School of Technology and Computing
Hosted by CityU’s Center for Cybersecurity Innovation and School of Technology and Computing (STC), the Doctor of Information Technology (DIT) Forum is open to faculty, professionals, and students from any discipline, university, or professional organization. At the end of this quarter, DIT students can present their research project for their peers and faculty members to listen to. This Forum will provide opportunities for students, researchers, and practitioners to discuss the influence and impact of the applied computing on the future of our planet and our society
Event details
Date: Thursday, Dec 18th, 2025
Time: 4:30PM-6:00PM PT
Contact: lenghiemminhhieu@cityuniversity.edu
Advisors
DR. Brian Maeng
Professor,
School of Technology & Computing
School of Technology & Computing
DR. Sam Chung
Dean,
School of Technology & Computing
School of Technology & Computing
Session Chairs
Harrison Le
Presenters
Kiran Kumar Vejendla
Integrating Federated Learning and Edge Computing for Privacy-Preserving and Real-time Predictive Maintenance in Industrial IoT Systems
Course: RESR 694E
Description: My research proposes a privacy-preserving framework that integrates Federated Learning (FL) and Edge Computing (EC) to support real-time predictive maintenance in industrial environments without requiring raw data to leave local devices. The framework is organized into four coordinated layers, edge, communication, aggregation, and orchestration, to enable decentralized model training, encrypted parameter exchange, and low-latency equipment-health inference.
Younes Sennadj
The ACID Test: Benchmarking Large Multimodal Models on Optical Chemical Structure Recognition via Stratified Complexity
Course: DIT682
Description: The paper introduces the ACID framework to benchmark Large Multimodal Models (LMMs) on Optical Chemical Structure Recognition (OCSR) by stratifying chemical compounds based on their structural complexity. Using the PharMolix/Vis-CheBI20 dataset, the study evaluates model performance across difficulty tiers and employs a hierarchical diagnosis algorithm to classify failure modes like stereochemical errors and hallucinations
Eric McCloy (photo)
Samuel Nimako-Mensah (co-author)
Albert Samigullin (co-author)
Analysis of Cybersecurity Risks and Teenage Digital Behavior Patterns
Cybersecurity Education in the Age of AI and Automation & Ambiguity - 29th Colloquium
Description: As teenagers increasingly engage with digital technology, cybersecurity vulnerabilities present significant risks to their online safety and privacy. Adolescents who lack awareness of secure online practices are particularly vulnerable to malicious actors seeking to exploit them. This paper investigates the relationship between real-world online behavior of teenagers, cybersecurity risks, and device interactions
Jemell Garris
Cybersecurity Culture in Higher Education: Investigating Organizational Barriers and Enablers to Incident Response
Course: TBD
Description: This research explores how organizational culture influences cybersecurity incident management in U.S. higher education institutions. Using the Organizational Culture Model (OCM) and Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), the study examines cultural enablers and barriers that shape policy compliance, communication, and incident response effectiveness. By surveying institutions across the country, this work seeks to identify best practices that foster a proactive security culture, improve incident reporting, and strengthen institutional resilience against cyber threats.
Schedule
Main Room
Main Room
| 4:30 PM – 4:35 PM | Greeting & Announcement _____________________________________________ | Advisor: Brian Maeng / Sam Chung Main Chair: Harrison Le Teams link: Join the meeting here Presentation: 15 Minutes / flexible Q&A: 5 minutes / flexible |
| 4:35 PM – 4:55 PM | Session 1: Kiran Kumar Vejendla Topic: Integrating Federated Learning and Edge Computing for Privacy-Preserving and Real-time Predictive Maintenance in Industrial IoT Systems _____________________________________________ | |
| 4:55 PM – 5:15 PM | Session 2: Younes Sennadj Topic: The ACID Test: Benchmarking Large Multimodal Models on Optical Chemical Structure Recognition via Stratified Complexity ____________________________________________ | |
| 5:15 PM – 5:35 PM | Session 3: Eric McCloy & Albert Samigullin Topic: Analysis of Cybersecurity Risks and Teenage Digital Behavior Patterns _____________________________________________ Session 4: Jemell Garris | |
| 5:35 PM – 5:55 PM | Topic: Cybersecurity Culture in Higher Education: Organizational Barriers and Enablers to Incident Response |