Craig Blaha

Craig Blaha is currently a lecturer at both Vanderbilt University and The University of Texas at Austin, with extensive experience in information security, privacy, and public policy. He earned his doctorate from The University of Texas at Austin School of Information, where his research examined the intersection of social networking, information security, and digital preservation. Over the course of his career, Dr. Blaha has taught a wide range of undergraduate and graduate courses, including Introduction to Information Studies, Public Policy and Information Security, and Information Security for the Master of Science in Information Security and Privacy program at UT Austin. 

Before entering academia full time, Dr. Blaha spent over twenty years in the information technology field. He began his career teaching hands on web development, then became the Webmaster for The College of New Jersey. He went on to lead Information Security, Policy, and Web Development at The College of New Jersey, and later became Assistant Director of User Services at UT Austin. In these roles, he led teams responsible for enterprise-level information security initiatives, policy implementation, and large-scale user support operations. This deep professional background in IT leadership, combined with his academic expertise, enables Dr. Blaha to prepare MSISP students for the technical, strategic, and human challenges of protecting information in today’s complex digital environment.