Rose State College Receives $880,000 from U.S. Department for Cyber Security Workforce Training Published August 15, 2019

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding an $880,000 grant to Rose State College to help build a cyber security center and meet the workforce need for more trained cyber experts. 

“When I learned that more cyber professionals originate in Oklahoma than any other state, I began seeking opportunities to promote the retention of talent for such a high demand field,” stated Cornell Wesley, Economic Development Representative, U.S. Department of Commerce-EDA.  “Rose State and its past successes in cyber security provided an excellent opportunity to incentivize talent to remain in the state while promoting transformation for the region.” 

“This grant will allow Rose State’s cyber program to advance and become the premier center in this state and beyond,” stated Jeanie Webb, President of Rose State College. “Mr. Wesley was of extraordinary assistance in getting this award and it has been an honor to work with someone so knowledgeable about the needs of workforce in Oklahoma. There is no doubt this will be a game-changer for our students and Oklahoma.” 

The grant will expand the Rose State Cyber Security program to a state-of-the-art center to serve more students and stakeholders. This is exactly what the aerospace, banking, and military have been asking for to accomplish their workforce goals. 

Rose State has experienced a steady increase in cyber security in declared majors over the last five years with over 650 current enrollments for the fall of 2019. 

Rose State currently is the largest Cyber Security degree program in the Oklahoma City metro area. Rose State offers students the opportunity to earn an Associate Degree in Applied Science (AAS) in Cyber Security that can be used to enter the workforce or proceed on for a bachelor’s degree. 

Rose State’s Networking and Cyber Security department offers a certificate program in Information Security at all federal training levels. The program certifies the student’s satisfying program requirements are trained to the federal NSTISSI/CNSSI 4012, 4013 and 4016 standards for Senior Systems Managers, System Administrators, and Risk Analysts.

Rose State College is an official CAE2Y Academic Institution for Cyber Defense Education designated by the National Security Agency (NSA) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS). 

The college boasts a newly opened PearsonVUE Testing Center which is providing certificate testing for students, Tinker Air Force Base personnel as well as the community to test in various cyber certifications such as the CompTIA Security+, the CompTIA A+, the CompTIA Network+ and do so at a site on campus which creates a wholesome Cyber Security Program at Rose State.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), from 2016-2026 jobs in the cyber security sector are expected to increase by 28%.