In February, five Excelsior College programs were certified to meet the National Security Agency’s Committee on National Security Systems (CNSS) Training Standards. This past month, Dr. Jane LeClair, chief operating officer (COO) at the National Cybersecurity Institute at Excelsior College, traveled to the17th Annual Colloquium for Information Systems Security Education (CISSE) in Mobile, Alabama to receive the designation on behalf of Excelsior.
Richard Hale, deputy CIO for Cybersecurity, Department of Defense, presents Dr. Jane LeClair with Excelsior’s certification.
Richard Hale, deputy CIO for Cybersecurity, Department of Defense, presented the certification at the elite cyber conference, which provides a “forum for dialogue among leading figures in government, industry, and academia.”
To achieve certification, Excelsior’s programs had to meet six CNSS standards:
- Information Systems Security (INFOSEC) Professionals (NSTISSI 4011)
- Senior Systems Managers (NSTISSI 4012)
- System Administrators (SA) (NSTISSI 4013)
- Information Systems Security Officers (NSTISSI 4014)
- Systems Certifiers (NSTISSI 4015)
- Risk Analysts (NSTISSI 4016)
“This certification invites Excelsior College into an elite fraternity of academic institutions certified by our government’s highest national security agency,” said Dr. LeClair, in February. “Web attacks costs businesses $114 billion annually, and with attackers targeting both people and technologies, it is essential we develop the next generation of cybertechnicians and those who can lead them.”
Excelsior has developed seven academic programs at the undergraduate or graduate levels in cybersecurity to meet this demand:
- Bachelor of Science in Information Technology with concentration in Cybersecurity Technology
- Bachelor of Science in Cyber Operations (No CNSS designation)
- Undergraduate Certificate in Cybersecurity
- Master of Business Administration in Cybersecurity Management
- Master of Science in Cybersecurity
- Undergraduate Certificate in Cybersecurity (No CNSS designation)
- Graduate Certificate in Cybersecurity Management
The cyber curriculum covers various subjects such as cyber attack and defense, digital analysis, computer forensics, security policies and strategies, risk analysis, ethical and legal issues, operational processes, cyber crime, among other verticals.
“There is a shortage in the workforce for cybersecurity professionals,” said Sherly Abraham, program director for IT and Cybersecurity at Excelsior. “Cybersecurity is a practice oriented field and it essential to provide the needed environments to nurture technical skills that can overcome the limitations of distance and time.”