NSF Planning Visit Grant to Thailand

October 28, 2008 at 3:56 pm | In Thailand | Leave a Comment
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I sought out for ways to continue to develop the international partnerships that I was able to initiate once I returned from Thailand as well as enhance those relationships.   I continued working with the contacts I made in Thailand to identify such possibilities in my first month back, and by the end of October, I finished writing and submitted a proposal for a National Science Foundation (NSF) Planning Visit.  The purpose of this grant will be to continue the research stream that I initiated over the summer in Thailand and provide an avenue to continue advancing international partnerships.  We expect to find out if this proposal was successful sometime in March 2009.  Below is the summary of the proposal that I submitted to the NSF.

U.S.-Thailand Planning Visit: Collaborative Research in Information Security and Assurance

This award supports a proposed planning visit to enable Dr. Andrew P. Ciganek and Dr. Guillermo A Francia, III of Jacksonville State University to meet with Dr. Srisakdi Charmonman of Assumption University in Bangkok, Thailand. Dr. Srisakdi is regarded as the “Father of the Thai Internet” and has held dozens of high-ranking administrative, governmental, and international positions that would offer unique insight into this research project. The visit in May 2009 will also permit the U.S. collaborators to meet with several key individuals from academia, industry and government agencies through colloquiums to discuss information security and assurance (ISA) polices in Thailand in depth. The U.S. collaborators will be responsible for conducting the colloquiums while the foreign collaborator from Thailand will be responsible for organizing the colloquiums and for all necessary language translations.

The collaboration among the U.S. and Thai participants will integrate the facilities and expertise of the investigators and strengthen their ability to submit a competitive proposal to NSF following the proposed planning visit. The establishment of a relationship and the fostering of a partnership with the Thai counterpart is a key success factor for this research that could not be performed nor sustained at a distance. There is sufficient overlap of interests between both the U.S. and Thai collaborators to indicate that they can successfully pursue the activities proposed, that this project will provide a unique research opportunity for a junior faculty member, and that the collaborations will benefit the participating institutions in both countries.

Intellectual Merit: The U.S. and Thai collaborators have a strong background in information assurance and security. The U.S. collaborators research expertise is in ISA-related research, have recently had their department’s curriculum certified by the National Information Assurance Education and Training Program (NIETP) and are in the second phase of having their academic department designated as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Education (CAEIAE) by the National Security Agency (NSA), and have conducted several research projects examining Thai policies and practices. The Thai collaborator has had a leading role in shaping the current ISA policy framework in Thailand. The project participants will seek to develop U.S. – Thai collaborations in areas of vital importance in the U.S. where there is a critical need, namely in ISA policies, regulations, and compliance. Consequently, a significant contribution of this proposed planning visit will be in the development and advancing of knowledge and expertise in the area of ISA through the dissemination of findings in research publications as well as in classroom materials (e.g., course modules, case-studies, lecture slides, etc.), of which there is a scarcity of ISA educational materials.

Broader Impact: The U.S. PI is a junior faculty member who will benefit considerably from the international collaborations to be made. The U.S. collaborators will impart their experience to their students, to others around their university, and to the broader academic community through research publications and educational materials. An objective of this proposed planning visit is the establishment of a sustained collaborative network of researchers and students between academic institutions in the U.S. and Thailand. This network will facilitate and stimulate the exchange of personnel, research, as well as educational content and will be an exemplar for future global partnerships. The work performed and new knowledge generated and disseminated during this proposed planning visit can have significant impacts for most industries that are impacted by ISA policies and for ISA curriculum materials. Further, the results of this collaborative research would provide a foundation for future research investigations examining security and regulations.

Jacksonville News

October 6, 2008 at 1:32 pm | In Thailand | Leave a Comment
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The following is a story that I wrote that appeared in the October 1 edition of the Jacksonville News, the local newspaper:

Dr. William A. Meehan: Jax State reaches out to Asia

Over the past 20 years, Asia has been growing substantially in importance throughout the world with respect to their economies, population, and political influence.

This was illustrated in spectacular fashion at the Olympics that recently concluded in China and is a reason why Asia has been an important target of recent international partnerships efforts at JSU.

These opportunities for the JSU community include student and faculty exchanges, joint degree programs, as well as other research and project collaboration possibilities.

Dr. Guillermo Francia, III of the Department of Mathematical, Computing, and Information Sciences (MCIS), who was part of a delegation that traveled to China this summer to promote JSU and initiate collaborative academic programs, feels that developing educational partnerships with Asian institutions will bring JSU “to the forefront of an active movement that provides educational initiatives to the service of a ‘flatter world.’ These academic partnerships are a step towards JSU’s goal of meeting the educational needs of students in a rapidly advancing global society.”

Dr. Andrew Ciganek, also from the MCIS department, sees an opportunity for JSU in Asia after recently returning from teaching MBA classes, conducting research, and initiating partnership discussions in Thailand.

“I have heard from several Thai administrators that felt that American universities, unlike others throughout the world, have not pursued productive relationships with them,” he said. “Consequently, JSU can distinguish itself though lasting partnerships that will enhance our international reputation, which began in 1946 with the founding of the International House.”

Dr. Ciganek reflected on a few of the experiences he had over the summer in Thailand, which is commemorating 175 years of diplomatic relations with the United States this year. “Learning and teaching in a foreign country was the quickest way for me to both understand and appreciate cultural differences,” he said. “For example, Thai students typically do not like to challenge authority, which is considered disrespectful.

“This caused problems as students were unwilling to let me know if I was speaking too quickly or if they were unclear about content that I covered in class.

“So instead of enforcing the same expectations I have for my students in the US or teaching the same content that I teach American students, I adapted my style and my comfort zone to match the needs of the Thai students.”

For a JSU student, many of which rarely leave Calhoun County, living and learning in a different country brings new abilities and experiences in assimilating to a culture very different from their own.

These skills are essential for our students as our local economy becomes increasingly global and shaped by Asian influences, as evidenced by the recent influx of major manufacturers such as Honda and Hyundai.

Such skills cannot be imparted from a textbook or by “Googling” them online.

If we want our students to be successful in business with other countries, they need to understand those cultures. International partnerships are just one way that JSU is providing that crucial experience that will serve them well long into their professional lives.

Dr. Andrew P. Ciganek, Assistant Professor of Computer Information Systems, contributed to this article.

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