Dorothy E. Denning elected to NAE Class of 2026
02-17-2026
The Department of Computer Science at Purdue University proudly announces that Dorothy E. Denning (Ph.D. in Computer Science, 1975), an internationally renowned pioneer in cybersecurity, has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) Class of 2026, one of the highest professional honors in engineering.
Election to the NAE is among the highest professional honors for engineers and computer scientists, recognizing individuals who have made outstanding contributions to engineering research, practice and education. Denning was recognized for her foundational work in cybersecurity and her lasting impact on the field through decades of research, leadership and service.
"Dorothy Denning is a trailblazer in cybersecurity, and her election to the National Academy of Engineering is a fitting recognition of her groundbreaking work,” said Petros Drineas, professor and head of the Department of Computer Science. “Purdue Computer Science is proud to celebrate her remarkable accomplishments and enduring influence on the field."
Denning received her PhD in computer science from Purdue University in 1975 under the advising of H.D. Schwetman. Following graduation, she joined Purdue’s Department of Computer Science faculty as an assistant professor and was promoted to associate professor in 1981. After leaving Purdue in 1983, Denning held research and leadership roles at SRI International and Digital Equipment Corporation, and later joined Georgetown University, where she served as the Callahan Family Professor of Computer Science, director of the Georgetown Institute of Information Assurance, and chair of the Computer Science Department. She later became a professor in the Department of Defense Analysis at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, where she is now Distinguished Professor Emeritus.
Denning is widely regarded as one of the world’s foremost experts in information security. Her groundbreaking research on secure information flow, lattice-based access control, and intrusion detection laid the foundations for modern cybersecurity. Throughout her distinguished career, she has authored four books and more than 200 scholarly articles and has been inducted into the National Cyber Security Hall of Fame. Denning was named a 2006 Distinguished Science Alumni and a Distinguished Women Scholar in 2013.
Denning joins two professors from the Department of Computer Science who have been elected to academies. Professor Emeritus John Rice and Distinguished Professor of Computer Science Gene Spafford were elected to the NAE in 1994 and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS) in 2020, respectively.
About the Department of Computer Science at Purdue University
Founded in 1962, the Department of Computer Science was created to be an innovative base of knowledge in the emerging field of computing as the first degree-awarding program in the United States. The department continues to advance the computer science industry through research. U.S. News & World Report ranks the department No. 16 and No. 19 overall in undergraduate and graduate computer science, respectively. Graduates of the program are able to solve complex and challenging problems in many fields. Our consistent success in an ever-changing landscape is reflected in the record undergraduate enrollment, increased faculty hiring, innovative research projects, and the creation of new academic programs. Learn more at cs.purdue.edu.