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Scott Valcourt

Associate Teaching Professor of Computer Science

Scott Valcourt is an associate teaching professor within the Khoury College of Computer Sciences at Northeastern University’s the Roux Institute in Portland, ME. He serves as the Global Network Course Coordinator for the CS Align course CS5008 Algorithms, Data Structures, and their Applications in Computer Systems. As a national research leader in cyberinfrastructure, Valcourt has been part of the development of more than a dozen worldwide networking technologies, causing NetworkWorld magazine to name him “one of the most powerful people in networking” in 2001.

Valcourt began as a student and eventually became the second director of the world-renowned University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL) from 1993-2004. He served as the principal investigator (PI) in 2010-2014 of Network NH Now, a collaboration of public and private partners that constructed critically needed broadband expansion across NH through more than 750 miles of new and existing fiber and microwave technologies. Simultaneously, Valcourt was the co-PI of the New Hampshire Broadband Mapping and Planning Program (NHBMPP) which continues to focus on NH broadband mapping.

Valcourt has developed and managed over $100 million in grant funds focused on the creation of next generation infrastructure and applications utilizing broadband across the region. His current research areas involve data analysis and broadband expansion in support of smart communities and telehealth. Valcourt has a BA in computer science with a mathematics emphasis, cum laude, from Saint Anselm College in Manchester, NH. He also has a Master’s of Science in computer science and a PhD in engineering: systems design with a Cognate in College Teaching from the University of New Hampshire.

A native Mainer and graduate of Edward Little High School in Auburn, Valcourt and his family live in an 1800 farmhouse in Gray where the maple sap flows, snowshoeing is an evening pastime, and gardening is a way of life.

Research Overview

Regularly referring to his research work as “the plumbing of computation technology,” Valcourt seeks next generation implementations of computer systems, both large and small, and networking technologies to address the questions that surface in data analytics, smart communities, and telehealth. His favorite problem solving technique is to take commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) parts and put them together in ways that originally were not envisioned to bring a new solution to life.

As a teaching faculty member, Valcourt enjoys guiding learners to better themselves. Typical courses that he instructs are CS5008 (Algorithms, Data Structures, and their Applications in Computer Systems), CS5200 (Database Management Systems), CS5700 (Fundamentals of Computer Networks), and CS5610 (Web Development). He has been developing a new course in Embedded Systems, and will likely be teaching CS5600 (Computer Systems) and other “plumbing” technology courses in the future.

In addition, Valcourt is the ACCESS Campus Champion for Northeastern University, serving as a resource for anyone seeking access to the national high performance computing (HPC) resources in the NSF ACCESS program, and is a certified CyberAmbassador, teaching others the best ways in which computational resources can be applied to their work.

Areas of Expertise

  • CyberInfrastructure
  • Telehealth Systems
  • Data Duration and Management

Publications

  • Golomski, C., Corvini, M., Kim, B., Wilcox, J. and Valcourt, S. (2022), “Aspects of ICT connectivity among older adults living in rural subsidized housing: reassessing the digital divide,” Journal of Enabling Technologies, Vol. 16 No. 1, pp. 17-27. https://doi.org/10.1108/JET-12-2020-0052
  • Andrew Sherman, Kaylea Nelson, Galen Collier, Wayne Figurelle, Neil McGlohon, Anita Schwartz, John Goodhue, Eric Brown, Adrian Del Maestro, John Huffman, Sia Najafi, Bruce Segee, Ralph Zottola, Julie Ma, Christopher Carothers, Andrea Elledge, Gaurav Khanna, Jeff Nucciarone, Scott Valcourt. (2022), “Leveraging Northeast Cyberteam Successes to Build the CAREERS Cyberteam Program: Initial Lessons Learned”, Journal of Computational Science Education, Vol. 13 No. 1, pp. 38-43. https://doi.org/10.22369/issn.2153-4136/13/1/7
  • Nicholas Boyd, Jacob Hawkins, Thomas Yang, Scott A Valcourt. (2020), “Augmented Reality: Telehealth Demonstration Application”, PEARC ’20: Practice and Experience in Advanced Research Computing, July 2020, pp. 452-455. https://doi.org/10.1145/3311790.3399629
  • Scott A Valcourt. (2018), “Major Factors in Science DMZ Deployment at Small Institutions”, PEARC ’18: Proceedings of the Practice and Experience on Advanced Research Computing, July 2018, Article No.: 19, pp. 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1145/3219104.3219110
  • Kent A Chamberlin, Benjamin McMahon, Scott Valcourt. (2008), “Datacasting In The Mobile Environment”, Journal of Networks, Vol. 3, No. 7, July, 2008, pp. 49-55. https://doi.org/10.4304/jnw.3.7.49-55
  • Read more on Google Scholar

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