Planning: RoRS: Planning Institutional Research Cybersecurity Readiness: Mapping Gaps and Maturity in Support of NSPM-33

Arizona State University, Scottsdale AZ

Investigators

Abstract

This project will examine how U.S. research institutions understand and approach their cybersecurity responsibilities under evolving federal research security policies, including those outlined in National Security Presidential Memorandum-33 (NSPM-33). As expectations for baseline cybersecurity readiness increase, institutions vary widely in how they interpret requirements, align current practices with governance, and coordinate implementation. These differences will be mapped through structured research, community input, and a meta-landscape evaluation to illuminate recurring challenges and variation in practice. Governance structures, self-assessment practices, maturity indicators, and decision-making models will be evaluated across a range of institutions. By improving visibility into institutional responses, the project will help federal stakeholders, academic leaders, and policy designers understand where support, clarification, or shared infrastructure may be needed. Through a structured, mixed-methods design, the project will generate a national synthesis of institutional approaches to cybersecurity readiness under NSPM-33. Data collection will include interviews, surveys, and a review of institutional artifacts. A concurrent landscape analysis of known attack vectors and exploitation patterns affecting research will ground institutional observations within the broader risk environment that shaped federal policy. Deliverables include a readiness roadmap reflecting observed institutional trajectories, customizable profiles based on governance and ownership structures, a synthesis of how federal guidance is interpreted, and public access to de-identified data and visual summaries. These findings will inform scalable coordination strategies and clarify the institutional conditions that shape research security implementation. 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.