George Mason joins elite defense research network

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The Systems Engineering Research Center (SERC) and the Acquisition Innovation Research Center (AIRC) recently added George Mason University as a member. Both managed by Stevens Institute of Technology, SERC and AIRC leverage the research and expertise of more than 25 universities nationwide.

The SERC and AIRC are two of more than a dozen University Affiliated Research Centers (UARCs), which are sponsored by the Department of Defense (DoD). Art Pyster, associate dean for research for the College of Engineering and Computing (CEC), has a long history with SERC. He served as the proposal manager at Stevens when that institution won the initial designation in 2008 and subsequently served as Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer until 2016 when he joined George Mason. "We now have a full seat at the table, participating in meetings with DoD sponsors and helping to set the SERC/AIRC agenda."

According to Mike Bunting, assistant dean for research in CEC, "Each UARC, composed of one or more universities, has a long-term strategic relationship with the DoD in a specific research area." Bunting added the structure facilitates collaboration, and the UARC contract mechanism allows for an "easy button" to perform research for the DoD.

Most UARCs are just a single university. The SERC formed in 2008, and AIRC, formed in 2020, are different because they are university consortia. Now that George Mason is a full member, it can receive unlimited tasking from the government and collaborate with other SERC/AIRC members on their research and other activities.

"It's about having a set of resources that the government can rely upon from a trusted agent," Bunting added. "As an R1 university, George Mason has hundreds of faculty, staff, and students who conduct research in areas of interest to the DoD. George Mason teams can propose and lead new research tasks and be part of joint projects with other members of the SERC/AIRC consortia."

Stevens recently renewed the SERC/AIRC contract for five years, at which point they were able to add new members, including George Mason. John Shortle, chair of the Systems Engineering and Operations Research Department (SEOR), and Jerry McGinn, executive director of the Greg and Camille Baroni Center in the Costello College of Business, were instrumental in adding George Mason.