Cybersecurity grants sought
Schumer proposes $ 3.7M to bolster college training partnerships
Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer is leading the charge to train more young people how to secure online technology and combat cyber attacks.
At a University at Albany event Monday, Schumer announced that he will push for a new federal fund that would provide grants to colleges and universities to bolster their cybersecurity programs. He plans to bring the $ 3.7 million proposal back with him to Washington, and garner enough bipartisan support to include the program in one of the Senate’s upcoming appropriations bills.
“Technology changes our world very fast, and one of our jobs at both the university level and at the federal level is to catch up to that technology in terms of job training,” he said. “The result is so good, because it not only will make us more secure but creates lots of very good- paying jobs which people really need and want.”
The pilot program would fund at least two grants, each worth about $ 1.9 million. While New York colleges would have to apply for funding, Schumer said he expects Ualbany and nearby SUNY community colleges would receive a share because “we’re ahead of everybody else in this.”
Half of all SUNY community colleges already have cybersecurity programs, and Ualbany is breaking ground on a new building to house its new College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity. The building will open in the summer of 2021, university officials said.
“There’s always competition, and there should be, but to enhance things where New York is ahead already is a very good thing to do, and we are here,” Schumer said.
Both four- and two- year institutions would be eligible for the grants. Schumer said the program would support a “hub and spokes model,” referring to community colleges as “spokes” and universities as “hubs.” The partnership would offer students initial cybersecurity training at twoyear institutions and then more detailed courses at the university level, he said.
Schumer was joined by Ualbany officials, including the university’s provost, Carol Kim, who highlighted education as a major factor in preventing cybercrimes, including fraud, theft and terrorism.
“The work that Sen. Schumer is doing to underscore the need for a skilled and talented cybersecurity workforce will help us to confront these challenges and protect our national interests,” she said.
Schumer referenced a shortage of cybersecurity workers across the nation. Between September 2017 and August 2018, more than 310,000 job openings were posted in both the public and private sectors, according to Ualbany data.