Lanier Watkins

Lanier Watkins is the chair of the Johns Hopkins Engineering for Professionals Master's in Computer Science and Cybersecurity programs. He develops innovative algorithms and frameworks to address the evolving needs of defending critical infrastructure networks and systems. Watkins also holds a secondary appointment as an associate research professor with the JHU Information Security Institute, where he serves as the institute's assistant technical director. Prior to joining Johns Hopkins, he worked in industry for over ten years, initially at the Ford Motor Company and later at AT&T. His research focuses on key areas such as network security, Internet of Things (IoT) security, vulnerability monitoring, malware analysis, and data analytics. Watkins is a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and has published numerous papers and holds several patents related to cybersecurity and AI. He received his PhD in Computer Science from Georgia State University and holds multiple master's degrees from Clark Atlanta University and Johns Hopkins University.