David M. Nicol

David M. Nicol is the Herman M. Dieckamp Endowed Chair and Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He directs the Information Trust Institute, Advanced Digital Sciences Center (Singapore), and Critical Infrastructure Resilience Institute. As a leader in cyber-security and large-scale system simulation, he oversees national centers funded by DHS, DOE, and NSA. Nicol’s research focuses on network security, infrastructure resilience, and parallel simulation, with contributions to startups like Network Perception and textbooks like Discrete-Event Systems Simulation.

• Education: B.A. Mathematics (Carleton College, 1979), M.S./Ph.D. Computer Science (University of Virginia, 1983/1985)
• Affiliations: Director of CIRI, CREDC, and ADSC; Co-PI of NSA Science of Security Lablet

His research interests include cyber-risk assessment, mathematical modeling, and security policy analysis. Nicol has advised numerous PhD students and received accolades for teaching excellence at UIUC, Dartmouth, and William & Mary. Notable awards include ACM and IEEE Fellowships, and the Titan of Simulation distinction.

He teaches courses on computer systems analysis and information assurance, and has led major conferences like Winter Simulation Conference (2006 General Chair). His work bridges academia and industry through grants totaling millions in cyber-security innovation.