Page 14 - Skills - 2024

GETTING SKILLS
College Programs
Prepare Students for
In-Demand Fields
BY DAVID LEVINE
Above: John Watkins, director, Robert R. Wiener Center for Excellence in Cybersecurity at SUNY WCC (right) with students and administrators at the Center. Opposite page: U.S.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is introduced at the Center by Director John Watkins.
This past February, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the launch of the first-ever Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) eligibility to cover
hundreds of SUNY and CUNY non-degree programs that lead to jobs in high- demand, growing fields. And, in a nod to the growing number of students seeking something other than a four-year degree, Hochul also signed legislation expanding TAP to cover short-term, non-degree programs, including microcredentials, that supports students at community colleges and colleges of technology.
“Tuition assistance for workforce development opportunities will help ease a path to rewarding and successful careers for low- and middle-income families,” Hochul said in a news release.
Westchester County students have several opportunities to learn the skills and earn the credentials needed for these high-paying positions. SUNY Westchester Community College (WCC), for instance, is one of only a few community colleges in the country to be designated under a new Center for Academic Excellence (CAE) in
Cyber Defense Education requirement
by the US Department of Homeland Security and the National Security Agency. Institutions with this designation have met rigorous federal requirements given to schools that commit to reducing vulnerability in national information infrastructure by improving higher education and research in cyber defense and producing professionals with cyber defense expertise.
An ‘Extensive’ Need for Workers
As a result of this designation, a
$1 million grant has established the Robert R. Wiener Center for Excellence in Cybersecurity, a state-of-the-art cybersecurity lab and classrooms. The grant also covers the cost of faculty development, curriculum development, scholarships, and adding new degree programs and industry credentials.
WCC’s cybersecurity programs
cover computer information system basics as well as the latest practices for managing and identifying cyber-attacks on workstations, servers, and networks. Students learn to understand the many
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