Babak D. Beheshti, Ph.D., is a professor and dean of the College of Engineering and Computing Sciences at New York Institute of Technology.
Beheshti’s experience in higher education spans more than 35 years, where he has served as a full-time faculty member, president of New York Tech’s Academic Senate, associate dean, and dean. As dean, Beheshti has led the College of Engineering and Computing Sciences to the introduction of its first two Ph.D. programs, in computer science and engineering, two new bachelor's degree programs, and one new master's degree program. In addition, he has led the college through its fastest climb in national rankings: in 2021 a climb of 13 places (since 2020) in the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings in Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs (National – no doctorate), and #49 in Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs (National – no doctorate) in the 2022-2023 rankings.
In line with the career-oriented mission of New York Tech, Beheshti has led the College of Engineering and Computing Sciences in building a strong partnership with industry and government organizations, including NASA, Zscaler, IBM Red Hat, Xilinx, Soter Technologies, and Zebra Technologies. In 2022, he also led the College in launching its first, cooperative education (co-op) track for students in two undergraduate programs: computer science and information technology. The experiential education program allows students to alternate a period of academic study in the classroom with full-time co-op employment in positions directly related to their academic and/or career interests.
Beheshti has served as a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Board of Directors (2018-19) and the Board of Directors of Long Island Software and Technology Network (LISTnet). In 2022, he served as a member of the Educational Activities board and the chair of the Continuing Education Committee. He also serves on the board of IgniteLI—Long Island Manufacturing Consortium and is a member of the International Association of Transportation Regulators advisory board.
He is a recipient of IEEE's MGA Leadership Award, IEEE Millennium Medal, the IEEE LI Section Athanasios Papoulis Outstanding Educator Award, and three IEEE Region 1 Awards, including the 2008 IEEE Northeastern Region Technical Innovation Award.
Beheshti received his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, and his master's and bachelor's degrees in Electrical Engineering at Stony Brook University
Publications/Presentations
- B. Beheshti, IEEE Impact Creator, IEEE Transmitter, August 10, 2021.
- H. Al Shebli and B. Beheshti, “A Study on Penetration Testing Process and Tools,” Proceedings of 2018 IEEE Long Island Systems, Applications and Technology Conference (LISAT2018), May 4, 2018, Farmingdale, New York.
- S. Surendran, A. Nassef, and B. Beheshti, “A Survey of Cryptographic Algorithms for IoT Devices,” Proceedings of 2018 IEEE Long Island Systems, Applications and Technology Conference (LISAT2018), May 4, 2018, Farmingdale, New York.
- B. Beheshti, cited in “The History of Wireless Everything”, Gizmodo, https://gizmodo.com/the-history-of-wireless-everything-1795227728, December 2017.
- Z. Khan, I. Ahmed, Saleel Ap, B. Beheshti, and I. Ahmad, “Security in the Internet of Things (IoT),” Fourth HCT Information Technology Trends Conference (ITT 2017), HCT - Al Ain Women's College, Al Ain, UAE, October 25-25, 2017.
- Saleel A.P., M. Nazeer, and B. Beheshti, “Linux Kernel OS Local Root Exploit,” Proceedings of 2017 IEEE Long Island Systems, Applications and Technology Conference (LISAT2017), May 5 2017, Farmingdale, New York.
- “Encryption for the Internet of Things (IoT),” (In)Secure Magazine, Issue 51, 20 September 2016.
- “Smart Devices Undone by Dumb Security,” The Wall Street Journal, June 1, 2016.
- B. Beheshti, “A Framework for Wireless Sensor Network Security,” Proceedings of 2016 IEEE Long Island Systems, Applications and Technology Conference (LISAT2016), April 29, 2016, Farmingdale, New York.
- Ziqian Dong, Fang Li, Babak Beheshti, Alan Mickelson, Marta Panero, and Nada Anid, “Autonomous Real-Time Water Quality Sensing As An Alternative To Conventional Monitoring To Improve The Detection Of Food, Energy And Water Indicators And Stressors,” Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, 1-8, 2016, DOI 10.1007/s13412-016-0383-8.
- B. Beheshti, “Fixed Point Performance of Interpolation/Extrapolation Algorithms for Resource Constrained Wireless Sensors,” Proceedings of 2015 IEEE Long Island Systems, Applications and Technology Conference (LISAT2015), May 3, 2015, Farmingdale, New York.
- B. Beheshti, “Use of Adaptive Estimation as a Predictor to Evaluate Sensor Reading Anomalies in Wireless Sensor Networks,” Proceedings of 2014 IEEE Long Island Systems, Applications and Technology Conference (LISAT2014), May 2, 2014, Farmingdale, New York.
- B. Beheshti and H. Michel, “Performance of a Reference Implementation of a Novel Technical Reference Model for Wireless Sensor Networks,” International Journal of Modern Engineering, Fall 2013.
- B. Beheshti, “A New Scripting Language and Parser for System Goal Specification in I-TRM Based Wireless Sensor Networks,” Proceedings of 2013 IEEE Long Island Systems, Applications and Technology Conference (LISAT2013), May 3, 2013, Farmingdale, New York.
Honors and Awards
- 2014 recipient of the IEEE MGA Leadership Award for dedicated leadership in serving IEEE members at the section, region, US, and global levels, and for contributing significantly towards achieving the goals of the IEEE Member and Geographic Activities Board, November 2014.
- IEEE Long Island Section, Athanasius Papoulis Outstanding Educator Award, presented to educators in engineering, science, or mathematics who have demonstrated innovative teaching techniques, March 2013.
- IEEE Region 1 Technical Innovation Award "For Providing Technical Leadership in the Development of State-of-the Art Reconfigurable Wireless Technologies," 2009.
- IEEE Long Island Section, Charles Hirsch Award for Noteworthy Contributions to Reconfigurable Wireless Technology, 2008.
- Ellis College Award of Excellence in Teaching in Math, Science and Technology, January 2007.
Courses Taught at New York Tech
- Beheshti has taught courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels ranging from computer science to telecommunications networks to electrical and computer engineering and technology.