CyberCorps Scholarship for Service (Renewal): Strengthening Cyber Community and Pathways Using Research Experiences, Technical Training and Institutional Outreach

Pace University New York Campus, New York NY

Investigators

Abstract

This project supports the continuation and expansion of Pace University’s CyberCorps® Scholarship for Service (SFS) program. Over the next five years, the program will recruit new SFS scholars to study cybersecurity in order to support the government in securing its cyber defense and operations. The new scholars will come from the bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral levels of the institution’s academic programs in computing and from community college partners, including the State University of New York - Westchester Community College, a minority-serving institution. Students will form a community of cybersecurity scholars who inspire each other and work together in various activities, including workshops, competitions, and conference participation. In addition, the program will support the cybersecurity student club as a means to further broaden the community. The SFS scholars will engage in research, technical training, and professional certification preparation to ensure they will be ready to meet rapidly evolving cybersecurity challenges. Lastly, the project will continue its commitment to diversity through institutional outreach to K-12 schools and community colleges and focusing on recruiting students from underrepresented minority backgrounds and on women. Pace University’s program has produced cybersecurity professionals working at various levels of the government. The objectives of the project are 1) to produce twenty or more cybersecurity professionals who will enter the government workforce upon graduation, 2) to prepare cybersecurity professionals with diverse educational backgrounds through five cyber pathways, 3) to support diversity in the field by providing opportunities for minority students and women, 4) to mentor non-SFS institutions and their students through institutional partnerships, 5) to strengthen collaboration between Pace University and its government partners, and 6) to generate interest in becoming cybersecurity professionals among broader student populations both at Pace University and at partner institutions. The program consists of five cyber pathways ranging from an associate’s degree to the PhD. The pathways allow the program to prepare scholars differently based on their background and interests. In addition, scholars will engage in research projects that reinforce their cybersecurity competencies. These research projects, with support from the cybersecurity scholars, have the potential to contribute to research innovation in the areas of open-source intelligence, data analytics, machine learning, computer forensics and robotics. Professional development activities will expose scholars to cybersecurity professionals from academia and industry. This project will use competency-based advising, using digital badging to provide scholars with a roadmap aligned to their strengths and interests and with the NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework. This advising approach, accompanied by the five cyber pathways, curriculum integration and the research program, will enable the project team to recruit and prepare students to satisfy diverse needs for cybersecurity professionals in the government. This project is supported by the CyberCorps® Scholarship for Service (SFS) program, which funds proposals establishing or continuing scholarship programs in cybersecurity and aligns with the U.S. National Cyber Strategy to develop a superior cybersecurity workforce. Following graduation, scholarship recipients are required to work in cybersecurity for a federal, state, local, or tribal Government organization for the same duration as their scholarship support. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.