Building Information Assurance Educational Capacity: Pilot Efforts to Date

• Main Author: Sledge, Carol A
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Subjects: CALIFORNIA; CAPACITY BUILDING; Computer Programming and Software; COOPERATION; COURSES(EDUCATION); COURSEWARE; CURRICULA; EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH; ETHNIC GROUPS; Humanities and History; INFORMATION ASSURANCE; INFORMATION EXCHANGE; Information Science; INFORMATION SECURITY; MID-ATLANTIC STATES; MINORITY INSTITUTIONS; PARTNERSHIPS; RACE(ANTHROPOLOGY); RCC(REGIONAL COLLABORATIVE CLUSTERS); SECURE SOFTWARE; SOFTWARE ENGINEERING; SOFTWARE ENGINEERING INSTITUTE; SURVIVABILITY; SYMPOSIA; TEXAS; TRANSITIONS; UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT; UNIVERSITIES

This report describes efforts by the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) to increase the capacity of institutions of higher education to offer information assurance (IA) and information security (IS) courses, to expand existing IA and IS offerings, and to include IA and IS topics and perspectives, as appropriate, in other courses. Naturally, these efforts must be aligned with a department's foci, its current curriculum, and its accreditation requirements. To accomplish its goals, the SEI transitions courseware, materials, and a survivability and information assurance curriculum to various departments at institutions of higher education, participates in NSF-funded faculty capacity-building programs, creates partnerships with key regional educational institutions, and offers IA symposia, among other efforts. While the SEI works with all institutions of higher education, there is a particular focus on minority-serving institutions (MSIs) and community colleges in the United States. Rather than build a new infrastructure to accomplish this, the SEI utilizes partnerships that leverage the strengths of the SEI and the strengths of the partner educational institutions, builds upon existing trusted relationships and infrastructure, and sustains the incorporation of new and evolving materials. Leveraging other complementary programs, events, and organizations broadens the offering and makes it more cost effective to all parties concerned. Over the past 3 years, the SEI has developed a multi-pronged approach for its educational outreach in information assurance, with the goal of increasing the educational information assurance capacity. While the focus is primarily on information security and information assurance, the SEI also includes related software engineering areas (e.g., process improvement) that are areas of core competency for the SEI and for which the SEI offers workshops for faculty and others.