Florida International University's (FIU's) second-phase CREST, the Center for Innovative Information Systems Engineering is housed in its School of Computing and Information Sciences and its Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. The Center's four research thrusts bring together a multidisciplinary group of researchers, large-scale collaborative relationships, and a broad ecosystem of partners to perform research that will lead to information technologies that help to solve critical societal problems of national priority.

Information Systems Engineering is a field of critical importance to our nation. More effective techniques for managing information, modeling information, natural, and man-made systems, and providing access to information are all critical components of Information Systems. Our second-phase CREST's research subprojects combine to perform synergistic transformative research with direct relevance to critical societal problems of national priority, including disaster management, universal access, and brain research/neuroscience. We have found that our students, particularly those who are women or from underrepresented populations, are particularly attracted to research with a demonstrable positive impact on society, so these research areas also help us to recruit and retain such students. Pete Martinez, Chairman of the Florida Research Consortium, states that "[b]y applying its research to themes critical to the State of Florida, such as disaster management, healthcare for our diverse population, and universal access to information systems, we believe that the Center will enable technology creation that will help keep the United States and Florida competitive..."

The thrusts engage a well-qualified cadre of students to perform CREST-related research. Fewer than 3% of the U.S.'s approximately 1,500 Ph.D.s graduates in computer science and engineering each year are Hispanic or African American; fewer than 20% are women. Through Summer 2015, the FIU CREST graduated 84 Ph.D. students - 32% were underrepresented minorities and 29% were women; it also graduated 76 M.S. students - 46% were underrepresented minorities and 28% were women. Additionally, the FIU CREST has been acknowledged in over 450 publications, leveraged $38M in new research awards and $3M in in-kind equipment, begun the LA Grid collaboration with IBM, won a very competitive NSF PIRE grant, established strong international partnerships, established an NSF I/UCRC site and recruited members to it, and received a $1.4M endowment from the Ware Foundation.