National CyberWatch Center

Prince George'S Community College, Upper Marlboro MD

Investigators

Abstract

Keeping computers and information systems secure is a major challenge. Business, industry, and government need well-prepared technicians who can prevent, detect, and investigate cybersecurity breaches, and the growth of cyber-threats has created a need for many more workers who have appropriate, specific knowledge and skills. As an Advanced Technological Education (ATE) center, CyberWatch has been addressing this workforce need for over a decade. In 2005, it was launched as an ATE regional center, with a focus on colleges and employers in the Washington-Baltimore region; and in 2012, it evolved into an ATE national center. The National CyberWatch Center (NCC) has achieved major national impact in cybersecurity education by establishing and validating education and training standards; creating a new annual conference focusing on cybersecurity education at the community college level; validating cybersecurity skills using performance-based assessments; and building new cybersecurity curricula tied to job roles and industry certifications. In its next phase, the center will expand and enhance its leadership role by developing and promoting (1) programs and services designed to attract diverse populations into cybersecurity education and careers; (2) skills-based curricula; (3) collaborations among industry, government, and academia; (4) education, training, and assessment standards; and (5) other resources that increase the number of faculty members and colleges capable of offering high-quality courses and curricula in cybersecurity across the nation. One new focus will be to study and support students' transitions from two-year to four-year institutions in cybersecurity in order to increase the number of community college students who enroll in and complete CyberCorps: Scholarship for Service (SFS) programs.