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Bio of Dr. (Lt Col ret) Michael L. Thomas

 

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   e-mail addresses:

   michael.thomas.180@us.af.mil

   mthomas304@yahoo.com 

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Dr. (Lt Col ret) Michael L. Thomas is currently assigned to Maxwell AFB, AL as a Professor of Cyberwarfare Studies. Previously he was with Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Charleston as a C4ISR Systems Engineer in the Communications and Networks Division stationed in the Stuttgart Germany office. In this capacity he is responsible for the design, implementation and fielding of major Systems Engineering projects initiated by the Navy, sister services and other US government customers. His prior assignment with SPAWAR was in the Heidelberg Office supporting HQUSAREUR in Geospatial Engineering. He has been on detached special duty since being activated in March 2007, and has served a short tour at the Pentagon, served as a Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) LNO to the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), along with an assignment to the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) as an instructor teaching Cyberwar courses.

Immediately prior to his current assignment, he was the Chief J-3 Technical Projects, assigned to the Georgia Institute of Technology as a Special Projects Officer (Project Manager/Applications Architect).  He managed the development of multiple projects both hardware and software related  and specialized in systems integration of GIS, RDBMS and embedded real time systems to increase field personnel-aircrew coordination using Rapid Application Development (RAD) development techniques.  Notably among the projects included management and requirements analysis of the Digital Mapping Server (DMS) GIS Portal in coordination with the Naval Research Lab, and the day to day management of the Digital Mapping Center (DMC) which provided GIS support for and between various Federal, DoD, State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies.  The technology was cited in several papers and actually is patented by the US Navy (http://dmap.nrlssc.navy.mil/dmap/).  In this assignment, Dr. Thomas also chaired the NGB Technology Consortium that included partners from Industry, Government and Academia.  

Born in Pensacola, Florida, in June, 1956, Lt Col Thomas earned a Bachelor of Science degree in with specialties in Mathematics and Electrical Engineering from the University of the State of New York, a Master of Arts degree in Mathematics (Applied Statistics) from the University of West Florida, a Masters of Science in Military Arts and Sciences from the Air Command and Staff College (ACSC), a Masters in Strategic Studies from the Air War College and lastly  finished a Doctorate in Information Systems from the University of Sarasota while stationed at Georgia Tech.  His military education includes completion of the Army Signal Officers Basic Course at Ft. Gordon, Ga, the Basic Communications Officers Course at Keesler AFB, MS, Air Command and Staff College, and Air War College (AWC) at Maxwell AFB where he won the 2008 8th AF Award in Cyberspace Research.  

Lt Col Thomas’ awards and decorations include the NORAD System Support Facility (NSSF) Company Grade Officer of the Year (CGO) of the Year,  First Air Force CGO of the Year, Air National Guard (ANG) Communications and Computer Professionalism Award, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Force Commendation Medal, Air Reserve Meritorious Service Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, Air Force (AF) Outstanding Unit Award (with oak leaf cluster), AF Organizational Excellence Award (with Valor device), the Global War on Terrorism Medal, and the National Defense Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster. He has also been awarded the Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon and while supervising the NGB CDX Technology Team, was recognized for outstanding combat support to Task Force Legion, Combined Joint Special Task Force, Arabian Peninsula, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Personal Note - My personal goals include further research into GIS data modelling and simulation which should be greatly enhanced by the research opportunities that come from the resources here at Penn State.  Resolution of conflation issues and incorporation of GIS referenced Hyperspectral and Multispectral Imagery is an interest I wish to pursue as well.  My course on CyberGeomatic Intelligence began in the summer of 2013. I have developed and am teaching "CyberGeography in War and Peace" which deals with the aspects of social network data in GeoInt, governance of the internet internationally and data analysis techniques of the data in geospatial terms.

PS - Please call me "Mike."

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Page created: Friday, 05-Jan-2007 09:01:31 EST

Last modified 21-Jul-2013