IST Program Faculty
Dr. Hal Smith, Associate Professor, IST
[email protected] | 724-334-6036 | Office: 036 ITC
Hal Smith is an Associate Professor of Information Sciences and Technology. He received his B.S., M.A., and Ph.D. degrees in Mathematics from University of Albany, SUNY. Prior to joining Penn State, he worked for Raytheon as a Principal Software Engineer architecting and developing software for large, massively parallel Ground Based Radar systems as well as deeply embedded real-time systems with Raytheon’s Missile Systems division in Tucson, Arizona. The result of his time in industry led him to develop research interests in component-based software architectures, software product lines and model-driven development. While with Raytheon, he received the Excellence in Technology Award as well as Engineering Honors. Hal’s research interests have since grown to incorporate search technologies and network organizations. He maintains an ongoing undergraduate research program where projects often result in student participation at conferences.
Dr. Joseph Turano, Assistant Teaching Professor, IST
[email protected] | 724-334-6724 | Office: 039A ITC
Joe Turano is an Assistant Teaching Professor of Information Sciences and Technology. He received his Ph.D. at Capella University in 2017. Prior to joining Penn State New Kensington, he was a Sr. Security Consultant providing service to the electric sector. In this role, he has been actively involved with the management and rollout of the NERC Reliability Standards both in Operations and Planning as well as Critical Infrastructure Protection standards for his clients. He has led and participated in Mock Audits, compliance gap analysis reviews, Cyber Vulnerability Assessments, Compliance procedure development, program oversight, and Compliance audit preparation. He has also been an adjunct instructor since 2005 where he taught associates, undergraduate, graduate, and Ph.D. levels at a few community colleges and universities. Most recently taught as an adjunct at the PSU Altoona campus.
Joe resides in Northern Cambria, PA with his wife, four children, and a Chocolate Lab puppy. He is a firefighter and EMT for Hope Fire Company, where he also serves as the recording secretary for the department. Joe also serves on the Board of Directors for Veterans Memorial Ambulance Service. He is dedicated to his family and community.