LSU Attracts Two of the Nation’s Top Cybersecurity Professors

BATON ROUGE – Cybersecurity jobs are among the fastest growing careers nationwide. To meet this critical demand across every industry, having the top cybersecurity experts to train the next generation of information security analysts and cyber professionals is a priority at LSU.

In recognition and support of this priority, the state granted $5 million this past legislative session for LSU’s cybersecurity and defense programs in Baton Rouge and Shreveport. LSU Alexandria also has announced its Technovation Center for cyber and defense with support from Louisiana Economic Development. The state’s investment has made the expansion of LSU’s cybersecurity research resources and faculty possible. As a result of this prioritization, two of the nation’s top cybersecurity experts have joined LSU’s faculty.

“Our Pentagon and Scholarship First strategy prioritizes attracting accomplished scholars to Louisiana, and we welcome two exceptional colleagues to LSU’s faculty ranks. This cluster hire enhances our standing in cybersecurity and military studies, while supporting an academic area that protects and secures Louisiana’s economic assets, advances discovery and improves workforce development in the state.” 

- William F. Tate IV, LSU President

Ibrahim “Abe” Baggili has joined LSU’s faculty as an LSU Department of Computer Science & Cybersecurity Professor in the LSU College of Engineering and Center for Computation & Technology. He was the former director of the Connecticut Institute of Technology and the Elder Family Endowed Chair at the University of New Haven, where he secured over $7 million in research funding, helped more than double enrollment in computing programs and led the university to become one of only 21 in the nation to be designated by the National Security Agency as a Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Operations, or CAE-CO. 

Baggili leads an extensive cybersecurity and forensics research and outreach agenda and has received multiple national and international awards. He received all of his higher education degrees, including his Ph.D. in technology, from Purdue University. He is a first-generation college graduate and is originally from Jordan and is fluent in Arabic.

“President Tate’s bold vision for defense and cybersecurity is critical to compete in this fast-paced and evolving field. LSU’s cyber vision synchronizes well with my own aspirations. I joined because I could see limitless potential at LSU. I have no doubts in my mind that with the right leadership support and accomplished faculty and students, we are on our way towards becoming the preeminent cybersecurity program both nationally and internationally. I am here to be part of this vision and to make it a reality,” Baggili said.

Aisha Ali-Gombe has joined LSU’s faculty as an associate professor in the LSU Department of Computer Science & Engineering and the Center for Computation & Technology. She was an assistant professor at Towson University in Maryland. She received her Ph.D. in computer science with a concentration in information assurance from the University of New Orleans. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in computer science from the University of Abuja in Nigeria and her master’s degree in business administration specializing in entrepreneurship and venture creation from Bayero University Kano in Nigeria. She is one of the few Black female cybersecurity researchers with a Ph.D. at a Carnegie-designated research-intensive university. 

“I’ve always had a close relationship with LSU – as a postdoc and a visiting research scientist. But with President Tate’s unveiling of the APECS initiative in March, I knew it’s time. It’s time to give back to the community that made me. Having been a critical backbone of another top CAE-CO school and my wealth of experience in system security pedagogy and research, I am confident we can actualize the president’s vision of making Louisiana a national leader in cyber workforce development, industry collaboration and scholarship,” Ali-Gombe said.

For more information on LSU’s defense/cybersecurity priority, please visit https://lsu.edu/president/priorities/defense.php.