2023–24 Presidential Award for Faculty Excellence: Early Career Achievement Award

Fathi Amsaad, assistant professor of computer science

Fathi Amsaad, Ph.D., assistant professor of computer science at Wright State University, received the 2024 Presidential Award for Faculty Excellence: Early Career Achievement for his outstanding research funding management, strong research presence and dedication to teaching.

Darryl Ahner, Ph.D., dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science, praised Amsaad for his exceptional contributions to teaching, scholarship and service, highlighting his rapid rise as an invaluable asset to the College of Engineering and Computer Science and Wright State University.

“In his short years at Wright State, he has excelled in everything asked of him and deserves to be recognized for his excellence in teaching, scholarship and service during his formative years of his initial appointment,” Ahner said. “He has quickly proven himself to be an invaluable asset to the College of Engineering and Computer Science and Wright State.”

Amsaad is accessible to his students and takes great pride in his in-class and out-of-class student activities.

“He is readily available to assist our students and provides clear communication and instructions to aid and advance his students at all points in their education journey here,” Ahner said.

Since joining Wright State in 2022, Amsaad has secured significant funding from various sources, including the National Science Foundation, the National Security Agency, the Air Force Research Laboratory and the Department of Defense. He currently oversees or contributes to 10 active grants, contracts or subcontracts.

He leads Wright State’s Assured Digital Microelectronics Education and Training Ecosystem program, a $14.5 million Air Force contract, and the National Pathway to Success Cybersecurity project, which is aimed at bridging four-year institutions and community colleges.

He has also received National Science Foundation funding for the Training Research for Undergraduate Students in Secure and Trusted Systems in collaboration with the Air Force Institute of Technology and the University of Kansas Center for Research. Another NSF project focuses on detecting and localizing hardware attacks. He also leads an Intel-sponsored project to train women and underrepresented minorities from high schools, historically Black colleges and universities, community colleges and economically disadvantaged and low-research undergraduate institutions in Ohio and around the United States.

“These projects and initiatives will engage undergraduates in cybersecurity educational activities and research projects and help prepare the workforce in microelectronics, trusted microelectronics and cybersecurity,” Amsaad said. “This will help expose Wright State to undergraduate and community college students as well as research at Wright State to students coming from Ohio and U.S. institutions to see what we have at Wright State and bring interest to join Wright State and improve the recruitment and enrollment at Wright State in the emerging fields of microelectronics, trusted microelectronics and cybersecurity and help the enrollment in Wright State.”

In addition to his research achievements, Amsaad is a highly regarded teacher and currently advises seven Ph.D. students and 17 master’s degree students, demonstrating his accessibility and commitment to student success.