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Cybersecurity Innovation Alliance

Powered by the Center for Cybersecurity at UWF


Who We Are

A consortium of industry, academia, and government converging to solve Cybersecurity workforce development needs and develop the future of Cybersecurity. The consortium is led by the Center for Cybersecurity at the University of West Florida in partnership with industry, academic and government partners.


Mission

To propel advances and innovation in cybersecurity through academic, industry and government collaborations.


Goals

The broader goals of the Cybersecurity Innovation Alliance and Center are to:

  • Develop cutting-edge, collaborative solutions to current and future cybersecurity challenges 
  • Enhance cybersecurity resiliency of organizations through collaborative solutions and shared resources
  • Create sustainable and scalable workforce development models to fill the critical shortage of cybersecurity professionals nationally and globally
  • Foster partnerships among educational institutions and employers to create pathways from high schools through post-secondary to employment
  • Drive curricular innovation in cybersecurity K12 and higher education in partnership with industry and government
  • Facilitate reskilling and upskilling of the existing workforce for high-demand skills in cyber-related occupations
  • Develop agile platforms to support research, development and evaluation of innovative cybersecurity solutions
  • Enhance cybersecurity awareness (cyber safety, cyber hygiene) in our communities and interest in cybersecurity careers among youth
  • Enhance diversity in the cybersecurity profession

Events and Initiatives

The University of West Florida is the NSA CAE Regional Resource Center for the Southeast U.S.

The University of West Florida is the NSA National Center of Academic Excellence Regional Resource Center for the Southeast. In this capacity, UWF provides leadership to advance cyber defense education among colleges and universities in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Puerto Rico, and South Carolina. UWF also provides support to all currently designated CAE institutions and new institutions seeking CAE designation.

CyberUSA Affiliate

CyberUSA is a collaboration of states focused on a common mission purpose of enabling innovation, education, workforce development, enhanced cyber readiness and resilience - all while connecting the cyber ecosystem of the United States and its Allies. This non-profit “community of communities” is governed by its members, established to enhance information sharing between states and improve cyber resilience at all levels of participation - local, regional and national.

Recently, (ISC)² has partnered With CyberUSA to advance cyber education and certification across U.S. (ISC)² recently took part in the CyberUSA 2019 conference in College Park, MD, where John McCumber, director of cybersecurity advocacy, North America, for (ISC)² delivered a presentation outlining the findings of the (ISC)² 2018 Cybersecurity Workforce Study, which found that the industry is lacking 2.93 million qualified professionals globally. North America alone accounts for nearly one half million of this shortage.


 

Women in CyberSecurity (WiCyS), established through a National Science Foundation Grant to Tennessee Tech University in 2013, is a non-profit 501(c)3 membership organization which works to advance women in the cybersecurity workforce. WiCyS works on behalf of women everywhere who seek to enter and progress in careers in cybersecurity, while assisting employers and recruiters to find qualified candidates for their cybersecurity teams in their diversity and inclusion efforts. WiCyS’ extensive network of supporters in industry, academia, government, the military, research institutions and non-profit organizations offers important avenues to advance its mission of recruitment, retention and advancement of women in cybersecurity.

To learn more, contact: WiCySFlorida@wicys.org

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Small and Medium Business Cybersecurity Index by AppRiver

The AppRiver Cyberthreat Index for Business was developed by independent firms Idea Loft and Equation Research, in consultation with the Center for Cybersecurity at the University of West Florida, using survey data collected online.

AppRiver Cyberthreat Index for Business


Get Involved

For additional information or to get involved, please contact:

Jim Rhodes
Community and Public Relations Director
Center for Cybersecurity
University of West Florida
jrhodes1@uwf.edu or cybersecurity@uwf.edu