Message from the Chair

Welcome to the Department of Computer Science and Information Systems (CSIS) at Kennesaw State University. We have many exciting things going on in our department that we want to share with you.

Mission: The mission of the Department of Computer Science and Information Systems (CSIS) is to provide high quality degree programs for our students that give them an outstanding education, to develop high quality research products, and to interact with local, national and international constituencies.

Goals: The goals of the CSIS department include both long-term and short-term horizons.

• Build sense of community among students
• Enhance the advising processes for all CSIS students
• Increase student retention in all CSIS majors
• Recruit students and redesign the marketing processes
• Implement processes of continuous improvement
• Strategically enhance our international presence
• Expand the strategy and processes for faculty research
• Improve the effectiveness and assessment of classroom teaching

• Develop a doctoral initiative in computing
• Revise the graduate programs
• Retain ABET accreditation for the BSCS and BSIS programs
• Develop and operationalize the international research center
• Develop a strategy for space for research and teaching labs

Programs: Our department offers ABET accredited degree programs at the Bachelor level in Computer Science and Information Systems. We also offer a Bachelor of Science in information Security and Assurance. At the Graduate level, we offer two programs: the first is a premium-priced program in applied computer science (MSACS) and the second is a program in information systems leadership (MSIS). We are developing a joint degree with the Coles College of Business with the MBA/MSIS degree to begin Spring 2010. We are actively working on a Doctorate in Computing and Information Technology that we are targeting to begin Fall 2010. We also offer certificates in CS Education, e-Business, Security, and Information Technology. Our department also has a focus on Computer Science education and teacher training, working with KSU's Bagwell College of Education to prepare high school Computer Science teachers.

Courses: We believe in continuous improvement of our courses. Innovative career tracks and courses that are offered in the CSIS department include: game programming, cyber defense, green IT, health informatics, and robotics, to name a few. Our introductory information systems course (IS 2101) has won awards for innovation and quality. Our first courses in computer science (CS 2301, CS 2302) have been redesigned to work with students in labs and have been very successful in enhancing the learning environment for our students. We use the newest technology in the delivery of our courses to students. We teach many of our courses (1) online, (2) using a hybrid format, and (3) using traditional delivery formats. Our focus is to provide the best educational value to students in our programs and to increase retention of our students.

Faculty and Staff: In CSIS, we have a bright and energetic faculty and a dedicated, helpful professional staff who are all available to assist our students as they grow and mature. Located on the 3rd floor of the Clendenin Building, we house our administrative offices, faculty offices, graduate student lab, ICIT research center, and advising offices. We have 25 full-time faculty members and 5 dedicated staff working with our students in their career paths. We believe in enabling the student while at Kennesaw State University with what we call the "Bumper-to-Bumper" model where students are given help and assistance from when they first come into the program until they graduate. Our faculty engage graduate and undergraduate students in research projects that result in conference papers and journal articles. The ICIT research center also puts together team projects for industry with students and faculty.

Students: Our students are following career paths that take them into graduate schools, industry employment and international opportunities. Our department has growth in students in the last few years, especially in our undergraduate majors, from 623 to almost 800 majors in the Spring 2009. We have strong relationships with corporate sponsors and an active Advisory Board giving guidance to our curriculum changes, with members from Coca-Cola, Georgia Pacific, Sun Trust, Home Depot, and many other organizations. We actively pursue internships, co-ops and job opportunities for our students. Our research center, International Center for Innovation in Technologies (ICIT) is very active in the Atlanta business community as well as internationally. Each year we have two Job Fairs for our students, bringing the best organizations on the KSU campus to recruit our students. We have active student chapters in the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and Women in Technology (WIT). We have CSIS Student Nights throughout the year to keep students connected.

International Focus: Our department has an international focus in the activities that we pursue and support. We conduct annual international Study Abroad trips to Japan (every June). We are also developing Study Abroad trips to China, England, and Mexico for 2010 and India for 2011. Recently, we traveled to China (2007), Japan (2008), and Brazil (2008). We also collaboratively work in the areas of research in many countries. KSU led the effort to create a Ph.D. program in Information Systems at Addis Ababa University (AAU) in Ethiopia, teaching the first cohort of doctoral students in 2008. Currently we are working on developing international student cohorts in our MSIS program in Japan and China. We are looking at providing faculty exchange between strategically targeted international destinations. Currently, we have international students in all of our degree programs. We are developing student exchange programs to support our cohort groups through ISEP and our International Programs Office.

Please feel free to browse the site and find out more about our department. If you have any questions, please email either myself damoroso@kennesaw.edu or Ms. Katelyn Ewaskiew kewaskie@kennesaw.edu, our departmental advisor. Thank you for your interest in KSU!