Lab Operations

Roger Blalock

Roger Blalock is the Lab Operations Manager for Public Safety Communications Research (PSCR) Division within NIST. He works with engineers in the PSCR’s Advance Communications Research Group to deploy new vendor equipment for test projects in the network. He also works to integrate and troubleshoot third party testing tools, as well as develop and maintain tools that allow easier ongoing maintenance of the lab. Roger joined PSCR with over 15 years’ experience in the telecommunication industry. Initially, he worked with system test and test automation for 2G and 3G cellular networks, but also spent time doing new feature deployment in overseas markets. Roger spent the last several years working on both lab design and operations as well as the 4G IMS core. His education includes a Bachelor’s of Science in Electrical Engineering.
Email: roger.blalock [at] nist.gov (roger[dot]blalock[at]nist[dot]gov) | Phone: 303-497-6919

Christopher Dennis

Christopher Dennis is an Electronics Technician for the Public Safety Communications Research Division (PSCR) and joined NIST in the start of March 2015. Christopher spent 5 years in the United States Marine Corps as an Arabic Cryptologic Linguist in the field of Signals Intelligence.  Following his time with the Corps, he spent 2.5 years on a U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Services contract where he was the Tactical Commander of a Protective Security Detail for the U.S. Embassy in Iraq.  Additionally, he spent 4 years on a U.S. Air Force contract as an Electronic Warfare operator in support of military training exercises.  Furthermore, Chris was a Federal employee with the U.S. Air Force for 2.5 years under the U.S. Strategic Command where he was a Lead Telecommunications Planner for Electronic Warfare/Signals Intelligence training exercises. Chris received his Bachelor of Science in Electronics Engineering Technology and a Master of Science in Information Management Project Management from Grantham University.
Email: christopher.dennis [at] nist.gov (christopher[dot]dennis[at]nist[dot]gov) | Phone: 303-497-3346

Donald Harriss

Donald Harriss is the Senior Network Engineer for the Communication Technology Laboratory (CTL), Public Safety Communications Research (PSCR) Division within NIST.  Donald works within the network operations team and is the primary architect of the PSCR Core demonstration network.  He ensures that network best practices are implemented, documented, and adhere to security and industry standards.  As part of this role, he performs research on core networking models and technologies used in Public Safety and carrier enterprise networks. Donald also serves as top tier network support to PSCR project engineers and stakeholders. Donald received his Bachelors of Science in Telecommunications Systems Management at the Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky. His primary study area was in Network Security and Network Communications. Currently, Donald is pursuing a Masters of Science in the Interdisciplinary Telecommunications Program at the University of Colorado Boulder. He is an expert with “last mile” technologies such as Fiber To The Curb (FTTC,) microwave backhaul and landline technologies.  Donald also has career certifications in packet switching, routing technologies, security middleboxes as well as career experience involving deployable defense systems and global satellite surveillance data networks. Donald is originally from Pinckneyville, Illinois, a rural community located in Southern Illinois. He spent several years in Huntsville, Alabama working as a network engineer for a telecommunications vendor and as a Department of Defense contractor for the U.S. Army in Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.
Email: donald.harriss [at] nist.gov (donald[dot]harriss[at]nist[dot]gov) | Phone: 303-497-588

Wyatt Seuss

Wyatt is a Network Engineer for the Communication Technology Laboratory (CTL), Public Safety Communications Research (PSCR) Division within NIST.  He is a member of the lab operations team that manages the PSCR demonstration network and works closely with PSCR's project engineers to deploy new technology within the network. Before joining NIST in 2015, Wyatt worked for a large school district managing the network, Active Directory, and supporting software and hardware.  He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Management Information Systems from the University of Iowa and has certifications in routing and switching technologies. 
Email: wyatt.seuss [at] nist.gov (wyatt[dot]seuss[at]nist[dot]gov) | Phone: 303-497-3705