Research Initiatives
NSF CC* Region: Pennsylvania Regional Science DMZ (PA Science DMZ) (NSF 2346589)

The NSF CC* Region: Pennsylvania Science DMZ (PA Science DMZ) project aims to address infrastructure and connectivity gaps in five institutions: Pennsylvania State University, Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP), Lafayette College, The Digital Foundry at New Kensington (DFNK), and Swarthmore College. By enhancing cyberinfrastructure connectivity over KeystoneREN’s advanced statewide R&E network, the project supports various research fields, including data analytics, robotics, cybersecurity, molecular dynamics, and linguistics. Beyond these immediate benefits, the initiative fosters broader collaboration, enabling smaller institutions to access critical scientific tools. The project serves as a model for regional cyberinfrastructure development, promoting inclusivity and efficiency. The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) supports this effort based on intellectual merit and broader impacts.
The Pennsylvania Science DMZ (PA Science DMZ) service provides a means for researchers to collaborate with their peers. The PA Science DMZ service is analogous to a private network exchange, but is available exclusively to KeystoneREN connected institutions. Built as a performance based security enclave network, the network segment is ideal for giving a preferred path for lowest latency and best performance that would otherwise transit the public Internet. The PA Science DMZ can be a lower-cost and flexible alternative to circuit, private-line technology, or VPNs that customers may be using today for best effort connectivity between disparate locations and peers.
This design maximizes the potential uses for the PA Science DMZ and gives researchers the flexibility to implement their specific network requirements and policies. This service can be delivered as an 802.1Q tagged Layer 2 Ethernet hand off with a common Ethernet Broadcast Domain within the PA Science DMZ. Additionally, this service can also be delivered as a Layer 3 Ethernet routed interface or managed router services within the PA Science DMZ.

Research Engagement and Facilitation
KeystoneREN staff are skilled in supporting research and facilitating engagements between researchers and campus IT. Using our researcher engagement interview process and research facilitation tools we can help define requirements
and implement solutions to remove bottlenecks and create friction free environments for optimal workflows.
Our seasoned team has over 30 years of experience in research engagement and facilitation working with research organizations from large R1 universities, small liberal arts campuses, government labs, tribal colleges, community colleges, hospital and medical centers, and other organizations to understand researcher requirements, and help identify appropriate cyberinfrastructure to support performant and innovative research.
Grant Consultation & Proposal Support
KeystoneREN has decades of expertise in grant writing, consultation and proposal support. Our team of seasoned grant writing experts with proven track records of funded proposals will help your organization succeed in identifying, submitting, and winning competitive funding awards.
Have a question about research? Need engineering design review for your grant proposal? Need language about statewide, national, and global infrastructure available through KeystoneREN that supports your research? Want help interfacing between your research community and your enterprise IT? Contact us at [email protected] for more information or call 717. 963.7490 to speak with a KeystoneREN research engagement and facilitation expert today.