ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University named an Ohio Cyber Range Institute Regional Programming Center
As an Ohio Cyber Range Institute-Regional Programming Center, or OCRI-RPC, ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University will support the advancement of the state of Ohio’s overall cyber initiatives.
ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University named an Ohio Cyber Range Institute Regional Programming Center
Through the leadership of the interdisciplinary Center for Cybersecurity, ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University was officially named a Regional Programming Center (RPC) for the in July 2024. As an RPC, ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University is now part of a collaborative group of state universities and government entities which works to further the OCRI’s goals of education, workforce development, and economic growth in the area of cybersecurity.
Each RPC in the OCRI’s network offers a different set of strengths and opportunities for the Ohio Cyber Range Institute. ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University’s primary focus as an RPC will be operating a Cybersecurity Clinic to help organizations improve their cyber resilience.
The ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University Cybersecurity Clinic, developed through a collaboration involving ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú’s College of Engineering and Computing (CEC), College of Liberal Arts and Applied Science (CLAAS), and Farmer School of Business (FSB), has a stated mission to help governments and other small organizations improve their cyber resilience. Through the Cybersecurity Clinic, teams of ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University students, supervised by faculty and professional staff, offer security assessments and security policy reviews. Following the success of their pilot project (the completion of a security assessment and policy review for the City of Oxford in spring 2024) the ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University Cybersecurity Clinic is collaborating with the OCRI’s Ohio Persistent Cyber Improvement (OCPI) project to identify and assist other organizations.
In addition to offering security assessments, ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University’s role as an RPC will also include education and workforce development through the Center for Cybersecurity to support the goals of the OCRI. This includes a 2024 summer cyber camp for high schoolers, as well as a planned 2025 cybersecurity bootcamp to help high school and college students obtain the Security+ certification, funded through a grant from Duke Energy.
“ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University is proud to be named a Regional Programming Center for the Ohio Cyber Range Institute,” said James Walden, Professor and Director of the ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University Center for Cybersecurity. “We look forward to joining this collaborative effort to improve cybersecurity in the state of Ohio.”
About the Center for Cybersecurity
ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University established the Center for Cybersecurity in 2023 to coordinate the educational, outreach, and research missions of its cybersecurity programs. Eleven ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú faculty members are associated with the Center for Cybersecurity—from the College of Engineering and Computing, the College of Liberal Arts and Applied Science, and Farmer School of Business—nine of whom teach only or primarily cybersecurity courses. Approximately 130 students are enrolled in cybersecurity programs for fall 2024, with that number projected to double over the next two years. The Center offers cybersecurity scholarships and has been able to expand its cybersecurity lab capabilities through support from SuperRAPIDS and Choose Ohio First grant funding.