Capacity Building for Information Assurance and Cyber Security

University Of South Alabama, Mobile AL

Investigators

Abstract

This capacity building project seeks to foster high quality education and research in Cybersecurity. The University of South Alabama (USA) has been designated as a Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance (IA) Education by the National Security Agency and is an active participants in the CyberCorps®: Scholarship for Service (SFS) program. USA currently offers a full range of Cybersecurity courses at the graduate and undergraduate level. This project aims to increase the number of students interested in pursuing cybersecurity education, to provide key resource to further ongoing Cybersecurity research, and to increase the expertise of faculty and students. The project is providing broader impact and dissemination through local colloquia and research groups on campus and through two regional workshops that brings faculty from up to ten local community and junior colleges, fostering development of Cybersecurity focus throughout the region. The NSF's CyberCorps® SFS program funds projects that address cybersecurity education and workforce development. The Scholarship Track provides funding to award scholarships to students in cybersecurity. In return for their scholarships, recipients will work after graduation for a Federal, State, Local, or Tribal Government organization in a position related to cybersecurity for a period equal to the length of the scholarship. The Capacity Track seeks innovative proposals leading to an increase in the ability of the United States higher education enterprise to produce cybersecurity professionals. The project will expand the current cybersecurity program by three key activities: 1) developing a virtual lab facility that supports hands-on Cybersecurity curriculum development for ten cybersecurity courses and will provide computational resources for ten faculty conducting Cybersecurity research; 2) implementing a professional development program for faculty to remain current in Cybersecurity research advancements; and 3) sponsoring K-12 STEM field trips and summer camps that brings high school junior and seniors from local partner schools to the USA campus for cybersecurity focused field trips.