Director’s Message, Winter 2025
Dear SENTRY Community,
In recent months, SENTRY has expanded its impact through research, collaboration, and workforce development. From engaging experts at the Society for Risk Analysis Annual Meeting to advancing real-time threat detection in our Soft Target Security Webinar Series, we continue to drive innovation in our important mission. As we prepare for our inaugural Annual Meeting, we remain committed to shaping the future of soft target security through research, partnerships, and education.
SENTRY’s participation in the Society for Risk Analysis Annual Meeting in Austin, TX, from December 8-12, 2024, reflects our commitment to advancing research on mitigating risks to soft targets and crowded places. Spearheaded by Dr. Jun Zhuang and Dr. Samrat Chatterjee, the two sessions under the theme Beyond the Horizon: Strategies for Managing Unseen Risks were the result of collaboration across SENTRY’s research areas. These sessions brought together academia, industry, and government experts, fostering critical discussions on real-time threat detection, advanced sensing technologies, risk assessment, and security design.
On February 19, 2025, SENTRY hosted the latest installment of its Soft Target Security Series, focusing on Real-Time Threat Detection & Mitigation. Led by David Castañón of Boston University, the webinar brought together leading experts to showcase SENTRY research, emphasizing real-time decision support amid an attack. Presentations from this webinar and the inaugural webinar, hosted in November 2024, are now available on our YouTube channel.
SENTRY students participated in the annual DASSH (Designing Actionable Solutions for a Secure Homeland) Student Design Challenge, a three-day event from Friday, February 28, to Sunday, March 2, 2025. The event, co-hosted by SENTRY and the Center for Accelerating Operational Efficiency (CAOE), empowered student teams to tackle real-world homeland security challenges under the theme “Security in an AI World.” Guided by subject matter experts, teams designed and implemented innovative solutions, which they presented to the Department of Homeland Security leadership. The event concluded with final presentations and prize announcements on Sunday afternoon, with cash prizes awarded to the top teams.
Looking ahead, we are excited to host our Annual Meeting in April 2025. The inaugural event will feature ongoing research and education project updates, as well as a review of the center’s achievements and strategic plans.
My thanks to you, our SENTRY family, for your support and collaboration as we continue our research to help secure soft targets and crowded places.
Onwards!
Michael B. Silevitch