New Faces at the Transportation Security Lab

A number of new employees joined the ranks of the Transportation Security Laboratory in 2005. They include the following:

Andrew A. Abraham (Andy) was born in Misawa AFB, Japan, and raised in Puerto Rico. In 1985, Andy graduated from the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ, with a Bachelors of Engineering in Electrical Engineering. Upon graduation he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in US Air Force through the AFROTC program. His first assignment was to Wright Patterson AFB, OH, where he worked as an Air Force Project Acquisition Officer involved in the development of electronic combat simulators and simulations. In 1989, he was selected to attend the Air Force Institute of Technology School of Systems and Logistics, where he graduated, in 1991, with a Masters of Science in Systems Management. He then was assigned to Hanscom AFB, MA, where he became the Test Director for the Caribbean Basin Radar Network (CBRN) Program until he separated from the Air Force in 1992. Andy supported the CBRN Program until 1995 as a contractor working for Horizons Technology, Inc. In 1995, he moved to NJ to support the DOD with the Joint DOD/FAA acquisition of Terminal Air Traffic Control Systems. In 1997, he supported Aviation Security program for a short period while working with Hi Tech Systems Inc. In 1998, Andy became an FAA employee supporting testing of En-route and Terminal ATC systems until 2005. Andy came to TSL-200 to work with Passenger Checkpoint systems.

Andy continued his military career by joining the 514 th Communications Squadron, McGuire Air Force Base in 1995 as an Air Force Reserves Communications Officer. In 2002, Andy was activated for 120 days and deployed to the Middle East where he provided communications services to over 1,500 personnel at an undisclosed location in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. In 2003, he transferred to the New Jersey Air National, and was assigned to the 177 th Fighter Wing, AC as a Civil Engineering Officer. That year he became the Commander of the 177 th Civil Engineering Squadron, and was also activated for a period of 11 months. He was promoted to Lt. Colonel in 2005. Andy lives in Belleplain, NJ, with his wife, Helene.

Dr. Chih-Tsai Chen (Charles) received his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in Ocean Engineering and Naval Architecture from Nation Taiwan University in 1980 and 1982, respectively. He was granted a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Purdue University in 1990. In addition he received a Master of Science degree in Information Systems from New Jersey Institute of Technology in 2002.

Dr. Chen has over twenty years of extensive probabilistic and deterministic modeling, simulation, and quantitative data analysis experience in aviation and maritime structural systems. He also acquired over twelve years of experience in project/contract planning and management and has involved in all phases of project life cycle.

Between January 1990 and May 2005, Dr. Chen worked as an employee of Galaxy Scientific Corporation. While working for Galaxy he provided support to the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Aviation Security Division in both aircraft hardening and aviation security systems test and evaluation and supported the FAA Technical Center’s Airport and Aircraft Safety Research and Development Division in Aging Aircraft Research Program and other research and development programs. He also has strong experience in software development and database application development with skills in Visual C++, SQL, Visual Basic, Java, and FORTRAN.

In May 2005, Dr. Chen joined the Protection Systems Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation Branch of Transportation Security Laboratory as a General Engineer supporting the Explosives Effects and Survivability Program and Conveyance Protection Systems Program.

Tom Coleman was born and raised on Long Island, New York. He graduated from The State University of New York at Stony Brook, in 1979, with a Batchelor’s degree in Cognitive Psychology. He then received a Master’s Degree in Systems Management/ Operations Research, in 1982, from the University of Southern California. Tom served nine years on active duty with the US Air Force, and then in executive research management positions with EG&G and Battelle. Joining the TSL in 2003, he is employed supporting Infrastructure and Conveyance projects, specializing in the architectural aspects of transportation security. He recently retired from the Air Force Reserve as a Lieutenant Colonel. Tom has four grown daughters, and his avocations include forestry and historic restoration.

Mr. Steven Curran is an Electronics Engineer with over 21 years of diverse engineering experience that includes research, system development, acquisitions, and operational field support. His expertise was sought to support the Systems Engineering related portions of the System Qualification Test activities for the Phoenix program, which includes R&D for the next generation of Explosives Detection Systems for Checked Baggage. Curran came from the Verification Division, ACB-640, and started work under an Interagency Service Level Agreement for Mr. Andy Lee, Checked Baggage Product Lead, TSL-200.

Prior to arriving at the Transportation Security Laboratory, Curran worked for 13 years in the Test & Evaluation field, of which 11 years were as the Test Director for multiple FAA voice switching and telecommunications programs. As the Test Director for the associated Integrated Product Teams, he provided direction and leadership for all technical and programmatic aspects of the Developmental and Operational T&E efforts. In addition, he has 7 years of experience as a Technical Program Manager, which included first-level supervisory responsibilities for 9 federal employees and technical direction for 24 contractor employees.

Curran’s initial experiences with the FAA include microprocessor based computer board design and second-level engineering support for airport radars. He received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Puerto Rico – Mayagüez Campus and arrived at the FAA Technical Center in January 1984. Curran is a member of the IEEE Computer Society - Southern New Jersey Chapter.

Dr. Elsetinow received her Bachelors of Science degree from Chestnut Hill College in 1997 with a major in Chemistry and a minor in Mathematics. She was supported by a Rohm and Haas – Owens Scholarship for Chemistry, and as part of the Departmental Honors Program, worked for the US Dept of Agriculture as a Physical Science Associate during her third and fourth years.

Dr. Elsetinow went on to receive her Masters and Doctorate Degrees from Temple University in 2000 and 2002, respectively. At Temple, she studied the surface chemistry of metal sulfide oxidation, wrote and published ten papers, and secured a US and international patent for suppression of sulfide oxidation. Due to such great interest in the patent, Temple is currently in the process of starting a company to distribute the license.

After receiving her Doctorate Degree in Physical Chemistry, she went on to work for a short while at Environmental Resources Management as a Supervisor and Research Chemist for their Remediation Technology Center - Analytical Laboratory. She then went to work for the Philadelphia Water Department as a Chemist, where she assisted them in writing formal SOP’s towards obtaining NELAC Certification, and supported the Engineers at PWD’s 7 treatment plants as an investigative chemical consultant.Between July 2004 and 2005, Dr. Elsetinow worked for Galaxy Scientific Corporation as a Support Contractor for the Transportation Security Laboratory. She was assigned as a Trace Chemist to the Checkpoint Passenger Screening R&D Program.

In July 2005, Dr. Elsetinow joined the Inspection Systems Branch of the DHS, TSA Transportation Security Laboratory as a Research Chemist, where she continues to support the Trace Checkpoint Detection Program.

Dr. Eric J Houser (Eric) has a B.A. in Chemistry from Rockford College and a Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry from the University of Illinois. He was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Virginia, Department of Chemistry with Professor Russell N. Grimes from 1995 to 1997. In 1997, he moved to the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, DC where he worked in the areas of preceramic and functional polymer materials, sensor system design and carbon nanotube devices for the detection of chemical weapons and explosives. Currently he works in the Trace Group in Checked Baggage with Richard Lareau and Polly Gongwer.

Dr. Christopher Smith received his Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from Rutgers University in 1990. Since then, Dr. Smith has managed Aircraft R&D in various capacities. His early career focused on fatigue and fracture analysis, after which he moved on to become manager of the FAA’s Inspection Systems Research Project.