In this project, faculty at Erie Community College and SUNY Buffalo's Center of Excellence in Information Systems Assurance Research and Education are collaborating to (1) develop four new courses ("Introduction to Computer and Information Security," "Computer and Network Security," "Operations and Database Security," and "Legal, Ethical, and Regulatory Framework for Information Systems Security") and an Information Systems Security (ISS) certificate program, (2) develop a Web site to complement the ISS program, (3) conduct "train-the-trainer" workshops for high school teachers and presentations and demonstrations for high school students, (4) conduct workshops and short courses for industry, and (5) develop articulation agreements to link the community college program with related programs at four-year colleges and universities. The new courses and certificate program, which are offered at all three campuses of Erie Community College, leverage courses and laboratory materials developed at other institutions, including those developed at SUNY Buffalo for a master's-level certificate program in information assurance.
The new curriculum incorporates the cybersecurity skill standards of the National Workforce Center for Emerging Technologies (NWCET), as well as aspects of the CNSS National Training Standards and the CompTIA Security+ framework. The curriculum targets both traditional college students who wish to take courses in or specialize in information systems security and industry workers who wish to upgrade or retool their skills. Two notable features of the curriculum are its emphasis on real-world problems and issues and its use of isolated computer network labs, which will enable students to participate in hands-on experiments with security penetration techniques and corresponding countermeasures and protective approaches.
