Manimaran Govindarasu, professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, received the ISU Award for Mid-Career Achievement in Research for his work in the area of cyber security.
Govindarasu has been a professor at Iowa State since 1999, and is widely regarded as a pioneer and leader in the emerging interdisciplinary research area of cyber security. Within this field, he has made both fundamental and applied contributions, helped government agencies in formulating policy, and assisted the industry in meeting evolving needs and compliance requirements.
The ISU Award for Mid-Career Achievement in Research is given annually by the Office of the Senior Vice President and Provost to recognize faculty members who have demonstrated outstanding accomplishments in research and/or creative activity at the mid-career stage. This honor is one of many research and teaching based awards used to recognize excellence among Iowa State faculty.
“The most rewarding aspect of my career so far has been striving to achieve excellence in research, teaching, and outreach at a major land-grant university such as Iowa State,” said Govindarasu. “But most importantly I’ve enjoyed educating students and seeing them succeed in their careers.”
Recipients of the ISU Mid-Career Achievement Award must be nominated by a fellow faculty member who submits an application detailing the nominee’s research accomplishments and contributions to education. The application also includes two letters of reference by other distinguished faculty from universities across the United States.
According to Chen-Ching Liu, Director of the Energy Systems Innovation Center at Washington State University, Professor Govindarasu has brought national attention to the subject of cyber security for the electric power grids, proving himself as leading researcher in this area.
“In recognition of his leadership, Govindarasu was invited to chair the IEEE Power and Energy task force on the subject and has led a number of highly visible sessions and publications by the IEEE PES.” Said Liu. “He also led to attract major NSF and industry grants and educated a number of outstanding Ph.D. graduates in this area.”
A long list of professional experience and achievement isn’t the only thing qualifying Govindarasu for this award. Over the years, he has had an amazing impact on students as a mentor, professor, and research advisor. Whether supervising Ph.D. dissertations or overseeing undergraduate senior design projects, his contribution to learning has launched careers for students at Google, Teradata, and John Deere.