Readout: National Cyber Director Visits Howard Community College, Celebrates Groundbreaking of New Workforce Development and Trades Center

Community Colleges across the DMV convened to exchange ideas on best practices to improve access to good-paying cyber jobs.

September 30, 2024

Today in Columbia, Maryland, National Cyber Director Harry Coker, Jr. addressed community colleges across the DC Metropolitan (DMV) area that convened to exchange ideas, develop relationships, and identify best practices to build America’s cyber workforce. Howard Community College (HCC) hosted today’s Community College Cyber Workforce Forum, which aimed to enhance opportunities for DMV job seekers to pursue good-paying, meaningful jobs in cyber. After the forum, Director Coker gave the keynote address at the groundbreaking ceremony for HCC’s new Workforce Development and Trades Center (Center).

Throughout the day, Director Coker talked in-depth about the opportunity to strengthen national security and increase economic prosperity by building the Nation’s cyber workforce. There is a strong demand for cyber talent in the DMV. Over 129,000 DMV residents are currently employed in cyber careers, yet there are still almost 67,000 open cyber jobs in the area, including over 14,000 open jobs in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area where today’s forum was held.

Director Coker joined a listening session with seven HCC students to hear about their pathways to cyber. He also toured HCC’s cyber facilities and saw demonstrations from faculty of how their cyber lab provides hands-on training to develop critical skills that make graduates strong job candidates.

Director Coker applauded HCC’s emphasis on hands-on learning and innovative industry partnerships and apprenticeships that provide students with work-based learning opportunities. In partnership with AT&T, HCC’s Catapult registered apprenticeship program provides students with an earn-while-you-learn alternative to a traditional degree. The apprenticeship was the first IT apprenticeship in Maryland and was one of the first to allow apprentices to get their security clearance during the program, eliminating a barrier to starting work after graduation. At the forum, community college educators, students, employers, and state Government leaders discussed best practices for community colleges’ cyber workforce training, shared their experiences developing work-based learning programs, and explored how their institutions can maximize the benefits of the National Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity (NCAE-C) program managed by the National Security Agency.

Director Coker was joined at the forum by Maryland Secretary of Labor Portia Wu, who provided a keynote on trends in the cyber workforce and the ways Maryland is investing in growing its cyber talent. The investments made by the state of Maryland are also complemented by funding by the Biden-Harris Administration as part of the Investing in America Agenda.

Additionally, Assistant National Cyber Director for Technology Security Anjana Rajan spoke about ONCD’s work to encourage the adoption of memory-safe programming languages, part of a broader effort to go “Back to the Building Blocks” and secure the foundation of the internet. Director Coker encouraged the community colleges present to consider including memory safe programming languages in their curricula.

At the groundbreaking after today’s forum, Director Coker applauded HCC’s commitment to designing its new Center to incorporate cybersecurity modules into skilled trades occupational training across a range of disciplines. All programs housed in the new Center will teach students how to identify and respond to potential threats within their trades, a recognition that cybersecurity is not something just for IT staff to handle, but rather is a critical part of every job function across all industries. These visits have been part of the implementation of the Biden-Harris Administration’s National Cyber Workforce and Education Strategy (NCWES), which was released in July 2023. The strategy lays out a whole-of-nation approach to inspiring, recruiting, and training a strong pool of skilled cyber talent that can fill the nearly half a million currently open cyber roles. Director Coker noted that cross-discipline approach demonstrated by HCC is one of the best practices promoted by the NCWES.

“We are just over a year into implementing the National Cyber Workforce and Education Strategy, and we know we still have work to do,” said Director Coker. “We need more Americans to see cyber careers as attainable to them, whatever their background or circumstances. Today, we’re taking an important step with this groundbreaking, this convening, this dedication to the students and the future in Howard County.”

Another best practice reflected at the Center and in HCC’s programs is a skills-based approach to hiring, which shifts the focus away from whether a candidate has a degree to whether they have the skills to complete the job. HCC’s focus on hands-on training at the Center through its registered apprenticeship programs provide real-world experience so that graduates can be job-ready on day one after they graduate.

“I’ve talked to many students here today, and hundreds more across the country, that understand that a career in cybersecurity is one with purpose, one that allows you to keep your community safe, one that contributes to not only our Nation’s security – but also protects our economic prosperity and technological innovation,” said Director Coker. “My hope for the future is that students who learn in this Center see a path to service in the Federal Government. Because we need you. And I hope that the value of their skills is recognized by public and private sector employers in all parts of the Nation.”

The Director’s full remarks at the groundbreaking are available here.

The Federal Government is doing its part to support this work:

• At the groundbreaking, Director Coker announced that last week, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) awarded HCC a $200,000 grant as part of the Regional Alliances and Multistakeholder Partnerships to Stimulate Cybersecurity Education and Workforce Development program (RAMPS program). The funding will support apprenticeships in the cleared sector, as well as the establishment of a cyber clinic to provide nonprofits in Howard County with cybersecurity support.

• In August 2024, the state of Maryland received almost $23 million from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Apprenticeship Building America Initiative. This funding will help connect more than 7,000 job seekers with new registered apprenticeship opportunities, including in tech and cyber jobs.
• In April 2024, the Office of Personnel Management announced their plan to transition the IT occupational series to a skills-based approach, impacting about 100,000 Federal positions. Efforts are underway to expand this approach to cyber, tech, and AI roles across the Federal Government, including Federal contracts.

Earlier this month, the Office of the National Cyber Director in partnership with the Office of Management and Budget and Office of Personnel Management, announced Service for America. This hiring, recruiting, and engagement sprint is aimed at preparing our country for a digitally-enabled future by connecting Americans to good-paying, meaningful jobs in cyber, technology, and artificial intelligence (AI), including through an expansion of best practices like skills-based hiring and work-based learning. In line with the NCWES, Director Coker emphasized the importance of implementing best practices like those seen at HCC and throughout his travels to remove barriers and broaden pathways to connect more Americans to good-paying, meaningful jobs in cyber.