Leadership and Faculty
Dr. Serena "Sully" Sullivan – Point of Contact (PoC)
Director, Center for Cybersecurity
Primary CAE POC
MS Cybersecurity Academic Program Director
Email: ssullivan3@nu.edu
Dr. Serena Sullivan brings more than 25 years of leadership experience across military service, cybersecurity operations, higher education, and private industry. A U.S. Air Force veteran, she has built cybersecurity degree programs, led Center of Academic Excellence initiatives, and taught thousands of students. She holds a Doctor of Computer Science in Cybersecurity and Information Assurance and the CISSP certification. Her research focuses on digital privacy and the risks of AI-enabled educational technologies. She looks forward to working with faculty and students to strengthen National University's cybersecurity programs.
Dr. James Jaurez
Cybersecurity and Technology Department Chair
Email: jjaurez@nu.edu
Phone: (858) 309-3458
Dr. Jaurez is a dedicated Academic Program Director and Associate Professor in Information Technology Management at National University where he has served since 2004. Dr. Jaurez is also a FIRST Robotics Head Coach since 2014 and leads outreach in robotics to the community through partnerships with Makerplace, Steam MakerFest, UCSD Create, Learning for Life, and many others over his over 19 years as an educator. Dr. Jaurez holds degrees in Computing Technology (PhD), Education (Masters), Cybersecurity (MS), Business Administration and Finance (MBA), Marketing (BS), and Physics (Minor). Dr. Jaurez has professional experience in scientific instruments and software development. He also has led and been awarded many grants from Hewlett Packard, NASA, Qualcomm, Pratt and Whitney, WE Electronics, Department of Defense, NU Innovation and NU Continued Innovations in the fields of game methodologies, robotics, fabrication, education, and community outreach. Dr. Jaurez has books, publications, and presentations in education technology, robotics, cybersecurity, project management, productivity, gamification, and simulations. Finally, Dr. Jaurez is a leader at New Break Christian Church, a member of ACM, the PMI, and many other professional organizations.
Mr. Bill Reid
BS Cybersecurity Academic Program Director
Alternate CAE POC
Email: wreid2@nu.edu
Phone: (858) 309-3464
Bill Reid is the Academic Program Director for National University’s BS in Cybersecurity program. Prior to his current position Bill served as the Dean of Education at Coleman University. Before being assigned that role, Bill served 3 years as Program Director for both the Cybersecurity and Software Development Programs at Coleman. In addition to various industry technical certifications, Bill is a Certified Information Security Manager (CISM). He also serves on the board of the Information Security Audits and Controls Association (ISACA) as one of its Educational Outreach Coordinators and is a mentor for SET High School students in Cybersecurity.
Dr. Jones holds an Ed.D degree in College Leadership/Higher Education from California State University-Fullerton. She is retired from Coastline Community College, serving her last 8 years as Dean of Instruction. Prior to her responsibilities as dean, Dr. Jones served as a tenured faculty member for 17 years teaching networking/cybersecurity at Coastline. Dr. Jones has several certifications including Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE), Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP), Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT), Microsoft Certified Technical Specialist (MCTS), Cisco Certified Network Administrator (CCNA), Cisco Certified Academy Instructor (CCAI), CompTIA Security+, and Oracle Academy Instructor-SQL.
Dr. David Hildebrandt
Interim Academic Program Director, PhD Cybersecurity
Email: dhildebrandt@nu.edu
Dr. Hildebrandt is the interim Academic Program Director for the PhD in Cybersecurity. Before this assignment, he served as the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs for the College of Business, Engineering, and Technology. Previously, he served as a faculty coach and the interim Director for the Institutional Review Board. Dr. Hildebrandt has been an active member of NU for over 12 years. Before joining higher education, Dr. Hildebrandt was an entrepreneur of a systems integration company that served Fortune 200 high-technology manufacturing firms. After he sold his firm, he worked for Gartner, IBM, and Sun Microsystems. He has also been an active member in several start-up ventures throughout his career.
Full-Time Faculty
Dr. James Jaurez – MS CYB Co-Program Director / Capstone Coordinator
Dr. David Hildebrandt - Interim PhD CYB Academic Program Director
Dr. Nancy Jones – Course Development / K-12 Outreach
Mr. Bill Reid – BS CYB Academic Program Director
Dr. Serena "Sully" Sullivan – Director Center for Cybersecurity / MS CYB Co-Program Director
Abejo, Simon Gualbert
Aleshi, Ahrash
Aly Mohammed Gomaa, Ataa Allah
Ayersman, Sean
Beatty, Adam
Behar, Nikolas
Brady, James
Brown, Brandon
Brown, Zaccheri
Caldwell, Thomas
Cano, Juan
Chapman, Vincent
Choudjem Siewe, Sorelle
Coglitore, Adam
Craig, Katy
Datta, Arun
Day, Donna
Decker, David
Engleman, Michael
Farhady Ghalaty, Nahid
Gaspar, Jose
Grimes, Thomas
Hanna, Gus
Heinen, Charles
Johannsen, Jocelyn
Kassem, Ahmad
Kinsey, Denise
Klipstein, Michael
Lahman, Caroline
Lahman, Michael
Leber, Dennis
Mackesy, Michael
Mast, Jan
Matthes, Kathy
Mikulski, George
Mohammed Raoof, Mohammed
Moser, Gary
Mozzini, Nelson
Musa, Naeem
Nevarez, Shanna
Olson, Patrick
Ostermiller, Daniel
Perez, Jose
Raines, Todd
Rivard, Eric
Salazar Del Rio, Carlos
Savage, Matthew
Sokoya, Oludare
Sullivan, Nate
Thakar, Mansi
Thurlow, Alfred
Trupp, Travis
Tsay, Peiyin
Tukuafu, Bruce
Velliquette, Randy
Voss, Erika
Welborne II, Johnnie
West, Tobi
Woodruff, Senica
Zeman, Lydia