MOSCOW, Idaho – Recent University of Idaho College of Engineering graduate Matthew Benke has been selected as the National Institute for Advanced Transportation Technology’s (NIATT) Student of the Year. He was chosen for his excellence in research, academic performance, professionalism and leadership.

“It is an honor that I am proud to accept on behalf of all the hard-working people that contributed to the tremendous success of our survivability research projects,” said Benke.

Benke earned bachelor’s degrees in mathematics and computer science and an honors program certificate (2003) and a master's degree in computer science (2005) from the University of Idaho, and continued his research with NIATT into 2006.

Benke’s two years of graduate education were funded in part by the National Science Foundation Scholarship for Service, a program that supports students in computer security. Upon graduation, scholarship recipients go to work for the federal government for the number of years commensurate with the length of their scholarship funding.

“Matt is a shining example of how well the program works,” said Paul Oman, University of Idaho professor of computer science and Benke’s major professor. “All the time he was working on his master’s program we had him neck deep in research on secure Intelligent Transportation Systems. What he did was come up with a mechanism for measuring the security of ITS and the survivability of an ITS failure.”

ITS is a computerized system of traffic signals and other automated traffic guidance. Benke’s research allows planners to secure the system from hackers who might, for example, change traffic controls on busy one-way lanes into and out of large cities, or lift bridges when traffic is on them.

Benke’s research also was sponsored by the NIATT University Transportation Centers program, which advances technology for sustainable transportation. Benke gathered information on power, communications and control devices incorporated in the City of Moscow’s ITS; described the layouts of these interconnected networks; and performed qualitative and quantitative analyses of this information, identifying components critical to the system’s successful performance. His master's thesis also describes how similar analyses can be performed for other transportation systems.

The quality of his research set him apart from other competitors. “We sent a couple of his papers to the Transportation Research Board, and they accepted one for a conference and one for journal,” said Oman. “Matt did excellent work, some of the best to come out of a master’s student, so we put him up for an award.”

Benke will be honored at the annual Council of University Transportation Centers banquet Jan. 21 in Washington, D.C. He received a cash award and a free trip to the Transportation Research Board Meeting in D.C.

While with NIATT, Benke co-authored six refereed publications and was briefly involved in its Future Truck program, where he helped to develop an on-board graphical telemetry interface. At the University of Idaho, he also pursued research at the Center for Secure and Dependable Systems, provided community service through Alphi Phi Omega, pursued cultural studies through the university's Honors Program and professional development through the Business Professionals of America. “It is this rich diversity of both activities and colleagues that stands out as the most valuable aspect of my university experience,” he said.

At the University of Idaho’s Center for Secure and Dependable Systems, Benke worked on the formal modeling of secure communications networks based on the Multiple Independent Levels of Security architecture, a layered approach to a trusted software design.

He received the University of Idaho Alumni Award for Excellence in 2003 and was named one of two outstanding seniors in mathematics at the university.

Benke now serves with the Department of Defense, in Maryland, conducting vulnerability analyses for embedded operating systems.

About the University of Idaho

Founded in 1889, the University of Idaho is the state’s flagship higher-education institution and its principal graduate education and research university, bringing insight and innovation to the state, the nation and the world. University researchers attract more than $100 million in research grants and contracts each year; the University of Idaho is the only institution in the state to earn the prestigious Carnegie Foundation ranking for high research activity. The university’s student population includes first-generation college students and ethnically diverse scholars. Its high academic performers include 42 National Merit Scholars and a 2006-07 freshmen class with an average high school grade point average of 3.42. Offering more than 150 degree options in 10 colleges, the university combines the strengths of a large university with the intimacy of small learning communities.