People
Team
A collaboration between Western Michigan University, the lead institution, and Michigan Technological University, combining expertise in concurrent systems education, visualization, and cyber-physical systems applications.
Steven M. Carr
Lead PI · Western Michigan University
Overall project management, including budget oversight, timeline management, and communication across institutions. Oversees development of the CEDL compiler and interpreter, and supervises the addition of security material to the modules.
Jean Mayo
PI · Michigan Technological University
Oversees the visualization system and supporting libraries, and develops the foundations of concurrent computing modules. Background in distributed systems, co-developer of ConcurrentMentor, and teacher of a required undergraduate concurrent computing course for roughly the last five years.
Ali Ebnenasir
Co-PI · Michigan Technological University
Oversees the fault tolerance modules. Background in software reliability, with a focus on concurrent and distributed systems.
Zachary D. Asher
Co-PI · Western Michigan University
Oversees the automotive and autonomous vehicle modules. Expertise in cyber-physical systems with an emphasis on perception, integration, and safety in self-driving vehicles, including prior NSF-funded research and commercialization in adverse-condition autonomy. Teaches the interdisciplinary CS/ME 5813 Autonomous Vehicles course.
Radu F. Babiceanu
Co-PI · Western Michigan University
Oversees the aviation systems modules. Background in cyber-physical systems, with a focus on aviation systems cybersecurity and safety assurance.
Matthew A. Phillips
PhD student · Western Michigan University
Graduate researcher on the WMU team, contributing to development of the Concurrent Event Description Language and its compiler and interpreter.
Bipin Bhusal Chherti
PhD student · Western Michigan University
Graduate researcher on the WMU team, contributing to development of the Concurrent Event Description Language and its compiler and interpreter.
Michigan Tech graduate researcher
Michigan Technological University
Develops the visualization system and the supporting instrumentation libraries under Dr. Mayo's supervision.
Who develops what
| Component | Lead | Site and coordination |
|---|---|---|
| Foundations of Concurrent Computing | Jean Mayo | Michigan Tech, closely integrated with the visualization system; shared with WMU faculty for classroom testing |
| Fault Tolerance in Distributed Systems | Ali Ebnenasir | Michigan Tech, coordinated with visualization capabilities |
| Automotive Systems Applications | Zachary Asher | WMU, with visualization examples created jointly with Michigan Tech |
| Aviation Systems Applications | Radu Babiceanu | WMU, with visualization examples created jointly with Michigan Tech |
| Wrappers and visualization | Jean Mayo | Michigan Tech, built by the MTU graduate researcher |
| CEDL compiler and interpreter | Steven Carr | WMU, built by Matthew A. Phillips and Bipin Bhusal Chherti |
Every module is reviewed within the project team before classroom deployment. Investigators meet biweekly by video conference, hold monthly curriculum coordination calls, file annual progress reports, and share Git repositories that both institutions own.
Mentoring cyberinfrastructure professionals
Individual development plans
The PI meets weekly with each student. At the first meeting the student receives an Individual Development Plan form and a clear statement of their responsibilities; at the second, student and PI review the completed plan and identify ways to meet the student's goals through the project and through university resources.
The plan guides advising on research, publication, and technical presentation. Students headed for academic careers work with the PI and the department to find supervised teaching experience before graduation. Late in the project year, students receive this proposal and other examples, and may help write follow-up proposals.
Industry mentorship
The computer science, mechanical and aerospace engineering, and electrical engineering departments at WMU maintain active industrial advisory boards of senior engineers and technical leaders from automotive, aerospace, and cybersecurity organizations. Students are paired with board members whose expertise matches their work, meet them at annual board meetings, and present their work for feedback.
WMU's Custer Workplace Series brings industry speakers to campus. The project will host speakers on cyber-physical systems and concurrency: automotive engineers on real-world race conditions in vehicle software, and aviation engineers on fault tolerance and timing-critical avionics. Post-seminar discussions with faculty mentors connect those insights back to the curriculum and tools.