Professor of Computer Science at Tennessee Technological University (2006-2022)12
- Founding Director of the Cybersecurity Education Research and Outreach Center (CEROC) at Tennessee Tech (2016-2022)12
Her most notable achievement is founding Women in CyberSecurity (WiCyS) in 2013, where she continues to serve as a board member and conference program chair.12
Education
Dr. Siraj holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Mississippi State University.12 She also earned her MSc in Computer Science from the same institution and a BSc in Applied Physics and Electronics from the University of Dhaka.1
Awards and Recognition
Throughout her career, Dr. Siraj has received numerous accolades, including:
- ABET Claire L. Felbinger Award for Diversity and Inclusion (2020)
- Cybersecurity Person of The Year (2020) by Cybersecurity Ventures
- Tennessee Tech Wings Up Research Award (2019-20)
- Colloquium for Information Systems Security Education Exceptional Leadership in Education Award (2018)
- Brown-Henderson Outstanding Engineering Faculty Award (2017)
Professional Involvement
Dr. Siraj is actively involved in professional organizations, including:
- Women in CyberSecurity (WiCyS)
- Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
Her LinkedIn profile can be found under the username "ambareensiraj".23
Highlights
Today is my last day as a Professor at Tennessee Tech. I will continue my new journey from Monday at the #nsf National Science Foundation joining the team overseeing Cybersecurity Education and Workforce Development efforts nationwide. I am excited but also sad ... I am eternally grateful to #tntech for supporting all my doings over the years. From numerous Deans and upper administrators, my wonderful colleagues at Computer Science and support staff, a.k.a., my work family at CEROC … I could not have asked to be surrounded by a better group of folks. My doings at TNTech have primarily been associated with #ceroc and #wicys . Both of these institutions that I created, stand to serve two of my passions: Cybersecurity Education, Research and Outreach, and Ensuring Equity to gender imbalanced cybersecurity workforce. So naturally, my story is not mine alone. In fact, my success is about the success of others. There are so many wonderful stories from both CEROC and WiCyS community that I cannot possibly even begin to mention. I am proud of both community and I am grateful to belong to them.
My father always said one thing where anyone asked him what he wanted his children to be: “All I want is that they make their lives useful to others!” So, that’s what I try to do and I hope that being part of such an impactful organization like NSF, I will have the opportunity to help in forging collaborations between communities across public and private sectors to create more opportunities and empower others. #wingsup #wicys #tntechcsc
Looking forward to working with more of you in my new role.
Alan Paller was different things to different people. To me, he was a visionary leader, a mentor, an ally. You will be greatly missed dear Alan. Your crazy voice with big ideas will live on. Your legacy will continue with us all. Rest in peace…... #sansinstitute #wicys
