The Coordinating Committee advises ICDS leadership on prioritization of activities such as co-hiring, seed funding, internal development of centers, and training and education. This group includes faculty and IT professionals from across the university.
Meet the ICDS Team
Coordinating Committee
Kofi Adu
- Professor of Physics
- ICDS Associate
Department: Physics
Office: 103C Sheetz Family Health Center, Penn State Altoona
Email: cxa269@psu.edu
Phone: 814-940-3335
Research Focuses: Computation and simulation at nanoscale of interfacial effects on properties of composites; using nanoscale interfacial engineering to enhance properties of ultraconductors
Website: Visit Kofi's Website
Guido Cervone
- Professor of Geography and Meteorology and Atmospheric Science
- Associate Director, Institute for Computational and Data Sciences
- ICDS Co-Hire
Department: Geography
Office: 205 Walker Building, University Park
Email: cervone@psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-0179
Research Focuses: Remote sensing, environmental hazards, geoinformatics, social media
Website: Visit Guido's Website
Pinlei Chen
- Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering
- ICDS Associate
Department: Civil and Environmental Engineering
Office: 215C Sackett Building
Email: pzc216@psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-4026
Research Focuses: Structural Engineering and Mechanics Computational mechanics Stabilized method Multiphysics problems
Website: Visit Pinlei's Website
Doug Cowen
- Professor of Physics
- Professor of Astronomy & Astrophysics
- ICDS Associate
Department: Physics, Astronomy and Astrophysics
Office: 104 Davey Laboratory, University Park
Email: cowen@phys.psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-5943
Research Focuses: Particle astrophysics, neutrinos, neutrino detection
Website: Visit Doug's Website
Emily Davenport
- Assistant Professor
- ICDS Associate
Department: Biology
Office: 305 Wartik Laboratory
Email: exd44@psu.edu
Research Focuses: The Davenport lab seeks to understand the complex relationship humans have with our microbiomes. What determines gut microbiome composition? Does the microbiome affect our health? What's the evolutionary relationship humans have with our microbiomes? We answer these questions using a genomic perspective, with high-throughput microbiome and metagenomic sequencing technologies and novel computational and statistical techniques.
Website: Visit Emily's Website
Felecia Davis
- Associate Professor of Architecture
- Carey Memorial Early Career Professor in the Arts
- ICDS Associate
Department: Architecture
Office: 418 Stuckeman
Email: fadav@psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-2452
Research Focuses: Computational textiles or textiles that respond to commands through computer programming, electronics, and sensors for use in architecture. Responsive textiles used in lightweight shelters will transform how we communicate, socialize, and use space.
Website: Visit Felecia's Website
Jenni Evans
- Professor of Meteorology and Atmospheric Science
- Director, Institute for Computational and Data Sciences
- ICDS Associate
Department: Meteorology and Atmospheric Science
Office: 509 Walker Building, University Park
Email: Jenni.Evans@psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-3240
Research Focuses: Climate, numerical weather prediction, tropical meteorology, tropical cyclones, statistical meteorology, convection studies
Website: Visit Jenni's Website
Stephen Fast
- Cyber Innovation Strategy Lead
- ICDS Associate
Department: Applied Research Laboratory
Office: 5300A ARL Building, University ParkElectromagnetic Propagation, Radio Meteorology, RF Modeling and Simulation, EM Computational Techniques, Numerical Modeling, Software Engineering
Email: saf8@psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-2425
Research Focuses: Electromagnetic propagation, radio meteorology, RF modeling and simulation, EM computational techniques, numerical modeling, software engineering
Wayne Figurelle
- Assistant Director
Office: 224D Computer Building
Email: wfigure@psu.edu
Phone: 814-777-2965
Karen Fisher-Vanden
- Professor of Environmental and Resource Economics
- ICDS Associate
Department: Agricultural Economics
Office: 113 Armsby Building, University Park
Email: kaf26@psu.edu
Phone: 814-867-2752
Research Focuses: Economic and integrated assessment modeling for climate change policy analysis; economic instruments for pollution control; technology development in developing countries and implications for energy use and carbon emissions
Website: Visit Karen's Website
Zoltan Fodor
- Professor of Physics
- ICDS Co-Hire
Email: zxf5098@psu.edu
Research Focuses: Elementary particle and nuclear physics, fundamental quark and hadron properties, quantum chromodynamics (QCD) and QCD at non-vanishing temperatures and densities.
Helen Greatrex
- Assistant Professor of Remote Sensing and Geostatistics
- ICDS Co-Hire
Department: Geography; Statistics
Email: hlg5155@psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-1596
Research Focuses: Interactions between humans and rainfall, impact of rainfall on livelihoods, the nature of rainfall and its measurements, and sparse data environments.
Website: Visit Helen's Website
Steven Greybush
- Associate Professor of Meteorology
- ICDS Co-Hire
Department: Meteorology and Atmospheric Science
Office: 618 Walker Building, University Park
Email: sjg213@psu.edu
Phone: 814-867-4926
Research Focuses: Data assimilation, numerical weather prediction, weather and climate of Mars, atmospheric modeling, ensemble forecasting predictability, statistical and artificial intelligence applications
Website: Visit Steven's Website
Ilgin Guler
- Associate Professor
- ICDS Associate
Department: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Office: 221B Sackett Building
Email: sig123@psu.edu
Research Focuses: statistical analysis of transportation data, multi-modal urban traffic operations and control, intelligent transportation systems, connected and autonomous vehicles, and infrastructure management
Website: Visit Ilgin's Website
Molly Hall
- Assistant Professor of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences
- ICDS Associate
Department: Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences
Office: 512A Wartik Lab
Email: mah546@psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-0794
Research Focuses: Genomics, Human Genetics, Exposome, Genetic Interactions (Epistasis), Gene-Environment Interactions, Complex Disease, Precision Medicine, Biomedical Informatics, Metabolomics
Website: Visit Molly's Website
Wenrui Hao
- Associate Professor
- ICDS Associate
Department: Math
Office: 208 McAllister Building
Email: wxh64@psu.edu
Phone: (814)865-3881
Research Focuses: The focus of my research is on modeling and scientific computing for math problems in biology. In particular, I study problems in atherosclerosis, fibrosis, tumor growth, cell cycle control using both stochastic and deterministic approaches. The mathematical tools that I use include ODEs, PDEs, numerical algebraic geometry, uncertainty quantification, sensitivity analysis, bifurcation analysis, and computational methods
Website: Visit Wenrui 's Website
Vasant Honavar
- Professor and Edward Frymoyer Chair of Information Sciences and Technology
- Associate Director, Institute for Computational and Data Sciences
- ICDS Co-Hire
Department: Information Sciences and Technology
Office: 301A Westgate Building, University Park
Email: vuh14@psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-3141
Research Focuses: Artificial intelligence, machine learning, data mining, big data analytics, bioinformatics and computational molecular and systems biology, discovery informatics, knowledge representation and semantic web, applied information integration and informatics
Website: Visit Vasant's Website
Yuqing Hu
- Assistant Professor in Architectural Engineering
- ICDS Associate
Department: Architectural Engineering
Email: yfh5204@psu.edu
Research Focuses: Dr. Hu's research is focused on building construction.
Website: Visit Yuqing's Website
Jingzhi Huang
- Professor of Finance and Mathematics
- Faculty Chair in Finance
- ICDS Associate
Department: Finance
Office: 350 Business Building
Email: Email Address jxh56@psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-0032
Research Focuses: Credit risk, Fixed-income markets, Derivatives markets, Mutual funds and Hedge funds, and machine learning
Website: Visit Jingzhi's Website
Sharon Huang
- Professor of Information Sciences and Technology
- ICDS Associate
Office: E317 Westgate Building
Email: suh972@ist.psu.edu
Phone: (814) 863-7235
Research Focuses: Her research interests are in the areas of biomedical image analysis, computer vision, and machine learning, focusing on methods for object recognition, image segmentation, image synthesis, registration/matching, tracking, skeletonization, computer-assisted diagnosis and intervention. Her broader interests include computer graphics, artificial intelligence, data mining, biomedical informatics, HCI, and visualization.
Website: Visit Sharon's Website
David Hughes
- Dorothy Foehr Huck and J. Lloyd Huck Chair in Global Food Security
- Huck Chair in Global Food Security
- Professor of Entomology and Biology
- ICDS Associate
Department: Entomology
Office: W249 Millennium Science Complex
Email: dhughes@psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-6073
Research Focuses: Global food security
Website: Visit David's Website
David Hunter
- Professor of Statistics
- ICDS Associate
Department: Statistics
Office: 310 Thomas Building
Email: drh20@psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-1348
Research Focuses: Statistical algorithms, particularly MM algorithms; statistical modeling of networks; and mixture models, particularly finite mixtures in which the component distributions are not parametrically specified
Website: Visit David's Website
Maurie Kelly
- Senior Research Associate, Penn State Institutes of the Environment
- Director of Pennsylvania Spatial Data Access and Informatics
- ICDS Associate
Department: Institute for Energy and the Environment
Office: 0117 Land and Water Research, University Park
Email: mck4@psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-0104
Research Focuses: Managing and providing public access to data, supporting public access to government information, the intersection of big data and citizen science
Yongsoo Kim
- Associate Professor
- ICDS Associate
Department: Neural and Behavioral Sciences
Office: H109 Neural & Behavioral Science
Email: yuk17@psu.edu
Phone: 717-531-8264
Research Focuses: Structural and functional organization of the mammalian brain The neural circuit basis of social behavior and its dysfunction in brain disorder
Website: Visit Yongsoo's Website
Abdullah Konak
- Distinguished Professor of Information Science and Technology
- ICDS Associate
Department: Information Sciences and Technology
Office: 212 Gaige Building, Penn State Berks
Email: konak@psu.edu
Phone: 610-396-6310
Research Focuses: Modeling, analysis, and optimization of complex systems using computational intelligence combined with techniques from statistics, operations research, and machine learning
Website: Visit Abdullah's Website
Jonna Kulikowich
- Professor of Education
- ICDS Associate
Department: Educational Psychology, Counseling, and Special Education
Office: 306 CEDAR Building
Email: jmk35@psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-2401
Research Focuses: Academic development in mathematics and statistics, applied statistics, and measurement of variables in reading research.
Website: Visit Jonna's Website
Soundar Kumara
- Allen E. Pearce and Allen M. Pearce Professor of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering
- Director, Applications of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning for Industry (AIMI) Research Center
- ICDS Co-Hire
Department: Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, Computer Science and Engineering
Office: 222 Leonard Building, University Park
Email: skumara@psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-2359
Research Focuses: Intelligent systems, sensor data representation and fusion, process data monitoring and diagnostics; smart manufacturing; graph analytics; big data analytics
Website: Visit Soundar's Website
Xiao Liu
- Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering
- ICDS Co-Hire
Department: Biomedical Engineering
Office: 315 Hallowell Building, University Park
Email: xxl213@engr.psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-4419
Research Focuses: Multi-modal neuroimaging techniques, computational neuroscience, brain activity and consciousness, network dynamics of the brain, neural basis of resting-state fMRI connectivity
Liying Luo
- Assistant Professor of Sociology and Demography
- ICDS Associate
Office: 714 Oswald Tower
Email: liyingluo@psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-0147
Research Focuses: The interaction of aging, social change, and population processes with social institutions, such as schools and family, to produce inequality and disparities Identifying trajectories and explaining trends in health, cognitive, and mortality outcomes.
Website: Visit Liying's Website
Hong Ma
- Professor of Biology
- Huck Distinguished Research Professor of Plant Molecular Biology
- Associate Dean for Research and Innovation
- ICDS Associate
Department: Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology
Office: 517 Thomas Building
Email: hxm16@psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-5343
Research Focuses: Molecular Genetics of Plant Reproductive Development; Molecular Evolution and Phylogenetics of Angiosperms and Other Eukaryote
Website: Visit Hong's Website
Kamesh Madduri
- Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Engineering
- ICDS Associate
Department: School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Office: W312 Westgate Building, University Park
Email: madduri@cse.psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-0883
Research Focuses: Combinatorial scientific computing; scalable scientific data analysis and management, parallel graph algorithms, applications to computational biology, social network analysis
Website: Visit Kamesh's Website
Stewart Mallory
- Assistant Professor of Chemistry
- ICDS Associate
Department: Chemistry
Email: sam7808@psu.edu
Research Focuses: Computational theoretical materials
Website: Visit Stewart's Website
Karen Murphy
- Professor of Education (Educational Psychology)
- Harry and Marion Eberly Faculty Fellow
- ICDS Associate
Department: Educational Psychology
Office: 102 Cedar Building, University Park
Email: pkm15@psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-2278
Research Focuses: Processes underlying students' abilities to read and understand text and content, to critically examine and evaluate the information presented, and to make reasoned judgments as a result of reading
Website: Visit Karen's Website
William Noid
- Professor of Chemistry
- ICDS Associate
Department: Chemistry
Office: 528 Chemistry Building, University Park
Email: wnoid@chem.psu.edu
Phone: 814-867-2387
Research Focuses: Theoretical/computational chemistry, theoretical/computational biophysics/biochemistry, theoretical molecular biology, unfolded and intrinsically disordered proteins, bioinformatics, knowledge-based coarse-grained modeling, many-body structural correlations, inverse problems in statistical mechanics, quantum/classical correspondence in vibrational spectroscopy, ultrafast spectroscopy, classical nonlinear response theory
Website: Visit William's Website
Bing Pan
- Professor of Commercial and Recreational Tourism
- ICDS Associate
Department: Recreation, Park, and Tourism Management
Office: 704M Ford Building, University Park
Email: bingpan@psu.edu
Phone: 814-867-2900
Research Focuses: The use of big data, in the forms of GPS locations, social media content, search engine queries, to understand, monitor, and forecast behavior of tourists to destinations or visitors to parks
Website: Visit Bing's Website
Christian Peco Regales
- Assistant Professor of Engineering Science and Mechanics
- ICDS Associate
Email: cxp598@psu.edu
Phone: 814-867-0253
Research Focuses: Interdisciplinary research that explores problems in biomechanics and materials science with the long-term objective placed on the active control of soft materials, such as lipid bilayers, to create bioinspired soft nanomachinery.
Website: Visit Christian's Website
Wes Reinhart
- Assistant Professor of Materials Science and Engineering
- ICDS Co-Hire
Department: Materials Science and Engineering
Office: 303 Steidle Building
Email: reinhart@psu.edu
Research Focuses: Research interest includes engineered materials, statistical mechanics, and light-matter interactions, software prototyping and algorithm design for many computing architectures.
Website: Visit Wes's Website
Susan Sinnott
- Professor of Materials Science and Engineering
- ICDS Associate
Department: Materials Science and Engineering
Office: 221A Steidle Building, University Park
Email: sinnott@matse.psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-3117
Research Focuses: Computational materials design; chemical modification of polymer and composite surfaces; the influence of grain boundaries, point defects, and heterogeneous interfaces on materials properties
Website: Visit Susan's Website
Zachary Szpiech
- Assistant Professor of Biology
- ICDS Associate
Department: Biology
Research Focuses: Understanding how populations evolve, adapt, and survive by examining how evolutionary processes relate to population health and the genetic basis of complex traits.
Website: Visit Zachary's Website
Gang Tan
- Professor of Computer Science and Engineering
- ICDS Co-Hire
Department: School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Office: W358 Westgate Building, University Park
Email: gxt29@psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-7364
Research Focuses: Software security; programming languages; computer security; software engineering; formal methods; program verification
Website: Visit Gang's Website
Ashley Villar
- Assistant Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics
- ICDS Co-Hire
Department: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Email: vav5084@psu.edu
Research Focuses: The deaths of stars through collisions and explosions and how these events inform our understanding of the late-stages of stellar evolution
Website: Visit Ashley's Website
Christelle Wauthier
- Associate Professor of Geosciences
- ICDS Co-Hire
Department: Geosciences
Office: 311 Deike Building, University Park
Email: cuw25@psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-6649
Research Focuses: Magma and volcanic processes; natural hazards; magma-tectonic interactions; remote-sensing and InSAR
Website: Visit Christelle's Website
John Yen
- University Professor of Information Sciences & Technology
- Director, Strategic Research Initiatives, College of Information Sciences & Technology
- Director, Laboratory for Intelligent Agents
- ICDS Associate
Department: Information Sciences and Technology
Office: E359 Westgate Building, University Park
Email: jyen@ist.psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-6179
Research Focuses: Intelligent agents; artificial intelligence; soft computing; bioinformatics
Website: Visit John's Website