About the Homeland Security Systems Engineering and Development Institute (HS SEDI)

The Homeland Security Systems Engineering and Development Institute (HS SEDI^TM) is a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) operated by The MITRE Corporation.

Mission

HS SEDI provides systems engineering, acquisition, and program management expertise in support of the overall homeland security mission. Our purpose is to provide expert technical advice to help the Department integrate plans and processes to enhance acquisitions and IT systems development across its entire organization. HS SEDI works on complex homeland security systems that will evolve sustainable capabilities to secure the nation. HS SEDI promotes fair and open competition and provides technical expertise to Department of Homeland Security program managers to realize acquisition objectives while enhancing Department acquisition ability at the enterprise level. HS SEDI partners with the Department of Homeland Security to innovate and improve enterprise processes and tools, apply best practices and standards, and develop plans for improving the overall integration of mission capabilities.

A key Department of Homeland Security priority is the development of an integrated mission approach that engages all stakeholders and emphasizes cooperation, collaboration, and information sharing. Immigration, border and transportation security, emergency response, cyber security, and acquisition reform are examples of these vital, complex, and cross-cutting Department missions. The staffs of HS SEDI and the Department collaborate to develop more effective systems engineering and acquisition systems across the Department to deliver capabilities that meet mission needs within cost and schedule. Ongoing program technical reviews reinforce the HS SEDI approach - with the goal of instituting a consistent, disciplined systems engineering and acquisition system across the Department.

HS SEDI also supports Department efforts to integrate and coordinate across federal, state, tribal, and local organizations to bolster the security of our nation. HS SEDI works to define and implement best practices for information sharing to support homeland security activities across federal, state, tribal and local agencies, along with private sector partners.

Experimentation is used to explore the viability and applicability of new technologies, procedures, and policies. This involves controlled laboratory experiments, analytical studies, constructive and virtual simulations, and live field exercises. The experimentation process enables integration across the mission space as well as the development of future capabilities.

Key tenets of HS SEDI's approach include broad consultation and staffing from across MITRE and the Public Interest Network; sound financial control; and extensive knowledge of homeland security environments, challenges, and systems. HS SEDI is sponsored by the Department as a systems engineering resource for all of its components and operating elements. With Department permission, HS SEDI resources are also available to non-Department of Homeland Security government entities, state and municipal governments, and public charities.

Leadership and Organization

Dr. Jason Providakes is the HS SEDI Director and MITRE Officer-in-charge.

The MITRE Corporation

The MITRE Corporation is a not-for-profit national resource that provides systems engineering, research and development, and information technology support to the government. It operates federally funded research and development centers for the Department of Defense, the Federal Aviation Administration, the Internal Revenue Service and Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Department of Homeland Security, with principal locations in Bedford, Mass., and McLean, Va.

MITRE provides objective advice, promoting open competition for the development and delivery of Department capabilities. The company works in an affirmed partnership with Department programs and leadership, bringing a long-term, strategic perspective to efforts to integrate capabilities so the Department can achieve its highest priority outcomes.

HS SEDI executes its work program in collaboration with critical Department mission partners including the Department of Defense, the Federal Aviation Administration, and others in academia and state, tribal, and local organizations. Homeland Security activities are strategically organized according to the following portfolios, to maximize integration across the Department and mission space:

• Border and Transportation Security, which aims to improve the Department's ability to develop, deliver, and sustain new capabilities to secure our borders and enforce immigration laws.
• Immigration and Screening, through which HS SEDI provides systems engineering, program management, and acquisition technical support to Department directorates, components, and stakeholders to deploy technology-based identity and benefits management services.
• Information Sharing and Enterprise Services, which aims to improve delivery of Department mission capabilities by applying systems engineering and acquisition best practices to enable effective and efficient management, information sharing, enterprise portfolio management, and security services.
• Intelligence and Law Enforcement, through which HS SEDI applies a unique combination of systems engineering, integration, program management, and information technology expertise to address critical national intelligence and law enforcement challenges.
• Preparedness, Protection and Response, which aims to counter physical, cyber, or human threats, increasing resiliency through swift and effective recovery of national assets, key resources, and people.

Contact

By e-mail:
hssedi_info@mitre.org

By mail or phone:
The MITRE Corporation
7515 Colshire Drive
McLean, VA 22102-7539

Phone: 703-983-1254